Month: June 2006

Frost ‘T’ will be going to the vet’s tomorrow night as his diarrhoea continues. I also would like to get a new weight as I know the Pet Expo was quite hard on him. He also split open the tip of his tail with all of his ‘happy’ tail syndrome due to the close quarters in the hotel and at the Expo, he hurt it.

Mazda was spayed today and everything went really well. Her uterus was very small despite having had a heat and also being a Giant Breed. Mazda’s weight was very hard to obtain as she was being very difficult about getting on to the scale. We know that she easily surpasses 100+ pounds(we got that much) and when I pick her up from the vet’s tomorrow(I left her there as her surgery was not over until close to 5 PM today and she was very groggy and found it hard to stand when I was there). The vets also looked at a small lump that was under her tail and it turned out to only be a haematoma. We did a fine needle aspirate to be sure. Mazda plays quite rough with Fancy and she could have easily gotten this bruise from playing with her. We also did another thorough Cardiac exam on Mazda and her heart is awesome! Mazda also had a manicure plus pedicure today at the Vet’s. Mazda is now available for adoption for with how long the adoption process takes and with how long it might be to have that right matched home apply for her; she will have recovered completely from her spay by then.

Lady came with me to the Pet Expo this past weekend. It was great to have so many people meet her and experience for themselves what I have been trying to convey via our websites about what an incredible Dane Lady is. Lady was all class and did not hesitate to sit in people’s laps, lean against them and was very trusting. She also showed her spirit in talking back to me and anyone else who she thought might be ignoring her! 🙂 More interest has now been generated in her and we are reviewing applications. We hope that the best matched home will be found soon for Lady. Though Sean says that she is one gal that can stay with us forever as he is truly enamoured by her charm and grace.

M. Leung, Oshawa, ON, CDA

I’m more than happy to be a link on your ‘chain of success’ but remember, there would be no chain if you had not seen the real need and taken the initiative to set up BHRR in the first place. I’m sure more than anything else it’s been your hard work and drive that’s kept BHRR going for 10 years and made it the success story that it is!

T. Cook, Belleville, ON, CDA

I am an avid follower of your Danes through your website. I normally check every day to see how they are all doing. I just wanted to send along my well wishes……..You provide a wonderful service and really should be commended. I truly admire your efforts, and wish you continued success. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get away and pay a visit in person at the Expo in Port Hope.

M. Leung, Oshawa, ON, CDA

You are the one who should be THANKED for all your hard work and dedication to those lost, sad souls, who are homeless through no fault of their own, and the all love and hope for a better future that you give them. I am grateful that I am able to help you help them.

D. Russell, CDA

So as I said before, I hope you’re not being hard on yourself about this! I can tell without ever having met you that you run a tight ship and care for these dogs extremely well, and that is reflected in all that you do, INCLUDING in how you handled this (in my opinion at least!). But, as I said before, whether we ever meet or whether I ever adopt a Dane from you, I feel a kinship of common beliefs and shared values with you, Gwen, and am very respectful of the labor of love you do. If I can continue to give in any way in the future, I will.

M. Leung, Oshawa, ON, CDA

You are doing a great job, and finally, it appears that I may be able to help you in some way. I now have hundreds of books, hardcover, paperback, fiction, non-fiction, pictorials, car repair etc., (some brand new) that I can donate to your book drive.

H. McGovern, Ontario, CDA

Don’t be too hard on yourself Gwen. In ten years you have so much to be proud of…. You do AMAZING work! And with AMAZING success…I believe in what you do… the lengths you go to… the depth you get into with people. It’s how I can be happy and proud to be a part of BHRR too…because I know that you do everything in your power short of actually living with the people 😀 to find the best home possible for each individual rescue. And it is really sad that it had to be Snowball…

D. Russell, CDA

I wanted to pass on my ongoing accolades for all that you’re doing in your rescue operation. I continue to be impressed by your thoughtful and descriptive write-ups of all the dogs, and eagerly await update. I was particularly sorry to hear that Snowball and Gracie’s adoptions hadn’t worked out. I know how much work you put into each and every adoption, and that you had enjoyed a 100% track record up until now. I hope you aren’t too hard on yourself with this….after all, my gosh, look at the successes you’ve had…………But this has to just be a supportive “I’m a big fan of yours” email…..I just wanted to say hi again and thank you once again for all your loving dedication to the Danes. I’m hoping to get to the Pet Expo on Sat June 24th, but I’m not sure whether I’ll have to work that day or not. Fingers crossed that I won’t! By the way, thank you for recognizing me on your donation page.

S. Smith, Ontario, CDA

BHRR will give them a safe and secure home – many do not have this! My best to you and everyone who makes the commitment to ensure your program has the success its had and will continue to have because of this enormous dedication! Take care.

Carol Russell, NS, CDA

I feel compelled to write to you………I read you site with interest and admiration. It is easy to see that you also love the breed and do everything in your power to protect those that cannot protect themselves. You are doing a wonderful job and I can’t imagine all the dogs waiting for you at the Rainbow Bridge.

S. Smith, Ontario, CDA

When it is time to let them go, stand proud, you’ve done your ‘job’ – your commitmtent in finding them their forever home is nothing but awesome.

I took Frost with me to work today at the Vet Hospital and he is 57.8 kgs(127.16 lbs)! THAT is awesome! That is the most he has weighed since before he got sick in December 2005! He is still having diarrhea and not eating a lot of dry and I have left a ‘duty’ log for one of his vets to call me about the diarrhoea. I am so amazed by this boy and this Friday marks his 6 month ‘Miracle’ mark. After such a sad week, this news has been wonderful.

Samson George’s Tribute

Mary – I can’t express how sad I am to learn that Samson has gone on to the Rainbow Bridge. I knew he was sick and not eating, but hadn’t a chance to check your site in the last couple of days. Samson wasn’t with you long, but be assured no one else but you could have given that special old boy all the love and extra care that he deserved in his senior years. I know how much effort you put into saving all the dogs in your care. Words always seem so inadequate at times like these. Please accept my heartfelt condolences on your loss.Deanna – I’m so very sorry and sad to read of Samson’s passing. I’m sorry I never got a chance to meet such a majestic gentleman as it sounds like he was, but I’m so very glad he ended his life surrounded with love at BHRR.

Simone – No words can express the sadness I feel for your loss. It was Samson’s story that inspired me to give a home to a senior. I do not regret having tried and I have not given up on welcoming one into my home – when the time is right. He was not with you long but you were able to give him a reason to live by accompanying you on your early morning walks and being the official BRHH greeter. I have shed many a tear today, sharing your loss however knowing he is no longer suffering. His spirit lives on and visitors to your website will know his story – A story only you could write!

Merrilee – In a way, I’m glad Samson didn’t get adopted. We know it’s HARD to find someone to trust with animals, and I know with you Samson was with someone trustworthy. I didn’t worry about whether he was loved or being looked after. I knew he had the best. Your tribute to him was lovely. I hadn’t realized you took walks together every morning possible. That was something he certainly did enjoy, I can be sure. Thank you for taking Samson in, and for caring for him as well as he ever could have gotten, and for LOVING him so much.

I am writing this with a very clenched heavy heart and tears. I avoided typing this all day for to do so, makes the reality seem just that much more harsh. I made the decision to let Samson go last night. As selfish as I wanted to be, he deserves better and he had the right to keep his dignity. Samson had begun to suffer and that is something that I could not bear to be the cause of prolonged pain to him. I do have several regrets where Samson is concerned:
1) That I did not have more time with him
2) That his body began shutting down on him LONG before his heart, soul and mind were ready to cross over. He was full of lessons, quietly yet sagely given and that we could only benefit from. I deeply mourn such a huge loss.
3) That I shall do my 5:30 AM walks without him. Samson and I had a ritual that before most of the rest of the world was awake, he and I alone would take a stroll at his pace down our laneway and if he was up to it, down one of the paths that we have begun to cut through the property. It was almost magical watching the sun come up with Samson by my side and I just knew that he experienced just as much joy in something that was so very special.
4) I regret that Samson did not see one more sunrise or have one more stroll. His poor old body could barely stand and he would fall over even trying to pee.
5) I regret that people did not seem to realise just what a magnificent creature Samson was and open up their home/hearts to adopt him yet if they had; I would not have had the time that I did have with him. AND that time is something that I will never regret.
Samson did not have a mean bone in his body, he was kind, gentle, wise and for those that have met him, a rare gem of this world. There was not one dog or human that he did not like. I held him in my arms last night stroking him and I could see the trust through the pain in his eyes. At one point I could only bury my face in his neck and try not to sob. I am filled with impossible pain and my dear sweet beloved Samson, we will meet again and we will take longer walks as your body will be healthy and light and we will experience eternal sunsets together, my old friend. You were one in a million.

I am taking Samson into the vet. He has started to vomit up blood and while his stools are well formed, they are filled with blood.

Samson was back to eating today and while it is not back to his normal level, he is at least back to eating. I will monitor him for the next 24 hours and if anything changes, I will bring him in immediately.

We had begun to cut Samson down on the Flagyl from 4 a day to 3 and he began have accidents in the house again, so we are maintaining a dose of 4 Flagyl pills a day. Samson is also having another rough time in getting up, walking and moving around. Late last week, he slipped walking up a step and went down on his side hard and my heart just clenched. With some massage and lots of TLC, Samson was ok. Today, is the first day since he has been with us that he has not eaten his breakfast. Samson LOVES his food, treats and yummies, so I will be making him an appointment to bring him back in to see the Vet. I am once again very worried about him. This boy has grabbed at me very strongly and I call him my ‘King’.

Due to more scheduling problems at the Hospital, Mazda’s spay has now been pushed out one more week. It is now scheduled for Wednesday June 28th. This now means, there is a good chance that she will accompany me to the Pet Expo this weekend.

Due to Vet scheduling changes, Mazda’s spay appointment has now been moved to Tuesday June 20th. It is most likely that she will not be accompanying me to Pet Expo now that her spay has been pushed back one week.

I took Frost with me tonight when I was at the vet’s with Cherokee(who is doing awesome!) to re-weigh him. He was just over 55 KGs (121 pounds). WOOHOO! He is still not eating dry food and is drinking just fine. So, the weight is his hydration level being normal again. The Vet was so kind to re-check his heart and says that while it is not great, he agrees with the Vet that I saw on Thursday in that it truly does sound better than he has heard it since this began for Frost ‘T’ on December 23rd. We are continuing with the GI stimulator pills for one more day and also the Flagyl. Frost is on over 40 pills a day right now yet he allows me to give his pills without any complaint. He is especially not fond of the Vetmedin. We are also going to move forward and give Frost ‘T’ Lasix only when he needs it(puffs, coughs, wheezes, turns purple) as it is a fast acting med and that will greatly reduce the number of pills that Frost will receive daily should he not have need of it. Frost sniffed out the ‘liver’ treats in one of the drawers on the exam table and pawed at it! Perhaps, he should be a ‘sniffer’ dog with that nose! 🙂 I guess I will now be buying liver treats IF that is what he is going to eat. Frost also ate the treat plus two McNuggets from McDonald’s and really turned heads with his head out the sunroof! Frost continues to create amazing and wonderful memories for me every day and on June 23rd, it will be 6 months to the day that he began having his heart problems. I have decided that I will be bringing Frost with me to Pet Expo on June 24th as I truly cannot bear to be without him and as much as he loves Sean and the kids; it is me that he truly owns. If something happened to him while I was gone, I just do not know how I would ever forgive myself for not being there for him. I know that this will mean one less Rescue animal to accompany me that day and I truly hope that the public will understand as Frost is a huge part of me. I know that Frost will be an incredible ambassador for BHRR as it will give people the opportunity to see just how normal a SN’s animal is as a cherished member of their beloved family.

Frost start a GI stimulator on Friday to try and get him to eat more. As of Sunday evening, Frost finally began to eat more and while he still is not eating dry, he is having beef stew, broth, wet H/D and ate some cheese today. I will be bringing him with me to the vet’s tomorrow when I have Cherokee in for her annual as I want to get a current weight on him. He is now drinking normally and is back to his usual sleep patterns. He had me very scared and worried!!!!

Less than 24 hours after Snowball went to her new home, I got a call. Snowball and Gracie will be coming back to me on June 6th. This is a clear indication that no matter how thorough our adoption screening processes/procedures were; we failed Gracie and Snowball with this particular adoption home selection. From having had this experience, we will be reviewing and most likely tightening up our mandates / processes even more. We tried to be so careful where any one of our dogs ends up and to have this happen, especially to a dog like Snowball is positively awful. AVAILABLE AGAIN FOR ADOPTION!!!

ADOPTED!!!!

Should Boba not be adopted by the time we attend Pet Expo 2006; he will accompany me. So, if you would like to have the opportunity to meet him, he will be in Port Hope on June 24th!

I took Frost ‘T’ to the vet tonight as he has been vomiting and having bloody diarrhoea. He had not eaten since breakfast on the 31st and stopped drinking water today. We put over 600ml of sub-q fluids into Frost and he only weighed 49.2kgs(108.24 lbs). 🙁 As I said to the vet, I do not believe it is his heart. Nothing indicated to me that it would be and I believe that Frost ‘T’ who ingested water from our recently filled and shocked/chlorinated kids pool is ill because of doing so. I also caught him eating long grass. The Vet said that Frost’s heart was the best that he has heard it since all of this began for Frost last December and that he could barely hear his HM. That was great news. Frost has come home with Flagyl(4 pills, twice a day for 10 days) and the stool sample we took showed no signs of anything abnormal. Frost is also on Sentinel monthly and that takes care of hooks, whips etc. so it was not surprising to hear that his fecal smear was normal. Even though he was not well and his tail was not up to it’s usual ‘whip’ self; he still managed to wag it for the kids and people who stopped to pat and admire him at the Vet Hospital. One couple was completely floored when they asked why I was using my hands and I said that Frost ‘T’ was deaf. As I keep saying, education and public awareness is so key and Frost ‘T’ sure changed their outlook towards deafies/visually impaired animals. People’s jaws just dropped as Frost was in a perfect heel as we walked into the exam room and many a comment was heard about how much better behaved and trained he was over their own hearing dogs. I did not even have to ask Frost for the heel as we have worked so long/closely together that we just fall into our routine. I am so VERY proud of him. He is an amazing boy. Frost is now sleeping like a log on his supersized beanbag chair next to me as I type. As my husband and many others have stated, Frost ‘T’ is my shadow just as Phantom was and Maggi plus Klondike are and we are almost glued at the hip we are so close. Sean would be right. Admiration, respect, adoration and bursting love is what I feel for them and I get the best feeling in my heart over them. They truly own me. If need be, I will bring Frost ‘T’ back tomorrow for more sub-q fluids.

Should Fancy not be adopted by the time we attend Pet Expo 2006; she will accompany me. So, if you would like to have the opportunity to meet her, she will be in Port Hope on June 24th!

Snowball’s potential new family are coming to visit on Sunday. If all goes well, Snowball will go home with them.

Should Lady not be adopted by the time we attend Pet Expo 2006; she will accompany me. So, if you would like to have the opportunity to meet her, she will be in Port Hope on June 24th!

Mazda is doing great! She and Fancy have become quite close and play for hours outside. We have begun to cut her back on her food portions as (delicate cough here) she has become a wee bit plump. She is just stunning and her personality is all sunshine and blue skies.