Last week we did not have a Perfect Match Monday story
because we were gearing up to bring you one of the most amazing stories from
ABC’s recent past. This story is so big that it will be a three-week series
here on our Facebook page, so please make sure you come back the next two weeks
to continue reading the whole story. This is the story of Princess, Bubba and
Thomas.
We are going to start this story by introducing Peter and
Maureen Rundle. The Rundles came to ABC to adopt a basset hound, but they didn’t
feel it was right to have just one hound. They wanted to adopt two hounds so
that they could keep each other company at all times. Two bassets are better
than one!! ABC doesn’t see many adopters that want a pair of hounds and didn’t
have a pair available for adoption. They sat on the adoption list waiting
patiently to find the right hounds for them.
When the 19 bassets came into ABC from Daphneyland in
December of 2013 our volunteers contacted The Rundles to find that they were
available to attend the adoption event that was being held in Buffalo. There
weren’t any dogs that were bonded in the bunch, although most of the bassets
that came in had lived and played together at the ranch in California. Peter
and Maureen met each of the bassets that we available for adoption that day.
Princess stood out to them. She was sweet, a little older
and had such a beautiful face. They just couldn’t resist her. Princess found
her way to Dahneyland when she landed herself in a high kill shelter in Los
Angeles County. They could tell that she had had several litters of puppies in
her 5 years. She may have been a breeding basset at one point in her life. The
Rundles quickly laid claim to Princess and started to look for a brother or
sister for her at the adoption event.
That’s when they met “the big man”…Bubba. He was so sweet,
cuddly and they fell in love with him. When Bubba ended up in a shelter in
California, he was extremely overweight. He was so overweight that the shelter
thought he had leg issues because he couldn’t support himself. Once he got to
Dahneyland he started to lose some weight and arriving in New York he was down
almost 19 lbs.
They liked both bassets so much they were ready to adopt
both Princess and Bubba that day. Peter and Maureen were a little concerned
about whether the two bassets would get along together. They seemed fine at the
adoption event, but what happens when they all get home? They were willing to
take the time and the chance to find out. Princess and Bubba became Rundles
that day and after 24 hours they were getting along great.
Princess, who was now Bella short for Isabella, and Bubba
quickly became a true part of the Rundle family. Bella had some issues with
arthritis in her back soon after her adoption. Her vet thought she was sore
from all the travelling she did to get up to New York. She hasn’t had any pain
since then. Bubba, well Bubba continued to lose weight and even though he would
let Bella know when she should stay away from his food dish, he was doing well
with his weight loss plan. Peter even thought that he enjoyed their daily walks
“once in awhile” where Bella loved walking the neighborhood.
In March of 2014, we got some terrible news about Bubba. He
wasn’t feeling well for a couple of weeks and when the Rundles took him to the
vet they discovered he had terminal cancer. The vet gave Bubba only a few weeks
to live. They were heart broken that they weren’t going to get very much time
with their Bubba. It was a very hard time for them.
When Peter and Maureen adopted Bella and Bubba they wanted
two bassets to keep each other company and they realized that they didn’t want
Bella to be alone for any length of time. They didn’t want her heartbreak at
the loss of Bubba to be too hard for her; even if it was going to be hard on
them. The Rundles also wanted all three hounds to have some time together. That
is when Maureen contacted ABC to find another basset for their family. 
When ABC received Maureen’s message, ABC’s Intake
Coordinator, John Morrison was working on an intake of bassets from North
Carolina. He talked with Peter to find out what would be a good fit for their
family. They talked about several different basset hounds that were coming in
and then John suggested Thomas to them. Thomas had caught John’s eye. He was a
basset mix (we think basset and daushund) and is as cute they come. He was in a
foster home in North Carolina. He didn’t have a rescue and he didn’t have a
forever home, so he was on his was to find a new home in New York.
John sent The Rundles a picture of Thomas’s cute face and
they once again fell in love. They decided that they would adopt him without
even meeting him. When he got to New York a couple of weeks later, The
Morrison’s picked him up and drove him to meet Peter and Maureen. They felt
like it was the least they could do for this amazing family.
Thomas and Bella bonded immediately. They became the best of
friends and started going everywhere together. Where there’s one…you will find
the other. Thomas turned out to be a great dog for their family and even got to
spend some quality time with Bubba. The whole family packed up and enjoyed a
day at ABC’s Spring Basset Blast in April (you may have seen them there). They ran
around together with all the other ABC alumni.
Now, as a story like this is being written…it also changes…life
doesn’t stop. After our first installment of this story we got the saddest news
ever. Bubba had passed on to the Rainbow Bridge leaving Bella, Thomas and The
Rundles behind. Peter tells us that they were very lucky to have Bubba survive
months after his diagnosis. He got to enjoy the spring weather out in their
yard and stand guard over the pool deck. They also feel blessed that Thomas is
now part of their family and Bella can enjoy her best dog friend and brother.
The Rundles are an amazing family who love their basset
hounds. They’ve given three ABC basset hounds a good home and a great new lease
on life. For that, we think this is a Perfect Match…times three.
