Update on Doug & Katie

Original post: The Story of Doug & Katie

Here is the latest update from Ingrid on Doug & Katie...

Hello Everybody,

I am would like to give another update on Katie and Doug. Also below that, please find a summary about them as it seems that there are some open questions.

This past week has been full of hope but also full of fear. Doug and Katie are still at the little motel but donations are coming in very slow, and I don't know how much longer we can keep them there. The hotel costs $ 325 per week and we are desperately trying to find a room to rent.

The problem is: Who is gonna rent to a homeless, unemployed man with a dog? Doug wants to work so bad, but he is limited right now because of his very painful hernia, for which he might have to wait for surgery for up to 2 years.

Donations are coming in very slowly, so it is very scary! We need your help for a little while longer.

I actually got so stressed over the weekend that I had to go to the emergency room myself with horrible cramps. They did all kinds of tests and didn't find anything besides a small infection, possibly caused by bad food.

According to the doctor my stress level caused the pain to be as bad as it was. So, I have been out for 3 days. Despite, Doug and I went to look at a room for rent yesterday that he had found in the paper. A very old man is renting it out and apparently the man who still lives in the room will move out on the weekend. But the old owner is so vague about everything that I don't know if it will really happen.

PLEASE SEND OUT A PRAYER THAT THIS WILL WORK OUT, SO THAT DOUG AND KATIE CAN BE SAFE UNTIL THEY CAN EITHER SUPPORT THEMSELVES OR GET ACCEPTED INTO THE SHELTER. (Which according to his social worker is supposed to happen within the next weeks). The pics attached show Doug and Katie in their current motel room, with the groceries bought from a donation. Doug is so thankful that he knows that he has food for every day right now.

Many ladies involved in this rescue mission have asked when Doug would shave his beard. It was a big deal for him but he did it! So, please enjoy the pics of Doug without the beard. By the way, he tells me, he has gotten a lot of compliments since. Little Miss Katie loves her Daddy with or without beard and she is soooooooooooo happy sleeping curled up next to Doug in a real bed!

One huge change, that I can see in Doug is that he begins to feel HUMAN again, not only "homeless".

PLEASE CONTINUE TO HELP DOUG AND KATIE.

Please forgive me if I forget anything vital... I am beyond exhausted.

Please advise how we can get them into a rented room!

Tomorrow, I will be contacting some larger churches to see if they can help in any way.

Please send your donations via PAYPAL

Ingrid Hurel
pajade@yahoo.de


Or to:

Ingrid Hurel
4818 W. 136th Street
Hawthorne, CA 90250

Thank you!

Summary:

Doug is originally from Pennsylvania. He is 47 years old and was adopted when he was 8 years old. He told me about some extremely traumatic experiences that he had before he was adopted and that are still affecting him today. Doug was married for over 20 years and his wife passed away about 4 years ago. She is the love of his life, and he fell into a deep depression after her passing.

He tells me about her every day, and I can see the love the two of them shared. Doug used to own a cabinet building business and would love to get back into this type of work.

Doug rescued Katie over 3 years ago from an abusive owner. She was emaciated and would flinch when petted on the head. The previous owner has also beaten her and left her in his hot car many times (it was in Lancaster where it gets VERY hot). Doug was outraged by this treatment and made it clear to this scumbag that he would not let Katie go through this anymore.

(Doug was homeless when he rescued Katie. Amazing how he, as a homeless person, can save and take care of a dog but yet many people dump their dogs just because "they move," "have a new baby," "have no more time," etc).

Well, there are no more signs of Katie's abusive past now. She is the sweetest, happiest girl and the both of them constantly exchanges kisses, conversations and playtime.

I have known Doug and Katie for almost 1 year now. When I first met them, I was struck by the amazing love and care Doug shows for Katie. He is such a caring person. I used to go by the bushes near the Freeway, where they used to live. I would make sure they are ok. I never gave him money and he never asked me for anything. I would sometimes bring dog food but most of the time, he had enough for Katie. He ALWAYS makes sure that she eats before he does.

I also was able to get both on the waiting list with PATH, the only shelter that accepts people with their pets in Los Angeles. They have been on the waiting list for 7 months now and I just spoke to the social worker today. He told me, that it is very close now, a matter of weeks before they will get accepted.

Well, a little over a month ago, Katie and Doug were chased around from hiding spot to hiding spot by the police. The police was trying "to clean up the area" of homeless people. Finally, Doug got arrested and fortunately, I was able to get Katie before they took her to the shelter. Katie is micro chipped to me and wears 3 tags with my phone number and her microchip tag.

Katie stayed at my house for one week until Doug got released and was cleared of all charges. Katie had a blast at my house and going to work with me, to Doggy Daycare. She was, of course, thrilled to see her Daddy, and Doug almost started crying when we reunited them.

Well, while in jail, they discovered that Doug had a very bad hernia. After he got released from jail, we went to the emergency hospital which just pushed the hernia back in and told him to "go home," well, the streets.

That night, we put him into a motel. He was in so much pain, he could barely walk. Well, we went back into the hospital two days later and the same thing: they send him "home." Amazingly, an American citizen can't receive medical care yet.

So, Doug and Katie have been staying at a motel for a bit over a week now.

We are actively looking to rent a room for them until they can be accepted into PATH, the shelter.

But we still need help. Donations have been coming in very slowly and the motel costs $325 per week.

Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.