Potcake of the Month Contest

Fritter loves going anywhere as long as she’s with Mom and Dad. She loves all food but will especially eat her veggies (asparagus is her favorite veggie) Fritter LOVES running around the beach and soaking up the sun. Sometimes she still digs for crabs in the sand like all her potcake crew back in the day! Fritter was diagnosed with Addison’s Disease at age 3 and is well taken care of with daily steroids and monthly injections- she’s high maintenance. Because of this she gets scared easily and needs extra cuddles and love. Anyone she knows she absolutely adores. She is truly a blessing to our lives and our favorite adventure buddy. We love our little Fritter.

-Ashley & Michael

Otis was rescued after Category 5 Hurricane Matthew in 2016.  Our caretaker saved him, his sister, and his brother in Lowe Sound on North Andros, Bahamas, just before the hurricane blew through, destroying most homes. We were in Oregon watching the Category 5 hurricane on the weather channel as it made landfall on our island. When the storm passed, we loaded our plane, picked up another girl in Texas who wanted to help, and headed to Florida for supplies. When we arrived, we gave food and medical attention to these three tiny puppies. After making several trips back and forth with chainsaws, tarps, supplies, and food to help aid the locals, we headed back to Oregon. Otis wasn’t doing so well. He was one pound and so sick that he could not eat. He had to receive an IV daily, be force-fed, and have him sleep in our bed at night. He slept on Roy’s neck every night for the first week. After careful nurturing, Otis, his sister named Rizzo, and his brother named Rocco were finally healthy. When I asked my husband if we could keep Otis, he said, “I would not be allowed to foster anymore if I couldn’t give him up.” Well, guess who ended up wanting to keep him? And he still sleeps in our bed! 

We are so happy to have Otis a part of the pack. He is a great help when we foster other puppies, taking them under his wing and teaching them new things. However, we love him even more for his expressive qualities. At times, he shares his opinions through amusing snorts, huffs, and sneezes. He is full of personality, and we adore him for it!

• Sondra and Roy

Etta and Abby came into our lives on the island of Andros. Unfortunately, they had it ‘ruff’ before their rescue! They were small enough to sit on one of my size twelve sandals. They had bloated bellies when we first met, but thanks to the good care they received on Andros and upon our return to the Pacific Northwest, they are both thriving. From our very first meeting, both pups were very eager to please, and they fit into our lives seamlessly. What a delight it was to see them bouncing and fumbling around as puppies while their worlds expanded.

Etta is a wonderful companion. She is always up for new experiences and meeting new people. What a smart dog she is! She recognizes family friends (and other animals) even when it has been years since their last meeting. I couldn’t ask for a more loyal, kind, and protective pal. While she is protective and alert, she is also easygoing and trusting. What a treat it is to take Etta into the city and let her sit on my lap over brunch at an outdoor table in Portland.

Abby loves to cuddle more than anything! She is the fastest runner in town and towers over her sister Etta by a few inches. It’s hard to believe she was so fragile and the runt of the litter, but with TLC, Abby quickly became incredibly healthy and strong. A point of curiosity; her nails grow so much faster than her sister’s nails…that’s because she was born to run! She must have had an incredibly fast Mother or Father?

These pups are survivors. We often wonder who the Potcakes’ parents were. Perhaps they even had different Fathers?

What a blessing these two dogs have been to our family. They are both so smart and loyal. They are clearly as grateful for their human family as we are to have them.

-Jon and Jan

Gus was our first Potcake, initially named Angus. We owned a Shiba Inu named Jackson in our beginning trips to the Bahamas, who usually didn’t like other dogs but became a great friend to Gus. After being homeless for four years, we decided to have Gus become a part of our family.

Gus learned to survive all of those years by wandering the neighborhood for handouts and scavenging the bushes for food. He became a great family dog that quickly learned how to perform tricks for treats and was particularly good at playing dead. Gus loved to fish. It didn’t matter whether he was on a boat, standing in the water, or floating on a raft. He was always searching for the little minnows. We had to be careful with our bait because Gus would snatch them from the bait box when we weren’t looking. Gus was a great traveler and loved cars, planes, and our RV bus. Several times we caught him jumping into other people’s cars or trunks.

Rather than having a bridesmaid and best man, Gus and Jackson walked us down the dock at Kamalame Cay in the Bahamas, where we got married in 2010. Gus moved to Oregon with us in 2014 and lived a good 16 years of life.

-Sondra

On vacation, in the Abacos, I found my best friend Bacardi. We were walking the main road on Marsh Harbour when Bacardi started to follow us. I went into a local coffee shop where the owner informed us that she is a stray and due to her already taking some home, Bacardi was left to wander around the shop and greet passersby. After some convincing my dad, we left with my fur-ever friend Bacardi. I’ve been lucky to have her by my side since 2013. She’s shared in the adventures of my twenties, meeting my husband, and now the adoption of our son. Growing through life with Bacardi and Violet (our second adopted Potcake) has been a true blessing.

-Sarah

Bay was found abandoned with her 2 sisters as puppies (maybe a few weeks old) and was rescued by the North Abaco Potcake Rescue and taken to Marsh Harbour. We saw a picture of her and immediately knew she belonged with us. We already had one Potcake, Niko, and thought it was time to add another. Since she was found at Hatchet Bay, we decided to make her Bay. Niko & Bay have been the best of friends from the beginning. Potcakes are the best, most loving, kind-hearted dogs. Niko was also rescued from Marsh Harbour.

Penny came from Andros, Bahamas. She was found in a marina called Morgan’s Bluff with three of her pups and was also pregnant with thirteen more. Today she lives with two other dogs, Teddy and Ellie Mae, chickens, goats, and a cat. She’s a couch potato but loves to rough house with Teddy. She’s goofy, sweet, and the protector of the house. Penny was a fence jumper when she first came to us, but now she would rather figure out where the food is, and boy does she love food! She was still thin when she came to me, but now she’s going on a diet! Penny loves to sit in the kitchen during dinner time looking for any type of scraps, and she’s even grabbed play-doh that fell. There is nothing she hasn’t tried to grab if it falls. Penny loves to go on walks and likes to swim. She’s a great travel buddy. Penny has traveled with the family all the way from Florida to Maine. She loves the cooler weather and running through the woods. We love her to pieces and are very happy to have provided her with a home!

-Rachel

We arrived on Andros for our annual spring fishing trip on March 13th, 2022. On our first day there we noticed a beautiful, but awfully thin, female Potcake hanging around the lodge.  It was obvious to us she was nursing pups. The locals told us she was a stray and no one claimed her as their’s. As I shared my meals with her, she quickly became our friend and I named her Sadie. We found her den and saw her beautiful eight puppies. She was a devoted mom and trusted us with them. It was a moving experience and we hated to say goodbye at the end of our 10-day fishing trip. We had friends in Behring Point buy as much dog food as they could find and feed her for us at her den. The morning we departed I smooched her and told her I’d be back for her. Fast forward to the end of April and I arrived back in Andros for the sole purpose of finding Sadie and her pups to bring them back to the U.S. and find them homes. Not more than five minutes after I got out of the taxi at the lodge, she came walking up the driveway. I was overjoyed as she seemed to remember me and her tail was wagging when I called her name. Over the course of a week I managed to capture five of her six surviving pups. It was exhausting work; I never slept more then four or five hours at a time because my mind was on high alert listening for Sadie and her pups. She was amazing and so smart; on two different nights she brought puppies to my room in the middle of the night. She got my attention with a distinct high-pitched yelp; I’d sit up in bed and go open the door. Sure enough she was sitting 20’ away with them; I imagined her saying: “Here they are, now catch them”.  And I did. I hired a vet to come to the lodge to give Sadie and her puppies their exams and vaccines. On April 27th we departed Andros for FL. All the dogs handled it well and we were hosted by dear friends for a couple of days before making our way home to Anchorage, AK. We decided to keep Sadie and one of her male pups we named Frankie. We found homes for all the puppies with family and friends; none had to go to rescues. We have three adult golden retrievers, and after about a week-long transition everyone got along great! The whole experience was very rewarding and something I will cherish for the rest of my life. We love Sadie and Frankie and are so happy to have them and give them a loving home.

I couldn’t have done this whole journey without the help of some very special people. A special thank-you to: my hosts at the lodge; Fiona at the Bahamas Humane Society; our friends Harry & Shae Neymour; Roy & Sondra Armstrong of Potcake Rescue; their friend Toothpick; veterinarian Dr. Keith Cox; and John & Wendi Skinner

-Jennifer Anderson

Miles is a true Potcake, he loves to toss himself on his back, belly exposed, and roll around. He does this while at the dog park, in the morning on the bed, in front of my parent’s Chiweenie, and just about anywhere else. “Potcakes gotta Potcake” I’ll exclaim! Miles LOVES our Saturday hike with friends. He’ll start whimpering the second he knows where we are going and by the time we get there is a ball of excitement. He’s great off-leash with recall but will bulldoze or jump over anything in his way at full speed, so he stays on a leash when other people and small pups are around. Miles isn’t a cuddler but he is very protective of me and our home. In the mornings after I wake up, he will lay curled up against my legs before moving from the bed to the sofa in the living room. I adore Miles and his companionship is everything to me. I will be forever thankful to the people who worked hard to get him to me.

-Wendy

This is my boy, Cayman. He came into my life almost 12 years ago. I decided to name him Cayman after the Cayman Islands. I thought it would be fitting since he came from the Tropical Islands.

He is 100% a momma’s boy. Almost 3yrs ago, I moved out, and whenever I would facetime my parents, he would recognize my voice and run straight to the front door anytime he heard, “Where’s your momma?”

Some of his favorite things are hide and seek, which he always sniffs me out within minutes, going on walks, treats given by my little niece and nephews every time they come to visit, chasing momma around the house, and a select few stuffed animals that he guards with his life.

Some of his least favorite things are when someone other than him play fights with me or when there’s no hint of people food in his breakfast or dinners. He won’t touch it!

His favorite place to sleep is in our hall closet and under my parent’s bed or up on the couch when no one is home, haha. We love him so much!

-Shannon

The story of how Bimini and Fritter were rescued and came into our lives is one of my favorite stories to tell. My friend Ashley and I had been staying at the Marina named Morgan’s Bluff in Nicholls Town for nearly five days when we found two puppies abandoned on an old shipping vessel. These poor puppies had no food, no water, and were very scared! Ashley, Fritter’s adopted pet mom, and I knew right away that we were meant to find them, and they were meant to find us. After they began to feel safe with us, it was love from that point on. So we decided to bring them back home to Florida. I remember calling my soon-to-be husband and saying, “Babe, so I brought home something. Well… more than something, it’s a puppy, and I named her Bimini!”. At the time, he was also weeks away from adopting our other dog, Chipper. So before we knew it, we were mom and dad to two puppies, who quickly became best friends. Bimini and Chipper now live spoiled, comfortable lives with my husband and me and our three kids. Bimini is quirky and sometimes shy, but she’s an excellent pet. She rarely acts up, but when she does, I jokingly remind her that she’s living the good life now as an American and could otherwise be foraging for crabs and trash off the beaches. Haha, I think she loves her life with us, and we love her.”