Puppy Mill Survivor: Cole's Story

Many people stop at those adorable little doggie stores and look at those adorable little puppies in the window...this is the story of a dog that lived in a puppy mill and produced many of those adorable little puppies and his journey.

It was in the March of 09 when I first met the group of labs who were rescued and then him, Cole. I was taking my current 18 month old puppy Lucy to her daycamp facility in Maryland. I got out of the car and all I saw were labs in front of me in the kennels. Some were barking at me, some were frantically pacing back and forth, some would run from the outside of the kennel to the indoors, obviously frightened. I asked what was going on, did they book all their kennels? I was told no, that a puppy mill had been raided in Sussex Virginia. About 100 dogs were seized in total. These 20-30 dogs were the labs that a local Lab Rescue group were bringing in to be adopted out.

They arrived last night, and the employees wanted to give them the best. They laid blankets down for them to lay on, had food in bowls for them to eat out of, they wanted to hold them, pet them, love them. But they quickly realized the labs were not too keen on all their hard work. In fact, the dogs were completely terrified. They had never seen a blanket before, never ate out of a bowl, never been held, petted or given treats. Never been walked on leash, or had any form of love or affection from any human. Some were held in crates so small they couldn’t turn around in. Their diet consisted of bread and water only, to which they had to fight for. Many were scared, overwhelmed and severely traumatized. The life that they knew was changed forever. My heart went out to them. It was so upsetting to see these labs scared, severely underweight, pacing nervously around in their kennel.

Every day after I dropped Lucy off and before I picked her up, I would walk up and down the isle by the kennels. I would put my hand out and speak to them softly. Some would come up to me, some would bark at me and run, one quietly sat there with his back to me, he slowly looked up at me. His eyes were dead like, lifeless, soul-less. He was miserable and had a miserable hellish existence. His coat was dull and very thin, he hung his head down, as if he had given up on life. He had a few fresh cuts on his head, I asked what happened, and apparently one of the other dogs attacked him on their way here. He was quiet, as if waiting, for whatever fate had in store for him. He was a black lab and I thought how I wanted one before I got my Lucy. I put the thoughts aside, I couldn’t afford another dog. It would be too much for me. But he caught my attention. He reminded me of my black lab Max I had growing up.

A few days later, I heard that the lab rescue place was looking for fosters. I had some interest. If they could pay for the day care and any medical costs, I could certainly provide the food. I heard back that they would agree to the set up. I spoke with the coordinator about my fostering, my dog Lucy and my living situation. She agreed fostering would work, but Lucy would have to be involved in the set up. I agreed Lucy would need to pick out the dog.

To give a background on Lucy, she was another dog I rescued from an abusive neighbor. They had taken her away from her mother and littermates when she was three weeks old. They then slapped her, threw her, and from what I could tell when I first got her, shoved or kicked her down the stairs. I rescued her when she was 2 months old. She had started to show signs of the abuse, I was working with a trainer on her behaviors. She is a Lab/ Rottweiler cross, all black, narrow built and 60lbs of solid muscle. She is more of a mellow laid back dog, medium to low energy. I learned very quickly her instincts were always right on about people and other dogs. She isn’t a dominate dog, nor is she submissive, she is independent. The coordinator suggested we get a male lab, a female may be a threat to Lucy as she was already established in the household.

On April 20^rd, I picked up Lucy and we, with the coordinator, walked down the isle where the labs were to pick out a foster for us. Lucy stopped at the first kennel, wagged her tail, and looked at me as if to say ‘he’s nice’. She did the same thing with the next and the next. The coordinator thought this was a great sign, that Lucy would be compatible with any of them. I told the coordinator, no, I was looking for a specific sign from Lucy, she would tell me which one to foster. She then growled at one of the dogs who ran towards us and continued on. Finally, at the 6^th kennel, Lucy stopped, and let out a howl. Her famous play howl. I looked at the coordinator and said ‘we will take this one’. The coordinator looked at me with a sort of amazed/surprised look. She stated she never saw any dog act like Lucy before. I then realized that the one Lucy picked out, was the one that caught my eye. He was the quiet one sitting with his back to me, with the dead like eyes. I couldn’t take him then, I had to fill out some paperwork. A few days went by, and at the daycamp they tested the lab, now named Cole, with Lucy. They were very compatible and played a bit with each other.

I was very excited at the thought of fostering. It was something I had been thinking about. I emailed friends and family that I would be fostering a lab. When I was taking Lucy to and from daycamp, I would make sure I stopped at Cole’s kennel and talk to him. He was always quiet, and just sat there, looking at me with his sad lifeless eyes. I promised him he would have a wonderful life and family from that day on.

Finally, on April 23rd, Wednesday night, I was told I could take him home. I stopped at the pet store to get all the supplies I would need. A bed, harness, food, bowls, toys, and of course, treats. The one thing I knew I could count on with a lab was their love of food.

When I went to pick him up, I got the quick low-down. He was still on meds from being fixed and having a tooth pulled. They estimated his age to be 8-9 yrs old. I asked them how they figured his age, he didn’t have the usual grey hairs on the chin, signaling an older dog. They said they figured it by the plaque on his teeth. I thought this was odd and inaccurate due to his very poor diet. They gave me a bag with some tummy sensitive kibble in it. I was told that none of these dogs were going to be adopted out to any family that had a child under the age of 12. The rescue group didn’t know how the dogs were going to react to children, since they have never been around them. Also, that it would be best to put them in a house with another dog already established. And that was it.

Now it was time to formally meet him. They brought him up, he looked so small, so sad, so very very thin, all of his bones were exposed through his skin. He looked like he would break if I picked him up. He moved low to the ground, he wasn’t used to walking up-right it seemed. His elbows stuck out quite a bit. He walked around nervously, pacing. I got down on his level to pet him and meet him. He came up to me for a second then left to move around. I very slowly put his new harness on, purple. I thought he would look quite handsome in it and purple is a good energy color. He tried to run immediately. He didn’t know what he was attached to and didn’t like it one bit.

I loaded up Lucy in the back of the car, since that was already ‘her space’ we needed to keep it that way for the time being. We walked out the door and he tried harder to get away. He had no idea of what was going on. He tried running away, I quickly got down to his level and called him back to me with treats. It took me about 10 minutes to get him walked around a bit, so he got a little used to the leash. Then we tried to get him in the car; it was a no-go far as he was concerned. I put treats in the passenger seat of the car, hoping he would go for them. I wanted him to get into the car on his own. I didn’t want to pick him up or force him. That might cause more trauma for him. Plus, he has never been carried before and he looked like he could break at any moment. It didn’t work. I then had someone hold his leash and I went in through the driver’s side and tried to lure him in. Still no interest at all. Then I tried treating and treating him while I sat in the passenger side of the car. I then had him follow my hand with a treat in it and I placed the treat on the passenger seat. He ate it. I then, put the next treat a bit further in. He backed-up when I made the movement. So I treated him again at the passenger side door, then treated him another time with it being just inside the car on the seat. He went for the treat, I kept putting the treats down and he kept eating them. I was slowly putting the treats further and further into the car. After another 20 minutes, and many treats, he finally got into the car. When he heard the car door shut, he abruptly turned around. I had tried to shut it as gently as possible, but it as a new noise for him. We all quietly and softly praised him.

On the way home, Lucy was quiet in the back seat, he was quiet in the front. He didn’t look around or sniff around at all. He just sat there completely frozen, looking at me. I spoke softly to him and tried petting him to comfort and soothe him on the ride home.

I was excited to be fostering and giving a dog that was treated so badly a good home and find a great family for him. I felt so bad about what he had been through. I tried to keep all my emotions in check. I knew Lucy could pick up easily on any emotions I had and figured he could also. He was not used to humans and their emotions and if I got excited, he may get more scared. I kept my voice soft and low for him.

When we arrived home, I remember pulling into my car space and thought, “oh my God, what am I doing?”. I had no idea what to do. I had never read up on puppy mill survivors. I had not been told anything by his rescue group as to what to expect, how to handle certain situations, what to do, and what to expect out of him. All I had was a positive attitude, a love for labs, and many hours in front of the TV watching ‘It’s Me or The Dog.’ Lucy was well trained/mannered and I knew I had to be clear on the rules with him also. He didn’t understand human voice commands, so I had to do dog corrections with him.

With Lucy I already learned not to yell or scream. If I got upset at her for something, I had to quickly dissolve my anger or frustration before addressing her. Due to her abuse, she was very sensitive to any screaming, yelling, loud voices or sounds. Plus it was me and her, who was I to yell at anyway?

When I got out of the car, he rushed into the driver’s seat. Using treats, I slowly bribed him out of the car, this took about 10 minutes. He stood there for few seconds, as if to take it all in. We were in no rush. I let him have all the time he needed. I slowly started walking him around the common area in front of my home. He walked very low to the ground and almost at a frantic pace going back and forth. Then he would walk a few steps and stop. Look around and smell the air. I could tell by his expression he was very overwhelmed. It took us about 30 minutes to walk around the small area. He would be darting back and forth, run to the end of his leash. He would look at the leash with fear in his eyes, he didn’t understand what it was. He would stop frequently. I sometimes treated him to get him moving again, but I wanted to make sure this didn’t become a habit. That he would learn to get a treat, all he has to do is stop. If I tugged lightly on his leash to initiate walking, he would look at the leash with a questionable look and fear. I would very softly give him a ‘come on’ command to get him walking again. I was happy that he didn’t try and run away from me.

I finally was able to walk him up to my home. I had plenty of treats in my pocket, thank goodness. I had a screen door then the front door to open. When I opened the screen door, he immediately backed up so far he was almost backed out of his harness. I stopped, sat down on my steps and talked to him softly again, giving him a few treats to approach me. I then very slowly got back up. I reopened the screen door and treated him for staying with me. I then opened the front door, he peered into the house. My door kept coming close, so I had to very slowly move my arm to open it back up. I was straddling the door way, with one arm keeping the screen door open and the other keeping the front door open. He needed as wide of a pathway as I could give him. He had never been through a doorway into a home. He stood there, not knowing what to do. I lowered myself again to his level and treated him, keeping the screen door as far open as I could. I then started throwing treats inside the house. I would get him to inch closer, then he would back up. I would lure him back in again with treats and throw more into the house. After going back and forth for about 20 minutes, I finally got him to creep into the house. I slowly moved behind him, the screen door closing made too much of a noise and made him jump. I very calmly talked to him and treated him again. I slowly moved to the living room and opened the door to my deck. When I had my deck installed, I knew I was going to get a dog soon, so I decided not to put stairs leading to the backyard. This way a dog couldn’t dig their way out of my backyard and get loose. They could be safely on the deck with no worries of escape. He walked around the area, and walked outside to the deck. I had also showed him a crate I had on that floor. Lucy refused to be crated, I believe part of her abuse was either being thrown into the crate or had in some way dealt with the crate. Cole gave it a look of complete disgust, I told him that was ok, I would never push it on him. I had thought since he was used to a crate, he may find comfort in it. Apparently not.

I quickly ran out to the car and got Lucy. I brought her in and watch her react to him. I followed her movements and let her take the lead. She walked into the living room and sat down. I sat right behind her. Cole moved in and out of the living room to the deck and back. He was nervously looking around and pacing back and forth. He was still in a scrunched down position with his elbows sticking out. His head was held low. He tried to mark a few times, as I saw him lift his leg I would give a ‘ack ack’ noise to correct him. He took the correction well and wasn’t upset over it, he understood it. It was clearly evident that he and Lucy were having a conversation. He would look around, look at her, then look at me, then Lucy. He kept pacing. Looking back and forth at Lucy and I.

I really starting looking at him and noticing him. He was in bad shape. He was severely underweight. You could see all of his bones. His shoulder and hip bones were protruding; all his rib bones were in clear view. I always heard the saying ‘he/she is nothing but skin and bones’ but I never truly saw it or felt it until now. He had no muscle mass at all. His tail was bent, due to being kept in a crate for so long. I didn’t know if it has been broken before or just from being in a crate too small for him. His coat was dull and very thin. Not the thick lab coat he should have had. His ears were scarred, either due to fighting for food or scrapping it against his crate. His wounds from being attacked on his way to the daycamp were still evident. He had white hair scattered throughout his face. Although, not on his chin, where black labs usually will get white as they age. It made me question his age. Then I noticed his paws. They were huge. Some of the biggest paws I have ever seen in a lab. They were flat due to being in the crate. It gave me such sorrow and sadness, for dogs will grow into their paws. The larger the paws the bigger the dog will be. I realized he will never grow into those paws, he will never be the dog he was promised to be. His development was seriously stunted due to the very poor diet he was given. He never saw a vet for basic care and never had any of his basic needs met. And his eyes, they were so dead, lifeless. You could tell he just had a miserable hellish existence.

I wanted to make sure he never ever would be treated so horribly again. I promised him he would never be in a crate again and I would find him the best family possible. One that would take care of him and love him, spoil him and give him the kind of life he deserved.

It was getting a bit late, so I made dinner for the dogs quickly. Until he gained the proper weight, he was to be given 4 cups of food a day. Two cups in the morning and two in the evening. I used the kibble provided to me and mixed in with a bit of special canned food. I put his bowl down in front of him. He smelled the food and wanted it so badly, but he was scared of the bowl. He had never seen a shiny bowl, it was all new to him. I thought of food aggression, a behavior many dogs have when they have to fight for their food or are fed with many other dogs. So I very slowly sat down next to him while talking softly to him and giving him praise. I slowly reached my hand into his dish and raise it with food in it. I was paying attention to any sort of growl or rumbling that might have told me to move out of the way. He didn’t make any aggressive moves or growls. He happily ate out of my hand, no grabbing at all. He took the food very gently. After a couple handfuls, I slowly brought my hand so that it was over his food dish. On the next handful, I let some of the food drop back into the bowl. He slowly lowered his head into his bowl and started eating. I cautiously moved to touch him while eating. He made no signs of aggression at all towards me. As if he was happy for the company and the good food.

The next step was to get him to at least go upstairs with me. My stairs to go up were open with only railings on the side. Much more of an open staircase than the downstairs; which was enclosed.

I had Lucy go up first so he could see her. Maybe he would just follow her up the stairs. Wishful thinking on my part, he wouldn’t move towards the stairs.

I thought, what would be a positive fun way for him to get up the stairs? How can I get him up the stairs with him not noticing it? He needed to be encouraged and rewarded as he went, giving him more incentive to continue up the stairs. We already established he loves treats, it gave him instant reward and gratification.

So, I grabbed some treats and started blindly out. I first sat on the bottom step and treated him, giving him praise. I then moved up a step and praised/treated him again for moving toward me. I then moved up the next, he had to put his paws on the first step. He was focused on the treat that was before him and didn’t even notice he put his front paws on the step. I moved up another one, and he stopped. He went back down to the floor. I tried the same technique again, with the same result. I could get his first front legs on the step but not the back. I then put the treats all over each step as I slowly walked up, basically had him eating his way up the stairs. He finally got to the first landing on the steps, saw me at the top of the stairs, became scared and scurried back down. I tried it again and then again. I then decided to treat the stairs again and I would be out of his sight. He would have his space to go at his own pace. I waited for him in my bedroom upstairs. It took a few minutes but finally, his head emerged from the stairs. I had laid treats in the hallway going down to my bedroom. I very softly gave him more praise and a few more treats.

I showed him the bedroom where we will all be sleeping. I had a bed for him up there already. He walked in and looked around, I then encouraged him to go near his bed. He moved around it and smelled it, but he wouldn’t get on it. He was too afraid of it and had no idea what it was. That was fine, I praised him for going near it and sniffing.

I showed him the other bedrooms, one of the bedrooms I told him is the ‘dog’s den’. I had a futon laid out, with a feather mattress on top, with a comforter plus a thick blanket. He sniffed all around it. I encouraged him to jump up on the bed, he sniffed some more and jumped up. I realized he picked up Lucy’s scent on the futon. Cole slowly laid himself down on it and gave me the most thankful, grateful, sweetest look ever. As if to say, ‘I have never laid on something so soft and wonderful’. He looked at me in the eyes, and gave me a very loving look. I told him that this was his and Lucy’s to lay on at any time.

I would pet him as much as I could. He was sensitive to human touch. He would cringe and act startled every time I touched him and anywhere I touched him. I didn’t want to overwhelm him anymore. I could tell right away he was even more sensitive to his legs and paws being touched. I didn’t want him to feel smothered or pressured in any way. I gave him some time up in his new room while I ate my dinner downstairs. I wanted him to have some space and get used to the surroundings. I knew Lucy was up there and was keeping him company.

One thing I realized quite quickly is that Cole had an amazing ability to back up in a straight line. That is one of the hardest things for a dog to learn, because the dog can’t see behind himself. Cole can back up in a perfect line. Unfortunately he learned that by backing up out of his crate. It told me he was kept in a crate that was too small for him, he was unable to move around at all in it.

It was then time to move to the downstairs for a potty walk before bedtime. I laid out a few treats for him, and had Lucy go first again. He would look at the stairs and back up. I had to keep throwing treats to him to get him near the stairs. He would eat a few then back up. I threw him a few more and went down to the main level where Lucy was, laying treats all over the stairs. We went into the living room to wait for him. Eventually after about 10 minutes he made his way down the stairs. Lucy was very patient with him as he walked around the living room some more.

I grabbed the leashes and put Lucy’s on first for Cole to see what was going to happen next. If I tried to approach him with the leash visible in my hands, he would cringle and run away. I then went to Cole’s level and kept my arms behind my back. I slowly then brought my arms down to my side, leaned in to him a bit, very slowly moved my one arm back behind him, as if I was giving him a hug, then I attached his leash. He went out the door with great hesitation. I had to make sure I stood in the middle again, clearing the path for him. I was holding the screen door open with one arm and the door with the other, trying to manage his and Lucy’s leashes at the same time. It took a few minutes, but he finally just decided to make a run for it. And run he did. He ran out of the door fast, ran down the 3 steps and spun around quickly. I had to move just as quick to not pull at his harness. He stood there and looked at the door, in horror, not understanding at all.

It was Lucy’s and Cole’s first walk together. Cole still did the darting back and forth. It would take him a bit to get used to walking on a leash. As he relieved himself, I said the word “potty” to him. I have Lucy trained to that word, when she hears it she knows she is to do her ‘business’. Afterwards, it took me another 15 minutes to get him back into the house. I had to let Lucy in first, hoping he would follow. After she was in, she stood in the foyer area and looked at him, as if telling him to just come through the door. I had to get Cole close enough then he would hopefully dash in. I had to straddle the door way first, one arm holding the door open, another holding the screen door open. Treating him to get closer and closer and then throwing treats into the house. This time, Lucy was helping herself to the treats also. Thankfully she isn’t that quick of a mover or eater. Finally, Cole went dashing through the door. I gave him more praise and treats.

I had to get him back up the stairs. So I treated the stairs again and waited inside the bedroom. He came up again, then he went all the way back down. Treated the stairway again, he did the same thing. He wouldn’t come all the way up. I kept trying and finally got him upstairs. He immediately ran to the futon and jumped up on it and laid down. I went over and petted him and softly told him he was a good boy and I was glad he liked his new ‘couch’. He then gave me his first of many labby kisses I was to receive.

I decided to keep his harness on just in case we had to leave the house quickly in the middle of the night. This would be his first time sleeping in a home. I tried to get him on his bed again in my room. No luck, he would sniff at it but he was be too scared and didn’t understand it. That was fine. I watched him walk around the room and he found a spot to lay down. Lucy slept with me on the bed. Sleeping with pack leader is a big thing with dogs. You have to earn your way to that sleeping spot. It is a reward to sleep with pack leader. I knew I couldn’t have him up on the bed yet, Lucy would be furious and insulted.

For the first time in his life, Cole had a full tummy, a warm place to lay his head and unconditional love. Life has never been so good.