My Favorite Breed is Rescued

The story of Simba...

Justin and I were at the Clawson Paws and Claws rescue dog walk 3 years ago with my MinPin Hailey. Best Buddy Pet Rescue was one of many there that day with crates of dogs looking for their forever homes. One dog caught Justin's eye. A 20 pound shepherd mix being hauled off in the arms of a young girl to get some privacy on a quick walk. Another walk by and we noticed this dog back in his crate. Justin squatted down to check him out, Simba the lady said. Simba pressed himself to the furthest corner of his crate to separate himself from Justin.

We went home and in no time Justin decided that he wanted Simba to be his. I was able to find Simba up for adoption through Best Buddy on petfinder.com. Best Buddy's next rescue show was Meet Your Best Friend at the Zoo the next day! What if someone else took him!? Justin had to work the next day so I drove to the Zoo adoption event early the next morning, parked among hundreds of other people looking for pets and ran like a maniac up to Best Buddy's tent. I found Carole, Simba's foster mom, who said she did not bring Simba that day; the zoo would have been too much for him to handle. I talked to her about Simba and she said Justin could meet him!

A few days later, Justin and his twin sister Kara met Simba at the local Petco and Simba came home with them as "Scooter."

Scooter was so scared he didn't bark for two weeks. He sat curled up in "his spot" on the couch and had to be fed pieces of his kibble by hand. Kara threatened daily that we would find Scooter out on the street with a "free" sign around his neck.

Scooter began to gain confidence by being around other dogs. Scooter and Hailey bonded quickly, although Hailey still won't admit she likes him, and Hailey taught Scooter many things including how to bark (unfortunately). Scooter needed to meet someone consistently at least 10-20 times before he could calm down after sounding the howling alarm and relax on the couch until someone looked at him. To us and those people who are in Scoot's close circle of trust, he is the most loving and loyal dog I have ever known. To outsiders, he is annoying and untrustworthy. He's so scary that as he barks at you he runs backward.

It's been about three years now since we've had Scooter in our lives and I wouldn't change a moment. Scooter's circle of trust has expanded and just this weekend he didn't bark at my parents and actually let my mom and dad pet him. This is an enormous improvement from the times my dad tried to walk Scooter on a leash and literally scared the shit out of him - literally. Yesterday, my girlfriend Stef came over and as she sat in the kitchen, Scoot came up to give her kisses and let her pet him and talk to him. This melted my heart.


Scooter enjoys long walks, capturing small animals, performing rapid-fire high-fives and roll overs until he gets the treat even if all that was demanded was a sit, he HATES sudden loud noises including thunder which he can never seem to find no matter how hard he looks for it, loves cuddling, wrestling, and snoring.

Justin has always said if Scooter could understand him for just one minute he would tell him that everyone loves him and not to be afraid. I think Scooter is slowly but surely learning this. He's gained a lot of confidence - always likes to be the leader on walks rather than overcome with fear and peeing on the city sidewalk. He lets me cuddle him every night like a little rag doll. He knows so many tricks and stays by my side when we camp without needing to be on a leash. Scooter is the epitome of a loyal friend and we are so lucky he came to us for his forever home.

Floating In Your Basement

As many people in southeast Michigan experienced last summer, there are three ways water can enter and damage your home:

1. Basement backup (usually through the floor drain)
2. Flood (as defined by FEMA)
3. Backup of stormwater over the foundation of the home

Insurance companies typically only insure the first cause above. If you have a sump pump then you won't be covered unless the sump pump suffers a complete mechanical failure. Where is the sledge hammer and what does a complete mechanical failure need to look like? 

It's important to know how much coverage you have for a basement backup. Without asking, you may only end up with $5,000 worth of coverage when the damage is tens of thousands. My house is a tri-level so my sump pump is on the same level as some of the most expensive things in my house.

Flood insurance is only provided through FEMA for flood zones. Let me tell you that with the stormwater problems we have in Michigan, many areas are being added to that list. A flood is defined by FEMA as something like the overflow of a body of water or a rare rapid accumulation of surface water that travels over the foundation of a home. Not up through the drains.

The last cause of water that could enter your home from outside is the backup of stormwater. I've found that many insurance professionals deny this third distinction exists. I call it a loophole. Stormwater can overwhelm a drain system and accumulate and rise up in the streets eventually flooding into your home. It's different from the above two causes because (1) it does not come up the drain in your "basement" and, (2) it is not a rare rapid accumulation of water.

I've personally seen this stormwater backup in front of my prior home in St Claire Shores. The street would flood and so would my yard. Water came in through/over the foundation and down my basement walls. An insurance company would most certainly deny a claim based on damage from this cause. Why? Water didn't back up through the floor drain and there was no flood. 

Precautions! 

Insist on specific broad coverage for water damage on your home owners policy. Hire a professional licensed plumber to assess the risk to your home and install back flow preventers and a standing pipe. These may not prevent water damage but will at least slow it down if it happens (i.e., a few inches of water in your basement vs a few feet). Don't store anything valuable on a basement floor. Use shelving and still don't store anything not worth risking damage on those shelves, depending on where you live!

It's important to find out how close you are to a water retention basin or drainage facility. If stormwater builds up too much gravity won't allow it down the pipes out to the rivers and lake. It backs up from there. Sometimes all the way into your local pipes and into your basement. Systems just are not designed to handle some of the harsh storms we are experiencing today.

Equally important is to find out if you live in an area with a combined system, a separated system, or you have your own septic field. The longer a community has been in existence in a suburban area, the more likely it has a combined system. Combined of what, you ask? Sanitary and stormwater run through the same pipes. Yep, if stormwater backs up, guess what's in that stormwater? Royal Oak residents are a prime example of people who get turds in their basements. Waterford, it's separate. Woo!

And I just have to say to all those parents who let their kids play in the flood water after the storm that I've seen on the news - your kids are playing in crap, people. 

Pure Michigan!