This is one super coonhound !! Thank you so much Cheri Ann for allowing me to “ahroooo” the praises of this talented boy !!

Talk about a rags to riches story!!

Rusty, a bluetick coonhound mix, was a rescue from Kentucky. He was found almost dead on the side of the road from loss of blood, with several broken bones. He had an orange hunting collar with tags, but when the number was contacted, they claimed it was a wrong number. He was obviously a “throw away.” His story was shared on Facebook, a local news station picked up his story and money was raised to cover his expensive vet bills.  Cheri Ann and her husband drove ten hours to adopt him.

After some healing time, Cheri started taking Rusty for training at BFF Pet Services,  and after passing basic obedience  she tried Rusty in a tracking class. When he didn’t seem interested in that, and his sweet temperament became more apparent, she decided to train him for dog therapy to make visits at the local Charlotte Hall Veterans Home, since her husband is also a veteran.

Rusty excelled at it!

After completing the Canine Good Citizen prep class AND passing the test and becoming CGC titled, Cheri and Rusty completed Dog Therapy 101 class. From there Rusty was registered with the AKC under PAL (Purebred Alternativ Breeding), then  Rusty was tested and accepted at Pets On Wheels.

Rusty became BFF Pet Services FIRST hound dog to become a certified therapy dog. He completed his first ten visits required by the AKC, and earned his Novice Therapy Dog title (THDN)

And some say  hound dogs are stubborn and hard to train????

Rusty also loves doing children’s events and of course they adore him !!

I’m here for the party! 

 Cheri Ann and Rusty continued with a Trick Dog class. Rusty did fantastic! He earned his Novice Trick Dog title (NTD), and became only the SECOND bluetick coonhound in the country to get his NTD title. After doing so well with that, Cheri Ann continued to work with Rusty’s trainer, and the super houndie tested and titled for Intermediate Trick Dog (ITD). Then he tested and also passed for Advanced Trick Dog (ATD). He is the ONLY bluetick coonhound in the country to have all these titles.

He does trick shows (shown below as Batman pushing Robin in the broken down Batmobile), and he is also signed with a Talent Agency for commercials and TV. Hound dogs are so smart!!!

Nothing short of amazing — but hey –  Rusty is a mighty coonhound !! Need I say more??

#hounddogbrilliant

I am excited to do my first post generated from all the amazing stories sent to me from  #lifewithmyrescuedcoonhound.  I am so thankful for the many coonhound lovers that reached out and gave me permission to  share stories about the amazing accomplishments and healing nature of our beloved coonhounds !!!

This story is shared from Lori Donahue and her dog Ellie. And if you do not immediately fall in love with this sweet houndie,  you might better check for a pulse !!

Lori’s story…

“I can’t believe that it’s been almost a year since we rescued Ellie. She is such a loving, sweet dog and we love her so much! I’m so blessed that we “picked”each other!!! Especially when we were hiking just her and I when I broke my fibula, tore the deltoid ligament. I accidentally let go of the leash and she continued down the hill without me, I thought I was gonna never see her again, but she stopped looked up at me on top of the hill, and this sweet girl came back to me. We waited together till my husband found us! We will always be there for each other…”

I LOVE THIS STORY !!!!!!

Thank you again Lori and Ellie !! 

#hounddoghealer