A Good Rescue Day
Monday we had one rescue planned. A sweet older girl named Camille was at the Camarillo shelter. She wasn’t in very good shape and she was a senior so the shelter called us for help and. of course. we said yes. Then we get an emergency call from another rescuer about a second senior boy named Dexter, blind, old and glaucoma in both eyes. Bring him on we said. Finally that afternoon we get a text from a net-worker about a young healthy boy at the Orange County shelter that was rescue only for suspected behavior problems. The word was he was on the PTS list and his time limited. We figured since we are already picking up the senior boy and girl let’s just have our transporters stop in Orange County on their way home. We went to bed that night feeling pretty good about saving three lives. This was a really good day in rescue.
Then we woke up the next morning to a Facebook storm with us right in the middle of it. What the heck? Turns out a group of networkers were ranting and raving about, Chance, the young boy we pulled from Orange County. They were demanding that we pull a terrier mix that was housed with him. From here the facts got a bit fuzzy but opinions flowed like rain, he was this, he was that, we did this, we did that. We did a little fact finding mission and confirmed that the cocker was found as a stray. The terrier had a different release date meaning they did not come in together and they were kenneled together with a Yorkie . There was no indication that they were bonded or they even came from the same home. The Yorkie had already been pulled by another group earlier and being a Cocker rescue we took the cocker. Chance was happy and content with no signs of being ripped apart from a busom buddy. Now we had a group of Facebook net-workers with no facts but tons of opinions demanding that we do exactly as they thought we should and condemning us because we hadn’t already. At 7:00 am in the morning? Seriously?
Later that afternoon we got a call from a previous adopter who was having trouble with her one year old cocker that she had adopted from us. The cocker was starting to misbehave and they couldn’t figure out why. After discussing it and getting some of the background details we decided that it was likely the type of training that they were using on her. They had always used the traditional training where you discipline the dog when it misbehaves. Nothing severe, in fact not much more than a disapproving voice and shaking a finger at her but she was a very sensitive girl and we believed that even that was to much for her so we suggested switching to positive reinforcement training where you reward the good behavior and ignore or manage the bad behavior. It works like a dream on cockers.
After we got off the phone we had to laugh. Those net-workers on Facebook could learn a lot about working with cocker rescuers from positive reinforcement dog trainers. Try asking, try being polite but don’t shake your finger at us and tell us we are bad dogs. In fact we will take a page from our trainer and thank all those networkers for caring.
Our Pampered Chef Fundraiser
Katie thinks that everyone should be cooking more, more dog treats that is. She wants to announce a new fundraiser we are doing with Pampered Chef. The fundraiser goes from now until Sept 15th.
Details:
-Everyone should have their orders direct shipped to them (because Katie is not doing it for you!).
-We get a % for every order you place.
-Everyone who orders will receive by email a receipt when the show is submitted.
-Checks will not be accepted on this show
-The sales tax is 8%
-There is a free Guest Special with a $65 purchase!
Katie, says shop, shop, shop then come on back and check out her listing. She is so ready for a family! Her foster mom agrees, she is the perfect girl.
Katie also wanted to share this recipe for SnickerPoodles, dog treats with you all. she says your dog will love these cookies but she would rather you mail them all to her! They are great because they are made with ingredients you already have in your pantry and anything you don’t have Pampered Chef will.
SnickerPoodles!
Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup agave (the original recipe called for honey, but I prefer agave)
2 eggs
3 ¾ cups white flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ cup cornmeal
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Directions:
1. Mix vegetable oil, shortening, honey and eggs.
2. Beat well.
3. Add flour, soda and cream of tartar.
4. Knead dough until mixed well.
5. Shape dough by rounded teaspoons into balls.
6. Mix the cornmeal and cinnamon together in a bowl.
7. Roll balls in mixture.
8. Place 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.
9. Press with a fork.
10. Bake for 8-10 minutes at 400F.
His Sweet Personality Never Wavered
We got a call from a volunteer from the Harbor shelter telling us about a sweet boy named Dougal who had been hit by a car and was sitting in the shelter with a broken leg. She had managed to buy him two more days but was not having any luck finding anyone to take him. We took one look at that face and you know what we said.
All of our normal transporters were full up so we sent out a facebook plea and one of our supporters, Gwin came through for us. She drove down to the shelter the next day and took him to Carolyn’s. From there he was whisked off to the vet for a diagnosis. It was not good. The first xray showed that his front leg was broken in many places and he needed surgery. They were not sure at first if they could save the leg. But the real concern internal bleeding and shock. He needed a transfusion fast. Poor Dougal, he had been without medical care for days sitting in the shelter but his sweet personality had never wavered.
Here is the log of his progress during all this:
8/14 update…Thank goodness for the wonderful staff at Menifee Animal Hospital! Dougal needs a transfusion to stabilize for surgery. That is happening now. Once he is stabilized he will have surgery on that leg. We have a surgeon on call for tomorrow in hopes he will be ready to go. Keep your fingers crossed, his bills are going to hit $2,000 at least but it looks like we can save him and maybe even the leg too.
8/15 update Dougal is resting comfortably. The surgeon decided we need to wait until Monday for his surgery. In the mean time Dougal is gaining strength, getting his blood count up and enjoying loads of love and attention.
8/16 Update: Dougal is doing so much better today the surgeon has moved his surgery forward to today at noon. We are waiting the results with baited breath. Send him good thoughts and we will let you know how it went later tonight.
8/16 pm update: Dougal’s surgey ended up being far more complicated than we originally thought. His humorous ( the big bone at the top of the leg) was broken at the top, the bottom, in several pieces in between and worse it severed a nerve. But after a long 3 1/2 hour surgery, the surgeon is hopeful he will be walking on it soon. A huge thank you to the vet tech Erica, who brought her own dog in to give Dougal a transfusion today. A well as all the staff who still haven’t gone home yet. They are staying hours and hours late taking care of Dougal. Manifee Animal Hospital Rocks!
8/18 update: Dougal gets to come back to Carolyn’s today. You should see his huge splint! We will get pics soon. He goes back in one month to get the splint off and three months to get the plate out of the leg. He should have 30% use of the leg in 30 days, 60% in 60 days then 100% in Dec….we are so happy. His surgeon, Dr Beeley rocks! His bills are now up to $2400 but worth every cent.
Mr. Magoo Is Famous Too
One of our favorite foster moms is Twilight Saga star, Marlane Barnes. Recently she was the focus of an article on her rescue work where she mentions our own sweet Mr Magoo. Marlane also posted an article entitled “How to Get a Rescue Dog Adopted: Mr. Magoo’s Online Profile” at ProjectNoses.org. her website chronicling the star’s time with the companion dogs she has fostered and showcasing, you guessed it, Mr Magoo!
Mr Magoo is a sweet little man with lots of energy who loves belly rubs and back scratches. Being blind and mostly deaf doesn’t slow him down at all! He can hear just enough to make a chew toy squeak and he loves it! If he picks up a new scent on the ground he is determined to find out what it is! He would probably do well with kids because he doesn’t mind getting scooted around or shooed from your snack. He is independent during the day but would love to sleep near you at night. Because of his blindness/determination to track scents, cats are not the best companions, but he seems to like other dogs. He’s not crazy about being crated, but he does well on his own in a room where he can still explore.
Mr Magoo is 10 years old and is eligible for our sanctuary program where we pay for all his medical expenses.
It is Raining Seniors
We have senior dogs coming out our ears! We have so many fabulous babies waiting for foster homes and Sanctuary homes we just had to let you know. It is our fault for saying yes every time someone called with a sad story but who could say no to these sweet faces? These babies desperately need foster homes. Can you help? Contact us at 805 687 4674 or fill out an application and we will call you right away. In order we have Bim and Coal, Jasper, Jr, Spencer and Katie, Maxi, Prince, Amber….they are all so sweet and deserve to spend the rest of their days in a loving home. For some of these babies it will be the only time they be loved and properly taken care of. Please, don’t make them wait any longer!
Donations towards our Sanctuary Program 
Lucky for Gus…
Gus was found abandoned in a crate in a driveway. No food or water just Gus sitting in a wire crate with the sun beating down on him. He was so stressed it took two days for him to settle down. A self styled “rescuer” from Santa Barbara pulled him out of the Devore shelter earlier this week. She decided she couldn’t handle him so she dumped him instead. This rescuer has quite a reputation among the legitimate rescues in town but she is still out there doing more damage than good.
Lucky for Gus he found SCCR. We take our rescue work seriously and he will now be taken care of for the rest of his life. He deserves nothing less. Gus is a sweet little velcro boy who loves nothing better than a snuggle or to just follow you around the house. He loves everyone he meets and will be good with kids and he loves other dogs. Gus is about 6-7 years old and we have promised him the best home we can find.
Mr Magoo
This time we didn’t have room for one more senior but we took him anyway. This is poor old blind boy had been in the OC shelter for days. We pulled him and are calling him Mr Magoo. He has bad ears, eyes, teeth….you name it. We should not have said yes, we have no room, no money but some how the words, “Just pull him” came flying out of my mouth…..a huge thank you to Marlane for offering to foster him.
Donations to help with his medical expenses
Thanks to Christienne we had room for one more
As we sat down to pay our bills last month we came up short….really short. We were scrambling to figure out how to pay everyone and put a hold on any new dogs coming in until we got this taken care of. Just an hour after the board made that decision we got a call about a cocker at the Orange County shelter. He was exactly the kind of dog we could not afford to take. Eight years old, male with double cherry eye. We held firm, “We can not take this dog. We can’t pay our bills and we aren’t taking any dogs until we can.” Then we hear “How much do you need? If I get it for you will you take him?” …..oh yes, we can now!
Buddy was so happy when we send our transporters to pull him. He is safe and sound and waiting for his surgery thanks to Christienne, our new fundraiser in OC!
Katie and Spencer
Katie and Spencer’s mom died and they ended up at the Orange County Shelter. Two seniors, grossly over weight and in terrible condition. How could we say no? Carolyn got them in and her was her first report on Katie:
“My goodness….this poor old girl has really been neglected. Nails were horrible and two of them had curled back into her pads which no doubt contributed to her reluctance to walk…..ears were so gunky it was like scraping spoonfuls of dirt out, her skin is very dry and flaky, and shaving her was like trying to shave fur off a bowl of jello! She is quite overweight, to the point where her little nub tail is actually buried in fat…..her eyes are just enormous with glaucoma pressure. I am not sure if she will even be a candidate for chemical ablation because they might have ‘gone too far’ for it….more than likely we are looking at eye removal now. Will find out at the vet tomorrow morning. But, she is cleaned up now 🙂 She is very sweet and good natured…just needs a diet and exercise and fix those eyes! This is the before picture”
Katie’s after picture before her surgery. They both went to the vet yesterday and we got an update. “Quick update…..went to the vet today, obviously grossly overweight. Both have ear infections, no big surprise. Katie’s eyes are bad which we knew. I have now scheduled her for surgery on Wednesday to have them both removed. Dr. Card feels they are too damaged for chemical ablation to work like it should, so out they come.
Spencer has the start of cataracts in both eyes, but not blind yet :-)) At least Katie will finally get some relief from the pain in those eyes. Spencer will be groomed tomorrow”Rocky Is Now Eating Like A Horse
Yesterday Rocky was sitting in the Lancaster shelter, no eating, could barely stand by himself and had until 5pm before he ran out of time. Thanks to Kim Johnson who convinced us to pull him, Caitlen and Holly who raced to the shelter before they closed and the extra care he got from Kathy at Oasis, he is now eating like a horse and feeling quite perky!
His teeth are rotten so we offered him some mushy canned food, gave him fluids and a cushy place to sleep. We will get him groomed, give him a dental and see what else is up with him before he will be ready for a foster home. He is 14+ years old and has earned a spot in our sanctuary program. Anyone interested?
Donations to help pay for Rocky’s medical care:
Update on Rocky:
We don’t have a new picture of Rocky yet….(working on it) but we do have an update on his status. The vet report that came back was very positive. also kind of appalling. Rocky was not eating and having trouble standing by himself. But as soon as we got him out of the shelter and fed him bowls of mushy food he was chowing down. We also gave him fluids. The vet reports that he was just suffering from starvation and dehydration. We don’t know when or who but he hadn’t eaten for a week when we got him and had no water for several days. Probably because he was so weak from not eating he couldn’t get up to get the water. He is down to 13 lbs when he should be up at 25 lbs. He is getting plenty of food, water and TLC and he already looks and feels so much better! At 15+ years we were scared he would not be able to recover but this boy has fight left in him.
He will be ready for a sanctuary home as soon as he puts on a little more weight. Any takers?
SECOND CHANCE COCKER RESCUE 