Meet Baron, one of the most remarkable little creatures!! This handsome boy had two different owners in his four short years, and is now on his third. When some people think of rescue dogs, they think of dogs that have been bounced from home to home with behavior problems galore! Baron had the ability to adapt, and remained friendly, obedient, well mannered, and loving.

Read Baron and Oscar's Haiku Poem.

A kind woman in eastern Washington adopted Baron and his sister, Lexi, when their original owner could no longer keep them. For the next two years, Baron and Lexi enjoyed life on the farm, although they were alone many hours a day, mostly outside while the owner's Yorkies enjoyed life inside the house. In the end, the owner decided Baron would be better off in a more "schnauzerly" family. Lexi was previously placed with another family, and Baron was released to Miniature Schnauzer Rescue in late March 2008.

After neutering, recovery, and grooming, he was ready for adoption. Little did we know how difficult Baron would be to place. When people apply for adoption with Miniature Schnauzer Rescue, we stress over and over to be sure to let us know if they adopt a dog from another rescue group, or if their circumstances change and they no longer wish to adopt. The frequency with which people didn't respond to phone messages or emails about Baron would have made one think we were trying to place "the dog from hell" with them rather than this young, friendly, healthy little gentleman.

We finally decided to call a family who had previously adopted from MSR, and were looking for a dog that could be trained as a therapy dog. Baron seemed to have the right disposition and temperament to excel as a therapy dog, not to mention being a loving companion. A "meet and greet" was arranged with Louise, her boys, George and Sam, and their adopted Schnauzer, Oscar, who is about twelve years old. Oscar has been with Louise and her family for five years, and was a handful when he first came into rescue. He settled beautifully into life with Louise's family but how would a new dog fit in??

On a sunny Saturday afternoon in May, Louise, George, Sam and Oscar all had the chance to meet Baron. Oscar did beautifully with Baron and the family seemed to fall in love with him within the first 5 minutes. After a short visit, we agreed that it looked like a good match and we made arrangements for a home visit with Baron. We talked with Louise about how to make the transition for Oscar and Baron as easy as possible, and what to expect when bringing a second dog into the family. It would be especially important to make sure Oscar knew he was still "top dog"!!

Baron and Oscar did just fine with their visit, the home-check was completed, the paperwork signed . . .and Baron was welcomed into his new home!

Fast forward several weeks and Baron has become a well loved member of the family. And he and Oscar have become best friends. Having a second dog has even helped Oscar to settle down. Never one to be very playful, Oscar has started learning to play with Baron, and the family. Louise tells us that Oscar's eyesight is starting to fail and having Baron lead the way up the stairs is helping Oscar to be more confident. These two little rescue boys are now a part of the same family, and they keep each other company during the day.

Baron has brought as much joy to the family as Oscar did, and he never gets tired of snuggling. While there are still the house training challenges, Baron is home, and he's with the family that will love him and keep him safe.