House of Puddles

Welcome, Bones! Bones was found as a stray in rural Virginia with the chain he was tethered outside with still dragging behind him. 💔 He weighs only 38 lbs, and should weigh more in the 55-60 lb range.

But we at HOP know how to get them healthy and help them back to a good weight. Within minutes of arriving from the veterinary office, he was in our laps, showing that love and cuddles are as important as food. At HOP you'll get it all, Bones! Welcome to our HOP family. ❤️

Say hey to Cecil! He's our newcomer from VA. His people wanted him to hunt rabbits but Cecil didn't want to hunt rabbits. This works out well here since we have no bunny invaders in the dogs' yard. He's a sweet little boy but needs to learn some manners to stop jumping up on people. So far, so good, he's playing nicely with all his new brothers and sisters. Welcome home, Cecil!

I had to let Penny go today. She was diagnosed with kidney failure when we got her in May so we didn't know how long she'd have with us. It certainly wasn't enough. She was a real sweetheart, always on her best behavior, never wanting more than love. I'll miss her very much.

Our new boy, Bandit, has stolen everyone's heart. He arrived yesterday from MO. Although the owner just adopted him from a shelter 7 months ago, she's now pregnant and has a toddler so...

Bandit wants nothing but love and we have plenty here to give. He's very quiet and gets along we'll with the other dogs. We're very happy to welcome this little guy.

Bandit left Missouri this morning, on his way to HOP. He'll be arriving tomorrow.

FILLED!
We need just one more leg to get Bandit to HOP:
Monday, July 29
Wheeling, WV- Morgantown, WV
1 hr. 25 min. 79 miles
9:35am- 11:00am

If anyone can drive, please message Michelle Alexander. Thank you!

Ernest passed away this morning. He was 15 and recently failing. But he never missed a meal so I wasn't expecting it so soon. He was a hard one to love because he was a biter. He got me many times in the 3 years he was here. But he was nice as long as I didn't get any body parts near his mouth. Rest easy old boy.

FILLED!
If you can help drive Bandit to House of Puddles, please message Michelle Alexander. The route is in the link below.

Send a message to learn more

The futon is strictly for the beagles. The big dogs get the couch.

Trip giving his opinion of the vet tech.

No, I don't have to get up. I'm retired! Opal.

Welcome home, Opal! This little lady's owner passed away and she ended up in a shelter in Kentucky. They didn't know her name so we gave her a new one.

Opal apparently hasn't seen a TV before. She watched intently with her head cocked and barked at it. Then she ran around the back looking for the strange people. Nobody there! She's still getting used to the other dogs, growling a bit when they get too close. She's picked out a crate she likes to sleep in. Last night she went out in the pouring rain to take care of business. Best dog ever!

Faster, lady, faster! Opal is on her way.

It turns out "Opie" is missing all the boy parts so she is now an Opal. She'll be heading to us on Friday. She looks so much happier since she had a bath and the ticks picked off her.

Tongue out Tuesday - Lucky.
Show us your tongues!

Eric Hoffman, age 9.

Many years ago a friend had a few kids draw some of the Hoppers from photos. This was done by Megan Hoffman, age 5. We added the captions.

There's a baby crying! Somebody save the baby!

It seems Trip likes Spike's toy basket, too.

Trip loves the TV. I'm sure he didn't have one where he came from.

Here's our new guy, Trip! He was the oldest of four beagles rescued from a hunter who was about to dump them because they wouldn't hunt (where have we heard this before?) He's a very gentle boy, just wanting affection and he will get plenty of it here. He already knows how to use the dog doors and likes to sun himself on the deck. Welcome home, sweetie!

Trip starts his journey to HOP!

Penny gave us a scare yesterday. An hour before she was scheduled to go to the vet for an exam she started dripping blood from her mouth. I figured it was probably a tooth but then huge blood clots started coming out. When the vet looked at it she thought it was likely a tumor (there was a lump below her eye), she had lost a lot of blood so she suggested euthanasia. But I still thought it was a tooth and wanted it looked at further. Penny spent the night and today they put her under to look in her mouth better. It was a tooth! They extracted it along with 9 other teeth and cleaned the rest. So, $2,500 later you can see why Penny is not a happy camper. If you would like to help Penny out with a donation it would really cheer her up.
https://houseofpuddles.org/donate/

Leia passed away quietly in her sleep last night. She was 15. When I found her this morning she looked very peaceful. That's the best way to go. You were loved well, Leia.

We have a houseful of happy Hoppers chewing on beef tendons.