Baron the blind and deaf puppy
We received an email and photos from an employee at the Josephine County animal control shelter in Grants Pass, Oregon, about a blind and deaf stray puppy they thought was a Dachshund/Beagle mix. No one had come to claim him, and no one was interested in adopting him. The employee, Kelly G., asked "if you guys could help out, because of limited space, we cannot keep him here."
Our first thought on hearing "Dachshund/Beagle mix" was...Widget! Could there be another one out there?
When we opened the photos, though, we said "Well, that's NO Widget! He sure is cute, but we don't have any idea what he is!"
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Steve was already en route to Washington State University's veterinary teaching hospital in Pullman, Washington with one of our blind horses, so we arranged to meet someone from the shelter in Bend, Oregon. A couple who volunteers for the shelter in Grants Pass, Barbara and Ron, then dropped what they were doing on a moment's notice and drove this sweet boy to Bend. We named him 'Baron," after these special folks, and it fits this distinguished-looking little fellow perfectly.
So what is Baron, exactly? Well, that remains a mystery. We've had lots of great suggestions on our blog. We think Dachshund/Brittany spaniel might be the closest guess. But here's what we know for sure: Baron is adventurous, playful and spirited, in spite of his significant disabilities.
We've often found that animals who are born blind, or blind and deaf in Baron's case, are very self-confident because they don't know the world isn't a dark place. Baron is a great example of this fearlessness—he is an intrepid explorer! He discovered how to wiggle through the fencing around the dog paddocks, and then he takes off to explore the ranch. We've never had any other dogs try that, even those who can see!
Baron likes to snuggle, too. Because he's blind and deaf, he can't always read doggy social cues, so he doesn't understand that not everyone likes to snuggle! Dolly, our old Dobie mix who cherishes her private space, growls at Baron every time he lies down next to her. ("Leave me alone, kid!") Baron, of course, can't hear her growling at him, and he just wants to be a love-bug with his Aunt Dolly. Dolly finally will get tired of growling at the non-responsive youngster ("Kids these days! They never listen!") and get up to move away.
But what Baron loves to do most is play with his disabled doggy friends at the ranch. He is always seeking out someone for playtime. To see how a blind-and-deaf dog can enjoy romping and roughhousing, see our video of Baron playing with blind Widget here.
Posted September 2007
