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Prelude to The Poms:
After I lost my Miniature Pinschers, I said no more dogs. I didn't ever want to get that attached to anything again. So I told my kids that I wanted a cat. I have NEVER been a cat person. Not that I dislike them, I just can't warm up to them. I am a dog lover through and through. Anyway, I had my min-pin babies for so long, that I just didn't want to fall in love with another dog. So at Christmas time 1997 my son brought my new kitty. Her name was Maggie, and she is a crazy Siamese. She pounces from the floor to top of my head whenever she can. Well, even though I really liked Maggie (whom I called Maggot), that really irritated me so now Maggie lives with a friend of mine who likes cats on her head! The Poms:
My Mother-in-law raises Pomeranians, and while I thought they were cute and all, I had my min-pins and never really had any desire to own one. Then I didn't have my babies any more, and I got lonely...Well, after the cat, I got a call from Midge (my Mother-in-law), she wondered if I would be interested in taking care of some puppies and selling them for an old man she knew. He just had too many and couldn't keep up. I didn't think so, but I agreed to drive out with her and look at the dogs. She was thinking about taking some too (in the end, she did not take any puppies).
When we got to the farm where the old fellow lived, I was appalled. It was run down, and there were dogs everywhere. There must have been 50 little balls of fluff. They were dirty and full of fleas. You could tell they loved the old guy, and that they were well fed, but lacked grooming, good health care, and were allowed to breed at will. As you know fleas carry disease, and can literally suck the life out of a puppy, and these poor darlings were badly infested.
Well, we gathered our courage, and followed the old man into the house. It was small and filthy; the smell sucked away our breath, and we nearly vomitted. You could tell that it was inhabited by a lot of dogs. There was no fecal matter or urine noticable, it looked like he did have that part of things under control at least. Everywhere there was dirt, and dog hair. The house stank so badly of his pig farm and the filth we could hardly breath. He took us in to the kitchen area, which was blocked off from the dogs, and was remarkably cleaner than the rest of the house. There in a corner were two mid size pet carriers. In each one were three puppies. They were so cute. They stank like a pig farm but they were adorable. Well, all but two of those puppies came home with me. Those two were already sold, and would be leaving the next morning.  These are MY poms!! Missy is in front, with Cody in the rear. This was taken in the height of the "uglies" before they got their nice fluffy coats! A couple of weeks later I got a call, and he had 5 more puppies that were old enough to go. They had been in bedroom when we were there before, and I hadn't seen them. I jumped in the car and went back to the farm, and brought them home. There were more puppies, the mothers were nursing them and he did have them in a separate room away from the worst of the mess. In hindsight, I wish I had scooped them all up, and at least saved them from a few more weeks of fleas. The morning after I brought home the first four puppies, I drove out to WalMart and bought a baby's play pen. I was not set up to take care of puppies, but I knew those puppies needed me. I had a big fenced back yard and lots of love. I stopped at the local pet store and stocked up on flea shampoo, and got a couple of flea combs. I had my work cut out for me, but these little guys deserved a break and a decent life. It was worth it. My husband and I bathed dogs and picked fleas for hours. Several hours later, with clean newspaper in the play pen and nice clean coats, and full tummies, 4 sweet smelling puppies settled down for a nap! They looked so cute, and so innocent. I called the local throw away paper and put an ad in for the puppies. Two of them went quickly to good homes (which I checked out thoroughly), and two of them were home! The old farmer, is giving away and selling his dogs, I think my threatening publicity helped. He is attempting to keep at least the bitches in heat locked away from the males. He is keeping a couple of his favorites, and has had both of them spayed. I still don't understand why our local Humane Society would not get involved. I don't think that he meant to start a puppy farm. I think that he is old and unorganized, and he just didn't think. When he talks about the pups, or has to say good bye to any, you can see the tears in his eyes. While I think he truly loves these dogs, at the same time I wonder how he could call this love. What he did was cruel, immoral, and illegal. Any uncontrolled breeding is cruel. Seeing a bitch that has had litter after litter of pups with out a break, makes a person sick. They are not healthy, there is no shine in their coats, and no gleam in their eyes. They don't have any bounce in their steps. They don't run and play; they can't they don't have the strength. It is sad, and it is cruel, and it just breaks my heart. Altogether, over the course of 3 months I rescued over 30 puppies from there, and found new homes for them. This how I came to be known as; The Pom's Mom.
 Top of the mornin' to ya! You've found another GOLD HAT!
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