Sumo the Samoyed
On July 18 2017, my life changed. I drove up to Sacramento (twice) to bring home my adopted 2 year old Samoyed. He was abandoned in San Francisco, newly rehomed in the heart of Los Angeles. I have been journalizing his Road to Recovery on his instagram page here. In a nutshell, Sumo was abandoned. He was vastly underweight when I first met him (barely 50 pounds). He had no social skills (he just barked at everybody, as well as biting me several times), his teeth were rotting and dead, and he was covered in painful foxtails which led to him being shaved so all you could see was his pink skin.
I guess you can say that I feel especially bonded since I myself am an adopted individual. I didn't really consider those feelings when I first was on the market looking (desperately searching for a fur baby to love me is really the right descriptor to use) However, with the help of my dear work family (Stella and Rebekka) they supported me to go adopt this sweet boy who was found by Rebekka's own sister up north.
Looking back, I don't see how I couldn't have NOT adopted him. He is my perfect match. He is stupidly stubborn, and really a thorn (I should say foxtail) in my side, but as much, my perfect match, and patience teacher, filled with the sweetest moments matched with Sumo hugs and kisses.
I am in complete blissful heaven. We have since started school, and I see the improvement each day.
In this photo, my honey bunny and I went to the Flower District. He is wearing a shirt because he is completely shaved. He was shaved because he was COVERED in Foxtails. Sadly, Samoyeds should not be shaved, but in this case for health, it was necessary for surgery to remove all the painful foxtails. I put a shirt on him to protect him from any rash or UV rays.
If you are not familiar with foxtails or shaving samoyeds, please educate yourself! 1.) Samoyeds should not be shaved, their thick fur protects them from sun damage even if it looks like they are "hot". Shaving shames them since their full coat is a sign of health and pride. 2) Foxtails are plants that get stuck on animal fur and needles their way into animals skin and can cause deadly damage on the inside. They look like wheat, and can easily embed into any fur babies skin.
Stay tuned on his road to recovery. I am posting once a day to make sure it is properly journalized, so I can see his growth in month, and years to come. As well, I also like to pretend to be a dog on instagram!