Our special dog's name is Scooby.  Five years ago my son Mike and a friend were driving in the White Mountains of Arizona.  They saw what they thought was a little pig in the road, but when they went to move the "pig" they found it was a puppy that could not see or hear.  Mike being the negative seventeen year old rough, tough, cream puff that he is, brought the dog home!  We have not had a dog for 30 years and to make matters worst I had just found out I had lupus!  

 

Mike made all the typical promises young people make about caring for the dog (none of which he kept). Plus he told us THIS dog would bring love into our family.  We tried to convince Mike this was not a good idea for many obvious reasons, but he would not take no for an answer.  So being the firm parents that we are - we took the dog home to Tucson!!  A four hour drive with this little "piggy" in Mike's lap! 

 

Well Scooby turned out to be a blessing in disguise.  When I was very sick and spent many hours in bed she was always by my side.  She also made me see that she could over come her "disadvantages" and maybe I could adjust to my new health problems too. Mike also was dealing with issues in his life and Scooby turned out to be a real source of comfort for him.  My husband will do anything for this dog.  He even left work to come to the vets when she had a sticker in her paw.  She is his little white princess (she weights 54 lbs.!!) and nothing is ever Scooby's fault according to my husband. She makes us laugh, we take her on hikes and she surely has brought LOVE into our lives!!!

Nancy Hum

Back in January, we had the wonderful opportunity to adopt a beautiful little 3month old Lethal White named Jade. Jade was born completely blind but has near perfect hearing. This was our first puppy, and we were a little nervous about taking on a special needs dog. The first couple of times we watched her walk into a wall or a chair had me in tears. We realized, she was perfectly capable of being a "normal" dog...she just needed extra guidance.

We started to become very vocal with her. She is very active, so we needed to give her opportunities to feel safe to run. We started taking her out to open fields and would have her run back and forth between us following the sound of our voices. She also can play catch! She will bring toy to play a quick game of "tug-of-war", then once we have it, we will throw it, and tell her to 'go get it'. She starts off in little circles, and gradually moves outward until she finds it! The most amazing thing is, she will always bring back the toy that was thrown, even if she comes across one of her other toys. She always knows which one we were just playing with.

Jade has become and absolute joy to our house. She has taught us that she is not disabled, but gifted. She has never had sight, so she doesn't miss it, and people are always surprised to find out she is blind because of her happy outgoing nature.  She has trained us well!

Sincerely,

 

Her "Seeing-Eye" Family

Gene, Ali and Alex Ganssle

ARKANSAS

This "story" was not submitted as a Lucky Lethal Story.  This is an actual email sent to Lorraine, which is a happy ending to yet another story that began in a kill shelter!

  Ice rescued by "Diann H" from a kill shelter in Iowa (now residing in Arkansas)

Dear Lorraine,

 

Thank you for forwarding to me the "URGENT" memo regarding "Ice", the deaf Lethal White Aussie that was in the "Kill Shelter" in Waterloo, Iowa.  I went to Iowa this weekend, picked him up at Diann's,  and brought him back here to Langley, Arkansas where he will live out the rest of his life with me and the rest of our "pack" of once homeless and abandoned creatures. Ice is a wonderful dog. He has already made friends with the other seven dogs, and is behaving himself (as well as a year old pup can). He withstood the 14 hour car ride to Arkansas quite well, with the aid of a few bites of the  McDonald's "Quarter Pounders" and french fries that he managed to "talk" me out of during the trip. He had to have his first good bathing immediately upon our arrival, as he was smelling a little bad from his stay in the shelter, and he cooperated really well. It was late when we finally got to our home in Arkansas, so we went straight to bed after the bath. Sometime during the night, Ice apparently decided that the spot on the carpet right next to my bed where he had chosen to sleep wasn't good enough, so he climbed up on the bed and made himself at home. I awakened sometime during the night to find myself sharing part of my pillow with a still damp doggie. I figured that he had been a little chilly and decided that the bed would be a bit warmer. I didn't mind, and just tucked the covers in around his darling, furry neck, and went back to sleep. I am going to attach a photo that I took of Ice this morning, it will probably take forever to download, as it was taken with my Kodak DX3700 digital camera using the highest resolution setting (it takes up more memory space, but the photos come out much better). As you can see in the photo, Ice is really a beautiful pup, and I can't thank you enough for introducing him to me. I still miss my Little Gus, but now that Ice has been rescued from the shelter and been brought into my (our) life, Little Gus's terrible demise has  produced at least one good thing! His death has saved the life of another Lethal White Aussie who otherwise might have been put to sleep. Had I not met and loved Little Gus, I never would have been introduced to these unfortunate creatures. I just wish that I had the money to save ALL of the abandoned and un-loved furry creatures that are put down each and every day in our cruel world, but I don't. I do help the one's I can though, and if everyone else would sacrifice just a little of their time and money too, maybe all of those poor and unfortunate creatures could experience the joy of being loved. It breaks my heart to think of even one helpless little puppy, kitten, or any other creature suffering and dying without being loved by someone. They are the truly "innocent" ones, and should be cherished instead of ignored and neglected.  Maybe someday in the future we will evolve into a more caring and understanding human race who recognizes that even the smallest of God's creatures deserve the respect that all living "beings" are entitled to. Please keep up the wonderful work you are doing. I hope that you can continue to find wonderful "forever" homes for these Aussies that are brought to your attention, and hopefully, once people learn about Lethal Whites, people will learn not to breed the Merles together and produce litters of these blind and/or deaf puppies! Have you ever thought of contacting the folks that produce "Animal Planet" (a satellite TV channel all about animals)? Perhaps they would be willing to produce a show about these Aussies, and that would certainly expand the public knowledge regarding the pitfalls of breeding Merle Aussies. It might even help with the adoption of existing Lethals that still need forever homes. It was just a thought. I am going to close for now, as I must go and "show off" my new boy! Thanks again (and again, and again!)

  

Warm Regards,

 

Mark Hansen, (and the "Furs": Ice, Pitchpatch, Bootsie, Queenie, Bonnie, Rusty, Coalie, Spottie, Purris and Spooky-Padooky)

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CALIFORNIA

MOUSE

Last year an accidental Merle-to-Merle breeding resulted in the birth of 2 Lethals: a little girl who could see and hear and a little boy who was deaf.  The Breeder (Lynn), who is very responsible and reputable, contacted Mark & Luanna Lawrence (through the Vet who cares for their doggies) for help in finding the little deaf boy a home.  His name is Mouse because he is so very white :-)  Please know that Stormy (the little girl) has a wonderful home with 2 children that love her and think there is no greater dog in the world :-)

Before I continue with Mouse's story, please know that Lynn LOVES all of her litters and does NOT practice or condone Merle-to-Merle breeding...but accidents do happen!  All of her pups are microchipped, including Mouse (with her information) before going to their forever homes.

When Mark contacted me after speaking with Lynn, we were all working on finding him a loving home...and Lynn continued to do the same.  Lynn sent the following email about Mouse to Luanna and gave her permission for us to share with you.

Hi Luanna, (Beautiful name)
The other white girl is fine ~ She can hear and see!  She is in Laughlin, NV. with a wonderful family having two children who love her like there is no other dog in the world as her own private herd. Her name is Stormy.
And the most wonderful thing happened for Mouse. For no apparent reason my Mom mentioned Mouse to the Gentleman that she buys her hay cubes from (Alex) and Alex is a member of a church (in East Bakersfield) that has a sizable deaf and hearing impaired congregation of approximately 60 people. And Alex told the hearing impaired Pastor (Mark) about Mouse, then when Mark told his congregation about Mouse and asked if any one was interested 60 hands went up! Well, to solve the problem of so many families wanting this one puppy they did a ballet on who each person thought should have Mouse and no one could vote for themselves. Anyway the majority of the people voted on a retired deaf Gentleman named Earl who had just lost his 15 year old Deaf Aussie! What a blessing.
So, the Friday before Christmas my 10 year old daughter Jillian and I met Alex, Mark, Marks two sons, and Earl at a feed store in Tehachapi and gave Mouse to Earl. Mark assured me that Mouse and Earl will have all the support of their Church behind them to raise Mouse. And the report I received from Alex yesterday, was that everyone is doing wonderfully.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year.
I look forward to talking Aussie with you in the future,
May God keep you and yours, Lynn

Here are a few pictures (not real good quality, but we'll be getting better ones) of Pastor Mark, Mouse and Mouse & Earl.  Enjoy!!!

Be sure to check back for new pics and updates!

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CALIFORNIA

Cocoa's Story (formerly Kissin' Kate)

Late at night, into early next morning on October 16, 2003, a litter of 8 Australian Shepherds were born in Apache Junction, AZ.  The next day, the breeder called her Vet to schedule an appointment to have 4 tails docked…and 4 pups euthanized.   Lucky for those 4 pups, the Vet was on vacation!  The 4 beautiful pups whose lives were to end, without a second thought, were Lethal Whites (deaf and/or blind in varying degrees), a common result from a Merle-to-Merle breeding.  The “average” percentage is 25%, but in many cases, such as this one, it certainly can be more.

 Enter a kind soul who could not bear to see these pups put to sleep, brings us to the wonderful, heartwarming story of what love, compassion and dedication can accomplish.  This story is about Cheyenne, Dakota and Cocoa…and their loving family, Mark & Luanna Lawrence, who sought professional help when challenged beyond their capabilities.

 Cheyenne is deaf and sight impaired; Dakota has slight sight impairment; Cocoa is deaf and has slight sight impairment.  On 1/31/04, Dakota and Cheyenne were adopted by Mark & Luanna, who made the trip from Rosamond, CA to Mesa, AZ with all canine residents in tow to meet these precious babies.  All went well, and they soon began their new life together.  Not unfamiliar with Aussies, Luanna soon realized that Cheyenne’s deafness did create some obstacles not easily overcome.  Determined to find a solution, Luanna searched for training opportunities that would address her concerns in communicating with a deaf dog.  Luanna & Mark had criteria in mind when selecting a trainer: familiarity with deaf dogs; only positive reinforcement; availability of in-home training; and a trainer that would recognize the potential hidden inside them and appreciate them for what they are capable of.

They found exactly what they were looking for in a trainer when they contacted Uncle Matty, where they met Nikki (Nickol Litwin).  She helped change all their lives!

 While Cheyenne and Dakota were growing up in a loving, secure home, Cocoa (Kissin’ Kate) had already been adopted and returned to foster care, living again with her brother Magnus.  She already had some issues (submissive peeing), but was coming along.  Soon, Cocoa and Magnus were adopted by a wonderful couple who were soon to be married.  Life’s unexpected turns sometimes creates chaos for others involved.  The marriage plans fell through and Cocoa’s life, once again, was in upheaval.  She became too difficult to handle, so she was, once again, in need of a new home.

Enter a wonderful family whose love and dedication made such a positive difference in the lives of 2 sweet Lethals, destined to die, brings us to yet another happy ending for a little girl, confused and bewildered, wondering where exactly she belonged.  No better place than with her siblings and a family very familiar in training a deaf dog!  On 1/11/05, Cocoa was officially adopted by Mark and Luanna and her life was about to change forever!  She has joined Cheyenne and Dakota in their weekly obedience lessons and is doing great.  Nikki thinks she is very smart and is quickly learning what is “expected” of her, even though she has never had to “do” anything she didn’t want to. J

With a little direction and a lot of love and patience, Cocoa is becoming the lady she was destined to be.  There are always options for the deaf dog…sign language; and for the deaf and blind…touch commands.  Don’t give up on the impaired…find a solution!  As a guardian, you owe it to them to let them be the best that they can.  The possibilities are endless!

 Cheyenne, Dakota and Cocoa…in training!

Cyndi Cunico  AussieLads Lethal White Aussie Rescue

Hi Cyndi, I just found the website on "Lethal Whites" recently and am thrilled and thankful there is such a wonderful resource for humans who are blessed to come in touch with one of these dogs.

 

My name is Cheryl Valdez and I adopted my dog Kellen (like "Helen Keller") almost 2 years ago from a no-kill shelter in Denver, Colorado. Kellen was approximately 9 months old at the time.  He is profoundly deaf and 70% blind.  His right eye never developed at all and his left eye has only about 30% sight - per his ophthalmologist.  I had recently lost my beloved German Shepherd after 15 years just  three months prior and was looking for another dog.  When I laid eyes on Kellen in the shelter, I immediately fell in love.  He was strikingly beautiful and pitiful at the same time.  He was quarantined because he had kennel cough.  He had been returned to the shelter twice in the three months he lived there and was very depressed.  I knew nothing about having a deaf and blind dog, but thought I would be a good candidate to have him because I could sign (ASL), am sensitive to deaf culture, have a blind friend and no kids so I could spend lots of time with him.  I thought "I could do this"!  I went back to that shelter everyday for two weeks to make friends and establish a relationship with Kellen.  He was so excited to see me and learned quickly that I was kind to him and paid him some attention.  I knew his nose worked just fine, because he would sniff out the treats in my pockets!  Kellen and I quickly became great friends.  In the meantime, I read everything I could get my hands on about these dogs, met with another human and her dog that is also a deaf/blind Aussie mix and talked to my vet.  I knew if I adopted Kellen and things did not go smoothly, it would not be an option to return him. He would be mine forever regardless of the bumps in the road I may encounter and I would never give him up regardless of his special needs. I get deeply attached and would have the same commitment to any dog that I would end up adopting.  Further, Kellen tended to get picked on by other dogs because they sensed his vulnerability.   I knew the special human that adopts Kellen needed to be sensitive to his needs and give him a safe environment.  I did not think anyone could take care of him as good as I could.  So I took my husband to the shelter to meet Kellen.  My husband was a bit reluctant to adopt him, but supported my decision.  I know now that his reluctance was ignorance despite the fact that he is a animal lover.  He thought Kellen would be "dumb" because he could not hear anything or see very well.  Do we think humans that are deaf or blind or dumb because of their disability? This is a common myth, but I knew different.

 

We adopted Kellen on October 16, 2002.  He adapted very well to his new home.  He now has a safe and loving environment.  Since he cannot see very well, I could not use conventional ASL signs to communicate with him.  I began to use taps and big hand signals which he responded to very well.  I also stomp on the floor and use lights to get his attention. He is very sensitive to vibration and has a keen sense of smell.  Kellen also has a strong herding instinct, so I supervised him carefully around my two cats.  My cats learned quickly that Kellen was different,  but they all became one happy family soon enough.  We enrolled Kellen into a puppy class and he graduated with top honors!  Kellen learned how to shake and sit the first week we had him.  His special needs do not limit his intelligence and strong learning drive and is very eager to please.  Typical of Aussies to be extremely bright. Kellen is very attentive and is reliant on his humans.  He gets lots of touch and massage and loves his teeth brushed. As you can see from his picture, he is very happy and is always grinning with his pink lips!

 

Shortly after adopting Kellen, he developed internal bleeding in his eye.  We learned that he could not play or romp with other dogs because his eye and face would tend to get bumped that would cause the eye bruising/internal bleeding.  A small sacrifice to preserve the limited vision he has, especially since that is all he has.  Kellen's eye has been stable with no problems for over one year now.

 

We have had him almost two years now and my husband has absolutely no regrets adopting him and says Kellen is the best dog we ever had. Kellen is not destructive, does not chew, make any messes, he rides in the car great and is perfect in every way.  He has several jobs that keep him busy.  He loves his fluorescent ball.  He may not be able to see it very well, but he loves to play fetch.  Kellen is lucky to have a big fenced yard to run and play.  He sniffs out the squirrels and Mag Pies birds out of the yard.  In fact, his sense of smell is so good that he knows when I come home before I can make it to the backdoor to greet him.  We play hide and seek with Kellen and he gets a kick out of trying to locate you or the treat you hide for him.  Kellen never lets me forget to give him his eye drop and pill each morning or brush his teeth at bedtime.  Kellen sleeps on the bed and loves to take a bath and be blow-dried.  He loves the Colorado mountain smells and goes often on road trips.  Kellen wears a backpack and leather foot protection when we

hike with him.  He thinks he is so important (which he is to us!!) when he is wearing his gear.  People tell us how lucky Kellen is to have such a good home, but we are the lucky ones.

 

I will definitely seek out another "lethal white" dog when I lose Kellen.  There are so many dogs that need good homes, but especially these dogs that are born with a bad deck of cards against them already. Not every human is willing  to take on the extra responsibility it takes (or worthy) to have a special needs dog.  He was heaven sent.

 

Thanks for letting me tell my story.  I love your website.  

Love and Peace,

Cheryl Valdez and the "Kellenator"

Hi, My name is Grace. In a previous existence I was Karma/Dharma on the SNAP website.

I was rescued in Tennessee off a highway and wound up in Georgia after being rescued by a Veterinary student (now a Doctor) who does a lot of rescue work. She was fostering me and brought me to UGA Veterinary Teaching Hospital to have my eyes and ears checked out. Bad News. We found out that I am totally deaf and partially blind. But Good News! I found my forever Mom that day. My forever Mom works at UGA and saw me in the arms of my foster mom.

My forever parents had an Aussie (which they soon discovered was a Lethal also but could did not have the drastic sight and hearing problems that I have) that had seizures starting at 6 months of age. Luckily she had two parents that loved her and she got to live a good life until the age of 9 years.

My Forever Dad came to meet me and fell in love. Although he had said "No No" to having more dogs or cats (since there were 2 cats and 2 other dogs both Lab Mixes at the home already) he couldn't resist me. I got a Forever Home in May 2003 and got 3 brothers (2 cats and 1 dog) and a sister (the other dog). Now I live in Georgia with my brothers and sister and I am very much loved.

 

"Thank you Monique!"

Love, Grace

 

I think all of you are doing a great job and I hope someday to be in a position that I can adopt more Lethals.

Deb Tillman