(The following was originally posted on the uskb-list by Anne Marie Flynn-Feirke. Special thanks to the author, who has given her permission to post it on the USKBTC website.)

Shay, the abandoned Kerry found wandering in Massachusetts on Aug. 6th has been placed in what I assume will be a great home for life. I wrote up the story below for the web site to close out his story, but to you all I want to add a few things.

A lot of potentially great homes contacted me for him. In the end I chose a home without kids or on fixed incomes because his age may soon demand a lot of cost and his life expectancy might be a lot shorter than hoped for. However, there are many homes where a younger Kerry would be perfect, especially females. So if you have multiple dogs of your breeding, and would consider placing one, re-homing one, please contact Lynn Duckett. Home visits have either been done or are planned for some of these homes interested in Shay who didn’t get him; several are experienced Kerry owners who don’t want a puppy and would love an adult. From my own experience, getting Lady at 5 years old was like hitting the jackpot!

The staff and vets at Tufts fell in love with Shay during his two week stay, and kept track of him as he continued his care through their Internal Medicine and Surgical departments for another 7 weeks. They were amazed at how the Kerry community came together and worked to try to find the owners or breeders and then a new home for him.

And thanks to everyone who called their puppy buyers from 6 to 10 years ago to confirm that no one was missing, to calling local groomers to see if they knew of a missing Kerry, to calling shelters and animal control and watching regional newspapers for lost dog notices, to checking web sites, to volunteering to do home visits around the country in anticipation of finding a home near them, and promising to help the new owners or take Shay in if this home doesn’t work out…. and on and on and on. The Kerry community is terrific.

A personal big thanks to Lynn Duckett who does her job so well and made me feel that I could help this dog, do the right thing by him.

Anne Marie, who misses that happy, happy dog a lot

Shay Finds A Great New Home

Shay’s need for a new, permanent home generated an incredible response from across the country from more than 20 families: couples, retirees, homes with kids, homes with cats, homes with other dogs, previous Kerry owners, Wheaten owners looking for a “cousin” companion, etc. In the end, it was terribly difficult to choose one home from among several who would have been perfect for him. Thank you to all who spent time contacting and speaking with me—all genuinely interested in Shay’s story and wanting to help him be happy for the rest of his life.

On Sunday, October 9th, Shay went home with his new family, a 30-something couple from Virginia. She is a veterinarian who has recently opened up her own practice and is taking him to work every day, where he can meet and greet human and pet alike. He has his own little sanctuary in her office where he can take naps and play with his tennis ball, when she is attending to clients. Her husband runs his own graphics and web development business from home, so Shay has an opportunity to stay at home, but not alone when going to the office isn’t practical.

This home seemed to meet Shay’s particular needs. As an older dog, with a lot of immediate dental needs, he may have become quite costly, quite quickly, to his new owners. Future surgery for bladder stones may again be required. Since we don’t know his exact age, a family with young children might find themselves without a dog they are very attached to in a much shorter period of time than planned. So, Shay will be well-taken care of and be around his new family almost all the time.

If you would like to adopt a Kerry in the future, step one is to fill out the Adoption Application on the Rescue page that brought you to this story and return it to a Rescue Contact in your area. With that done, you will be on record in the his/her files. There are Kerries in foster care now, and being in our files may facilitate matching one of them up with you, or to one who will need a home in the future.

Thanks again to all the wonderful people who wanted to help Shay. I wish I could clone him for each one of you.

Anne Marie Flynn-Fierke

Last Updated: 10/20/2008, 9:03 pm