My name is Callie!

Callie is an 8 year old mixed breed, we think of golden retriever and brittany spaniel though we have no way of knowing for sure. She weighs about 50-55 lbs and is endearingly squat for her size. She is mild-mannered, mellow, and unassuming with a spirit and joie de vivre that shines through to those who really know her. She is well-socialized and friendly to all, but having lived with just 1 owner for almost all of her life, she may take a few days to open up and truly warm to her new person. But when it happens, it will feel all the more sweeter because you will feel like she's given you a very special gift.

As a very young puppy, good samaritans saw Callie being thrown out of a car. She was luckily unhurt when they found her, and a neighbor adopted her. She had a quiet but loving life with her dad for 8 years. Unfortunately, he lost his job and while he tried to keep Callie for as long as he could, he eventually had to give her up when the only job he was able to find was a hauling job on the road.

Callie is very easy going and tolerant. But she tends to keep to herself in the beginning. Probably it's because after almost 8 years, she's not sure what's going on in her life. And having had a single owner all her life, she tends to bond mostly to 1 person, though she is certainly gets along with everybody she meets.

After just a few days, Callie has quietly stolen my heart. She now gives me the occasional gentle licks, likes to nuzzle her face against my neck, and follows me around everywhere. Callie is the kind of dog who thinks everybody is all right but who loves only her special people. And when she shines that gentle love on you, you will feel the vulnerability behind her calmness and easy smile, and you'll want to do all within your power to protect and cherish her.

Callie is housetrained, well-behaved, great on leash, great off-leash, and rides well in the car. She's generally very calm but loves to fetch and will bring the ball back. She'll sometimes drop it at your feet and then start barking, telling you to throw it already! Speaking of which, Callie is a talker. If you bark at her or say "Woof woof!," she barks back at you. Callie does eventually play with other dogs but it takes a couple of weeks for her to get into this groove. She sometimes makes little growly noises when she plays and other dogs aren't quite sure what to make of that at first, so they too are a little stand-offish in the beginning. Callie would be fine living with other dogs (she lives with 3 other dogs at our house) but probably would not interact with them very much. She prefers playing fetch and tug with humans!

Callie isn't a couch potato but she's mellow around the house and has no problem just settling down. She can be quite playful with fetching and can certainly keep up if you want to go for a good long walk or hike.

The first thing Callie does when I let her outside in the morning is to flop down on the driveway or grass, roll over on her back, and do a little wiggly dance, with all four paws in the air! Then she likes to talk a little, “Wooo wooo wooo, woo woo, woo wooo wooo wooo.” Then it is off for a walk with the resident dog. Callie is no nonsense on the walk. If my boy tries to stop and sniff, Callie just pulls him right along, as if to say, “Come on come on! We don’t have all day!” She walks very well off-leash as well, preferring to go up a little ahead but always stopping and turning around to make sure you catch up with her.

Callie normally has longer hair, similar to a border collie. She is often shaved during the warmer months which she seems to prefer. If you prefer to keep her hair long, she will need regular grooming.

Callie does have a condition called hypothyroidism, which means that her thyroid level is low. The most apparent result is lowered metabolism. However this is easily managed with a pill in her food twice a day (about 20 cents per day) and blood tests once or twice a year to check her levels. And by the way, she loves food!

Callie was also diagnosed with mast cell tumor. As it turns out, she had 3 growths on her body for several years which had been misdiagnosed as benign fatty tissue by previous vets. When we got her earlier this year, we had them examined and they turned out to be mast cell tumors. MCT can be very aggressive but Callie had been living with hers for many years and is still as healthy as can be. She has since had surgery to remove the tumors as well as chemotherapy as a precaution. She has had numerous blood tests, a urine test, chest x-ray, and abdominal ultrasound, which have all been normal. At this time, she is unaffected by the cancer and only requires periodic blood work and prednisone, a low-cost pill, every other day. We are hopeful about her future, and that is the only reason we are even considering adopting her out. (Believe me, it would be a lot easier for me emotionally if I could just keep her because I love her so much, it is hard to imagine our home without her now). **There is more information about her condition near the end of the page.**

Because Callie is so good-natured and well-behaved, having friends and family over, going for walks, hikes or car rides, to the park or local coffee shop will always be a pleasant and more enjoyable experience with Callie by your side. Once she bonds to you, she will be the consummate loyal companion, your shadow and side-kick.

Callie is so unassuming and undemanding that ultimately you want to give her the world. She is docile and responsive with very few (if any) bad habits, yet she has a spirit and silliness that will make you laugh and brighten your day. She's a little bit of sunshine.

Callie is currently being fostered in ANTIOCH. If you are interested in adopting her, please email to request an adoption application. There is a $200 tax-deductible adoption fee. A homecheck will be required to ensure each dog goes to an environment best suited to them. Callie is part of our foster-to-adopt program.



















For lots more pictures of Callie, visit:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3362452706069.2121751.1411640354&type=1&l=921017aee6

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Callie's Cancer

Many people are terrified when they hear the c-word, so I wanted to provide as much information about Callie's case as possible so that any potential adopter fully understands what her condition entails.

Callie has mast cell tumor. All dogs normally have mast cells in their body which help them to respond to allergies and inflammation. It is when these cells begin to multiply in excess that they become a risk.

Callie has had 3 lumps on her body for several years. A fairly large one on her chest, a smaller one near her groin, and another near her left thigh. Her previous vets diagnosed them as benign fatty tissues based on a physical exam, so nothing was ever done about them. It wasn't until she came into our care that those lumps were aspirated with a needle. A biopsy determined that they were in fact mast cell tumors.

Mast cell tumors can be very aggressive. It's not uncommon for them to crop up like mushrooms, one after another after another, and sometimes dogs die very quickly after a new tumorous growth is detected. Some tumors are considered benign (grade 1, stage 1) while others very malignant (grade 3, stage 3) but most of them will fall in the middle of "we're not sure" (grade 2, stage 2). That's where Callie's tumors fall. Luckily for Callie (and us), her tumors did not seem to be that aggressive, considering she lived for years and years with them with no health affects whatsoever. Our vet actually suggested that we not treat the cancer at all because given her history, he felt there was a good chance she would continue to live a healthy and long life.

As a precaution though (because once you know Callie, you can't help but do everything you can for her), we opted to have those 3 tumors surgically removed by a specialist. The tumor on her left leg was found to have metastasized to the lymphnode there but that lymphnode was also removed.

Following surgery was a 12-week chemo treatment of vinblastine performed by Dr. Atwater, an oncologist at Encino East Bay Veterinary Specialists in Walnut Creek. She suffered no ill effects during the treatment and had her blood levels checked before each session to ensure all was well.

Callie has had the following tests, which were all normal:
- chest xray
- abdominal ultrasound
- urine tests
- blood tests

Also, her mitotic index was 0. This index measures the rate at which cancerous cells are dividing. The higher the index, the faster the cells are dividing and the faster the cancer spreads. Callie's index was 0, the lowest possible score, so that is further great news. More info on mitotic index here: http://www.dogcancerblog.com/dog-cancer-decisions-in-the-gray-zone/

There is additional chemo treatment that can be done in the form of an oral medication called Kinavet (or Palladia). At first we considered continuing Callie on this but after much consideration decided against it since statistics have shown that it is not that effective in many cases and the cost outweighed its questionable benefits.

At this time, the only treatment Callie is getting for her cancer is prednisone, which is an oral pill that we just add to her food. She gets it once every other day. It is a low-cost drug that can actually be purchased at Costco or other local or online pharmacies.

We have done everything in our power to provide the best possible care for Callie during her time with us. Beyond the medical treatment, we feed her (as we do all our dogs) a natural, homemade diet of fresh meats and vegetables as well as natural immune-boosting supplements. She also gets plenty of exercise during our 2 off-leash outings at the regional park every day so she is in peak shape.

If you didn't already know, you would have no idea there was any health issue going on with Callie, which is probably why her mast cell tumors were misdiagnosed for so long. Callie is in better shape than many "healthy" dogs I've seen.

So what does this mean for her future? Well, not much different than any other dog really. We've provided her with all the medical care we feel she needs at this time and have waited until this point to adopt her out so that her new guardians would not have not much to do beyond giving her thyroid pills and prednisone and the occasional blood work. As with any dog, it would be a matter of just monitoring her for any change and keeping an eye out for possible new lumps.

Callie has been an absolute trooper throughout her treatment. I've taken her to the vet office over a dozen times and she's always been so good-natured about it, even though I know she doesn't enjoy it. I wish all my dogs were this easy-going! It's a nice change to have a vet visit be so stress-free.

Callie has stolen my heart, which is ironic because when she first came to me, I thought she was quite aloof and that we might not bond as strongly as I've done with other dogs. She is the first foster dog in almost 5 years I've considered adopting permanently. As much of an inconvenience it was for me to take her to her chemo treatments every 1-2 weeks, I didn't mind because it was an excuse to keep her with us longer.

If I was certain that Callie only had a year or less to live, I would keep her without any hesitation. She is the ideal 4th dog for our family, which I could not say for any of our prior foster dogs no matter how wonderful they were. Callie just "fits." So why don't we just keep her? I've asked myself that a lot, especially lately. And the answer is what it's always been. When I began to foster dogs, I knew I couldn't save them all, but I made a pledge to help as many as I could. We already have 3 dogs of our own. With a 4th dog, that would mean I could no longer take in new dogs because I just would not have the resources, time, or energy to care for a 5th dog appropriately. It would be breaking a promise I made to myself on behalf of so many dogs.

And so I decided that I would put Callie's adoption ad up when her chemo treatment was over. Her last chemo treatment was today. I cried on the drive home. If it turns out that there is no better home for Callie out there than ours, then we would feel blessed to call her our own. But for the sake of all our dogs, present, past and future, I hope we are able to find an individual, couple or family who will appreciate and embrace Callie as much as we have. Give her a few weeks and you will be surprised and delighted at just how loyal and special this sweet, silly girl can be.

P.S. Big plus if you live near Antioch, so we can dogsit her for you :)

Make a Donation: Like so many other grassroots, volunteer-based rescues, the medical expenses of one dog can wipe out our entire bank account. Callie's medical care has cost us over $5,000 so far. If you are unable to adopt her but have a few dollars to spare, please consider donating to her medical fund. 100% of all donations are spent strictly on medical care for our dogs. Donations are tax-deductible.

You can donate through Paypal through this link:
Paypal Donation

Or send a donation by mail to: Walkin' the Bark Rescue, 4464 Lone Tree Way #1064, Antioch CA 94531