Popular stray dog rescued, will be mascot for animal adoption
A pup who now has a permanent home was, quite possibly, the most beloved stray animal in Gilmer County until being adopted last month.
His new owner will keep the first part of the dog’s name, inspired by the retail store where he became a subject of outreach and concern for customers.
Senia Webb said she is happy to have finally gained the trust of the little brown chihuahua mix known as “Wally the Walmart Dog.”
“At first my kids would call him Brown or Browny, but Wally is what stuck. That’s what we started calling him, because that’s what everybody called him,” she said.
Community canine
Wally was a fixture at various parking lots in the Highlands shopping area, particularly the East Ellijay Walmart, during the last several years.
“He just started showing up (one day) and it went on from there,” said Tom Horton, the local Walmart’s manager.
Webb said she first met the dog near the store in 2014.
“My daughter had a chihuahua puppy that she had left with us, who I call my grandpuppy. We had got out (to let her walk) and Wally came running from the bank across the road. He didn’t come to me, but he went to (the other dog). We spent 30 minutes letting them play,” she said.
“Later that night, I came back through and he wasn’t in the parking lot. He was on the outside of the fence closest to Highway 515. There was a big cardboard box with the opening facing the bank and the back facing the road. He went into that box. From then on, I tried to make sure he was OK. Sometimes I would go and check on him twice a day.”
As more and more people encountered Wally, it became a ritual for both store customers and employees to bring the scruffy dog food, play toys, blankets and other treats.
“It gave people something to do and they looked forward to seeing the dog or trying to take a picture of him,” said Horton. “People would (come just to) feed him. I’ve heard everything of people bringing him homemade dinners like porkchops to the highest-end dog food we sell. We’ve had people who would get off after working at night and take him something to eat in the morning.”
“He would cross the highway and go all the way over to Chick-fil-A. They knew him there, too. They called him Hashbrown,” said Webb.
Among the comforts provided by Wally’s fans was a doghouse made from a plastic storage container. It was kept in a grassy area beside the Walmart parking lot and written on one side was this request: “Please do not take away Wally bed and blaket (sic). He will die.”
“He wouldn’t go in the house, so we moved his spot down by GameStop. We spoke with them and they were OK with us making him a little (pinestraw) nest in a C-shape,” Webb said.
“(Eventually), we had an A-frame house built out of plexiglass. It took me three weeks to get him to go in there, but he finally did. He would go in when it was raining because he could see through the house.”
Hard to catch
There were plenty of attempts to catch Wally, which was always difficult for those who tried, confirmed Ernie Taylor, of Friends of the Gilmer Animal Shelter (FOGAS).
“I’ve known about him for a couple of years. I first saw him at Lowe’s, where people were also bringing him food and toys,” said Taylor. “I had tried to catch him, too, but I’m in a wheelchair and had slim to no chance of doing that. Animal control had also tried to catch him. He wouldn’t let anybody touch him. He would be friendly, but would not get within touching distance.”
“I saw two men try to catch him one night,” Webb said. “One of them actually fell over the cage trying to catch the dog, who thought it was all a game.”
Those fruitless attempts inspired stories that led to the homeless dog becoming an online celebrity of sorts. Notes about Wally’s condition and whereabouts were posted regularly on multiple Facebook pages.
“There are all kinds of stories out there about this dog and how people have tried to catch him. He had actually become a source of conflict on Facebook the last couple of years, with some people saying he needs to be caught and other people saying he’s a free spirit, leave him alone,” said Taylor.
“I recall a story that someone caught him about a year ago and took him home, but he broke out and ended up back at the store about a week later. I don’t have anything to validate that, but that’s a story (we heard),” said Horton. “A couple of years ago, it snowed and the little guy was just sitting out there in the snow. You could see his face and nose sticking out, but, somehow, he wasn’t shivering.”
Webb, who described Wally as “a free spirit,” said she was fine with the dog remaining uncaught. However, by January, he’d become sick and lethargic. She was worried he wouldn’t survive outside in the winter chill.
“It was real cold, down in the 20s, and he had a bad cough. He had no appetite and wouldn’t drink. His eyes were squinted and he was laying in his bed. I could tell he didn’t feel good,” she said. “I told him I was going home and would be back in a little bit.”
After almost six hours, Webb was able to get Wally in her car and, the next day, to a vet.
“I got him home and gave him some water. He drank some, but started hacking right away. We took him to the vet and they ran tests that showed he had bronchitis, as well as a kidney and bladder infection. They put him on antibiotics and he’s doing a whole lot better now,” she said. “He’s been free in the house for two weeks and it’s going excellent. He goes to the door (when he has to go to the bathroom) and he’s walking like a pro on a leash.”
Webb thinks Wally wasn’t born to a stray mother, but instead was abandoned or lost as a young puppy.
“The vet told me he’s definitely had touch and that he probably lost that trust when whoever had him didn’t come back. They estimate he’s six-and-a-half years old,” she said.
Wally Strong
The unofficial mascot of the local Walmart, as well as several other Highlands stores, will now serve a different purpose.
After he fully recovers from his health woes and an impending neuter procedure, Webb said she wants to work with FOGAS, the nonprofit animal shelter support group, to have Wally at different events promoting the importance of animal adoption and having pets spayed or neutered.
Webb said she’s been offered donations of pet supplies and money by different people who befriended the dog, but she would rather those donations go to FOGAS, Homeward Bound Pet Rescue or the Gilmer County Animal Shelter.
“There are so many hungry and homeless Wallys — both dogs and cats — out there in need of help,” she said. “I’ve taken in stray animals before and have fostered kittens that were abandoned on the side of the road till they were old enough to take to the animal shelter. Their love and compassion for these animals is abundant. They do so much work to make it a no-kill shelter and find homes for the animals. If the money and donations can go there, that’s what I want.”
Though Wally is no longer a resident of whatever parking lot he chooses, his popularity among local animal lovers has not waned.
A Facebook group that offers updates on the former Walmart dog had more than 1,000 members at last check. There, people have posted photos of their “Wally sightings” and updates are now given on the dog’s new domesticated life.
Taylor said an update on Wally being adopted that he posted on the FOGAS Facebook page garnered a similar response.
“It’s approaching 200 likes. That’s amazing,” he said.
“Wally Strong” is the term Webb uses to describe the outpouring of community support for the little dog loved by many.
“I’ve met so many people who’ve loved him over the years and who’ve told me their Wally stories — stories about their kids or their animals playing with him. There were so many people who wanted to make sure he was warm and safe, even people who are part-time residents here, who’ve grown to love him and continue to ask about him. It’s overwhelming the love they have for this animal,” she said.
“They all helped support him this whole time. I’m just one of them.”