Prince is a 35 pound, four month old healthy boy. He was found on the side of the road with his dead mother. He refused to leave her, but he was scared of his rescuers. It took them hours to catch him. As soon as he was brought to his foster home, his demeanor immediately changed. He started wagging his tail and moved on from his sad past.

Prince is a very goofy puppy. His tail only stops wagging in his sleep: he is always happy! He enjoys interacting with dogs of all sizes. He wants to be around his family all the time so that he can get lots of pets and cuddles. He trying his best to learn about potty training, chewing, and walking on the leash. He is a smart boy, but he still has a good amount of time left in his puppy stage.

One of the cutest things Prince does is shout “roo” in the morning. He wants to share with the world how excited he is for a new day.

If you are interested in adopting Prince, you must fill out the “foster application” found on our website. A phone interview and home visit will also be involved in the adoption process.

This savvy sleuth is Sherlock the Merlock and he is a 2-3 year old Shi-Tzu mix. Sherlock is named after two very different things: 1) Mr. Sherlock Holmes because of how formal and wise he looks and 2) A Merlock, which is a World of Warcraft character that is really not very flattering. Sherlock the Merlock is his name, we all have to get used to it! Sherlock is yet another Tehachapi stray that we thought must have an owner, but sadly that doesn’t seem to be the case. On the bright side, Sherlock is doing very well and has a bright future ahead of him with some lucky family out there. Sherlock spent the first week or so at the Veterinary Hospital where Fauna, our lovable office manager, took him under her wing. The staff at TVH has spent a ton of time with Sherlock, making him feel at home and wanted. He has reciprocated that love by being a model rescue citizen and an all-around joy to be around. He loves other dogs and seems to have a very laissez faire approach towards life—in his world, everything is all good.

If you are interested in adopting Sherlock the Merlock, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852, 821-1327.

This peculiar looking petite is Buck and he is a Pug/Chihuahua mix, or “CHUG.” Buck is an extremely interesting dog with very human-like qualities and emotions. Buck found his way to Starbucks (hence the name) at about 5 am and started scratching on the door. Not like a scared, timid dog, but like a child who has lost his parents. He must have heard about the staff at Starbucks and figured “this is my best bet for some help—a meal or possibly a cup of Joe!” Buck has adorable way of asking for something where he puts his paw up and mutters a quiet “ROOOOHHH.” After being scanned for a microchip and taken to various locations to look for owners, the gals at Starbuck’s contacted me, which wasn’t very difficult as I was on the patio at Starbucks conducting a doggy date. This little Buck is surprisingly mellow and tame—he just kind of hangs out. He’s like that friend that we all have whose response to everything is “Sure, whatever.” Little Buckly will be neutered next week and be brought up to speed on his vaccinations.

If you are interested in adopting Buck, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852, 821-1327.

This studly shepherd mix is Scout, and he is a 4-5 year-old, neutered, 60 lb. mutt. He is called Scout because he was found scouring the hills of Sand Canyon. Personally, I think he was just lost and looking for his parents, who are not reciprocating the effort. Scout was brought to the Tehachapi Vet where we hoped his parents would find him. Obviously, his parents never showed up and he has happily become a Marley’s Mutt. Our boy has gone from rugged, mountain scout to calm and refined mans-best-friend (or a woman’s). Scout obviously has had some training but what he didn’t have has been taught to him by his foster mom, Erin. Scout now does extremely well with cats, any type of dog or human, and is completely housetrained. Scout is ready for the big show and is very eager to show his new family what a lover boy he is.

If you are interested in adopting Scout, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852 or 661-821-1327.

This delightful dame is Delilah and she is a 2-3 year-old Staffordshire terrier. She was discovered as a stray but has clearly been socialized and trained. Delilah is probably the best behaved, most well-rounded Staffordshire terrier I have ever met. She is simply good at everything and bad at nothing. She is a crowd pleaser and an absolute hit wherever she goes. She gravitates towards people as well as animals. Her energy around other dogs is very calm, centered and comfortable; she is not afraid or anxious, she JUST IS. She is also on the smaller side (40-45 lbs.), which makes her very easy to control as well as transport. A child as young as 10 could easily handle Delilah. We have had her at several of our events and she has behaved with complete grace and shown total respect. I would trust Delilah around small children, small animals and even cats.

If you are interested in adopting our sweet Delilah, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852, 821-1327, or email: ziggyhb@yahoo.com.

This tenacious tyke is Sonar and, as is plainly obvious, some scumbag cut his ears off with a crude, surgical implement—probably a knife or razor. I found Sonar at the Bakersfield Pound shortly after he was brought in. The awesome KCAC staff let me bring him up to Tehachapi immediately, which was crucial because severe open wounds like Sonar’s make a pup very susceptible to infection and disease. Dr. Anderson took a look at him and sent us home with antibiotics and instructions to keep his ears clean and treated. At first Sonar was a bit in shock, running a fever and incredibly scared. His apprehension has begun to dissolve and the other dogs here have not let him retreat into fear. Sonar has developed a great relationship with Ludwig (our 130 lb. Saint Bernard) and forged an adorable bond with Chloe, our Pit mix pup that we rescued from the same shelter. As I write this, the two of them keep me focused on my work by providing a constant background of play-banter, untying my shoelaces and chewing on my cell phone charger. Sonar will make a full recovery but will always bear the scars of his tormented past.

If you are interested in being a part of his glorious future, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852 or email zach@marleysmutts.com.

Usually I don’t find grey-haired women attractive, much less grey with blue noses, but Macie is the exception. She is a breathtaking 2-year-old Blue Nose Pit bull. Macie has the dynamic 1-2–punch of being uniquely gorgeous as well as calm and managable. Macie was found stray in Bear Valley. She is incredibly friendly and found the first car she could to hop in and seek comfort and companionship. Needless to say Macie has gone unclaimed, which is somebody’s great loss. Lucky for her, Macie’s foster family has made her part of the crew. They have a three-dog pack of which Macie is now a part of (#4). Macie goes for rides, hikes, dog park trips and all the other excursions that a dog should be comforatble in. Don’t let her breed fool you, she is a gentle soul with great companion qualities. Macie responds very well to instruction and is relatively easy to handle. Macie is terrific with other dogs, good with children, but will need a home without cats. Oftentimes dogs have a predatory drive when it comes to cats and she is no different. Macie is really a lap dog who loves to give and receive love.

If you are a family that is interested in those qualities, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852.

This crusty canine is Oscar, and if he could talk, what a story he would tell. He’d probably start off by saying “I’m not crusty anymore, so stop calling me that!!” He’s right, his burns have healed well, and except for losing parts of both of his ears, you can hardly tell that he was severely burned. Oscar sustained 3rd degree burns over 30% of his body while narrowly escaping the Canyon Fire. Oscar spent a month at the Tehachapi Veterinary Hospital, where they provided a terrific atmosphere for recovery. Oscar has been up here at the Rescue now for a month and has completely melded into the pack. Oscar loves it up here and has really blossomed as a dog. Due to circumstances surrounding the fire, Oscar’s owners thought it be best that we find him a loving home and that’s what we’re going to do. I can’t say enough good things about Oscar; the most brilliant of his characteristics is that he never got down or depressed; he never let his excruciating injuries put him in a bad mood. Oscar is all smiles all the time. One can’t help put pick up positive energy from this persevering pooch. Oscar is 100% now and ready to be with his new forever family.

If you are interested in adopting Oscar, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852 or 661-821-1327.

Oscar before:

This Magical Mutt is Jude and he is quite possibly the most remarkable dog that we have ever had here at Marley’s Mutts. Jude came to us after being discovered by Animal Control at a local trailer park and I have never seen a dog that was sicker than Jude. Jude weighed only 21.5 lb., was covered with lesions, and was leaking goo from his ears, eyes and well, pretty much everywhere. Jude was all skin and bones and most of his hair had fallen out. His would shake his head constantly and when he did so, slime would project forth from his ears. He was in terrible shape. To be honest, I kept thinking to myself “We are gonna watch this poor guy die,” but Jude had other plans. The Tehachapi Vet Hospital swung into action and began treating, medicating and diagnosing Jude. After a significant struggle and many road blocks we got our diagnosis and we started to see a healthy dog emerge. Jude has an auto-immune condition that requires him to take small doses of Prednisone. The Prednisone keeps him normal and happy. Happiness is something that Jude has in great supply. He went from not being able to walk more than a couple of yards without extreme difficulty to being able to go on runs with me for over a mile. His demeanor exudes gratitude and he is a very pleasant dog to be around. Jude is a once-in-a-lifetime dog with a tragically unique story–a story whose later chapters will be drenched in positivity and love.

If you would like to help write the rest of this extraordinary tale, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852 or 661-821-1327.

Before photos:

Meet Otie, a 115-lb., 2½ year-old, St. Bernard mix.  Otie is an original beauty:  big as a St. Bernard, white like a Great Pyrenees,  and simply elegant. Unfortunately I cannot use the same adjectives to describe her upbringing and the torment of her recent past.  Some dog-hearted folks contacted me over a month ago, informing me that their neighbor was dying of alcoholism and her dog needed to be removed from the situation.  Apparently, Otie was the bright spot in this woman’s life, and helped keep her going; but she had lost hope, let herself go, and gave up on the dog as well.  Naturally I thought these folks were exaggerating but I got a call last week saying that she had died of liver failure and that Otie was now alone at the house.  Well, she’s not alone anymore. She has joined our pack and is doing tremendously well.  She is still a little hesitant, and flinches from time to time, but all of those kinks will be worked out with the proper amount of love.  Otie is about 115 lbs. and in perfect shape.  She is vaccinated and spayed and shows no signs of dysplasia or any other ailments. You can tell that Otie has been affected by the loss of her owner but, with a little time and love, her recent tragedy will be a distant memory.

If you are interested in adopting Otie, please contact Zach at 661-972-3852.