My name is Duchess!

All Pound Dog Rescue dogs are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, heartworm tested, de-wormed (if required), and micro-chipped prior to adoption. The adoption donation of $400 is applied to assist in the costs of veterinary care and the overall care of the dog.

We at PDR firmly believe in the importance of obedience training, regardless of breed or size of dog, and have a clause in our adoption contract requiring adopters to attend and complete a basic obedience course at a facility of their choosing. Only in certain circumstances will we waive this clause, so please be prepared to attend dog school should you wish to apply for a dog through our program.

For more information and adoption applications please consult our website at www.pounddog.ca.


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Let me introduce you to Duchess. She’s currently being fostered in Cambridge so her official name is The Duchess of Cambridge. She is a beautiful white and tan 5 year old Shih Tzu. She weighs approximately 12 lbs and is the perfect weight for a dog her size. Duchess is a total love of a dog who came from terrible beginnings and is now looking for her story book ending.

Duchess came to us from a rural pound where she was left as an unclaimed stray. How anyone could abandon this sweet natured girl is beyond our belief. Duchess was so matted when we got her that we couldn’t even see her face. She was filthy and obviously had been seriously neglected. Duchess was in rough shape and needed a lot of TLC and some great vet care, but she has transformed in to the most beautiful girl and she is now ready to find love and a wonderful forever home.

When Duchess arrived in our care she had a number of medical issues including a urinary tract infection, cataracts in both eyes, 100% blindness in her left eye as well as dry eye in this eye (she’ll need cream 2x day), loose and rotting teeth and last but not least, the biggest and largest quantity of bladder stones the vet had ever seen. We were told this poor little girl must have had them for years for them to get so big and have so many. If you’ve ever had a stone you know how painful they can be so just imagine having NINE and having them the size of a toonie. It was amazing she survived this pain but was still the sweetest, best natured dog ever. This is a testament to her wonderful personality. Try to imagine how expensive it is to pay for bladder stone surgery, spay surgery and teeth extraction. The $400 you pay for her adoption goes toward those expenses. Pretty good deal I’d say. She is so lucky she ended up in a rescue that could fix her and give her the opportunity for a happy and healthy life. Duchess has had many teeth pulled and the remaining ones cleaned, and she has had all of her bladder stones removed and had her infection treated. She is feeling great now and is ready to start the second chapter of her life.

Duchess is pretty laid back. She spends her time snoozing on the couch with her foster mom and dad. She’s been through a lot in her short life so she’s deserves a nice place to snooze. She does go in her crate at night although sometimes we let her sleep with us which she really enjoys.

She’s not been on a lot of long walks between recovering from surgeries and the extremely hot weather we’ve been having but she does enjoy her walks and being outside but not for long periods in the heat. She however LOVES to chase squirrels. She doesn’t always see them but when she does she’s off like a shot! Duchess would probably enjoy a couple 30 minute walks per day. She is very good on leash. She’s a bit hesitant when meeting other dogs and doesn’t appreciate excited dogs. She likes dogs she just needs to be introduced very slowly and calmly and a few times until she gets to learn which dogs are her speed and which dogs are too hyper for her. She doesn’t do hyper. Duchess will prefer to be the only dog in the home.

Duchess will come to you if you do the kissing noise. Duchess does not like to be alone and will bark while you’re gone so an apartment or attached housing won’t be the ideal place for her. She is either let out for a quick pee or for a walk every 4 hours. Anything longer than that and she may have an accident so someone who’s mostly home during the day would be best for her. When she needs to go out she will come find you and look at you with that sweet little face. Maybe having all those stones affected her ability to hold her urine. Just a guess. When you are home she’s very quiet and calm in the house. Duchess is a hypoallergenic breed and does not shed, but she will need weekly brushing at least. She will also need a grooming appointment every couple months to stay neat and keep up her cute haircut.

She doesn’t play with toys but does enjoy playing with you. It doesn’t seem like she played with toys in her previous home. Duchess would like a home where she’s the center of your world. She wants to be with you 24/7 giving love and getting love. Duchess rides very well in a car. She sits in the front seat and looks out the window or if it’s a long ride she’ll settle down on a blanket in the back seat.

Duchess has no food aggression and you can handle her dish when she is eating without issue. Because she’s had bladder stones she is susceptible to getting them again and will require she eat only vet approved food. Currently she’s on Royal Canin brand Urinary SO. This is available through the vet. Anyone interested in her needs to check with their vet to see if they stock this food and be willing to continue to feed this to Duchess. It cannot be stressed enough that Duchess must never have regular supermarket dog food. Please be aware that because she’s susceptible to bladder stones she will need to always be on her special diet and she needs regular urine checks to ensure all is good. Never again should this little girl go through what she’s been through! With a proper diet she should be just fine but anyone who adopts her needs to understand that she needs monitoring and there is always a risk that she could get stones again. Her diet greatly reduces this risk, but we can’t say that it will never happen. The good thing is that her new family will be aware of this and will need to be on it and get it resolved while they are still crystals, and not let her go untreated and get stones again should it happen.

Duchess bonded with her foster parents immediately and has been nothing but a sweetheart since. Even when she was sick and in so much pain she never once got grouchy or bit anyone. She loves to have the inside of her ears scratched. Sometimes she makes a soft snoring-type noise to let you know she’s in 7th heaven when her ears are scratched. She also loves the ever popular belly rub and just being loved by her special someone.

Duchess hasn’t seen a cat since being with her foster family so we don’t know how she would be with one. She’s also not being fostered with children so again we don’t know how she would be. However, she would probably be ok with older children, over 10yrs, who understand that she’s not a toy and would be gentle and kind with her. Duchess will not enjoy a busy or active household. She likes her quiet and calm foster home. So a family with young children or an active household will not be to her liking.

Duchess should have many more years to love her new family. Small dogs tend to live longer than big dogs and Duchess is ready to be loved for a very long time by her forever family. Won’t you give her a chance? You won’t be sorry.