More Rolling Dog Ranch Dogs

Dogs in photos, top to bottom:

Travis. He has a fused jaw. His food is blended so that he can slurp it through his lips and teeth. For some time after arriving at the ranch, he had a feeding tube and wore colorful, custom made shirts to protect the incision and tube. Now, all you see is a large scar on the side of his lower torso. He's one of the sighted dogs, and he'll run along the fence line as you walk past, clearly enjoying having something new to get excited about. Since Mark, who took these photos, also happened to have his jaw wired shut while we were visiting the ranch (due to a fall that broke his jaw on both sides), he had a special fondness for this dog. Travis

Blanca. She is a mostly blind (she sees some shapes and shadows) and deaf Great Dane. She's young, and full of energy. She loves to play. As I would walk thought the dog area, scooping poop, some of the wobbly dogs would be following me in their non-linear way, and Blanca would plant herself in front of them in a play bow, making their efforts to reach me even more difficult! Her energy is boundless, and I found myself watching her closely because she invariably leaped or ran right into me as she attempted to get one of the wobbly dogs to play with her. This photo of her reminds me of the Flying Nun - Blanca's ears look like a nun's wimple! Blanca

Emmy Lou. Oh my, what a gorgeous dog. She's blind. She hears, and so knows when someone approaches, and she barks and runs in anticipation. Her well-muscled body tells you she loves to be moving, alerting anyone and everyone to whatever is new in the area. Emmy Lou

These are only three of the amazing dogs at the ranch; in an earlier post I highlighted Smokey. Go to Meet the Animals to see profiles on most all of the animals currently at the ranch. You'll be inspired, I guarantee it.

All photo credits: Mark Ryan, 2007