Rhode Island shelter finds home for wolf-hybrid in Vermont
SHELDON, Vt. (WCAX) — A wolf hybrid dog is settling into his new home in Vermont — which is not uncommon. What makes Zeus special is how he ended up in the Green Mountain State.
“You’re a good boy,” said Ron Monroe, the new owner of Zeus. It’s only been a few weeks since the half-breed wolf called Franklin County’s home. “And he’s living his best life right now, he’s doing so well.”
But his journey began in the Ocean State, more specifically in the Potter League in Middletown, Rhode Island. “His former owner couldn’t take care of him the way he wanted and that’s why we’re here. So we took him and he walked through our doors and we were like, ‘Oh, that’s a big… dog,'” the league’s Kara Montalbano recalled.
The shelter has issued an appeal for potential adopters — in either Vermont or New Jersey — the two states that accept them. “We actually contacted our state veterinarian because we knew they were illegal in RI, and we started researching and found that the closest states to us were New Jersey and Vermont,” Montalbano said.
Zeus’ story took social media by storm and it ended up being Sheldon’s Ron Monroe. “Whether he was a half-wolf or not, as soon as I saw him, I needed him,” Monroe said.
Like all other potential adopters, the former Rhode Island resident filled out the paperwork and waited, hoping for the best. “A few days later, my friend called me and said, ‘By the way, that’s my brother’s dog.’ And I didn’t know, and I knew the family. So they got the dog after I moved here. So he contacted them and told them we want him to have the dog. The whole family agreed,” Monroe recalled.
Monroe planned to get him at a later date, but he heard Zeus was having seizures and wasn’t doing too well at the shelter. So he made the six-hour drive to pick up the four-year-old almost immediately. “Oh my god, it was instant love. I thought, ‘This is it.’ I was impressed. His height as he came around the corner,” Monroe said.
After a long drive home, Monroe says the cute boy is adjusting while his older brother, Titan, warms up to him. And Zeus has warmed up for the cold winter weather. “He loves to lie around in the snow, roll around in the snow, lie there, he just licks it and eats it non-stop. If I don’t pick him up, he’ll lie there for hours eating snow,” Monroe said.
Monroe says he’s waiting for a DNA test to see how much Wolf Zeus is in him – and what kind – but kennel records show it’s probably somewhere around 30%.
He doesn’t bark but sometimes howls, and Monroe says his seizures have almost stopped since moving to Vermont. Zeus seems to have found his pack. “That’s what I’m saying – that’s the best place for him, huh? He’s very good,” said Monroe.
Zeus has gained many fans through all his fame. He has Instagram and Facebook pages where Monroe posts many pictures and video updates.
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