Month: April 2010

L. McCracken, ON, CDA

I saw Shiva’s beautiful photo, and then decided to visit your website to find out more about her and what you were doing through your rescues.
You are an angel… saving angels. I am a dog person to the core. I wish with everything that one day I can be a companion and family to a wonderful dog. I know I have so much love to give a wonderful animal. But being a nurse, I fear I will never be able to come home to a doggy companion due to my 12hr day shifts. I do not want children, I just want a dog in my life!

I read Potter’s story… and I cried. What a truly handsome and happy dog. How can anyone be cruel to these wonderful and loving beings. It truly mystifies me.

What you are doing touches my heart deeply. I am so happy to see that these lucky animals have such a committed and loving individual welcoming them into their home and heart.

You are an inspiration. I can only hope that one day I can adopt one of your gorgeous dogs. In the meantime, I will happily donate money to help Potter and the rest of your family!

A cheque is in the mail.

Thank you for being an angel to our furry friends.

Yours Truly,
Lyndsay McCracken

As I have not been able to personally thank each donator in person for their support of BHRR’s Barkley with funds being sent to Kanata Animal Hospital directly; so this is the next best thing! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! The sheer warmth, caring and kindness that has been extended to Barkley in his time of need has just touched me deeply. He is a really sweet boy that needs more emotional plus a bit more physical healing and in the right experienced and understanding approved home, he is just going to blossom! THANKS to all the wonderful generosity sent his way to help save him.

I will be bringing BHRR’s Ava Marie to work with me on May 1st to get an updated weight. It will have been 17 days since her last weight (April 14th) and everything crossed that we have surpassed the minimum of 30 pounds lost to have her first cruciate repair surgery! She looks so good and is so much more mobile!!!! I was also told that some pictures from last Sunday’s training / socialΒ  session should be heading our way by week’s end. CANNOT wait! On Sunday May 16th, there shall be a ‘BRING YOUR DOG TO THE MOVIES’ Fundraiser event at the Mayfair Theatre – 1:00 PM whereby all funds raise shall go to assist BHRR’s Ava Marie with her Vet/Rehab Bills. It is not mandatory to have a dog to be in attendance and you, your family, friends, neighbours, work colleagues are more than welcome to attend what promises to be a blast of a fun filled afternoon! We shall even have some prizes to hand out and BHRR’s Ava Marie to be in attendance herself! The movie that shall be playing is Alvin & The Chipmunks – The Squeakquel and we are calling it ‘ALVIN FOR AVA’ to help Ava Marie with some much needed financial assistance to get her heathy again. I also remain somewhat concerned on those marks on her side and shall re-visit them with her Vet. They are so itchy for her now.

Today, I took BHRR’s Ava Marie with me for a short training and social session in Stittesville when I met up with a couple of friends. Poor Ava Marie, she was a little bit unsure and nervous at first of the 5 month old Great Dane puppy there! Yet, once she realised that she would not be hurt(she worries about her knees), all was great. Ava Marie was wonderful in providing the right level of correction to the Great Dane puppy when she felt that boundaries were being crossed. SO proud of you Ava Marie. She just loved every person and dog she met and while the walk was not a large one by any means; it helped her immensely with the losing of some more weight and building up more stength and muscle(you can really see how much she has built up on her thighs and ribs) in those legs plus body. After our short walk, we hung out on the grass for a bit and Ava Marie just loved watching all the action her, basking in the sun, being loved on and while her body was tired and could not do more, her brain and mind were sharp and you could tell she so wanted to do more. Yet, baby steps and to think that when she first arrived, she could barely move. The loss of so much weight, adding of muscle and what other rehab I can do with her with massage etc. has been making a HUGE difference in her quality of life. She was so ladylike around the mud puddles we encountered and she proved herself worthy of total freedom being given with how great her recall and obedience was to me. She is very bonded to me and no way was she going to let me leave without her! LOL Her leash manners are getting there. She is still all puppy herself and can ‘forget’ herself but she listens to the ‘wait’ command both on and off her leash and she is only going to get better and better the more that I can do with her. She is a DREAM indeed. One of my friends took some of the best pictures EVER and I am hoping she might share someΒ  πŸ˜‰ for me to post of BHRR’s Ava Marie and possibly use one or two to create an AVA MARIE CAFEPRESS section in our BHRR Cafe store; so that any additional funds that come in can be donated to her ‘Ava’s Action Assistance’ Fundraiser cause. So many people could not believe how mellow, relaxed, calm and genteel she was! She makes me so proud of her!!!! She slept on the way home and I can tell she has dropped more weight for each time she gets into my back seat, more and more of her fits better on my seat! I cannot wait to get that new weight and if all goes well, we are getting closer and closer to her first cruciate repair surgery to be scheduled in May. GO AVA MARIE GO! I also noted that when we were out, she had a clear preference of being called ‘AVA MARIE’ and not ‘Ava’ at all! LOL I think she likes her revised name…just a wee bit after witnessing that!

BHRR’s Dana went to her temp foster home last night and well the last 24+ hours have been an adventure to say the least! Within the first half an hour she had her first experience with a screen. The foster homes outside door has the bottom part screened and I said, ‘Dana is going to go through that’ and her foster mom said ‘no, she won’t…she will be ok Gwennie’ and well, uhmmmm, Dana decided she wanted to come in…. πŸ˜› AND so she took the screen with her. 😯 Before going to bed, she also decided to tumble one preschooler in her play antics with their other Great Dane. BHRR’s Dana then began to ‘test’ the home just as I knew she would; trying to get on the couch, counter surfing, trying to get into the dog food bin, garbages and attempting to steal the toilet paper roll! I so remember the days here of all of that and the mountain of training plus Gwennie’s Doggie Boot Camp! LOL LOL AND I told the home before hand that she would try to do the same there plus ‘jump’ on people in her high level of excitement if given a chance. This is why she needs an experienced home. One that is going to set those ground rules and more importantly enforce them from Day 1. You cannot fall for the charm of the ‘doll face’ and those eyes of Dana’s or she will have your number and boom…you are sleeping on the floor and hand feeding the Dana! LOL From there, she had a pretty good night from what I was told, some loose/soft stools which is not unusual as it is a new place, lots of excitement which is a form of stress and that she is also now on town water and not well water. Her foster mom was hoping to come out to the Wag Pet Shop/Sue Bird Charity Contest today and with Dana’s loose stools and some other things; decided that it would be best not to attend. WE MISSED YA! Today, was a pretty good day except for BHRR’s Dana getting a happy tail injury in the crate that she was using at the foster home(I shall bring one of ours for her tomorrow night) and then I got a call around 8:45 PM. The first thing her foster mom said to me’ really Gwennie, I am not trying to kill your dog and she is ok….but’Β  πŸ˜› It appears that Dana had now managed to get one of her front paws caught on their crate door in her antics to try and escape and this all within 24+ hours. I packed up some goodies for the loose stools, Deramaxx 100 mg for the foot, antibiotics for the tail and surgical tape, Germistat 4% and Betadine, 4 x 4s etc to go over to the foster’s house to exam Dana and to ensure that the foster mom had all the instruments at her disposal to take care of Dana. OMG! I did say that Dana would keep their other Great Dane occupied not just physically yet mentally PLUS that Dana would keep the whole home on their toes YET this is not what I meant! LOL I was relieved to note that it was not the front paw with her toe amputation from September. I also took a closer look at the histiocytoma that Dana has on her right back paw and from walking on the pavement in the town(we do not have pavement here), I could already see that we are going to have potential problems with that too. Oh my! I am posting a picture below of BHRR’s Dana and her new best friend, their 4 pound Kitty! Tonight, Dana also tried to push her luck with their cat in the following and playing and their cat had no qualms standing up to Dana and Dana has been as good as can be again with her FOR their cat called her out. Dana is just so full of mischief and sure enough she was sitting on their Great Danes head at one point too as he was lying on a dog bed. Dana is if anything, consistent! LOL AND though you might not always know what she is going to get up to, you know that it shall involve mischief should you suddenly feel that the house is too quiet! LOL The home has assured me that they do not wish to swap with BHRR’s Storm for I did give them that option at the beginning yet I stand by that while BHRR’s Storm would physically keep their current Dane occupied, she is not going to provide that same level of busy mental stimulation to their dog…BUT then again, Storm would also not be keeping the whole house on their toes either! LOL This is what I love about Dana, she is always pushing and testing and once she knows you are going to not budge on those boundaries, she is a gem!!!! NOT a mean bone in this girls’ body yet you have to continue to shape and guide and mould her in the right manner/direction. She was just the sweetest thing when I arrived there tonight, allowing me to put her on her side and checking her out from her toes, paws and tail and once you earn this girls’ trust, her loyalty to you is truly humbling. As I say often, she is a ‘survivor’ and that is because she has backbone and will and if she did not have those, she would have been dead a long time ago of the emaciation/abuse she had experienced before coming to BHRR. We believe in full disclosure at BHRR and that means all the great, good, bad and ugly about every dog and no dog is perfect yet you strive to make each dog as perfect as they can be and Dana, you are so on that path to your perfection!!! The poor fostermom said to me ‘Gwennie, you are never going to trust me to have another foster again…’ AND that could not be further from the truth!Β  πŸ˜‰ Dana is in excellent hands and I am not worried. I just would not recommend you having Dana on your bed….too much…LOLΒ  πŸ˜‰ We do not want Dana to resort back to the faint ‘lip’ curl of pushing the envelope and not wanting to share with other dogs and we have worked so hard with the sharing with water bowls, treats, toys and dog beds plus sharing humans with the other dogs too! She uses our bed at home as long as we are not in it and shares really well with the other dogs. When my kids are watching TV on our bed, she is not allowed in it yet neither are any dogs other than PPSS or CH. Dyceman. When it is time for the adults to go to sleep, Dana is also not allowed on the bed. This is to keep the proper order of hierachy established, good dog manners being continued and for us to get a good nights sleep. This home is well versed in all of this with their own past Great Dane experiences and MORE than capable of working with our “Alvin” that the fostermom calls “Calvin” from Calvin and Hobbes. πŸ˜› If this is what the first 26 hours has brought to this home, there shall be some really interesting and entertaining blogs to post over the next 5 weeks! AND the home knows that I am only a call away AND a short drive away!

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BHRR’s Dana with one of her new best friends – April 24th, 2010
*Photo courtesy of T. Vaive

BHRR’s Barkley is healing really well and I took a new picture tonight of his incision area and will add ASAP. He has had a small ‘bump’ just on the side of his incision as it has been healing and it has not pained him yet tonight I noticed it was larger and took a closer look at it. It causes him no discomfort to examine or touch, is not red, swollen etc. yet I will feel better to have a recheck done on him and shall see about getting him in on April 30th if I can when I work that day. Probably just scar tissue inside. I also want to get an updated weight on him to see how he is doing! Tonight, Sean also held him while I did his nails. This was the first time we have done his nails for we had them done last time when he was under having his obstruction surgery. His back nails no problem at all but his front nails…not so good. He was scared and slightly peed the poor dog and he was full of ‘bluff’ growling and I had not even started doing those nails yet. A lesser experienced person would have been intimidated. It made us sad to see him that way yet Barkley had a strong constitution to try to ‘bully’ and ‘bluff’ to get us not to do his nails, yet that was not going to happen for it is clear that in the past in his own home(something his previous owners had also mentioned to me plus is in his file at KAH), this behavour had been used and he ‘won’ and got his way. He was reassured, patted and I went along calmly to get his nails done. When I was done, he wanted in his crate and we let him in as that is his ‘safe’ spot and I gave him a special treat which he took with that really cute wagging nub of a tail. This was confirmation that he had to have had some bad experience in the past, he was nervous and that by trying to be intimidating, he had been given his way. The wagging tail and willingness to take the treat proved that he is just a big sweet baby in the right hands and that the ‘bluffing’ and attempting to ‘bully’ is not going to be tolerated YET how we handled this inappropriate behavour was most important. We did not get upset, angry, panic or scared. He was given a calming word, touch and onward bound we went. NO big deal is how we handled it and to Barkley after he was in his crate, it truly was not a big deal. We shall see what next week brings when it is time to do his nails again, for I want his front feet handled often with those clippers. So, for those wanting to understand this behavour, Barkley exhibited both fear and ‘intimidation’ in regards to his nails. This boy still has some mental rehab to do before he shall be ready for adoption and he shall not go to a home that is inexperienced with Dobermans. I woud like to see him in a home with at least one other dog, male or female is of no matter as long as they are compatible with BHRR’s Barkley in respect to sociability and his playfulness level. Barkley has loved all the dogs and kids and people he has met to date. Barkley is just completely enamored with BHRR’s Porridge and he and BHRR’s Storm could walk in circles all day long as they keep trying to sniff each other’s rumps! LOL For those that have been to our home, you will most understand what I mean in regards to his comfort zone with our hardwood floors from just at Sean’s desk on the main floor to the TV on the other side and from the water bowl at the fireplace to the door to the sunroom. That is his ‘comfort’ area and he will not venture further at this time. At one point, he found himself close to the kitchen area and when he realised, he froze, did that ‘Dobie’ whine and scurried back into his comfort zone. Barkley now has a Kuranda Bed in his Crate, compliments of BHRR’s Potter lending him his as in his ‘feedback’ to me at one point when I put him into his crate for a ‘time out’, he decided to try and shred up his blankets for the first time and so, bye-bye blankets! The look on his face! LOL Dobies can be notorious for chewing and ingesting things they should not and his new home is going to have to be really careful about what Barkley has access to. When we go out, even if it is for me to put the kids on the bus; he is in his 45″ collosal crate. There shall be no opportunities for Barkley to be put into a situation of failure here to obtain another possible obstruction. He is not allowed stuffies and all toys that he is allowed to play with and he loves to playbow and play when he feels like it; are closely supervised. Barkley could eat all day if you let him and I now feeding him three times a day and he is getting his hill work every morning with me to build up muscle. He has gotten much better about sharing the water bowl and if a dog is strong enough to call his ‘bluff’, he backs down gracefully and waits his turn or shares the water bowl. GOOD boy Barkley! It is clear that he will test you and does test us, more myself than Sean and that the more guidance and consistency of training he is getting, he is becoming that much better with his own behavour stability. I cannot wait to see how things are going to be once we take the e-collar off him and he is also out of his honeymoon period! It is also going to be very revealing to see how he is when it comes to bath time for as the spring mud is drying up, the dogs are a bit dusty and with the warmer weather comes baths! YAY! We are still trying to raise another $822.78 for his BEGGING FOR BARKLEY Fundraiser and deepest thanks being sent to everyone that has believed in him to reach out to support Barkley! If all goes well, my hope is to have BHRR’s Barkley placed up for adoption within the month.Β  πŸ™‚ This will depend on how far he has come more with his mental rehab and his obedience for Barkley also likes to get into that ‘selective’ hearing mode. OMG! It is so funny to see yet as I have often been told ‘Gwennie invented the word stubborn’and he has more than met his match in that department!Β  πŸ˜‰ πŸ˜€ I am having so much fun with Barkley in the house! He has been a real treat to have here with us! Something that I have not yet mentioned is that from the very first night he arrived, I found his ‘spot’ and it is just under his chin and he loves loves loves to have it rubbed. He will lean into you and just sigh with pleasure.Β  πŸ™‚

K. Shields, Ottawa, ON

I just wanted to thank you for your site….I am now grieving the loss of my girl Babe after 13 years by my side she was a Dane/Lab X (pic attached) She was about 45 kg and such a beautiful and smart girl.

I am still in the grieving process and your site makes me smile.

Again thank you for you site as well thank you for caring for these amazing animals.

Cheers,

Kevin Shields
Ottawa

BHRR’s Dana is going to be going on an adventure for about 5+ weeks! She is going to be temp fostered, beginning Friday April 23rd to about Friday May 28th. This will be really great for her. Change of environment and continued exposure to things and a different home and having more people meet her and see what a great dog she is! She is going to go to a home that lost one of their own Danes recently and their current Dane is suffering from depression, losing a lot of weight and while they are bringing in a new show GD addition, that new addition is not expected to arrive until the end of May. We well understand what it is like to lose animals and how it can and does affect the other animals in our home and we believe it shall be a huge win win situation all around for their home and for BHRR’s Dana! BHRR’s Dana will definitely keep their current Dane occupied and busy and on his toes! LOL She should bring many smiles to this home too. The home already let me know that they bought Dana her own bed, lead and food bowl as a special contribution donation to her care and welbeing! I am going to miss my “Alvin”! LOL BHRR can always use more wonderful approved Volunteer/Temp Foster and Perma Foster homes!

J. Dunlop, ON, CDA

Good evening Gwen,
My name is Jess and I have a giant breed dog (Irish Wolfhound). What you and your team do for giant breed dogs is very close to my heart. My sister Kate and I decided to do some fundraising – we baked dog cookies and sold them to our co-workers, friends and family. We were hoping to raise $100, but ended up raising $400!
The two of us have been following your work on your website and both feel that you are doing an amazing job! We are hoping to continue doing the dog cookie drives a few times a year. I have just committed to selling doggie baked goods at a craft show in November and will be donating the proceeds again to Birch Haven.
Keep up the good work. We will continue to watch and support Birch Haven along the way.
Best wishes,
Jess Dunlop (and my sister Kate)

I have added a new picture From April 10th to BHRR’s Storm’s slideshow #17 and also below. Storm is now officially AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION!

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BHRR’s Storm – April 10th, 2010 – Approximately 19 months old

Today was weigh day for BHRR’s Ava Marie and DRUMROLLLLLLLLLLL…… She is now 77.5 KGs(170.5 pounds)! This means that she has now lost 21.3 pound since her arrival on March 7th! Less than 10 pounds to go and she can have that first cruciate repair surgery! GO AVA MARIE GO!

There are just not enough pictures of BHRR’s Mindy and so today in the chilly yet glorious morning of sunshine, I took a few and like always as soon as she knows I am snapping pictures, she closes her eyes! LOL So pictures # 7 –Β  #9 have now been added to Mindy’s slideshow and I am posting two below. For those fans of the ‘greying’ or ‘white’ muzzles like myself; you are going to love her frosting! She can be a real ‘pup’ some days and others days she is the ‘queen’ of decorum. What a hoot! AND those flying nun ears of hers, full of personality and character! She continues to patiently wait for her forever loving home.

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BHRR’s Mindy(4+) – April 12th, 2010

I almost never thought I would say this yet BHRR’s Albert has become a bit of a turkey! LOL He is such a morning boy and his zipping and zooming has really made me look hard at him FOR you would never know that he was 7+ years of age! LOL I am adding a new picture to his slideshow # 15 and I am also going to post it below for look at that face! HE is smiling! SMILING! Come May, I would like to begin having the BHRR play dates, day trips and play trips for the BHRR dogs and I am hoping that some of our approved BHRR Volunteers will consider taking BHRR’s Albert out for it is the ‘strangeness’ of the whole big scary world out that that holds me back from putting him up for adoption. He is like night and day between our home and family and when strangers come or when he is out in public. I am hoping to bring him to our upcoming regular GD Hike/Walk scheduled for this weekend to see how he does. If he does as well as I could hope he might; then he shall be soon ready to be placed up for adoption, if not, no rush and we shall continue to take our baby steps forward in healing his spirit and not just his body. LOVE LOVE LOVE this boy! When the weather warms up, we shall bathe him again and this week is our bi-weekly BHRR ‘nail trim conveyor belt’ event and we shall try and get those nails of his trimmed further back and to train those quicks to not be so long.

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BHRR’s Albert (7+ years) – April 12th, 2010

BHRR’s Barkley is healing just wonderfully from his obstruction surgery on April 1st and we continue to thank everyone who has assisted him to date with his BEGGING FOR BARKLEY Fundraiser! I am adding 2 pictures below from April 10th, 2010 and I have so many yet to put together for his slideshow. His sutures were subcutaneous yet you can see how well his incision is looking! Tonight, BHRR’s Barkley is going to help make a TON of homemade cinnamon buns; so that I can bring them into the Hospital with me tomorrow to THANK all the great staff that I work with that pulled together to save his life. It cannot be said enough, what a miracle story Barkley is! He could really use some more financial support to finish paying off his extensive Vet/Rehab Bills and on behalf of BHRR’s Barkley, I humbly thank everyone in advance for your consideration.

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BHRR’s Barkley (2.5+) – April 10th, 2010

BHRR’s Koop did FANTASTIC at our W.O. Mitchell E. S. community awareness speaking opportunity! He will make a great therapy dog one day. I have added new pictures to his slideshow #17- #21 and am putting 2 below. He is so affectionate!!! With BHRR’s Koop only being 7 months and that what he now mosts needs is consistency, routine with a loving firm yet kind hand plus obedience and structure; he is now AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION!!!!!

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BHRR’s Porridge (2) & BHRR’s Koop (7 months) & BHRR’s Koop – April 10th, 2010

K. Phillips, W.O. Mitchell ES, Kanata, ON

Well, our class really appreciated you visit!
We will be sure to share all we learned with our friends and families.
All the best to you and your organization in the future :o)
Kelley Phillips

Jan, SWO, ON, CDA

That boy is a survivor! Thank goodness he is now with you where he wil be cared for and loved!

I’ve said it to so many people….you and Sean are angels.

Jan

BHRR’s Storm had a good night. She cuddled up with Sean in the rec room and was tucked in snugly in a blanket. She has not been interested in eating all day and I will see if she is open to having some supper tonight. She has spent a good part of her day sleeping and resting. I have added new pictures to her slideshow # 13 – #16 and one is from February 25th when one of my BOD members was visiting and the rest are from March 9th. I am going to add two below for ISN’T her face to DIE for!

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BHRR’s Storm – March 9th, 2010

OK! I will add one more photo below of BHRR’s Potter from February 17th, 2010 for now! This photo is also in his slideshow. He is one of the most photogenic pooches ever!!!!! He and BHRR`s Barkley are also fast friends and I have to be careful about their interactions for they want to play and that is not good for BHRR`s Barkley right now. It has been many many many months since his `quirk` has reared up and recently when I was going to put the kids on the bus and he did not wish to go into the house; I had to go and grab a leash and put it on his collar to bring him outside for he was not going to go quietly by me just taking his collar. GOOBER! AND to clarify again, BHRR`s Potter is a deaf white with brindle boxer with natural ears and tail. He is not an ABD or a Pitx etc. AND he has me completely enraptured with the Boxer breed just as BHRR`s Jaxson had me in complete adoration of the ABD breed!

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BHRR`s Potter – February 17th, 2010

I have added new pictures to BHRR’s Potters slideshow # 28 – #33 from February 16th & February 17th and have many more to go yet it is a start for all of FANS to see how he is progressing! We still have about $1,200 left to pay off on his Potter’s Path Vet/Rehab Bills and any consideration as always is beyond appreciated. I am posting two pictures below of BHRR’s Potter from February 16th and he shall once again be a BHRR ambassador for our upcoming community awareness speaking opportunity, this time being held at W.O. Mitchell Public School in Kanata, Ontario tomorrow.

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BHRR’s Potter – February 16th, 2010 – LOVES his tennis balls and he is still healing – 3 months post amputation & getting there!

BHRR’s Koop shall be attending our community awareness speaking opportunity being held at W.O. Mitchell Public School in Kanata, Ontario tomorrow. He has been healing wonderfully and he has just excelled in his obedience training at BHRR that I think this is going to be a great testing environment for him before being placed up for adoption!

BHRR’s Storm was spayed today. Everything went wonderfully! She weighed 47.80 KGs(105.16 pounds) AND that means she has put on 19.82 pounds since December 14th(was 39.20 KGS or 86.24 pounds). WTG STORM! The Vet said that her left ovary was normal yet her right ovary was enlarged and also had a large cyst. Her uterus was quite stretched which is very usual in a dog that has had heats and/or false pregnancies. The Vet said it was one of the easiest spays she had done in these types of situations so I am SOOOOOOO relieved!!!! I will bring her home with me after my shift tonight and I have been back to her run a couple of times and she is recovering well. She is such a doll! In about 3 weeks time, she should be healed enough to be placed up for adoption!

With all that has gone in the last week+, BHRR’s Ava Marie was unable to have her weigh-in last Wednesday and this week, it looks like it shall have to be pushed back a wee bit further. My goal was to bring her in weekly just to see how progress is being made and I am now planning to bring her in on Wednesday April 14th to see where she stands now. Everything crossed that we are moving forward well! One of her newest best friends and in fact, her closest friend now that he has been neutered is BHRR’s Koop! He seems to instinctively understand that she is not as mobile as his other close playmate BHRR’s Shiva and they just mouth wrestle and play while she lies down. IT is positively precious to watch them. πŸ™‚ I have added new pictures to BHRR’s Ava Marie’s slideshow #20 – #23. I am also adding two below – one that I cannot believe we actually were able to capture, Ava Marie and our EM Guinness actually FITTING on the same dog bed and one that just pulled at my heart; seeing the special needs animals of BHRR’s Ava Marie, BHRR’s Potter and BHRR’s Barkley all outside and staying together and supporting each other; and almost looking out for each other. Truly, this is what it is about for BHRR. Helping those that are in need of our program(s) and we continue to reach out to all of you for your consideration in supporting us to let us keep assisting them AND all the others out there that are in urgent need for BHRR to save them. At this time as our food resources dwindle and our Vet Bills increase; BHRR cannot take on any more animals and it has been a very ‘needy’ spring for requests. We remain just touched and indebted to everyone that has donated blankets(WE need more comforters/duvets), finances and dog food that has allowed us to do what we have to date for the animals! Yet we are unable to help any more until such time as our resources of food increase and our Vet/Rehab bills decrease.Β  πŸ˜₯

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BHRR’s Ava Marie & Guinness – March 2010 & BHRR’s Potter, BHRR’s Ava Marie and BHRR’s Barkley – April 5th, 2010

I have added 2 new pictures of BHRR’s Koop to his slideshow #15 & #16. I am so ‘diggin’ this boy! He is sooooooooo affectionate and it is so hard to take pictures of him for he likes to lean right up against me outside or inside! LOL AND if the playing gets too rough with the other dogs, he will also come and lean on you! Koop’s tail is forever wagging and wagging some more. He is such a happy boy. I am thinking that within the 10 -14 days(would like to see him here at least a month from his arrival on March 23rd, 2010) and when he is fully healed from his neuter; that he shall be placed up for adoption. What this boy needed first and foremost is structure, training and consistency that had a routine. He is SOOOOOOOOOO delightful and sweet and since Saturday night, he has not been using a crate at night. I do use one during the day and he is almost always quiet now in his crate, just when I first get home or some squeaks first thing in the morning. He has proven himself trustworthy to date yet at only 7 months, I am not going to ‘set’ him up for failure and yet continue to give him opportunities to make the right choices. He is so good about taking treats from your hand and is not a resourcer over anything to date. He shares so well with the other dogs and his ‘initial’ bravado is just that, a dog that felt he had to step up to take the leadership role and most dogs do not want that role and truly, what he really wanted was a ‘true’ leader to trust and guide him and he is so settled now that he has a clear understanding of what is expected of him. He is that perfect combination right now of personality and confidence without being over the top. He is such a kind and truly gentle boy in so many ways. His ‘recall’ is doing really well too! I am not yet ready to trust him off a leash though outside! πŸ˜‰ He loves men and women equally and gosh, with the obedience classes that he will be required to take upon his adoption per our adoption contract, he is going to make an inredible addition to someone’s home. He has the best personality and I would like to see him in a home with at least one other dog; male or female is of no matter as long as the other dog is a best matched fit for BHRR’s Koop. He has deeply benefited from having the other dogs around at BHRR to learn and be taught important rules of the house. One of his new best and closest friends is BHRR’s Shiva! They romp and zoom and have a grand ol’ time! His other closest buddy right now is BHRR’s Ava Marie. He seems to instinctively understand that she is not as mobile as his other close playmate BHRR’s Shiva and they just mouth wrestle and play while she lies down. IT is positively precious to watch them. πŸ™‚ I also have yet to take a picture that does this boy justice!!!! He is gorgeous!!!!!

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BHRR’s Koop – 7 months – April 5th, 2010

P. Byrne, Ottawa, ON

I have to say that I am sooooo soooo happy to hear Barkley is doing well!!! All weekend I was checking the site constantly to see that he was doing ok. I am so glad and relieved, and to even see him walking in the pictures is amazing!!! It is really great that you took him in with such short notice and got him surgery the next day. Barkley’s life was saved thanks to you!! I am sure in every way he can he is thanking you.

My one Vet has done some more detailed research on spaying in a false pregnancy and talked to a repo specialist and what we have now decided is that Sean will bring her in first thing tomorrow and she will assess. I told her that if she did not feel comfortable(research seems to go both ways on this) that we can just hold off another 2 weeks and re-evaluate then. I do not want BHRR’s Storm at any more risk then necessary. Most people have experienced ‘atypical’ heats at the most 16 weeks between and Storm’s case is unique to many out there. WELL, she is one very unique and special girl so that makes sense that nothing about her would be ‘normal’! πŸ˜‰ I am going to ask Sean to get a weight on her at least when he brings her in.

I shall have to reschedule BHRR’s Storm spay from tomorrow for as of last week, she entered into a ‘false’ pregnancy. NOT even 7 weeks post – heat on her last cycle. IΒ  just want to almost sit down and cry! I talked to my one Vet in detail today and we agreed to push off her spay for another 2 weeks. It would have been 8 weeks to the day tomorrow since her last heat ended on February 13th, 2010 and the worry was having her enter into another heat within 10-12 weeks as per her past ‘cycling’ and this time her body decided to go into a false pregancy instead. Could we attempt the spay, yes, yet it is more risky. I will update her blog with her new date after I take a look at my schedule and the Hospitals and I do have plenty of pictures to post of her still. She is such an ‘atypical’ Great Dane with all that she had/is going through. I am not going to risk her life by putting her under surgery any sooner than it is as safe as it can be done for her to spay her.

I added a new picture to BHRR’s Windsor slideshow #2 today. I think it is a lovely picture of him and I am going to add it below as well. He is hanging in well and though small, he has an appetite of a dog at least twice as big! LOL

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BHRR’s Windsor – April 5th, 2010

Since you have now seen the inside of BHRR’s Barkley, let me informally introduce you to the outside of BHRR’s ‘Honourary’ Great Dane, BHRR’s Barkley, the newest addition to BHRR! His coat is really dry, flaky plus dull and he needs a lot more muscle toning BUT he is one gorgeous boy. I cannot wait to see how he looks in a few weeks time! Please consider helping BHRR’s Barkley by donating to his “BEGGING FOR BARKLEY” Fundraiser.

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BHRR’s Barkley(2.5+ years of age) – April 1st – post – op at BHRR with Sean & BHRR’s Barkley – April 2nd – 1st day post-op