Out Of The Blue At Sky High
"Huck"

Above photos by Diane Lewis, taken September 2004



Huck in April 2006 (left) and February 2008 (right)


Huck 8 days before he died, just short of his 12th birthday

Huck is the rescue that was only supposed to be transported - but he quickly wormed his way into my heart and never left. His story is heartbreaking - in February 1997 BSCA Rescue was notified about 5 Groenendael puppies that had been confiscated from their breeder by the Greensboro NC Humane Society for extreme neglect. They and their sister and many other dogs were living in urine and feces-filled crates in a van. They were matted to the skin, emaciated, and encrusted in dried urine and feces, and at 9 months of age weighed between 28 and 33 pounds (as a comparison, my latest Terv puppy weighed 42 pounds at 4 months of age). Terv owner Maury Mills of Raleigh NC offered to spring them from the shelter, and on the way from the shelter to her house they broke out in raging parvo. Their sister, whom the breeder refused to turn over to Rescue, died at the shelter the next day. Maury spent the next weeks shuttling the puppies between her regular vet during the day and the emergency vet at night, as they had to be kept on IVs. It was touch and go for quite a while if they would live, and the vet bills were over $5000.

In March 1997 I drove from NJ, where I was living at the time, to NC for a job interview and offered to transport any puppies that were going to foster homes in the north. Only one was - Huck - who was headed to foster care with a Malinois breeder on Long Island, NY. She couldn't meet me right away as she was tube-feeding a litter of puppies, so Huck stayed with me a day or so. My heart went out to this poor puppy, so badly abused and neglected, yet trusting enough to lie on his back in my lap while I scissored mats off his belly (he was so matted that I couldn't find his testicles at first, and was afraid I'd neuter him if I used clippers instead of scissors). There was something special about him, so I called BSCA Rescue and asked if I could keep him for good.

I wish I could say he bounced back and is normal, but I can't. It took him a few days to learn how to run again, and he now flies effortlessly around the yard. It took over a year for him to learn how to play ball, but he is now a very avid retriever. His once feces-encrusted matted coat is now luxurious and shiny, and he adores being brushed. He is "King of the Waterbed" and loves to snuggle with me. But he has not mentally overcome the abuse and neglect he suffered at the hands of his breeder those first 9 months. The only people who can treat him like a "normal" dog are me and my father. Even people he has known and sees on a regular basis since I moved to SC can not just walk up and pet him. This includes the friend who comes over and feeds him when I am away. He will back away with a look of apprehension and distrust in his eyes if anyone other than me or my dad reach out to pet him. I can only imagine what horrors he must have gone through at the hands of his breeder to get these reactions so many years later. And one of his brothers fled in terror at the sight of a brush, a sure sign that he was horribly abused with one at some point.

I also wish I could tell you that his breeder, Susan L. Clark of Stellar Kennels in Arizona, is in jail somewhere, or at least forbidden to own dogs, but I can't do that either. The Humane Society could not press charges because the law required them to have custody of the dogs until the trial, and the shelter workers knew they would be dead long before that and needed to get out of the shelter and receive proper care and attention. The AKC and UKC refused to do anything, even when presented with photos and information of the abuse and neglect, because the breeder was not convicted of anything. So she is still owning and showing dogs and as of this date is still listed on UKC's site as a UKC obedience judge. And is apparently now into herding trials with Kelpies. She has been contacted on many occasions and asked to reimburse BSCA for the thousands of dollars they spent cleaning up her mess but has refused, and in fact does not think she did anything wrong!!!

Huck lived the life of luxury here at Sky High Belgians - he'd stay home and keep the sofa cushions in line while the other dogs were out interacting with people and doing competitions - yet he always got his share of the toys and treats they brought home. He was lost to kidney failure just a few weeks shy of his 12th birthday and has left a big empty space both on the furniture and in my heart.

Click here for photos of Huck right after I got him
Click here to see Huck relaxing at home
Click here to see Huck's brothers, Chess and Pikey
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