SCHS Column: Cal the gentle giant

Jun. 16—Stephens County Humane Society usually does a great job giving us info about our Take Out Tuesday guests. This week, they hit it right on the money when they described our guest Cal.

Now known as the gentle giant, Cal is a six-year-old mixed breed dog who was found by Animal Control and is looking for a forever home to entertain a laid back family.

Cal was more than eager to get out and walked really well on the leash and had a great car ride to our office to enjoy the day away from the shelter.

Upon walking into the office, Cal quickly found some of our news staff and our general manager only to immediately fall to the ground for a quick belly rub.

While making the rounds of the office, Cal found our wide selection of treats and enjoyed having his choosing while also listening to commands of "sit" to receive the treats in bulk.

While visiting with the folks in the office, we waited patiently for my family to come have lunch and bring the cheeseburgers for our wonderful guest Cal.

Before they arrived, however, Cal signaled he was in need of some outside time, so we took him outside and found out that he is well versed in letting you know when he needs some time outdoors.

My family arrived and Cal knew right away what was in the bag and followed them to the door. He was happy to find the treats were for him and waited very patiently.

Although I'm sure that Cal could have eaten the cheeseburgers in one bite, we went ahead and fed him in pieces, and toward the end, I started to notice he wanted to do some tricks.

We found out very quickly that Cal could catch pieces of cheeseburgers from the air and we were very excited to learn this fact.

After taking a break from snacking, we found out that Cal loves playing with toys and will chase after several of them, making him leave for joy.

Playing well with my nine-year-old niece, we feel that Cal will love the family life and will be a perfect fit for a typical family.

Some other friends from our weekly visits are still available including Gretchen, a four-year-old pit bull/terrier mixed breed; Zeke, a two-year-old black labrador retriever/pit bull mix from two weeks ago; and Hadley, our guest from last week who is a four-year-old mixed breed and a little timid at first meet.

To inquire about Cal, Hadley, Gretchen, Zeke or any of the other dogs available for adoption, you can set up an appointment by calling 580-252-7387 between the hours of noon and 4 p.m. Weekend have extended hours until 6 p.m.

For more information on the dogs for adoption, visit the Stephens County Humane Society Facebook page or website at stephenscountyshelter.com for the link to donate.

Also, the next big fundraiser is quickly approaching for the Stephens County Humane Society as they will host their annual Yappy Hour that will take place from 5-7 p.m. June 29 at Kochendorfer Brewing Company.

Since it is a private event, dogs will be welcome at Kochendorfer and they will have a few silent auctions, food trucks, raffles and a wiener bobbing contest for the dogs.

They will also raise funds for a much needed update to the cattery at the Stephens County Humane Society and hope for high attendance.

The SCHS column is sponsored by Tractor Supply Co. and Oklahoma Educator's Credit Union.