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Cool pooch needs a warm home

A once terrified, shy and cold dog has warmed up and opened up after some Red Deer residents got him into a local rescue.
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Kathy Bourassa of Forever and a Day Pet Rescue with Austin. Austin was first noticed running stray in Red Deer in June of 2013 and it is thought he was homeless through the summer before some concerned dog lovers caught him at Austin Drive and 22 Street.

A once terrified, shy and cold dog has warmed up and opened up after some Red Deer residents got him into a local rescue.

Austin, believed to be a Jack Russell/Boston terrier cross two- or three-years-old, is now safe and sound under the care of Cathy Bourassa, who runs the Forever and a Day Rescue just east of Springbrook.

Ever since his move to the rescue, Bourassa said he has started to come out of his shell, especially when she introduced him to a ball.

“That just opened up his little personality,” said Bourassa. “He’s just a little sweetie.”

But things weren’t so nice for Austin just a short time ago. He was a homeless dog, sunning himself on a berm near the Anders and Inglewood neighbourhoods in Red Deer.

It was there that Angela VanderBrink first saw the wayward pooch in July. A few weeks later, she was informed by friends that it had been there since June and was being fed by neighbours.

As the weather turned cold, the small dog was still hanging out and they had to hatch a plan to save him. Being a shy, scared pup, every time VanderBrink or some similarly concerned citizens tried to get close, Austin would run away.

After several attempts to capture the dog, including baiting traps and trying to get a hand on him, they were ready to give up. Then VanderBrink contacted Bourassa, who had a trap.

This trap worked and at midnight one night, VanderBrink took her shift to examine the trap and found Austin was finally caught.

Since his capture, on Nov. 12, he has been in Bourassa’s rescue.

“The first thing we did was notify Animal Services and seeing if anybody had a lost dog, and talked with the SPCA and put him on Pet Lynx (a lost pets website) and no one had reported him missing,” said Bourassa.

A trip to the vet found no problems with the dog — he is healthy and Bourassa said it was obvious Austin was someone’s pet at some point.

If anyone is interested in adopting Austin, they can contact Bourassa at 403-886-4774 or by email at scorpiecat64@gmail.com.

“He’s very adoptable.”

mcrawford@www.reddeeradvocate.com