This little boy was first rescued from the shelter in Jackson County. He was picked up with no ID and no information was available for him. He was given the name "Leo," and was turned over to Portland Miniature Schnauzer Rescue for fostering and placement.

Leo was placed with his first foster mom for 1-2 weeks. It was at the park that his hearing loss was first identified. People would come up and talk to him and he would not notice. But when touched out of his line of vision, he would startle. His first foster mom was asked to take two more schnauzers that were surrendered. At that point, Leo moved on to his second foster home, my home.

The first couple of days in my home, he stood quietly in rooms and watched - kind of like getting a feel for the "lay of the land." Initially, he appeared to be a bit slow in his activity level, and he drank excessive amounts of water. Miniature Schnauzer Rescue proceeded with a blood screen and urinalysis, and Leo was identified as having an infection, parasites, and also was hypothyroid. As a result, he was wormed, put on antibiotics and Thyroxine, which he will need to take for the rest of his life.

Once Leo physically improved, he started moving around and exploring everything. It took him over a week to decide that it was okay to jump up on a chair and take a nap. He was afraid of heights, and chose to sleep on the floor in a soft, sheepskin dog bed with high sides. He loved his bed and got to take it with him when he was placed. He walked close to a mile with me at night and greeted neighbors and their dogs calmly and quietly. I had no idea what happened to this little one over the prior few months, but he most certainly spent most of his life in a loving and caring environment. After the first few days of uncertainty, he started blossoming and his little personality surfaced. He was a perky, proud, energetic little boy who loved to follow me around, inside and outside. The only time he barked was when I left for work - he liked people with him and was unhappy when left alone.

Leo was placed with a lady who retired, is home all day, and has a large fenced back yard. The bond between the two of them was almost immediate - her family believes that someone like her had been in Leo's life before it got turned upside down. She stays in touch with me and her affection of Leo has continued to grow. She says that she and Leo can grow old together.