Unlike some of the other dogs in our program, Cobain had a family of his own once upon a time in a small Midwest town. His first family lived across the street from the shelter; he was left outside for long hours during the day and would frequently let himself out to run over and try to play with the shelter dogs. Eventually he was given to another family, and another family, until finally the shelter got a phone call from a landlord stating that a tenant had left a dog in a kennel for over 48 hours with no food, water, or anywhere to potty. Of course they wouldn’t let him stay like that, so Cobain became a resident of the shelter he used to visit.

 

Cobain sat in this shelter for almost a year; all he saw was his kennel run and all he could hear was barking dogs. During his extended stay at the shelter Cobain grew more anxious and stressed. Being a small town shelter with limited resources, there was only so much they could do to help him. Finally, after 11 months, a foster spot opened up, and Cobain walked out of the shelter with the promise never to return.

 

Once he got settled in, he got a thorough check-up by our favorite vet Dr. Tom. We realized Cobain had a torn ACL in his back left leg, he had been sitting in pain for a long time. We scheduled surgery right away and repaired his bum knee. Cobain has recovered nicely and is back 100%, like nothing happened.

 

Once fully recovered, he could start partaking in some fun things like pack walks, although canine introductions were still taken very. But after Cobain had plenty of time to decompress from the stress of the shelter and settle into a good routine, he made a smooth integration with the resident dogs. In fact Cobain has shown that he can be quite dog social with proper introductions and monitoring. He does not enjoy small animals like cats though.

 

But it seems this kid just can’t catch a break, Cobain began to experience significant GI symptoms. We started working with our vet, and consulting with specialists. We ran multiple tests, checking hormone levels, looking for culture growth, and we tried many treatments with no luck. So Cobain had to endure one more surgery to take biopsies of his GI system. The results show that Cobain has significant inflammation due to IBD (irritable bowel disease). A treatment plan was made, his food was switched to a dehydrated preservative-free dog food, and the medication Cyclosporine was started. The food switch did wonders; the medication took some time to fully build up in his system but Cobain's IBD is now completely under control. He is able to eat any kind of treat without it affecting him at all, takes his daily pill like a champ, and loves his dehydrated food.

 

Don’t worry; Cobain hasn’t let anything slow him down, not ACL surgery, not IBD; he is always happy no matter what he is going through. He doesn’t hold any grudges; and he loves every person he meets. He is very attached to his people and would love nothing more than to be by your side. 

 

He’s just a laid-back young kid who wants to be part of a family again. He enjoys regular walks around his neighborhood, pack walks with his other adoptable foster friends, he loves going to his favorite dog friendly local breweries, but he is also more than happy to relax on the patio outside while you work on the laptop. 

 

Most of all Cobain just wants a family of his own to love, he loves with his whole heart and he is looking for someone to share it with.  Whoever adopts this amazing kid will be very lucky.

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SPECIAL RECOGNITION TO COBAIN'S FOSTER FAMILY FOR THEIR TIME AND DONATIONS: 

Mike & BJ