Category: Happy Tails

Ludo (formerly Vikas) is an amazing, goofy and incredibly loving soul. He is everywhere you go, just to be in the presence of his humans is pure joy for him (and us). After bringing him home, there were a few kinks (house training, jumping, and counter surfing) but we've got those things all worked out, with the occasional jump/hug every now and then to show love or excitement, but they are far more gentle. He loves exercise, and we were finding that even walking 5 miles a day sometimes wasn't doing the trick, so we found a dog camp he runs 2 days a week with his "pack" there, and it seems to do the trick.
As for the news, after watching the movie Togo (Ludo was paying rapt attention) we were shocked at his resemblance to both the dog in the film and the historical photos of the Seppula Huskies, we decided to do a DNA test. The results came in this morning, and are really interesting.
LUDO IS:
50% Alaskan Husky
25% Alaskan Malamute
12.5% German Shepherd
12.5% Rottweiler!!!
His 25% Mal definitely comes out in his personality, and we thank you for posting the story about the dog DNA test, who would have known you could do such a thing??
We appreciate every thing you have done to bring Ludo into our lives, and to help so many others like him.

I received your holiday newsletter, and after recovering from the guilt of not having written my own, I thought I’d at least take a few minutes to send you a thank you note.
Yogi came to live with us almost 2 years ago, through your amazing efforts. I contacted you in an attempt to locate my next Mal, as my best buddy Kenai was approaching his last days.
WAMAL first impressed me with your thorough screening process which demonstrated a level of diligence and love for these dogs. I was also impressed with your patience and willingness to work with me to find the right dog for our home. It took several months to find Yogi, but he’s turned out to be the perfect addition to our family.
Thank you so much for all you do. I wish could offer more than thanks, including contributions, time, and taking in additional dogs either as a foster or an adoptive home. Unfortunately, my budget and schedule doesn’t allow for that, so I can only offer my gratitude and appreciation, and these two pics of the footwarmer that resides under my desk as I type this.
Merry Christmas from our house!

Everything is going well with Yeti. We had the family of 10 people over on Thanksgiving and it was their first time meeting Yeti. When he was in the house we took turns standing guard at the entrance of the kitchen. During my guard duty he quietly snuck up beside me and took a big bite out of the cheesecake! The counter surfing is something I am not use to because our last 2 mals never did it. I am not sure how to break Yeti of it other than saying No every time he tries.
Yeti is also not very good at coming when he’s called. He doesn't seem to know his name. Or he is very good at tuning you out. Today I had him walking around with me while I took out the trash and scooped up his poop. There is a lot of snow here right now so we have the gate to our driveway open (it cannot operate in the snow). Yeti walked into the driveway, I called him, he ignored me. I called again as he edged further away. He looked over at me then put his head down and ran fast down the driveway out the gate and down the road! When I finally go to the road I saw him about 300 yards up the road sniffing bushes. I was calling him the whole time. Finally he turned and looked at me and he ran fast back to me and right on by me attempting to make a break the opposite direction. I caught him and he then walked all casual back through the gate and to the house. He is definitely a typical mal with what I call cat like attitude.
He is sleeping in the house more at night which we are trying to encourage with the very cold nights. He is getting better about relaxing in the house during the day too. Before he would never lay down and just pace. Now he will lay down for about 30 minutes before wanting back out.

Our sweet new family member is settling in to our home wonderfully. This is my new fur baby Arrow. Thank you WAMAL for rescuing her and entrusting us with providing her a love filled happy home. Arrow had been injured when WAMAL rescued her. Unfortunately she had to have surgery and WAMAL stepped in and brought her back to health! She is a happy healthy tripawd now ... but don't tell her she hasn't noticed. Thank you WAMAL for the wonderful work you do. This Thanksgiving when I make my gratitude list your organization and volunteers are at the top!

Here's Tana! Isn’t she beautiful?
She has been with her new family for a few weeks, and is reported to be a smart, loving, appreciative, and confident young gal. She shows her excitement by being squirmy, trying to be everywhere at once, to get pets, to sniff… just a girl in motion! Tana is fascinated (and excited!) by the deer and the elk she gazes at through the glass door of her new house. She has not yet discovered the wild bunnies that live there too—watch out!
Tana gets to be an only girl to soak up the love of a couple that lost their other malamute on New Years Eve day to cancer, and couldn’t bear the house without a malamute, which has been their favorite breed for a good many years.

Tana’s people say they’ve known about WAMAL since they lost their second malamute about 8 years ago and are pleased to adopt a rescue. They also want to express their deepest appreciation for the speed in getting their home check completed to make meeting Tana possible. It was a big effort with several moving parts, but Tana is HOME.
Tana’s take:
“I love to stretch out between my people in their bed in the morning and at night, my face next to theirs, for chin and belly rubs. They feel so good--please don’t stop! This is delicious!
My new people are patient and kind and when I have an accident in the house, they understand it’s the stress of so much that’s ‘new.’ Whew! I’m trying, and I will start to eat better too, as I get more familiar with my new home.
Also, squeaky.toys.are.the.BEST!!!”

I first heard about Yukon (previously Tucker) from the WAMAL home visitor, who helped me find the right dog. Yukon was of course a bit wild at the kennel, but his description sounded like he had a good side hidden in there somewhere so I was excited to meet him. This turned out to be the case as soon as he got out of the kennel and went for a walk. He turned into a whole new dog, and with his ‘you can't say no to me’ face, I had to give him a home.
He has quickly taken to hiking and trail running, and these have become his favorite things to do. He just gets so excited when we pull into the trailhead parking lots. His daily routine is a morning walk, play in the yard while dad is at work, then an afternoon run or hike.
He sits and waits for permission to eat his food, has learned paw, other paw, roll over, and many other tricks. He is currently working on beg and fetch. Fetch is going to be the hardest because he just refuses to chase anything that doesn't move by itself. He loves to cuddle on the couch in the evening and often decides to take a nap on dad's lap.
He loves the dog park and makes lots of new friends. Everyone always comments about how cute he is and tries to pet him, but he is always more interested in playing with the other dogs and often gives a cold shoulder (except to dad). He just started training with his new backpack and will be going on some fun multi-day snowshoeing trips this winter. He really looks forward to becoming a true mountain dog, as long as he isn't too busy begging for belly scratches.
WAMAL is a great organization with great volunteers. I definitely recommend WAMAL if anyone is interested in adopting a malamute. Maybe someday Yukon will need to train a new mountain dog and WAMAL will be called again.

Hi WALMAL,
Update on Molly adopted last May. This summer we took a 45 day road trip to our new home in Florida. We were very worried how Molly would travel by car and in numerous hotels, but we came to find out she’s one great traveler. She loved standing up in the back of the car looking out at everything wagging her tail like crazy. Her personality has blossomed. She now climbs stairs and tries to sneak on furniture. She absolutely loves walks to the river or a drive to the beach.
Thanks for sharing Molly with us!

I honestly can’t believe that this is the SAME dog.... he went from sad old man, to happy young buck in just a couple of weeks! Dean has helped me smile every day since I’ve had him. I feel very thankful.

Rescuing these noble and hysterically funny dogs is one of the great joys of my life. Mahina is so different in looks (Cindy told me not to try to 'find' Lishka again!) and her wooly coat is a daily challenge. She is so dear...recent hip x-rays show arthritis, but buffered aspirin keeps her going. She was running with me tonight for short distances.
She is gloriously beautiful...stops traffic where ever we go. Our walks are not as long as they once were, but she finds such joy in going outside. She does love the river and is so happy now that the days are getting much cooler. The lower the temperature the more 'happy feet' she gets.
Here's a great part of our story. Her kitties, Bruddah and Sistah, go on all the neighborhood walks with us. Sistah came first as a young kitten and scolded her scairdy cat brother for whining when we left his area. She soon talked him into joining us and now we are the neighborhood story. We look like a bad Walt Disney movie...Mahina walking her cats each day and night! They also ride in the car with her for trips to the vet! In the beginning it was a real challenge to teach her these little fur balls were NOT yummy treats. However, now they belong to her. One late night walk not long ago a big dog on the loose chased the cats up a tree and Mahina went after him...bad hips and all!
We love you all who work so unceasingly for these wonderful snow dogs.

I would like to submit some pictures for the calendar fundraiser. These are all recent pictures of Darwin (formerly Saturn), we adopted him on January 31st. He is now 10 mos old and close to 90lbs, he has really taken to swimming, sleeping, eating and keep away.

I just wanted to Thank everyone, we just love Crooner. He is such a good dog, he loves our grandchildren. They have so much fun together. He is so well behaved when he comes in the house. He likes to go for long walks and rides as well.

Again thanks for everything. Please tell Cindy Thank You

Cooper has been sleeping in his dug hole for the last two day's, with out being on the cable run. When I want to drive some where I tell him to get in the car and he goes to the van and wait's for me to get there and open the door so he can get in the van. Pretty cool huh. When I want him in the house I just call him and he run's up the stair's and then wait's for me to brush him and then he goes into the house, and run's to my room so I can give him some treat's. Kieku and I both want to thank you for getting him for me. Many thanks.

Cooper is a traveler and wants to know everyone.  He expects to be in the passenger seat of my van, (Oh brother!) Cooper isn't a 'back seat' kind of dog.  Because of his size, I had to put a milk crate covered with a blanket on the floor of the front passenger side.  You see, Cooper's Shetland Pony sized feet kept falling off the front seat onto the floor and he couldn't see out the window.  Seeing out the window is pretty important to Cooper.  He's a little vain and likes the general public to acknowledge his existence, his beauty and his resilience.  I brush Cooper daily and can't believe his former owners thought that his normal shedding was something that made him a 'bad dog'.  I was excited when Cooper dug his first hole this week....that was something that also made him a 'bad dog' in the past.  Unfortunately, his first hole is right in front of my mothers car and now she can't get out.  It's his favorite hole, so we're working on a compromise.

Cooper is great on the leash when he meets other dogs and people.  He wants to meet anyone and everyone. Maybe kind of making up for his alone time in the past.  Cooper is one great dog.. He will never again suffer abuse at the hands of a human.  He won't be seen needing a home again.

Well another year has gone by and Dakota's doing great. The salivary gland problem has sped up though but our Vet has found some literature saying Tetracycline may slow it down or stop it, it seems to be helping and we want to exhaust all noninvasive options first. His weight is hovering between 85 and 90lbs, which is what the vet wanted to see him at after his first weigh in was 72 lbs when we got him. He still does just fine with Alkan, if anything Alkan is the dominant one at times, LOL. He has figured out how to knock him down by sneaking around from behind, little punk :). Anyway we just wanted to drop a little update and say thanks once again, I'm not sure we can remember life without his antics.

Talk about success stories, this is it. We heard about Tucker and the unhappiness he and his owners were experiencing from a WAMAL volunteer. Something about his story moved us to give him a chance for a new and happier life. He was so shy when we met him that he would urinate when you touched him. Within hours of arriving home, that ceased. He has really relaxed and is coming out of his shell. We are delighted with his progress. Our two cats, Paddy and Poof have accepted him as part of the family as well. So now he comes in for visits with "the boys". He has really done well adapting to being an outside dog. Our big yard has become his comfort zone. He is curious, mischievous, loves to tease, and with time and training, will be another special friend in our lives. We are grateful to all the WAMAL people who made this possible.

Sorry its been so long. The "Bug" has been awful. We continue to make progress. The only person Tuck is still nervous with is Doug's Mom. We are not sure why, but he has his own timing, and we cont. to be patient. Everything else is good. He is successfully visiting in the house the past three days. No major upsets with the boys. Poof slapped him in the face the first time, but all he did was jerk his head back and then came to me. Paddy seems to really like him. He snuffled him good, and lets Tucker nose him and snuffle without any fluffing. I think Poof would like to play, he's just sooo big. They are both mischievous characters, so I won't be surprised if they develop a game or two. As Tuck gets more comfy, there have been a few naughty behaviors. A little chewing on a lawn chair after a reprimand, Ran over to the neighbors yard when I was putting the van in the yard to unload groceries. He doesn't bother when Doug does it. I'm the buddy, He's the Boss. He did come to me after I got his leash, and went after him. There really hasn't been anything significant that he has done wrong. Adjustments of the magnitude he is going through are not easy. But he is doing splendidly, all things considered. I cont. to make progress with his grooming. He can be testy, but nothing scary. He has snapped, but not with intent to bite, only letting me know that wasn't comfortable. It can be anywhere, on any given day. I Just reassure him, pet a little, and go back to it. He sighs, and relaxes again. So just a little perseverance, and he will go along with it. I feel very safe with him. Just need to work on discipline. He is very smart, and we hope, with time, will cont. to relax and feel better and more confident. That time in is the key. As you can tell, we are very happy with Tucker, and again, thank you for making all of this possible. Are their any more formalities to go through to finalize the adoption? Monday will be the beginning of the third week, and I can't see any reason to make any changes. We love our Tucker! I hope to have new pics. again soon, if you would like me to cont. sharing.

I am pleased to say that things are progressing very positively here. Tug seemed to enjoy the ride home. Our kennel is a cage type, so he got to smell and see, and he was calmer than I expected. He Ran the yard, and marked the edges. Stayed away from us for a while, though you could tell he wanted to make contact. Poor honey was so shy. By the time he had been here three hours, he ate some food from my hand and then scarfed the rest in his bowl. The Polley's had told us he probably wouldn't eat for days! He had a good night outside. No barking or whining or any worrisome behaviors. I checked on him a couple of times after bathroom trips, and he was sleeping all laid out on his side in the middle of the yard.

This morning he was chasing a crow, and looking very free and easy. He was leery of me at first, but it didn't take long for him to come for a pet. He loves it when I massage his rump. It was off and on all day. He would be friendly without hesitation, and the next time I went out, he would stay out of reach. Doug was away getting a sleep study done for apnea, so I have had the most contact. He let me groom on him this afternoon for over an hour. He let me work on his rear area without a quibble. As a matter of fact he napped through most of it!

Other than the first few minutes he was here, and all our neighborhood kids showed up to greet him, He has not been doing any urinating when he is touched. The one 10 yr. old boy was getting his face kissed before the end of the evening last night. And he ran to greet him this morning when he returned to visit Tug

Cindy, I am so thrilled with the changes Tug has made since we took him out of the Polley's. Most of the things they warned us about have not happened. He is not pining for them. We haven't brought him in the house yet. The kitties are not entirely thrilled yet, and we are letting them adjust to his presence at the slider. There was a couple of tousles when he bumped the screen trying to sniff at them. They are the ones who were aggressive. Not Tug. He had been whining to them earlier the same as he does to the dogs next door that he can visit with through the fence. I felt he wanted to be pals. He did lunge at the screen after Poof attacked, and Paddy joined in. But he didn't look vicious, more like he was playing. Nick, the ten yr. old, called him away, and he did without any hesitation.

He was leery of Doug when he came home, but with a little coaxing, he let him pet him. So now that I've written the novel of Tug's first day in his new life. You can rest easy, that things are going very well indeed. He seems to be adjusting very well for the insecure mess we first met. The Polleys were amazed we got near him, let alone how well it went. I feel a strong connection with him, and since I will be spending the most time with him, it’s a thrill. I will be happy to keep you updated every few days if you like. The big test will be when he is ready to come in the house, which he was showing signs this evening that he would like to. If the boys don't get with the program, we will put them in a room when Tug is in. I really think that they will adapt, Paddy showed a lot of interest, and only fluffed if Poof did. So there are more adventures to come.

Thanks to you and all the volunteers who made this possible. We are delighted with Tug.

Just want to drop a line letting WAMAL know that Shyla is doing really good and we love her a lot. She is a hand full but she is learning fast, very fast. She is just now starting to talk to Carole and I, she doesn't jump as much as she did. The trouble that we had with her and other dogs is getting much better, we have really been working on that one. Thank you all very much

They're best buddies. We went to the ocean. Below are two links to the photos. I've just about broke him of the swiping at me with those paws. Actually, Jasper has learned to give kisses, because he sees Nakiya doing it. Nakiya kisses Jasper too, when I'm rubbing Jasper's neck.

Right now we're concentrating on pulling on the leash when he sees squirrels or cats. He's mastered, sit, stay, lay down and shake. Boy what a talker. No more screaming, but he has some opinions.  

Bandit is great! I love him and we have just so much fun together! We go hiking all the time and I walk him like three times a day I'll send pictures soon!

Hi. I just wanted to send a note to thank you for allowing me to adopt Kayak. He is fitting in perfectly. He is such a happy boy, he practically bounces off the walls. He's fast getting used to being part of our pack and eats with everyone and sits together with my dogs at night for his bedtime cookie. He ignored my goats and bunnies at first, but now that he is more comfortable he is doing a little chasing.. but it's clearly play not prey so I'm confident I can teach him not to. My cats actually love him.
He has taken his first ride in the convertible. He hugged the floorboards for the first 10 minutes but eventually came up on the seat and looked around. He had a cough/sneeze when I picked him up and my vet says his lungs are kinda raspy so he is on antibiotics and seems to be getting better. After not eating for the first couple of days, he is now eating like a big dog. He is an absolute joy.
I have named him OhBoy, inspired by the Buddy Holly song of the same name, which he loves to dance to:

All of my love
All of my kissin'
You don't know what you've been a-missin'
Oh boy, when you're with me
Oh boy, the world can see
That you, were meant, for me

Also.. Sandy was sooo nice and helpful. I really appreciate all the time and effort she gave me and the good care she gave OhBoy.

Attached are pictures of Nakiya and Japser. I adopted Jasper a few years ago, and Nakiya has recently joined our pack.
Nakiya is a happy boy who loves Jasper and myself. He wakes us with big sloppy kisses and follows me everywhere. He's still learning the ropes and watches both of us closely. He's learning fast and shows progress every day. His energy is way down from when I first met Nakiya - though he has his moments. We all wrestle in the backyard and go for walks every day. He loves the dog park and going for rides.
We are all very happy that Nakiya has comes to live with us.

Lexie and Charlie have been playing, not as much as he would like I think, but she has started chasing with him.  She gets a little testy when Charlie puts his big paw on her back to get her attention, but that's understandable.  The kids and Charlie get along great, he usually sleeps in my oldest girls room or in the hall between all of the rooms.

His vet check-up went well.  The vet did say he is very underweight (which we know), she says he could stand to gain 30 - 50 pounds so we've been feeding him 2x a day.  He is slowly learning that he is not allowed in the kitchen and that the girls stuffed animals are not chew toys. all in all things are going well.

Sorry to be replying so late. Things are going pretty well with Princess. We are still working on getting her to ignore the cats and she is a runner. Off the lead and she is gone like the wind. Inside she has been very good with only a couple of accidents. She sleeps beside the bed next to me, the male (Scooby) is on the other side next to my wife. We are nearly complete with a � to � acre fenced area for them to have the run of the back property. Currently they are in a 30 x 60 pen while we are away. She is a great playmate for the male although she is into the dominance game with him. He tolerates this for some time and then will assert himself. HE outweighs her by 40 pounds but she is back for more at the drop of a hat. There is no quit in that girl.

All and all things are working out extremely well and we are pleased.

We selected Rider (our 90-lb malamute) since he played so well with Hans (our 70-lb Siberian Husky) at Malamute Rescue Shelter. We have been the proud owners of Rider for 5 months now. Hans is high-energy and plays all the time and needed another dog that could handle that level of playing. Rider was the perfect fit for him. They enjoy playing together in the house or in the backyard. When they are done playing, they like to curl up next each other. They are very sweet to one another and give each other kisses all the time. It is so cute to see them both like this. Hans loves having Rider as a brother. Rider is such a happy, cheerful, friendly dog and loves everybody. We feel so fortunate to have him and can't imagine our lives without him. He is sweet, very well mannered and gentle. It seems that someone spent a lot of time training him since he knows a lot of commands. Very smart, a good listener and learns very fast. Rider does not dig or chew on things which is a nice touch. He loves to cuddle with us too. He let's us know if he needs more attention, by putting a paw on our arm. We take Rider and Hans every morning on a walk around our neighborhood and they say hi to other dogs and people. On the weekends, we go on longer walks in the park or around Green Lake. This is one of Rider's favorite things to do. He wags his tail and does the WOOOO enjoying every minute of it. We take both the dogs over to my sister's house for dinner once a week. Rider is very gentle and sweet around her kids. He loves the attention. Pete and I go to the Wamal website at least twice a week to check the dogs. If I had more room, I would definitely adopt another one from Wamal. I am just thankful that Wamal exists and that they are able to take in these wonderful dogs and are able to place them in loving homes.

We wanted to update you on our girl Khira. She has settled into her new home amazingly fast! She is all diva here in her new home. She has a new purple set of leashes and harnesses, her microchip has been registered to us, she has her own crate to sleep in (not crazy about that but for a treat...) she is on a little diet and some regular exercise which she needed badly. Khira is very loving to the our girls and wants to be pet all the time. Our first mal Rocky is adjusting to having a sister/friend that does not go home. He has been very protective of his mooching spot in the kitchen, of his kids that pet him, of his daddy that always takes him on a walk, of his mommy that gives him belly rubs...you get the drift. However he is doing very well. I would say that we are her forever home for sure!!!!

We have been so inspired by this organization that we want to volunteer, so we are getting our applications to you all. Who knows, we may want another malpal in the future!

We love our mals just like our kids!

Jack is doing great.  He's a big softy.  The first couple of days he was very protective around the food bowls and had issues with Koah eating when he ate.  But now it doesn't bother him at all.   No matter what Koah does he never gets bothered.  Oh, and we thought Koah was the most attention crazy dog...we were wrong.  Anytime you move Jack likes to follow, and if you stop for a sec he rolls over by your feet and starts scratching you tell you rub his belly.

Jack is a great friend to Koah.  We couldn't be happier.  Thanks again. 

This morning Colleen met Juneau at Centennial and it was love at first sight! Colleen has owned a mal before - her "Pancake" died one year ago and she is more than ready to open her heart and home to another fur kid. She is the kind of person that really dotes on her animals and treats them as part of the family. Juneau will have a nice big yard to run around in but best of all Colleen will have lots of time for him as she is only gone about 4 hours per day. I told Juneau this morning that he had really hit the jackpot in finding his new home. He must have agreed because as soon as Colleen opened up the car door to get her purse, he was inside! And there he stayed until all the paperwork was taken care of.
Mary

Hi all you friends of Sampson:

I wanted to update you on Sampson’s adjustment to his new home. He is doing well and finally does not need a muzzle when he interacts with his doggy brothers. He is getting the hang of where to go potty, although sometimes I wonder why he doesn’t tell me just a wee bit sooner, it’s usually a quick run to the door, sigh. Oh, well.

He is eating well and has had his first bath. We are happy with him and he is happy here.
Thanks for your support.

Subject: To Bailey
This is an e-mail from Strider (now Kodi) to one of my dogs.
(ed note: Donna was Strider's foster mom)
Donna

-----Original Message-----
Dear Bailey,
Just thought I'd let you know that things are going well with me here in Zillah. I found out that jumping into the pickup is not hard and we get to go to interesting places. Sometimes I get a corn dog when he goes to pick up parts, and sometimes I get to help Dad change sprinklers and stuff. I also get to run with the 3-wheeler through the orchards, now that's fun! I know I could beat Dad but I let him keep up with me. I really do miss you, though.
Mom taught me a couple of new things called stay and come. I humor her because she gives me treats. Mom says to tell Donna hi.
Kodi