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Homeless Senior Dog Tries a Gingerbread Cookie for the First Time- Amazing Reaction!
Rocky Kanaka
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Rocky Kanaka (Animal Advocate):
We’re doing something really cool today. I get to meet a grandpa. Now normally be like, oh grandpa, why <laugh>? Why is that cool? It’s a grandpa dog, grandpa Stewart, he’s a Chow Chow. Do you ever do this where you just kind of, you’re flipping through Instagram or you’re on Facebook and, and you just see the, all the alerts about this dog that only has 24 hours to live and you’re like, oh, my heart, and what do we have to do? And you share it with everyone.
Sometimes one just catches you more than the other. And I, I tell you guys all the time, you know, even if you can’t adopt or foster or donate, make sure you share because it makes a difference. I saw this dog, Grandpa Stewart, and his face, I mean his face. And I learned about his backstory. I gotta tell you his backstory.
We have something really cool that we’re gonna do. I’m gonna bake him fresh baked cookies, cuz I guarantee he’s never had treats or cookies. So just wait until you see this homeless senior dog try a dog cookie for the first time. Let’s go meet Grandpa Stewart.
Okay? But first I gotta tell you Stewart’s backstory, it’s a heartbreaker. Someone had him in the back of their pickup truck, swung by the shelter and just discarded him like he was trash. And what’s worse is their serious signs of neglect and abuse. The horrible matting on his fur coat is some of the worst they’ve ever seen and it’s painful for a dog. Look, this is the shelter, just trying to give him some relief and shave him down.
You know, I can’t even begin to understand how someone would just discard a dog like this, just because they’re senior and they’re old when that dog has given them nothing but unconditional love their entire life. And it doesn’t even end there. The vet found BBs inside Stewart’s body because of the painful arthritis in his hips. And everything else that was going on was Stewart. And the shelter doesn’t have a way to facilitate a dog in these conditions.
Unfortunately, a timeline for Stewart was set, but with only hours left, my friend Larissa spotted him. Her and her group of friends rallied, and they found a temporary foster and an organization called a Purposeful Rescue that said, we’ll cover all his cost. And thank goodness, because as soon as they took Stewart out into the yard, you could tell he had more life to live.
When I saw all of this, I knew I had to help. But the real tipping point was when my friend Larissa, who’s a pet rescue expert on the show Home and family on the Hallmark Channel, she sent me a video and, and then I just, I knew I had to do something.
Larissa:
Hey Rocky, it’s Larissa. I’m on set, so I’m gonna make this plea short and sweet. I need your help. I came across an amazing Chow. He’s a senior, he’s an old man. His name’s Grandpa Stewart. He’s located at West Valley Animal Shelter. He was brought in in a pickup truck. They pulled him inside. He did not wanna be seen by the vets there. He was really uncomfortable. And he’s an amazing dog that really deserves a second chance. And I’m hoping someone out there will bring him into their home for either a forever foster or maybe even an adopter.
Rocky:
Okay! So I thought what I do is I get into my bakery and I get suited up. I don’t think you’re the real deal
until you have your apron and your hat on <laugh>. But I thought I’d get in my dog bakery and make up some treats for Stewart. So I’ve got, I’ve got everything laid out. Check this out. Look at this. All right, so we’ve got, I’ve got all my ingredients like cinnamon and honey and ginger, uh, and you can probably guess what ginger and cinnamon would be for all our gingerbread people.
So, uh, I’m making all these holiday cookies. I’m gonna mix everything up. I’m rolling it out. Um, I mean, I’m going, I’m going full out because a dog likes Stewart and everything he’s been through, I don’t want him just to have cookies; I want him to have cookies baked with love.
I dunno, I’m just really, really excited. I’ve got, look, I’ve got Flip here, helping me bake today. Uh, and we’ve got these cool cookie cutters. I smell that. Check it out. Flip approved. Every dog deserves to be loved. And, uh, baking love into holiday cookies, I think is a great way to show that.
My guy Flip here has been a great helper and I think he should get to taste test the first cookie. You ready, buddy? Here you go.
Ok… and Zoei. She has been so patient over here. Here, smaller one!
All the cookies are baked. They’re fresh. I’ve let ’em Cool. I’m gonna pack these up and we’re gonna get these over to Stewart so that he can have his first ever holiday cookie.
<Rocky About to Meet Stewart>
There he is. Look, he’s got a wagon.
So cool… Hi, I’m Rocky.
Stewart Carer:
Hi, I’m Laura.
Rocky:
Lauren nice to meet you.
Laura:
Grandpas too.
Rocky:
Is this Stewart? Grandpa Stewart. Grandpa Stewart.
Laura:
He has a mind of his own.
So apparently Chow’s pads can get really tender and …
Rocky:
Okay. How did you get involved with the Purposeful Rescue?
Laura:
Gosh, I got involved, involved with the Purposeful Rescue with my first little rescue named Oprah.
Rocky:
Okay, a lot of people tell me, well, I couldn’t foster because I’d be so sad when the dog leaves.
Laura:
Right. But it’s really rewarding, like having that dog, seeing them come from like the shelter pet and then watching them transform into like, decompress and like know what the good life is.
Rocky:
Well, and like you’ve heard me say, uh, it’s not always about you <laugh>, right? It’s about the dog. Uh, so that, that’s why you do it. But you, like you said, it’s, it’s very rewarding when you go through that process.
Laura:
Absolutely. Um, just seeing, you know, from start to finish as a foster parent is like one of the most rewarding things I think you can do.
Rocky:
What I love about him is, you know, who knows if anyone ever took him on a walk? And so just Laura having him out here today, this could be a dream come true for him. This is what he loves and he’s getting to do what he loves. Now, you know, he might be 10, 15 years old, who knows, he’s looking like he’s 25 years old, but, but now he’s living his life.
<Grandpa Stewart Barking>
You talking about it? You ready? You ready for some treats? I mean, look at that face. Hit that thumbs up button if you think this guy is really cute. Hey, if you’re new here and you love rescue dogs like Grandpa Stewart, as much as I do, make sure you subscribe and turn on notifications.
The thing, the thing about seniors dogs is they just have so much love to give. And Grandpa Stu here is a perfect example of that. And to think, you know, for me, the Holidays really, I mean family, right? And, and Stewart, he didn’t have a family. Now, the fact that a Purposeful Rescue jumped in, uh, Laura, his temporary foster mom right now said, Hey, I’ll help until we can get him to a long term foster. It just warms my heart. But what’s really cool is now we get to spend the holidays with him.
So buddy, I have a whole bag of goodies for you here. We baked all the fresh baked cookies and in just a minute I’m gonna give him his first ever Holiday cookie. Now I, I know what you’re thinking. Like, well, how do you know he hasn’t had cookies before? And I, I don’t know, maybe he has, but, but based off his history, the fact that he’s got BB gun pellets in him, the fact that, that someone just dumped him and said, “you know what? He’s too old. We’re done with him.” There’s no way that he was getting treats and cookies and things like that.
Just a couple days ago. He was a homeless senior dog and now he’s gonna get his first ever Holiday dog cookie. I have a bunch of stuff for him. I don’t know yet. I don’t know yet if he likes Toy. I don’t know. You like speakers? What is that? <laugh>? This little Chow ears are moving. Do you know, does he like toys?
Okay. Okay. Well we’re gonna, you guys can go home with you buddy and you can, you can work on that later. Here’s something really cool. So Whistle heard about Grandpa Stewart and they wanted to help. So, you know, he’s not gonna necessarily run off, so he doesn’t need a GPS tracker to monitor where he is going. Uh, but what I’ve used it for with dogs is, especially senior dogs, is to make sure they are getting enough exercise in a day.
So it’s really important. E you know, he’s arthritic and, uh, it’s hard for him to get up, but he’s still gotta get a little exercise to keep moving. We’ll give this to Stewart, but if it’s not perfect for him, uh, Whistle is passing this on to a purposeful rescue so they can use it for one of their rescue dogs. It might be an escape artist. Yeah. Okay. That that’ll be And Whistle sponsored my show’s Dogs Day out before. They just, they’re really supportive of rescue dogs. A whistle. Thank you Stewart. You’re gonna be getting the right amount of exercise every day now, buddy.
We’ve got tennis balls now. I don’t know, I don’t know if you’ll be chasing after a tennis ball, but we can, you know, he may not have ever had someone play fetch with him. So got all these Holiday cookies here. Here you go, buddy. Happy Holidays.
<laugh>.
No doubt, my jerky strips, no dog ever passes these ups. Oh yeah, <laugh>. There we go. Good boy. Good boy. Okay, you want some more? Okay. Yeah. <laugh>. Yeah!
The whole point of doing all of this, he needs our help. He needs a permanent long-term foster. What does that mean? Well, that means someone that’s willing to take him in, uh, to spend the time with him, to love him. What’s cool about this is a Purposeful Rescue covers all the costs, right? They’ll get you the food, they’ll cover all the medical cost. Really all you have to do is just teach him how to be a dog. He, he doesn’t know how to do that. He’s a senior and he’s just been neglected so bad. So your only job is to show him love.
Please leave a comment of encouragement for Stewart below. Link in the description if you’d like to foster Stewart.
