Month: June 2010

The Vet confirmed that BHRR’s Ava Marie does have pneumonia as I had suspected and why I had made the ’emerg’ appointment to bring her in today. I felt she was quite feverish and her temp was 40.2C when her Vet took it. X-Rays and bw were also done. Her bw is normal and her left lung is more affected than her right. I have now given her 1.5 x 100 mg of Deramaxx for her fever and per her Vet, she can have this for the next 3 days to bring her temp down. Her weight was 69.50 KGS(152.90 pounds) and so a bit on the thin side at this time. Ava Marie is also on 5 x 100mg of Doxycycline BID that I picked up from the Pharmasave near KAH and will be in on this for the next 28 days minimum. This means that any 2nd cruciate surgery that she would have had in July will now be postponed. As to ‘how’ or ‘why’ she got pneumonia, that is not something that we might ever know. She was completely fine at the BHRR ‘EXPERIENCE’ Mini Open House on Saturday and then went up to my relatives cottage and until last night was ‘appearing’ to be normal. The first sign that indicated that she was not feeling well was her not wanting to eat her supper last night. I asked the Vet, can pneumonia come on that fast and I was told yes. I told the Vet that all the dogs except one on Saturday at the BHRR Mini Open House were ours and as far as I was aware, that other dog visiting was healthy. I will send them an email asking if their dog had been recently ill etc. My relative told me when I asked if Ava Marie had been coughing at all and they said no, not until this AM. As I told them when they called last night; if Ava Marie is off her food, she needs to come home NOW and most likely seen by a Vet as that means something is very wrong. Today, she drank some water at home and I also asked my relative if she had been more quiet than normal and I was told everything was ‘good’ until last night and then she was more quiet; which has also been the case today. I could clearly see that she was having some difficulty breathing when she arrived home and was wanting to just rest and not being her normal active, outgoing friendly self plus was feverish and still was not overly interested in food. I am glad my relative re-arranged their schedule so quickly to get her to me ASAP so that I could then quickly assess her myself and determine if she should go in, which I did; to see a Vet immediately. Pneumonia is caused by bacterial, viral, fungal or parasitic infections. In case of dogs, pneumonia is mainly due to bacterial infection. Inhalation is typically a route of transmission of infection. All of our other dogs are fine to date, eating, drinking, going to the bathroom normally as is our recent new arrival to BHRR; Moose. Some things will always remain a mystery yet I am always the ‘why’ person and seek to be proactive and preventative yet I also realise that some factors/variables cannot be controlled and she has been taken out by approved Volunteers for daytrips, play dates to lots of public venues crowded with other dogs. She also had a recent HWT back in March, so there was no need to repeat that test so soon for sometimes a heartworm test and bronchoscopy are also performed to diagnose pneumonia in dogs. Keep her in your thoughts. Her Vet and Pharmacy Bills today were over $1,000 and if any of her supporters wish to help her along with best wishes and some financial assistance, you can contact Kanata Animal Hospital directly (613) 836-2848  to pay by Debit, Credit Card or Visa/Mastercard or AMEX or PayPal funds to the account of gwen@birchhaven.org or email transfer funds to gwen@birchhaven.org OR you can mail a check to:

Birch Haven Rescue & Rehabilitation Services
C/O Gwendilin Boers
2425 Totem Ranch Road West
RR#1 Oxford Station, Ontario
K0G 1T0

BHRR’s Moose was 135.30 pounds(61.50 KGs) tonight. He definitely did not want his feet touched and you could see how his stress level was escalating and we did not desire to set him up for failure. The Vet was able to take a look at the left front paw without restraining him(he lies with his feet out to the side) and could see the area that was ‘open’ and swollen above the one pad. It was decided to put him on Cephalexin 500 mg x 3 tabs BID. As for his nails and HWT, that was something I went back and forth in my mind and discussing out loud for the Vet is right, there is no rush really on the HWT right at this moment and to give him some more time to settle in yet on the other hand, he almost ‘wins’ by demonstrating certain behavour and then not having to do what is being asked of him. On the other hand, I do not desire to see him set up for failure yet on yet another hand, I ‘believe’ he is going to be funny about those feet and nails for a long time to come. Microchipping is going to come with its own share of joys I can also tell. Moose would sit when I asked and would lay down fairly well upon command and yet I knew that he would also not be very co-operative in looking under his chin near the beginning of his neck, for I found a raw, scabbed area there as well; that could be a hotspot yet could also be there from whatever it was that he cut himself on while in that person’s garage. The antibiotics will take care of it and any other spots on his feet that might be on the verge of flaring up too. He is also not a great backseat car traveller and would not settle until he had rammed himself into my front seat of my car YET my car is not equipped to take an almost 140 pound dog in the front seat! We will be working on that more. Tethering him only stresses him out, so as I will be going back for an extra set or two of hands for that HWT, microchip and nail trimming, it will give us another opportunity to work on that part. His leash manners are also very poor yet he is a very affectionate and loving boy when he has not felt like he was going to be ‘jumped’ and restrained. We will give him some more time and I will bring in one of my 40 cm E-collars if needed to help create a safe environment for him and us to do his nails and HWT plus microchip. He was also very gentle about taking treats from those that gave him some and settled down really well in the exam room plus when I put him into a run in the back as I also had BHRR’s Ava Marie at KAH tonight and had to run out to pick up some meds for her at the Human Pharmacy. Moose also had NO trouble sharing his drool with all and he even drank some water out of a persons hands from the sink! He developed a small fan club tonight I think at KAH!  😉 His Birthday is April 8th, 2009 if I have not already posted that. 😮

I am bringing BHRR’s Ava Marie to KAH this afternoon in addition to BHRR’s Moose having his own appointment for his feet etc. as I suspect she might have possible pneumonia, yet I am going to see what her Vet determines. She was wonderful at the BHRR ‘EXPERIENCE’ Mini Open House on Saturday and then went up to a relatives cottage and last night I received a call that she did not eat her supper. WHEN Ava Marie does NOT eat, something is wrong. I had her brought home to me today and I am not liking how she looks or some of the sounds she is making when she breathes. I have listened to her lungs with my own stethoscope and we may do X-Rays when we get to KAH. My relative said that she was normal up until last night and the only abnormal sign was her not eating her supper last night. They told me that she was not making any breathing difficulty noises at all until this AM.  I encouraged her to eat some wet food which she did and she has been quiet and is resting. BUT she would not take a treat and that is not Ava Marie either. I will be heading out to the Vets shortly.

I have booked BHRR’s Moose in to see the Vet tomorrow night. He is limping on his left front foot and is not so co-operative in allowing me to look at the pad. 😛 I will also do his HWT and a nail trim at the same time. We have also learnt that he is not housebroken so that is a work in progress and like BHRR’s Apollo, he wants to ‘push’ my bluez boyz around, so that is also a work in progress.

BHRR’s Moose is now HERE! I met his transport for around 10:30 PM on Saturday with one of my BHRR BOD members who was up visiting from Oshawa. It was quite the ‘smile material’ sight seeing him drive up sitting like the great co-pilot int he passenger seat looking so handsome! I am attaching two pictures below from his transport taken by Michy and have put 3 into his slideshow.

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BHRR’s Moose – On his transport to BHRR – Saturday June 26th, 2010 – 14 months old – BORN: April 8th, 2009
*photos courtesy of Michy

Feedback sent from his one transporter – Gloria:

“He is such a good boy.”

Feedback from another one of the Volunteer transporters – Claudia:

“I was one of the transport drivers on his journey and I thought he was wonderful. He was fine around other dogs, very friendly, let strangers come up to him without hesitation. I gave him dog biscuits and two bowls of water, lots of pets. He was wonderful.”  

There were so many that were concerned about BHRR’s Moose and here is a quick update that I sent out on Monday June 28th to those that had emailed and/or called me about wanting an update on him:

Moose is doing fine. Picked him up just after 10:30 PM last night after meeting Gloria. He came back to BHRR, had a big pee, drank well and after stretching his legs, settled down wonderfully in a colossal crate with a yummy treat for the night. Showed no interest in eating some food last night, not uncommon. As of today, he has now been integrated with several dogs without any issues and ate a bit of breakfast. We will be very slow with his integration and he does love to destroy blankets and dog beds, so he now has a Kuranda bed in his 45″ colossal crate.  😉

I was most distressed to hear about what happened with Moose and am very happy that he is now safe and I look forward in having him settle in more, properly assessing/evaluating him to get to know him better and seeing what lies in store for him in his future. We shall see what happens when he is out of his ‘honeymoon’ period. He has let me touch his feet sans issue yet I have not actually lifted them up to look at the pads yet he is not limping. He is in need of a nail trim and we shall see how that goes within the next few days too. He has had no issues with people to date and one of my BOD members who was up visiting from TO yesterday came with me to meet the transport and even with it being so dark; he was loving and affectionate. He is a bit of a barker yet is listening well in being ‘corrected’. When driving home, he definitely wanted to be in the ‘front’ seat and we will need to work on that.  😀

I am indebted to everyone for the kindness shown to all the dogs this weekend!

BHRR’s Lily Belle is OFFICIALLY now AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION! May her forever loving home come along soon! 🙂 I still would like to see some more weight on her BUT we are getting there and that can continue in her new adoptive home along with her continued obedience per our application obedience clause.

We had a couple come to our BHRR ‘EXPERIENCE” Mini Open House this past Saturday to visit with us and the Danes under our program plus to meet many others that are seeking to support BHRR or current adopters and/or Volunteers of BHRR. It is so important for us to have people see first hand what they are looking into supporting and to visit with not just us but all the animals and other people that are involved or looking in becoming involved with BHRR. They were originally interested in either BHRR’s Shiva, BHRR’s Mindy or BHRR’s Dana and I am so happy they were able to make the trip and it turns out that they would like to be considered for BHRR’s Mindy. Their original interest was in a black female Great Dane and BHRR has three of those lovely beauties! So………..at this time I am putting BHRR’s Mindy under ‘PENDING ADOPTION’ and shall not be taking any more inquiries or applications on BHRR’s Mindy until we determine if BHRR’s Mindy will or will not be adopted to this possible BHRR approved home. As for BHRR’s Shiva – she was not quite her normal amazing sweet self after her recent experience which was most unfortunate and as for BHRR’s Dana – she is truly not meant for a first time dog home the michievous wonderful MONKEY she is and/or first time Great Dane owner home plus also resorted back to some ‘excite’ jumping including once on myself on Saturday and so, I am also content at this time to consider BHRR’s Mindy for this home. They have been made aware that she is not a young puppy and also has her ‘interpersonal’ space preferences the regal queen she is and please keep BHRR’s Mindy in your thoughts!

B. Price, ON – Adopter of BHRR’s Barkley

Hi Gwen:

Thanks for your hospitality on Saturday. Even with someone who has had a multiple dog family for many years it was almost overwhelming to see all those big dogs in one house. I certainly have to give you a great deal of credit for the work you do and the dedication you show toward aiding dogs in need of your special type of care and assistance. Please let me know when you have another “open house” or fund raiser.

Regards
Bob Price

Late last night, I received an email that stated the following about Moose who had been a foster home of ? before BHRR was contacted to possibly step up to assist. Not sure if it was an approved home from an Ohio organization, pound or group yet this is very distressing to have read the below. BHRR was also not contacted so that we could approve medical treatment and I have been unable to reach anyone at CC.:

“Moose, the St. Bernard, was delivered to Dr. Libby at Creature Comforts in Lancaster today and seemed overly agitated and nervous. Libby received a call late this afternoon from the woman who fostered Moose for the last few days, saying that she “forgot” to mention that Moose had been staying in her garage and broke some glass and cut himself somewhere. Libby inspected him and found multiple wounds on the underside of his feet. Libby warns that Moose does not like to be restrained and his feet should not be touched, even if they start to bleed. If he won’t voluntarily get into and out of vehicles, he will not be able to make the trip tomorrow because Libby says that, because of his injuries, he will try to bite, if pushed. So, Sherrill, please send along a report or call me when you go to Creature Comforts in the morning to pick him up, so we can get the word out whether he’ll be on the transport.”

Update: June 26th – 12:18 PM: I still have not been able to reach anyone at CC to find out the exact situation and so many are quite disturbed by all that has happened to Moose. BHRR should have been contacted to approve and discuss treatment plus his exact situation. I did receive the following email sent at  9:17 AM today:

“Moose is making the trip and is doing fine.”

Update: June 26th – 12:23 PM: I received a vm from someone(will have to listen to it again as there was a lot of static) and I am unable to make out most of what was being said in regards to his transport as she was on her cell phone. Yet, I did pick up that  Moose was really social and great with all people, very understandably stressed, was able to walk yet I could not understand what was being said in regards to any dog to dog interactions or travelling. I also heard that the person that was temp fostering him for whichever place before BHRR was contacted to step up to assist that she was an approved Club member of some group in Ohio and had been used many times before and that all are very much concerned plus angry that she would have kept Moose in the garage and that he had access to things that could and did hurt him AND that she just dropped him off at CC and did not disclose anything about his medical condition. Apparently, she called CC around 8 PM last night to ‘reveal’ some information. At this time, I do not even know how long he has been injured.  😥 When I have a moment, I will listen to the vm again for today is our BHRR ‘EXPERIENCE’ Mini Open House and we are expecting many registered attendees within the half hour.

Update: June 26th – 12:29 PM: I just received the following email update sent at 12:23 PM.

“Moose rode wonderfully on the back seat of Sherri’s car, with his head in her lap most of the way. He seems to do better if not tightly restrained, and in a position where he can lie down and not be able to see the cars on the highway.”

Update: June 26th – 7:42 PM: Email sent at 5:58 PM today.

“Moose continues to be a good boy, but with a mind of his own. But not a mean bone in his body.”

Barring anything untoward, BHRR’s Moose shall be arriving very late Saturday night. I shall be heading out after the BHRR Open House to meet the transport to bring him back to BHRR. I have been told that while he is not ‘dog aggressive’ his has interpersonal space issues with other dogs getting in his face. Apparently hyper and obnoxious dogs can annoy him. He shall be formally assessed/evalauted upon arrival to BHRR. I want to extend a public thanks to Mary for offering to pay for his microchip as part of our upcoming 3rd ANNUAL Microchip/Nail Trim & BBQ Fundraiser.

I pulled BHRR’s Shiva out of her temp foster home last night and she was so happy to see me and to come back to BHRR. Pulling her was not because Shiva might have done anything wrong for she most certainly had not done anything wrong. Humans are the ones that set themselves and the dogs up for failure and we try to work hard with all of our temp, perma-foster and adoptive homes and it is in Shiva’s best interest to come back to BHRR per several of the reasons posted in her last blog. We also work so very hard to be here 24/7 and as a resource to be tapped into for all of those that have one of our animals in their home. Shiva is so well mannered, with a strong obedience background and is such a lovely Great Dane and so many of the dogs here missed her very much! She is healing very slowly from her injuries and we will get there. She is young, healthy and strong and she most enjoyed having my 7 year old daughter ‘tuck’ her in all these blankets on a fluffy dog bed!!!! It still makes our hearts sink to think that she could have been killed June 22nd while at her temp foster home yet she is alive and she will heal in time. In driving home, she barked several times like she had done upon her first arrival to BHRR yet within moments of being positively corrected, she settled down and there was not any more fuss or sounds and she very calmly looked out the window or did some napping on our way back home. Amazing how fast some behavours can be resorted too without the proper reinforcement being done and thank goodness for such a strong background foundation she had at BHRR for it did not take too much to have her being the Shiva we know and love. We will take more trips out and about to reinforce the modified behavour we have been doing since her original surrender to BHRR and had been successful and as our next BHRR ‘EXPERIENCE’ Mini Open House is this weekend, we will have a prime opportunity to use it as a refresher for her on appropriate behavour if needed. We want success stories and we want Shiva to have her own by being adopted to a forever loving home and we want her to be the best dog she can be when that time comes and we cannot have her resorting back to things like barking when she first arrived at BHRR. We need to move forward not backward. WELCOME back to BHRR Shiva!!! We missed you. 🙂

This is not the update I would have liked to have written for BHRR’s Shiva yet as BHRR believes in full disclosure plus takes every opportunity possible to educate and impart community awareness; let the following be a ‘reminder’ to all about SAFETY! SAFETY! SAFETY! There is a reason why we say the things we do and why things need to happen the way they do and we always tell our adopters, temp fosters etc. to never let a new unbonded dog off leash and why we want the dog to sit for leashing and then open up the door. I received a call on to my way to KAH yesterday for a meeting/to work. BHRR’s Shiva has been in this temp foster home since June 18th, not long at all and is only beginning to start to bond with the family. The temp foster homes 16 year old son, did not have Shiva sitting and did not put the leash on before the door was opened and Shiva got by him and ran away. We are talking just before pre-rush hour in Kanata, Ontario(part of Ottawa) and before she was caught, she was on the 417 highway. Just a week ago, I had rescued/assessed an injured PitBull off the 416S that had been involved in a multi MVA and I am well aware of how dangerous this could have been for Shiva. From what I was told, a good samaritan had her leashed by the time the temp foster homes son was able to get to her. The home lives about 5-7 minutes from the 417 and it is amazing that she was not hit at any point during her run. The home was very responsible and had her in at KAH(I received the call after they arrived home) and all four of her feet are quite bad, with two of them really torn up. We have a sand foundation at BHRR with grass in other areas here. Our dogs are not used to pavement and their feet are not ‘tough’ like city owned animals and with the hot heat of yesterday, the pavement and how fast and how far she did get; she could barely walk. My heart was really thumping and my stomach really feeling heavy while I listened and I was very happy to hear that both Shiva and the temp fosters son were ok. I was asked to drop by her house after my work shift last night and it was a sad sight. Shiva is in considerable pain, can barely stand and definitely cannot even hobble well. She was not even able to get up to greet me. I was also worried about how thin she had become(Danes lose weight so fast and it takes forever to safely put it back on). I will be dropping off some canned food for the temp foster to mix into her kibble. We also talked about a couple of other things last night. When we adopt our animals out or they are temp fostered, we always stress to get the dog into the house routine ASAP. To stay at home for a few days around the clock is of no benefit to the dog and can create SA types of traits.  It takes so long to modify a behavour a dog has and for all Shiva fans, they know how long she has been with us and what an amazing Dane she is and why she is often passed over(small and black) for some of the other Danes in our program(s) and know that she had been a bit of a barker when she arrived. With a lot of hard work, she had been modified to having only doing some ‘alert’ excite barking and then only one or two as she sees something when we travel by car. BHRR does not approve shock ‘bark’ collars, citronella ‘bark’ colloars nor what the temp foster home was going to use a ‘sonic’ bark collar.  As BHRR’s Shiva was not immediately put into the house routine, she has resorted back to some barking and this is a great example of how fast work that is done with an animal can be undone. BHRR passes along the information we do as we know our dogs and we know what is in their best interest and now we have to go back to the beginning and I have told the temp foster home, that I might have to pull her and bring her back to BHRR. As told to the temp foster home, we are here as a resource 24/7, provide a ton of information when we place our dogs in temp foster or adoptive homes and we do not say what we do idly. What the temp foster home has done is so common and we do see it often. People are so excited about temp fostering or adopting a new addition and they are listening yet they are not truly ‘hearing’ and even though we stress over and over and over again(I sound like a broken record), we see quite a few dogs ‘set’ up for failure as the home has not really heard what we were passing along to them. As told to the temp foster home, we are here to be supportive and we want a great experience for home and dog yet we also have to ensure that what is in the dogs best interest is being done by and please do ask questions and for elaborations etc. The home just wanted to ensure that BHRR’s Shiva was settling in well yet by staying home with her round the clock those first three days; it has not benefited her at all. We discussed keeping Shiva mentally and physically stimulated and in addition to some canned food being dropped off on Thursday; I referred the home back to the homecooking link I passed along and will be bringing a KONG toy so that the home can freeze treats as Shiva is not going to be mobile for awhile. She is going to have to be even more mentally stimulated to keep her ‘busy.’ At the end of the day for me, Shiva is alive and is going to be ok and we shall move forward. Accidents happen and thank you to the temp foster home for being so prompt to get her to KAH, for calling me right after and for being responsible/accountable in taking care of her Vet Bill. The home was very visibly shaken up by this experience and I have told them, that all has worked out ok and what is taken away from this in being just that much more proactive/preventative is what is going to be so important. I know that her temp foster mom already loves Shiva, that much is obvious and hugs to all!

BHRR’s Moose does not have a Rabies Certificate and shall also require a Health Certificate to cross the border into Canada and arrangements have now been made for him to obtain these on Friday AM. He will also be examined at that time. Transport has been organized and his expected ETA is around 11:45 PM or so on Saturday June 26th. Last weight given was 120 pounds. Will update his blog as I can.

BHRR’s Moose, about one year of age, male, neutered, utd on vaccines, smoth coat Saint Bernard. He was at a very rural small pound in Ohio, USA as he was an owner surrender due to the man having medical issues (developed a debilitating illness). I am told that the man who surrendered him was a nice man and took great care of Moose and that Moose had been in this rural small pound since last week. He is now currently in a foster home of the pound with 2 other dogs(about 5 pounds each) and from there the transport co-ordinator who works with this pound contacted BHRR to see if we could be of any assistance with him. We have been told that he tries to play with her two dogs, so he will have to learn to be gentle with those big ol’ paws and mouth of his. I am posting a picture of Moose below. He is expected to arrive Saturday June 26th. NOT YET AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION!!!!

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BHRR’s Moose – About 1 year of age – June 2010

Tonight we received an email from the eastern CDA province of Nfld. that our ‘Marmaduke’ Movie Effect – Great Dane community awareness blog has been seen crossposted in their home province!

On Tuesday June 8th, Soccer began again for the summer for our kids and BHRR’s Potter just sensed it!!! He made it clear that he was not going to be left behind and planted his butt sitting at the front door beside the kids bags. He is just obsessed with balls of all kinds with tennis plus soccer balls being his all time favourite! Yet, when he comes to the soccer fields, he is so incredible with his self-control plus restraint in not trying to pull my arm off to get to all the soccer balls and to also play with the kids! He is given a soccer ball at the end of the game and just has a blast and I am so happy to have him still here with us to enjoy the games again this year!!! He often can be found sitting in my lap or quietly laying on the ground watching the soccer games. So many recognized him and it was amazing how open and honest the kids were with what had happened to his leg and how reserved and ‘will stare when I think no one is looking’ the adults would be. Sooooooooooo, I just walked with Potter and when I would ‘catch’ someone’s eye, I would ask if they would like to pet Potter, tell them who Potter was, that he was deaf, how we communicate with him and what happened with his leg. By the end of the 1.5 hours, not sure how many parents were watching the soccer games  😛   – 7 fields(14 teams) just in my daughters age range alone as that was where I was sitting and Sean was with Mason in the ‘big gang’ soccer fileds. After the soccer games, Sean & I took the kids out for a rare ice cream treat and Potter was a big hit at the Kemptville Dairy Barn, with many coming up to him and saying they saw him on the soccer fields earlier. The only incident came when a lady and her partner drove in and they had a GS and a Cocker and I was not liking the body language of the GS nor the Cocker. However; the man kept the GS on a tight lead and was quite responsible. The woman however; comes right up to us and says, ‘hey, can they play’ as I jump up and pull Potter to safety for just as she is saying this, her Cocker lunges and snarls for Potter. AND good ‘ol’ Potter who just loves all people and dogs and being a special needs(deaf) and therefore finding it a bit harder to read other dogs ‘cues’ for he cannot ‘hear’ the dog and ‘read’ the body language as effectively due to being deaf(getting much better with training at BHRR) and that he had limited social training and interaction before he came to BHRR; he is still learning much about reading other dogs body cues etc.; just wanted to play and ‘box’ the Cocker. AND as she said ‘oh’ and then turned away dragging her Cocker, I said to Sean….’watch this’ and the woman while saying ‘no, to her Cocker; just enabled the dog by picking the dog up and coddling it for demonstrating inappropriate behavour. She kissed and snuggled it and I could only stand there and shake my head slightly. It is so common to see people do this, especially with small dogs for many( NOT ALL yet many) truly do not believe that those small/toy dogs also need proper training. As for Potter, he was most disappointed that he was not allowed to play!!! BHRR’s Potter was scheduled for his annual Tuesday June 29th yet I canceled it due to a conflict and will reschedule for another date when I am back to work at KAH on this Monday. He is not due until early July as is for vaccines. I also hope to get back to updating blogs/pictures within the next few days as this past week has been most stressful with some important family matters to tend too. We thank everyone for their continued support shown.

BHRR’s Shiva went to her temp foster home last night and she did not wish to stay behind when I was leaving. That is the tough part wishing that you could explain that what you are doing is truly in their best interest. She should settle in fine and I look forward to receiving regular updates on her. 🙂 I hope to get back to updating blogs/pictures within the next few days as this past week has been most stressful with some important family matters to tend too. We thank everyone for their continued support shown.

Update: June 15th – 2:40 PM: I talked with LAH and due to a surgery shift change; Apollo shall have his surgery with Dr. Liston on Friday July 2nd, 2010.That gives us 17 days to try and raise $245.00 for his surgery. Everything crossed for Apollo.

I left a message at LAH to discuss with Dr. Liston to confirm the surgery date for BHRR’s Apollo – looking at Friday June 25th and to see if he would like to have a pre-surgical visit with Apollo beforehand. THANKS so much to everyone for their continued support as we attempt to raise another $245.00 by Friday June 25th to be able to put down a ‘goodwill’ deposit for Apollo to have this surgery. This gives us 10 days to raise those funds. We shall continue to keep ASKING FOR APOLLO in the hopes that we shall be able to raise the much needed monies for him.

I took out BHRR’s Lily Belle’s spay sutures on Saturday. She was a ‘gold’ star pupil and even put herself on her back and was very relaxed. Sean and Mason were not sure what to do with themselves, she was so awesome! LOL YET, when I went to do her nails(the last time her nails were done here was when she was under for her spay on June 1st), she was not so ‘keen’ yet we worked through it wonderfully and she received her praise plus a treat as her reward. 😉 She is still more thin that I would like to see and so, we shall continue working on that weight gain and hopefully, within the next couple of weeks; she shall be placed up for adoption! She sleeps out of her crate at night and we are still crating her if we are gone from the home longer than a couple of hours as she is still very much a puppy, one that is not quite ready to have free and total run of the house! She will require a home that is going to stay on top of her regular grooming for I am taking matts out of her more often than I am from our Newfs. She LOVES to be brushed and the biggest ‘matt’ areas are her lower tummy and behind her ears. To date, under her chin and on her neck have been great. Loving having her here and the size of her noggin(I am a huge headpiece person) just makes me want to smooch her often, which she does not mind at all! LOL I have added a new picture to her slideshow #9 from today and am putting in below too. She is a real beauty this Saint!

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BHRR’s Lily Belle – Just under 9 months of age – June 14th, 2010

Jessica Foote, Ottawa, ON

Hi there,
Sorry for the late hour but I felt that I couldn’t wait to send you an email 🙂 . I wanted to offer my help in any way possible. I work for the City of Ottawa. I have my own rescued animals and have always been an avid supporter of rescuing animals in need… as I do so quite often from local pounds. I would like to offer my vehicle in any transportation situations you need. Although there may be obvious times that I am not available; the times that I am, I would like to help.
I have read the stories about your Danes and all of them have touched me in some way. Thus leading to my current “surprise” that I am putting together/working on for your large family. I also have toys, blankets and a large dog crate that I would like to donate (and can deliver).
Anyway, to some it all up, I’m basically saying that I would really like to become an avid helper/volunteer and would like to know what it is *at all* that you need help with.
I hope to hear from you soon and I do really hope that there is something that I can do to help.
Thank you for your time
Jessica Foote

On Friday May 28th, I did a HV for a possible new temp home for one of our BHRR animals and I brought both BHRR’s Shiva plus BHRR’s Mindy along with me. I felt that either one of these two black beauties could be a good fit for this home should the homevisit went well. Either one would be fine in a home that worked full time and to be the only dog AS long as the home ensured that they were going to have the temp foster be part of a regular dog social network. It was a good visit and both Great Danes were model citizens! I was so proud of them!!!! Upon leaving, I told the home once again that they could now talk and decide which one they felt would be a better ‘bond’ and ‘fit’ to their home and gave my own feedback; yet was open to either one being temp fostered by this home. I then received an email that they were finding it hard to choose between them and asked me what my own viewpoint was and in regards to personality; either one; yet with the layout of their home plus the size of their backyard(they indicated they would also be making repairs on their one side of fencing this year and we will re-visit that before winter); I professionally felt that BHRR’s Shiva was a better fit as BHRR’s Mindy is quite a bit taller and bigger than Shiva. YET, when it came down to it, I still was open to either being temp fostered. The home said that they would love on BHRR’s Shiva as a temp foster for BHRR and plans have been made for Shiva to go to this Temp Foster home on Friday June 18th. We will stay in frequent contact and make any adjustments as needed. HOPEFULLY, they will send lots of pictures along with the updates to come our way, so that we can keep her fans updated. Whether BHRR’s Shiva stays with this home for one week, two, 5 weeks or even months; it is of great benefit for more people ‘out’ there to meet this wonderful dog and then they may consider possibly adopting her. 😉 This home will also have the opportunity to experience a Great Dane firsthand! With us knowing that this temp foster home could be coming on board; we did take on BHRR’s Apollo and with his imprending surgery plus that BHRR’s Ava Marie requires another surgery herself; BHRR still is very much full. We could always use more wonderful foster homes!!!! If you are not yet ready to adopt a Great Dane yet would like to assist Rescue, learn more about Great Danes etc.; then fostering might be for you!!! It is a huge win-win for everyone!

BHRR’s Apollo’s presurgical bw came back normal and it was faxed over to LAH. We do understand that times are tough for everyone and we are eternally grateful to those that have donated to date for his upcoming TPLO surgery. We continue to stay positive that perhaps more angels might come forward to help us and THANKS so much to those that have emailed and phoned us sending him their best wishes! Apollo reminds me so much of BHRR’s Mr. Parker Paws for he can just ‘nail’ you with those feet of his and such long reaching legs he has! LOL AND the double whammy is that he will get you with both feet at the same time!!!! To those that came out to our PHASE II Fencing for the BHRR animals this past weekend; they had the opportunity to meet the big goofy in person and get smacked by that happy tail and feet! 😛 His charming personality won all over and he was feeling so good; he actually was out and exploring the newly fenced in area and had some energy and spring in his step! The most active he has really been since his arrival and we quickly stepped in to get him to slow down. DO not need any more damage to be done to that leg of his. 😥 Such a nice boy and he was soooooooooooo affectionate to everyone!

*Goal – Raise another $405 more by Friday June 25th to put down a ‘goodwill’ deposit – Tentative Date of Surgery June 25, 2010

One of the Radio Announcers, Dylan Black of 101.9 DAWG FM – Ottawa’s Best Friend was contacted by one of our approved Volunteers/Adopters(S. Desjardins) and has agreed to assist BHRR with our ‘Marmaduke’ Movie Effect – Great Dane Community Awareness Blog with their media outlet.

In addition, our blog was added as a resource link on the Marmaduke Movie Educational Effort – Yahoo Group

BHRR’s Albert has become a bit of an ‘escape’ artist. Sean got up on Monday AM and Albert was out of his crate and the crate was firmly closed. Often, we just leave his crate door open while we sleep yet with his back to the occasional(rare) ‘pee’ moment in the house; we still close him in here and there. Sean said he stood there for awhile looking at Albert who was looking at him and then looking at the crate and back at Albert who was looking at him etc. I guess Albert has decided that he does not want to be closed up in his crate unless it is on his terms! Sean looked Albert over to be sure there were not any marks, scrapes etc. and he is completely fine and looking quite smug! At our PHASE II Fencing for the BHRR animals this past weekend; Albert was all zippy and zoomy until he saw people and then he did his ‘statue’ impression. Poor thing. AND as soon as the last person left on Sunday, he was back to running and skipping and happy as a lark! Soooooooooooo, here are our June dates for possible playdates, day trips etc. for BHRR’s Albert and if any of our approved BHRR Volunteers are open to taking him for a bit into their homes, PetSmarts etc., it would be so appreciated. We do not want him flooded yet we want to continue getting him more comfortable being into the land of the living(socially). Please email if you are interested and available to help us continue with Albert’s mental plus emotional rehab.

Thursday June 10th – Anytime between 4 PM – 8 PM
Tuesday June 15th – Anytime between 4 PM – 8 PM
Friday June 18th – Anytime between 4 PM – 8 PM
Monday June 21st – Anytime between 4 PM – 8 PM
Tuesday June 22nd, – Anytime between 4 PM – 8 PM
Thursday June 24th – Anytime between 12 Noon – 2 PM

I have the biggest relief in being able to post that yes, BHRR’s Potter had 2 benign histriocytomas! As of today, there was only one still quite prominant on his stump area, the other virtually had been removed in his biopsy and as posted previously, while I know that this shall not be the last ‘scare’ with him due to his history with the Big C, my knees are truly weak with relief over finally receiving this news. YAY! YAY! YAY!

BHRR has received confirmation that our Marmaduke Movie Effect – Great Dane blog and community education/ awareness information has become ‘live’ Jun 4, 2010 at 3:30 pm on The Ottawa Dog Blog. Feel free to post your own comments. Thanks Liz!

My heart and soul feel so heavy in writing this blog. Dr. Philibert has confirmed that BHRR’s Apollo shall require a TPLO surgery. He spent some time last night doing a detailed physical exam on Apollo and then reviewing the X-Rays as a consult for BHRR. He feels it is best to do the meniscal repair and while Apollo is under surgery; to also do the TPLO as to have the meniscus torn or even partially torn, it is inevitable; if it has not already happened by now that Apollo’s cruciate will also become affected as he is growing boy(not yet done maturing) and quite a large Great Dane. We have been told that there is no other best treatment option for Apollo; which I knew in my own heart was the situation yet hearing it just made me want to 😥 for Apollo and I feel just wrenched for him. We shall begin to actively fundraise for BHRR’s Apollo and his Fundraiser will be called ‘Asking for Apollo’. I have discussed this with Dr. Liston(who also did BHRR’s Ava Marie’s first cruciate repair on May 21st and will be doing her second one in July) and he also did BHRR’s Jaxson’s and BHRR’s Potter’s leg amputations. One quote we were given was just over $3,700 and we are planning to have Apollo’s surgery done on Friday June 25th, if all goes well. I have made a CD of Apollo’s X-Rays and Sean will drop them off to Dr. Liston today to view and I had blood drawn last night for Apollo’s pre surgical bloodwork. I will also ensure that Dr. Liston has a copy of all of Apollo’s vaccines and the results of his HWT that I recently did. What we are ‘Asking For Apollo’ is some assistance/help in putting down a goodwill deposit of $750 at LAH. As with all the wonderful dogs at BHRR; I honestly feel that the public and supporters of the BHRR animals have been BEYOND generous and kind and I would not ask this on my behalf yet I am truly asking on Apollo’s behalf to please open up your hearts to perhaps extend your warmth his way too? We have our annual Microchip/Nail Trim & BBQ Fundraiser coming up on Sunday July 18th at Kanata Animal Hospital; yet it is not advised to wait that long(and we would not do so as is) and hopefully; we might raise enough to help pay for BHRR’s Ava Marie($2,532.21 left to raise) yet also help with Apollo(goal is to raise $3,700). Our 2009 Microchip/ Nail Trim & BBQ Fundraiser raised just over $3,000 so it we were equally blessed, that would go a long way to helping both of these gems. I shall also be picking up what shifts I can and possibly an additional training/behavoural client to help these two sweethearts that came to BHRR and are in need of a helping ‘leg’ to be able to be adopted to forever loving homes. I am so very humbly reaching out and ‘Asking For Apollo’ for some love to be sent his way.

A file has now been set up at Liston Animal Hospital for BHRR’s Apollo.

You can donate by email transfer to gwen@birchhaven.org or by PayPal(account is gwen@birchhaven.org) OR you can write a check/MO or Bank Draft out to ‘Birch Haven Rescue & Rehabilitation Services’ OR to ‘Gwendilin & Sean Boers’ for his Vet Bills with BHRR’s Apollo in the memo section and mail to:

Birch Haven Rescue & Rehabilitation Services
C/O Gwendilin Boers
2425 Totem Ranch Road West
RR#1 Oxford Station, Ontario
K0G 1T0

OR you can call Liston Animal Hospital at (613) 591-0966 to pay on Apollo’s Bill directly by Visa or M/C – Apollo’s bill is under the account name of ‘Apollo Boers.’

*Our goal is to raise $750 by 8:00 AM Friday June 25th as a ‘goodwill’ deposit for BHRR’s Apollo to have the necessary surgery to have his own quality filled great future*

SUCCESS! Some of the Cineplex and FP Theatres will be working with BHRR with our request to promote community awareness and education regarding Great Danes!

Response sent our way in regards to our ‘Marmaduke’ Movie Effect – Great Dane posting on Kijiji Ottawa:

THANK YOU for posting this ad!!!! PEople need to be more aware of animal abuse!! the story about Mooie just brought me to tears.

Kudos to all of you at BHRR!!

Stephanie

BHRR’s Ava Marie had a re-examination with Dr. Liston and she weighed 161.48 pounds(73.4 KGs), so up a bit from her surgery on May 21st. Being pretty much on ‘rest’ can definitely explain part of that slight gain. The other part would be that yes, I have been giving Ava Marie some special yummy treats to get her to take her antibiotics and Deramaxx etc. but now she is done her antibiotics and the Deramaxx is mostly taken in her food bowl without issue for the most part. Now that she has permission to be more mobile and for us to work on the physical rehab, she will trim up well again! Dr. Liston thought she was looking ‘great’ and that her incision has healed well, her knee is intact and he did see what I meant about the edema and that it was at her knee and not lower down as one would expect and that she has this edema now and not immediately post-op. He was not worried, drained most of the edema and it was just serum and some blood clots. Dr. Liston also confirmed that her knee was mostly pushed right due to the edema and we will continue to massage the knee. She is not fond of the icing part though! LOL So, the plan is to build up more muscle and strength and get the right leg to heal more, come back in a month to re-visit that leg plus to take a closer look at the left leg and plan her 2nd surgery, this time on the left cruciate. SO, we are begging and pleading for her fans to consider donating to her Ava’s Action Assistance Cause, so that we can help pay for her 2nd surgery and post-rehab with hydrotherapy etc. just as we are doing with the right ACL surgery she recently had. Ava Marie also brought in a big plate of homemade cinnamon buns to LAH as a token of her huge thanks for helping her get a new start on life!!! WHAT a trooper she is and so happy and everyone at the hospital just ADORES her! She then came to KAH with me to be loved on and hang out as I had a work shift there! GO AVA GO! The big thing at home with a challenge is the hardwood floors and her wanting to lay on them now that she going to be getting a bit more freedom and being ‘there’ to ensure she gets that extra hand on her hind end for those legs. They can be a bit slippery and traction can be hard for her and honestly for many dogs out there in the world. With the warm weather she would much prefer the floors over the dog beds etc. The good news is that she is almost always never far from myself when I am at home, so I am on hand most of the time to help her. As mentioned to her Vet she is truly going to make a home a ‘dream’ dog and will very much enjoy her strolls and walks YET cannot do anything super stenuous with those knees. No mountain hikes with this sweetheart. She also very much just loves going to parks, cottages or camping out and laying on the grass and soaking up the love and attention and fresh outdoor air. Such an AWESOME dog!

BHRR’s Lily Belle was spayed and I microchipped her today too. Her weight was 48KGs(105.6 pounds), so she is gradually putting on the weight and while her Vet also felt she was still a bit thin, MUCH better than she was upon arrival and had no concerns. In respect to her teeth, it is just that, her teeth/bite – genetics – and so, her tongue just protrudes a bit when sleeping or resting or when she is relaxed! Her spay went great and she was loved on by all there and I have to get a height on her for she is fairly tall with those long legs! She was really enjoyed by everyone at the Hospital today. ‘SWEET’ is the biggest description given about her! AND it is so true. She did not eat any supper tonight when I brought her home, offered her about 1/4 of her normal ration and that is not abnormal after surgery. Once she heals from her spay and puts a few more pounds of muscle/weight on; she shall be placed up for adoption, so mostly like around the third or last week of June 2010. I just wanted to also update on her eyes that they are now fine. The BNPH worked! If anyone would like to make a contribution to her Vet Bills, please feel free to call Kanata Animal Hospital directly at (613) 836-2848 and they would be happy to take your donation via Visa/MasterCard or AMEX. You can also pay by email transfer to gwen@birchhaven.org or by PayPal.

BHRR’s Apollo’s Vet grabbed me tonight at work to say that he had talked to Dr. Pilibert and we then made arrangements for Apollo to see Dr. Philibert at KAH where he shall be on Thursday doing a TPLO surgery on another dog. His Vet thought yet again from having spent more time reviewing the X-Rays and thinking about the exams he did on Apollo that day and he is really leaning towards a partial meniscal tear. I will bring Apollo in with me on Thursday and will update his blog as I can.  Even his Vet said today ‘WHAT’ a nice dog he is. Think positive thoughts for Apollo and as mentioned while we are not actively doing any special fundraising for Apollo at this time, his current Vet Bills are over $1,000 and any assistance towards them would be so heartfelt. Thank you!

A copy of our community educational/awareness information being posted and cross-posted on boards, forums and websites.

‘MARMADUKE’ Movie Effect – Great Dane

Birch Haven Rescue & Rehabilitation Services(BHRR) urges everyone that might be considering to add a Great Dane to their home to read the following blog. A Great Dane is not the breed for everyone.

http://www.birchhaven.org/?cat=75

PLEASE note that not every Breeder nor Rescue are created equal by being of high reputable/quality standards. ONLY support reputable/quality Rescues when adopting or if you are going to buy; purchase your dog ONLY from a reputable/quality Breeder. Reputable/Quality Show Breeders breed to not only preserve the Great Dane standard yet they are constantly working hard at improving their own lines. Those pillars of the Great Dane Standard for breeding are Conformation and Temperament plus the added pillars required are Health testing and breeding for Longevity. Equally important is breeding per the Colour Code set out by the Great Dane Club of America.

Great Dane Club of America – Colour Code

Great Dane Colours & Information:

http://www.birchhaven.org/?page_id=303

RESEARCH! RESEARCH! RESEARCH!

The BHRR Team

I wanted to add another photo to BHRR’s Dana’s slideshow #32 and to post it below. She has settled back at BHRR as if she had never left for a mini vaca! LOL We continue to be patient waiting for her new forever loving home to ‘see’ her for the very special and unique beauty she is and to apply to adopt her.

32.jpg
BHRR’s Dana & The ‘Friend’ She Helped Get Back On His Feet – May 11th, 2010
*Photo courtesy of T. Vaive

BHRR’s Lily Belle’s spay is tomorrow and I am looking forward to learning her weight. As most know, I have been a bit concerned with her weight gain. My son was AMAZING tonight for he offered to wash her in preparation for being extra sweet smelling and he did a really good job and Lily Belle was so good about getting into the shower and standing for him. She was NOT so great in allowing me to work out some behind the ear matts yet we worked through it and she really loved the treats afterwards! LOL She will have a nail trim while she is under tomorrow and I am also going to have her Vet take a look at her teeth more closely. I know that she is missing some – genetics – and her tongue tip seems to ‘hang’ out a lot and when she sleeps even more than that!  😛 I just want to be sure that everything looks really good and that there are not any problems that I can see myself with her being awake as I examine her. I am not concerned yet just want to take the opportunity to have the Vet look her mouth over very thoroughly, just in case. I have added a new photo to her slideshow #8 and will also post it below. My focus this next while is going to be on the active promoting of our THIRD Annual Microchip/Nail Trim & BBQ Fundraiser being held at Kanata Animal Hospital on July 18th from 8 AM to 5 PM, so please bear with me that some of the blogs shall remain not as updated as normal. 🙂 If anyone is open to putting up posters for this event, please do email Gwen to have one sent to you. THANKS in advance! I will post an update on BHRR’s Lily Belle after her spay. Think positive thoughts for her.

07.jpg
BHRR’s Ava Marie – May 18th, 2010 – 8 months old