AGNEW — Frosty and Snowman are warm, snuggly and loving like any other Lhasa apso-Shih Tzu mix dogs could be.
The playful little pups also are deaf and blind.
The dogs lost their human family a month ago when the couple with children moved to Scotland, so the pet-loving people at Peninsula Friends of the Animals seek a temporary foster care arrangement or, preferably, a permanent “special” home for the 2-year-old dog brothers.
“They don’t have a sense of what they’re missing. They just have an appreciation for what they have,” said Nancy Campbell, operations manager for the nonprofit, while the white canines wagged their fluffy tails as they traipsed around the grass outside PFOA’s animal shelter.
They were born in the Forks area with merle ocular dysgenesis, a form of albinism, that left them close to, or altogether, blind and deaf.
They can hop up on a couch but then are afraid to jump down because they cannot see.
Interestingly enough, they are trained to use a litter box, Campbell said.
As they grew up together with their special needs, Campbell said, Frosty and Snowman have grown more close and dependent on each other. That’s why adopting them as a pair is preferred.
While the Friends of Animals is mostly known for its Safe Haven facility that keeps an average of about 50 adoptable felines just north of U.S. Highway 101 and east of Shore Road, the group also takes in small dogs with double disabilities until they can be adopted into homes.
Frosty and Snowman function much like other dogs and appear to have a heightened sense of smell and feel for vibrations that help them navigate around the yard.
They like to sniff, stop, drop and roll on the grass in the sunshine and play with their chew toys to pass the time.
“They sleep on a bed and a big blanket next to each other and when we have to go anywhere, we put them in the laundry room and close the door and they’re fine,” Campbell wrote last month on the group’s Facebook page.
“They are such wonderful, loving, gentle souls and we love them so much. I can tell you that the extra trouble caring for the special needs dogs is more than repaid by their love and devotion and appreciation.”
The family that left them behind had no choice, Campbell said, because they moved out of the country to the United Kingdom, where there are special requirements, including possible six-month quarantines.
The dogs are described as “very well-mannered and get along great with each other, people and other four-legged furry friends.”
Peninsula Friends of Animals is a no-kill animal welfare group.
Its mission is to prevent the birth of unwanted cats and dogs through spay/neuter and educational programs and to place homeless, neglected or abused animals in safe, loving, permanent homes.
Those interested in adopting Frosty and Snowman can phone 360-452-0414 and leave a message for Campbell or e-mail her at PFOA@olypen.com.
For more information about Peninsula Friends of Animals, visit www.safehavenpfoa.org.
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-681-2391 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
