Touring Madrid and Bringing Back Miel, a.k.a. The Saddest Dog at Scooby
Brought Back Miel (now MiMi), "The Saddest Dog at Scooby" in December She was one of the Most Frightened Dogs Ever
As mentioned in my last post, during my Fall visit to Scooby in Spain, I also spent a couple of days in Madrid seeing the sights and staying at one of my favorite hotels. Unplanned, I brought back Miel (now MiMi), a mixed-breed rescue deemed, "The saddest dog at Scooby". From the day that Miel arrived, she was untouchable -- so shy that she wouldn't let anyone get near her. Read on for the happy ending. :-)
Touring Madrid: Before I left Scooby in December, 2013, I had the chance to stay at a very nice hotel, the ME Madrid for a few days before returning to the USA. During that time, I met up with a fellow rescue volunteer, Alejandro, who lives in Madrid. He had helped rescue and foster my galgo, Sara last year. He gave me the grand tour of Madrid. We walked all over town, and he showed me so many places, and taught me about the local highlights. It was wonderful! The City had just decorated for Christmas.
There were so many people out on the streets, and it was very festive. There were ice skating rinks and Christmas village shops, much like what we have in the USA. Their Christmas runs beyond ours, aligning with when Christ was born to when the three Kings visited him. We visited various tapas bars, ate wonderful food and discussed Spanish and American cultures, as well as the galgo and animal situation in Spain.
He also took me to a very special town near Madrid,Alcalá de Henares, where Alejandro went to college. It was a magical, beautiful town square, with dozens of churches and shops. Here are a few of photos of the town and holiday festivities:
Life-sized Statues of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza Outside Cervantes' Birthplace in Alcalá de Henares
Alejandro brought his newly adopted rescue, a gorgeous Spaniel, named Tyson. I had the chance to walk with Tyson, and many people stopped to pet the sweetheart. He is a great dog! I thank Alejandro for the time he spent showing me around, and for the love that he has for helping rescue the animals. He's a very special person, very humble and kind, and I'm so glad to know him. Thank you for the grand tour of Madrid! Looking forward to meeting up again in May-June. :-)
Bringing Back Miel (MiMi):
Once Eva, the North America Adoption Coordinator, asked if I could take Miel back to New York with me, it was very touch-and-go all of the way. First, I had to make sure that Iberian Airlines and partner American Airlines would allow her to fly during that time of year. Once I called them, it was a "go". Then Ana, Super Volunteer at Scooby, bought a carrier that would fit Miel for her flight to the USA.
Miel had to be spayed before the trip, so Dani, Scooby Manager, moved her up in the queue for that. Once she was spayed, Sabine, Volunteer Superstar, took the time to get close to Miel. She was instrumental in getting Miel acquainted with a kind human touch, a collar, and a leash. She actually crawled into Miel's cage to be with her. Sabine also offered to bring Miel and her carrier to the Madrid airport the day that I left for New York.
The Madrid airport is huge and very confusing. Sabine left Scooby in the wee hours of the morning, having loaded Miel into her tiny car, with the carrier, and driving for at least 3 hours to get to the airport. Once there, she loaded Miel into the carrier and met me at the check-in for Iberian. It was great that Sabine speaks fluent English and Spanish, as she was able to make the ticket purchase and coordination easier. From there, we had to wheel Miel in her cage to the Security check-in. They insisted that Miel be taken out of the carrier so that she could be run through the security gate (as a person) and the carrier through the scanner. Miel was petrified, and petite Sabine carried that medium sized dog at about 30 pounds in her arms through the gate. They scanned the carrier and when Sabine put her back in, Miel was so upset, she threw up all over Sabine - who made very light of it to make sure that the dog would be cleared for the flight. It all worked out, and Miel was loaded on the plane. I want you to know that the hero in this story for bringing back Miel is Sabine. She did it all, and I just delivered her to two very wonderful volunteers who then drove her to her home, hours away in Russia, New York.
Wonderful Volunteers Who Transported Miel (MiMi) from JFK Airport in NY
This is dear Miel, "The Saddest at Scooby", Untouchable. Now living happily in New Jersey and renamed, "MiMi"
Here is a Photo of Miel/MiMi in her New Home - So Happy!
To delight your heart, here is the update from Miel's, renamed MiMi, adoption Mom, Renee, in New Jersey:
"Mimi - is AMAZING - she's loud, obnoxious, she grunts and snorts and acts like a maniac, she lets me approach her head on and nuzzles my face, she loves the other dogs and even plays too hard at times for the big boys.
She still has to be leash walked in the yard because she won't come back in the house from being outside. Actually, I can get her back in but, it takes no less than an hour and leaving the door wide open while keeping all other dogs from going out.
She's such a little trouble maker - she rips Matteo's diapers right off of him (he loves her for it), she rips toys apart, she grabs paper towel rolls and shreds them - she tears around the house, upstairs, downstairs, on the sofa, leap off of the sofa, over the dogs under the dogs and skids out before doing it again - she's feeling good and feeling safe : )
I can't wait until warm weather and I can just let her go nuts outside - right now, she only gets to run outside on the weekends when I have time to mess around with getting her back inside. She's still terrified of strangers but, I've been having game night every Saturday night at my house with Renie, Rob, Hope, Tessa and Chad so - she gets a lot of exposure and hopefully will get used to others soon. I'd swear she's a puppy by her behavior."
The Volunteer network at Scooby is able to find loving homes and brand new shiny lives for so many unwanted dogs, all around the World. It is truly something to behold.
