Some of you may be sick of hearing about Cam, but to me, his story is the finest example of what an organization like Best Friends can do. Take a "throw-away" dog, a dog that practically any other shelter would have put down, and turn that dog around to make him a loving member of a society.

I am very attached to Cam and I never look at him without thinking about those first few weeks with him and the patience of Pat and the rest of the staff working with him, to basically save him from himself.

That someone would look at this dog, and through all those teeth see a dog that their heart went out to and that they wanted to help.

I first posted about Cam here, is this early blog:

First Cam Blog

Then again, here:

Second Cam Blog

Amazing, huh?

Well recently I asked a volunteer to start also working with him. Toni is an assistant dog trainer, a current vet tech and an all around great gal. She willingly accepted the challenge of helping Cam to realize that all people could be a GOOD thing to him.

The first few times we took walks together and then Toni just needed me to help get him out or put him away but now she interacts and walks him every weekend by herself and they seem to be having a great time. This latest blog is actually HER email updates to me, but they are so great I wanted to share it with you!

Thanks Toni!
ANOTHER person to see that there is more to this special dog!

(Everything else below this point is from Toni, with pictures she took on her cell phone)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi guys! I just thought you'd want to see what happened during my walk with Cam today.



First, as I approached his pen, he picked up a toy & ran around like a spaz. Then he saw the leash in my hands, dropped the toy, jumped up & body-checked me with glee! I was so happy to see him enjoying himself.
When he was finally able to contain himself long enough to sit politely, I put his leash on & we went for a very nice walk. When I asked him to sit or do a short recall exercise, he was attentive & willing (amazing what a pocketfull of pieces of hot dog can accomplish).

The past few walks have been great, so I decided to take another small step with him. Towards the end of the trail, I sat on a bench, he sat nicely in front of me & he let me pet his head & get in a quick ear-scratch. I have not attempted much petting before.

So we talked. I told him how happy I was that he seems to enjoy our visits. As you can see, he was a captive audience:



Then I told him that if he would trust more people, he'd get more of these outings.

I gently tried to break it to him that some people considered him aggressive because of some events in the past.

Aggressive?
Well, he thought that was hilarious and check him out laughing at the mere thought:



Well, hope you enjoyed the update on our friendship. See you all soon!

------------------------------------
Second update:

Hi! I just thought you'd like an update on our friend. He has been so silly & so sweet! Today when I approached his pen, he got all excited & ran around like a puppy. I entered it & he grabbed a squeaky toy & dropped it at my feet then sat quivering with excitement! I am falling so in love with this guy.

However, I did not notice if his pen is covered on top with fencing, or just a shade tarp. He jumped very high when I came in. I mean seriously high. He did a ricochet off his igloo & his back feet were almost at my standing eye level! Very athletic guy, our Cam. But if his pen does not have a sturdy cover, we should probably put one on. I'd be happy to help with the work.

Anyway, he saw me hanging out with Chris' dog Gus today. She brought him to see if he & Pat would get along. It looked like it went very well! So I was saying hello to Gus(- what a cutie), and Cam was running back & forth & barking like crazy! Was he jealous? I don't believe it! He was literally bouncing off the walls!

Our walk was great. He walks like a gentleman. Initial excitement pulling, but after that minute, he heels like a champ. I barely needed any treats. I gave the rest to George if he could use them for anyone else. We sat down by the benches on the path & I took 2 more pics:



Handsome devil!

I even happened to notice that when it was time for our walk, Cam got happy. I don't know how to put this delicately. I am not only referring to a wagging tail & a play bow. I mean I saw that a part of him was HAPPY!!!



I couldn't stop laughing.
So that was our day today.
I was thinking, he's been so playful & silly I was wondering if it would be OK to bring him up to the play area by the brick house? We go for walks, but It would be great to see him run & spaz out untethered. I know this coming weekend will be busy with the adoption event. Maybe I could come early before all that happens? Or if not, the weekend after?

Thanks, as always, for letting me be a part of the wonderful things that happen at Pets Alive!
-Toni

---