[Dailydrool] Harley's gotcha day, and the Hawaiian six

[Val Brewer]

Today, October 16, is our Harley's gotcha day two years ago.  He and his littermate, Bo, are five years old.  Bo came to live with us four years ago August. We love them both to pieces.
 
I have told the story of the "Hawaiian six" to several Droolers in off-line e-mails, but don't think I've ever posted it on-line. They are truly brothers separated shortly after birth and reunited years later.
 
Bo and Harley (and Drooler Sarah Frioux's Koa) are all littermate brothers separated in early puppyhood.  The tales we have pieced together from a number of sources tell the following story.  Apparently a military couple living in Navy housing near Pearl Harbor had a pair of bassets they were planning "someday" to breed.  Probably would fall in the category of "backyard breeders".  Don't know the basset pair's origins or bloodlines.  The basset pair got to it before scheduled, and an unplanned litter was born shortly before the owner couple deployed out of the country.  Six brothers were consequently passed out to various military families in Navy housing as the owners were hastily departing.  At least five entered into an ongoing Odyssey, since our military population in Catlin Housing is pretty mobile.  
 
Our first basset, Bo, was one of two of the puppies who landed in their third rehoming with a couple on base.  This second couple had a developmentally delayed son, who named their two puppies Bo and Harley (the first).  When it was time for this second couple to deploy,  they advertised the two puppies (about 6 months old)  in the local paper for sale.  My husband and I had just done an Internet search of "dog breeds which are good with cats" and had decided to adopt a basset.  We bought Bo, and  Bo's brother, Harley the first, was adopted by a nightclub owner who subsequently relocated to Seattle.
 
About a month before we adopted Bo, another of the Hawaiian six seems to have escaped whichever home was fostering him at the time, and began living in the wild, starving, as a feral basset hound.  This hound, Odell, was eventually picked up by the Humane Society, nursed back to health, and adopted out about the same time we adopted Bo.  Two teachers here on Oahu adopted Odell. Odell has since become a celebrity, the volunteer patient for public first aid demonstrations given by one of the local vet hospitals, the mascot of our island's pretigious private Native Hawaiian high school, and the featured hound in his own line of greeting cards sold locally to benefit the Hawaiian Humane Society. We discovered Odell because everyplace we took Bo, people said "Wow, do you know Odell? He looks just like your dog."  And everyplace Odell went, people said "There's another hound that looks just like your dog".  So, eventually, we caught up with each
 other.
 
Meanwhile, the other four (as yet un-named here) puppies continued to circulate around Naval housing. About a year after we had adopted Bo, Harley the first had moved to Seattle, and Odell had found his forever home, the same family who had briefly owned Bo and Harley the first were stationed back again in Hawaii and returned to the same naval housing complex in which they had previously lived.  A different family, the SIXTH home for one of the other unfortunate puppies from the original litter, was thoroughly fed up with their basset by this time, whom they had chained outside to a doghouse and who howled continuously.  This bad home contacted the returning couple to see if they would please take the howling hound off their hands.  The newly returned family did so. because their son had missed the first two puppies. The developmentally delayed son was positive that the new hound was the very same hound they had given up the year before, and
 so the new hound was also named Harley (the second).  This howling baby was our Harley.
 
Another year passed, and again the couple with Harley (the second) found themselves leaving Hawaii, and so Harley the second was advertised, along with his hardluck story, on Craigslist.  I saw the ad, recognized the story, and scarfed him up.  So our Harley and Bo were re-united at age three.  Harley (the second) has had his separation issues, but now, after two years in our home, he is doing great.  He's no longer a problem howler. (Of course, he's always with us and sleeps in our bed--no more chained to a doghouse).
 
As Sarah tells us, she saw Koa advertised on a Naval Exchange bulletin board around the time we adopted Harley (the second) and Sarah adopted Koa.  According to the couple from whom we adopted Harley (the second), Koa may have had as many as a dozen homes before finding his forever home.
 
So we know the whereabouts of five of the six brothers--Bo, Harley the first, Harley the second, Odell, and Koa.  The story of the sixth brother is still a mystery.  Hopefully he landed a forever home on his first try.
 
These dogs are all absolutely terrific.  Loving, devoted, funny.  Strangers tell us they are gorgeous bassets (though I really couldn't tell).   Harley is courageous, friendly beyond belief, a total optimist.  Bo is timid but gentle, a trifle pessimistic but willing to go anywhere so long as he is with his pack.  They bring such joy to me and my husband.
 
Because of our experiences, I started the basset alert network here. Odell's mom and  I keep track of people wanting to adopt bassets and bassets needing rehoming in Hawaii and connect the two groups.  This is not as good as a rescue organization, I know, but has helped, I think.
 
Today we are celebratring Harley's gotcha day.  We're so lucky to have you, Harley--and you too, Bo.  (Hi, Koa and Odell).    


      
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