Chocolate, dog found with 2 broken legs, ready for adoption

Chocolate the dog will soon need a home.

The Chesapeake Bay retriever, whose tale of survival and gradual recovery has drawn global attention, will be back in the Tri-Cities next month from Washington State University in Pullman.

Chocolate had two severely broken front legs when he was rescued in rural Franklin County in January. The woman who picked him up from a field said she had seen him on the broken legs, neglected since the summer.

Much of his history before then is speculation. The most embraced theory was that he was dumped and then got hit by a car, snapping his two front legs.

He apparently then floundered on his own in the fields, shifting his weight from his front legs onto his back legs to walk. And it was out there that he probably picked up the squishy yellow ball that he's kept as his companion throughout his journey.

But Dr. Steve Martinez, the orthopedic surgeon in charge of Chocolate's treatment at Washington State University in Pullman, said there are many questions about how the accident happened and how the dog survived.

He could've been hurt while he was still in somebody's care or after he was dumped, Martinez said. He may have been hit by a car, or he may have jumped from a moving pickup. He even could have gotten caught in a drainage ditch, Martinez said.

Careful selection process

There may be hundreds of people who want to bring home the celebrity dog, said Dr. Janine Swailes, a veterinarian at Meadow Hills Veterinary Center in Kennewick. But few will realize the commitment involved in taking care of Chocolate for the rest of his life.

"He's a dog with special needs," said Swailes, who's handling his case.

Chocolate's well-wishers don't want to take a chance.

A committee composed of Swailes and representatives of various animal-care and support groups met Friday to develop guidelines to help find the "perfect" family to adopt Chocolate and provide the love and care he will need.

The guidelines and application form for adoption soon will be posted on the Meadow Hills Veterinary Center's Web site. The committee wants to make the adoption process as thorough as it can be, with a provision to take back Chocolate if he isn't cared for properly. The committee plans to meet again next week.

Members don't want Chocolate to be abused or become an object of display, said Lisa Irwin, assistant operations manager at Benton-Franklin Humane Society, a sentiment echoed by others, including Sonia Ayala of Pasco who rescued the crippled dog earlier this year.

Irwin also said Chesapeake Bay retrievers are "people-pleasers," and it's possible Chocolate will try to do much more than he's capable of, and that's something the new owners will have to take special care to avoid.

The owners will have to take Chocolate to Pullman for medical checkups every other week and also help guide his behavior. Chocolate has lived on his own for long enough to behave like a teenager and be demanding, Swailes said. The new owner needs to be committed to disciplining him while sharing warmth and love, she said.

Chocolate, who's 1 ½ to 2 years old, is known to warm up to other dogs at WSU. So the committee thought it would prefer owners who already own a dog. But their dogs will have be on Chocolate's good side when the potential owners go to visit Chocolate, said Gregg Bartel-Bailey, a volunteer from Richland-based Pet OverPopulation Prevention.

The committee members also felt Chocolate shouldn't go to a home with children who are 5 and younger, based on input from WSU specialists.