Theo

We lost our six year old Basset to her habit of ingesting things of interest on her walks to the park,. Someone had left a flip top lid on the ground and she got to it before we could get to her. We lost her in a few hours. It was devastating. Our home was quiet and our hearts very heavy. One day we contacted the GGBR and met with some of the most devoted pet lovers. After a few weeks they called and said they had a Basset being surrendered and would we be interested. A few days later we met Theo at a foster home along with his mistress. My heart went out to her and I admired her for accepting that sometimes you gave to make tough choices. She had Theo as a pup and now things in her home had changed and because of her love she was surrendering him to hopefully a good home. Theo was quite a handsome fellow and you could see he had been loved and cared for. We took him home with us to see if we could all be happy together. It has been a perfect match. He loves the grandchildren, gets along with the cats, loves vacations and is getting used to walks! We thank the family who surrendered Theo for giving us a chance to share our life with this wonderful friend. ****Jim and Sharon

Nathaniel (renamed Louis)

When I started thinking it was time for me to get a dog, I asked one of my friends about Bassett Hounds. Since she grew up with a Bassett, she replied, "It will be the best thing you ever do". Nathaniel, now known as Louis was scooped up from the Modesto pound by his wonderful foster family, and two short weeks later, he landed in my lap! Lou is a true love bug. He enjoys long walks or short runs (!) in the morning and snuggling on the couch to watch TV with me whenever possible. I am lucky enough to take him to work with me every day, and he is the best coworker anyone could ask for! He roams the building and visits the other offices picking up belly rubs and treats as he goes. All over town, people stop to say hi to Louis! He loves road trips to Tahoe and running through the vineyards at my parent’s ranch. I don't think Donna and the rest of the team at GGBR could have found a better fit for me. I can now agree with my friend...Louis IS one of the best decisions I've ever made! Thank you!

Andy

"JUST LOOK AT ME NOW"........by Andy McWhinnie Hi, I'm Andy. I am now in my forever home but what a journey. I ended up on the street as a stray, no collar, ID or chip. I have no idea how or why that happened. When I was taken to the local shelter, I was so afraid. No one even knew my name so they gave me a new one and I like it. But no one ever came looking for me and finally my time was up at the shelter and I was going to be put down the very next day. BUT THEN A MIRACLE HAPPENED!! GGBR was notified and I was picked up just in time by my wonderful foster parents, Nancy and Judy. What a close call!! I have such a long life to live and came inches away from losing it. So the angels at GGBR came and scooped me up. There are so many wonderful people at GGBR who work their hearts out day after day to save us hounds. After a wonderful time with Nancy and Judy, I was introduced to my new mom, Vanna, a couple of months ago. From the very first minute of getting in the house, I knew I was home. I came right in the front door and I immediately felt like I had always been here, met my new brother Buddy (he's 16, a lot older than I am) and we ran around with each other, through the house, around the yard, until we were tired out. My mom took me up on the couch right away and held me.....I told her I would be the BEST DOG SHE'D EVER HAD! Buddy started grooming me and I even let him do that as much as he wants...I don't care. It feels good and makes him feel better :-) From the first day, I have thrived more each day. I have gained some much needed weight. I crawl up on the couch with my own step stool and I crawl up the little steps beside mom's bed when it's time for sleep. Buddy and I sleep with mom but she lets me sleep right by her head all night long and I snuggle into her so much that sometimes she needs to push me over during the night. I don't like being pushed around like that but I guess I should remember that it's also HER bed. Bud sleeps at the foot and he doesn't care where I sleep. I have a great life running around the yard with Buddy and take sun baths every morning. I get up on "my" chaise lounge on the deck all by myself...and stay usually a couple of hours. Mom is retired so she is home most of every day so I get lots of love, attention and treats!!! I plan to live a long and happy life here in Petaluma. Were it not for all my angels at GGBR (Nancy and Judy, Donna--who helped mom get all settled in with me, Sally, who got me into the system and Gloria who gave me a good reference)....there are so many wonderful people at GGBR who make sure each of us hounds gets the exact right forever home. I owe my life to them and love them all forever As I said, JUST LOOK AT ME NOW!! Love, Andy :-)

Sundae

After losing one of our girls, Riley to cancer at only 7 years old we weren't totally sure that we were ready to adopt another dog, but decided that we would start the adoption process with GGBR anyway. We just wanted to see how we felt. Well we found a hound that we liked but she went to another family. After that we were so disappointed and that is when we knew that we were ready for sure! Within a few weeks GGBR contacted us about a basset in our area that was coming up for adoption. We went to see Sundae and fell in love. She fits into our family better than we could have imagined. She is so sweet and loving and is now inseparable with our other Basset, Bella. Also since Sundae moved in no one in the house has any socks, turns out that’s her favorite toy! Thank you GGBR for Sundae and all that you do for Basset Hounds in need. Jennifer

Cassandra

After losing both our beloved bassets Electra and Cleo in May and September 2012 (13-1/2 and 14 yrs old) our house was very empty without a dog. So in October we adopted an 8 month old German Shepherd/Catahoula mix from the local shelter. Quite a difference after elderly bassets but I had a German Shepherd mix growing up and she was one of my favorites (we had bassets too of course!). Anyway, we also immediately contacted all the local breeders (thinking maybe a basset puppy) and Golden Gate Basset Rescue. After losing two dogs so recently we just couldn’t face adopting an elderly basset and so decided while we were waiting for the right adoption opportunity that we could offer to foster a dog in the meantime. Well it didn’t take long for the right fostering opportunity to present itself. We found out about Cassie the week before Thanksgiving and it just felt like she would be a good fit for our home (albeit temporarily) as she was a younger dog. So on the day after Thanksgiving we drove to Sacramento to pick her up from the shelter. She was sweet and friendly from the minute we met her and very excited. She didn’t like the car ride home and poor thing was a little sick and cried a lot. I sat with her in the back so that I could reassure her (she was in a crate). Once we got home our dog Pixie was delighted to meet a new friend. They took to each other right away. Cassie was a stray so we don’t know anything about her, but can’t possibly understand who would let her go. She’s very cuddly and will climb into your lap if you sit on the floor. She would love to sit on our laps on the couch or sleep with us if we let her! Our first day and night was a bit interesting. We left her and Pixie in their crates for about an hour to run some errands. When we came home Cassie had escaped from the crate and was sitting looking out the window in the living room waiting for our return. Needless to say we determined that the soft crate we had borrowed wasn’t going to work as she knew how to work the zippers! So we purchased a wire crate. She didn’t like it at first and cried a lot of the first few nights. We toughed it out but it was so hard! In addition to crying at night she would also become upset and cry if you left the room or walked out of sight in the backyard. One can only wonder how much she must have been missing her former family, whoever they were. Cassie is very food motivated so once she got over her separation anxiety she happily went in her crate and she often sleeps in Pixie’s crate during the day. Speaking of food motivation, she is also very agile which is a bad combination in the kitchen. Cassie quickly learned how to jump from our breakfast bench onto the adjacent kitchen counter. Luckily we don’t keep any food up there but it doesn’t stop her from trying when she gets the chance. Have you ever seen a basset on a kitchen counter? Not a sight you will soon forget. Funnily enough our basset Electra who passed last year was also able to do the same thing in her younger years. It brought back bittersweet memories. In December we took Cassie and Pixie up to our cabin in Lake Tahoe where they enjoyed romping in all the fresh snow and then crashing in front of the fireplace afterwards. Two lucky dogs! After much consideration on my part (I was and still am mourning for Electra & Cleo) and absolutely no hesitation on my husband’s part (he says he knew the minute we brought her home) we decided to adopt Cassie in January. She is now a firm member of our family and Pixie’s best friend. Our vet estimates that Cassie is 2-3 years old but she plays for hours with Pixie and can run circles around her. She’s also got a great hunting instinct and has chased rats out of our back garden several times – good girl! Needless to say we’re one big happy family now. Cassie even gets along with our cat Celeste which you can’t say for all dogs. We hope our story encourages others to adopt and/or foster a basset with Golden Gate Basset Rescue. Puppies are cute but they grow up quickly! There are so many older dogs needing homes and we’re certain there is a “Cassie” out there for everyone who is looking. Elke M. Wood