Zip, the Australian Cattle Dog

Zip’s Story, As told by the Hastings Family:

Zip was born deaf.  This can be common in cattle dogs and with proper training doesn’t pose any major issues.  Zip’s original owners may not have known how to deal with his birth defect.  We don’t know the entire circumstances, but we were told that he was dragged from a moving car and was severely injured. He was later surrendered to an Animal Emergency Clinic in the Phoenix area.  Just a puppy, Zip had a hard road ahead of him.  His leg never healed properly and he started walking with a limp.  Constantly in pain, Zip was treated with pain medications and the hope that one day he could get a surgery to fix his front leg.

Zip spent the next two years in “foster care” at New Hope Cattle Dog Rescue.  Although many thought he was handsome and inquired about him-his special needs limited the amount of people willing to adopt him.  He had a wonderful foster mom but really needed his own family.  At each adoption event he attended, he was so happy to see new people and perhaps find his forever home.

One day last summer, we came across the New Hope Cattle Dog rescue site and saw that they needed a dog walker. We contacted Zip’s “foster mom” and she suggested that Zip might benefit from outside exercise.  We became Zip’s official dog walkers from then on.  During this time, Zip’s “foster mom” became increasingly ill.  It was time for Zip to find another home.  After a lot of consideration, we filled out the foster application and said that Zip could come and stay with us. 

Zip has wiggled his way into our hearts and family.  Shortly after arriving at our home, NHCD paid for Zip to see a Veterinary Orthopedic Specialist.  This veterinarian felt that Zip would be better off if they amputated his leg.  Zip underwent surgery and made a full recovery. Our charismatic deaf dog was now three-legged. Many people assumed that a front leg amputation would severely limit his abilities but not Zip.  For the first time in his life, Zip was pain free.   It was obvious to my husband and me that this was a definite turning point in his life.  He was feeling better and excited to start doing many of the things he couldn’t do when he had his bad leg.  Zip had so much energy to run and play.  We decided to adopt Zip and make him a permanent member of our family.

Zip has an active life.  He goes for walks in the park, plays with our two other Australian Cattle Dogs, chases our two cats around and even devised creative ways to break into the chicken coop to steal eggs.  He has gotten so good at breaking into the coop for a mid-morning snack that we have had to fortify the fence three times!  

This May, we had a baby and Zip couldn’t be happier.  In the evenings, he will hop up to our daughter and lick her hair, hands, and feet. Zip’s zest for life is quite apparent as he is constantly finding ways to have fun.  Just the other day, I found him eating my basil plant.  Who knew that dogs ate basil!  Zip is also learning sign language. He knows “sit”, “stay”, “down”,” wait”, “leave it”, “off” and “okay”.  They say that learning takes time, but he is so smart and catches on to things quickly.  Although Zip had a rocky start to life, he is definitely making up for lost time.  He has finally found his forever home and we cannot say enough about our little guy.   He is a quirky, fun loving dog.  We can only hope that we are bringing as much joy to his life as he is to ours.

New Hope Cattle Dogs’ mission is helping discarded, stray and unwanted Australian Cattle Dogs/Blue Heelers/Red Heelers/Queensland Heelers (ACD’s) that need a second chance at finding a forever home and providing education and training to the public.  New Hope Cattle Dogs of Arizona was founded in February 2001, since that time close to 700 dogs have been rescued. 

You can reach the New Hope Cattle Dog Rescue by phone at 602-690-8374, by email at shannon@newhopecattledogs.com  or you can visit their website at www.newhopecattledogs.com