06/18/2025
Some of you may remember a basset hound from Kentucky named Dozer. Dozer was for sale on Facebook for $100. A woman saw the ad, paid the $100 and turned him over to Basset Rescue of Kentuckiana. Dozer was living with 4 pitbulls. He had bite wounds and massive amounts of bloody flea bites. He had double ear infections and what looked to be chemical burns. Dozer was only 2 years old. Dozer came to ABC so we could help with his treatment. He was then adopted by mom, Jodi, in 2016. Unfortunately, Dozer passed away recently and his mom asked if we'd post this memorial she wrote for a dog with a horrible start and an owner who dedicated her time to give him a good life through the good times and bad......
Dozer went to ABC in the fall of 2016. He arrived scarred from a chemical burn and badly abused. Those big, long ears are what stole our hearts.
Dozer came home with us in December of that same year. We were unaware of how mean he was until after he had been home for a few hours. We learned very quickly not to go near him if he was on his bed, not to reach for his face, not to pet him anywhere on his head, and that despite his 3-inch long, uh, short, legs, he was quite adept at counter surfing, and that if we attempted to get anything that he stole from the counter or table, we could potentially lose our hand.
We contemplated surrendering him to ABC again, but we hated to think that he would be given up on again. It took a very long time, but after months of sitting close to him on the floor, and teaching him our boundaries while respecting his, he began to trust us, and his funny, quirky side continued to win us over.
Dozer became my support dog during a couple of the hardest years of my life, and my husband, Joe, became Dozer's support human. In the last three years, if Joe left the room, Dozer would immediately start crying. There were many days when Joe would have to sit on the couch and wait for Dozer to fall asleep, just like a parent does with their toddler, and then he would have to tiptoe out of the room to be able to do something around the house As soon as Dozer lost Joe's scent, he'd wake up looking for his support human.
Dozer became such an important part of our family. In time, we could occasionally touch him when he was on his bed (not without hesitation). He would snuggle with us, and if we got a kiss, that was a bonus. He never was the most affectionate dog, but he would take belly and chest rubs all day long. He loved walks, and rides in the truck so his ears could flap in the wind.
Dozer moved across the country with us twice, both times sitting shotgun right next to Joe in the UHaul.
In the last three years, Dozer suffered from chronic ear infections, even going through a partial removal of his ear canal, which was deemed unsuccessful because the infections kept returning. We recently found that Dozer had tumors in his face, but on Tuesday, May 13, the Vet called us to tell us that while they were aggressive, they were not cancerous. We were hopeful that we could look into treatment for him and we were preparing to take him in for a double ear canal ablation so that maybe, just maybe, he'd find some relief in his ears.
Within less than two hours after the phone call from the Vet, out of nowhere, Dozer was in distress. We weren't sure why, but we immediately rushed him to emergency, and it was determined that his stomach had turned. The surgery to save him, which wasn't guaranteed, would be over $11K. We were forced to say goodbye to our beloved boy. It was the hardest goodbye we have ever endured.
We miss Dozer terribly. Our lives were so much richer with him in it, and we know that we will carry him with us forever. If you are considering adopting from ABC, we encourage you to do it. Your life will be blessed by that floppy-eared, wrinkly face ball of love more than you can imagine. And don't give up on the ones that have had the hardest past and seem to be the meanest. I realize that the patience it takes isn't something everyone has, but you never know how much your life will be blessed simply by blessing theirs with love and acceptance.
