Mattie's Place, Toronto, ON (2025)

06/25/2025

[ NOT A DAY GOES BY ..... ]
..... that Nana isn't in my thoughts. And I know many of you think of her often also.

I was in Bellwood again a couple weeks ago, walking the property line, checking ditches, hoping for any sign of that bright pink collar. Even just finding her collar would help with closure on some level.

Though her adopters gave up the search quickly, and classified her as deceased, I still hold out a small amount of hope she was picked up, so sharing her poster again.

You're never forgotten Nana.

06/24/2025

[WYLIE - HE LOOKS, FEELS & SMELLS LIKE A MILLION BUCKS]

Wylie arrived to Mattie's Place from an Ontario shelter on Saturday. He was presented as a shy but friendly dog without any concerns, other than nervous with kids. Turns out that was not necessarily true. Not sure if they lack the experience to properly assess a dog or made a choice to not be transparent, but more and more is coming to light in the few short days I've been fostering him.

👀 FOR CLARITY: Wylie is a great, sweet boy. There's no denying that. And I'm confident he's good with dogs & cats as the shelter said he was. When he's one on one with his person or people, adorable and wants all the lovin'

👀 THE MISSING PIECES: Wylie is absolutely terrified outside. A neon gas station sign, birds chirping above, people approaching him, an active baseball diamond or horseshoe pit in the distance, a piece of garbage caught in a gush of wind, garbage cans and any male voices (inside or outside). I also approached him to give him a Yak Cheese Chew and he urinated himself (he was fine when I gave him a bully stick) and won't go anywhere near the Yak Cheese Chew - absolutely terrified of it.

👀 THE GOOD: Wylie has zero aggression in him. I can't imagine this dog ever biting. All he wants to do is freeze or flight. Zero fight. He just wants to be removed from all the scary things. He's also super chill indoors and goes from over-threshold outdoors (even in a quiet park) to calm indoors.

👀 TODAY, TOMORROW & THURSDAY: Wylie arrived with a lot of shelter "stank" and his coat was thick with grit and grime. His paws were also stained yellow from urine, presumably. So, TODAY, a local groomer, Sarah, offered up a complimentary groom and Wylie was a very good boy for his bath, brushing and blow out. TOMORROW he goes for his neuter and to get some further medical testing completed. THURSDAY he joins his new foster home where he'll be with a couple excellently mannered German Shepherd's, one being a Mattie's Place alumni, Alfie, that will teach him all the things he needs to learn to be the best dog.

Wylie is a really smart 9 month old, 45 pound puppy. He wants to people please & not be afraid. He just needs to begin at the beginning again to grow his confidence. We'll get him there. I'm thankful he landed at Mattie's Place and we have the skill-set to manage him. This could have been disastrous for a lot of rescues not having full disclosure of what was welcomed into their rescue.

It's a fresh start for Wylie & one he deserves.

If you're looking for an East Toronto groomer, that has so much compassion and patience, reach out to: [email protected] for her pricing and availability.

06/23/2025

[ DONATION MATCH UPDATE ]

On June 7th, Mattie's Place announced a donation match up to $50,000!

Though I don't think we'll hit the $50,000 mark, gosh, you all have really come through!

With 1 week left to go, we are sitting at $20,805 in donations, which includes adoption fees as well, for the month of June.

I'm confident we can make it to $25,000, which is still incredible and gets a lot of the vetting from the past couple months covered.

Thank you to each of you that rose to the occasion to help with this amazing opportunity for Mattie's Place. Being a rescue that takes on so many medical cases, our vetting bills top $200,000/year - 2024 invoices attached from the top billing clinics for validation.

FOR ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ⬇️⬇️⬇️
www.facebook.com/share/p/1DsS9nFTbU

06/23/2025

[WE'RE IN OUR FELINE ERA ]

Sometimes gift cards are donated, typically to use for the pet food bank.

They are always tucked away securely in my wallet but honestly, it's always an after-thought when buying foster or pet food bank supplies and I get to my car and think "damn, I should have used the gift card".

Is it just me?

I rarely check balances when people donate a gift card and assume it 's a $25 gift card or in that denomination area.

This weekend, we were really low on wet cat food for our pet food bank clients so I went and did a purchase with the gift cards top of mind this time, to use whatever was on them and pay out of pocket for the rest. I've probably had them a couple years now.

I was shocked to find there was almost $500 on the combined cards! Oh my goodness.

So, I got to shopping yesterday and bought out all the BFF wet cat food yesterday at one of our partnering Pet Valu stores at Danforth and Victoria Park Avenue and our pet food bank clients were topped up for now on wet cat food until the next drop.

Thank you to the people that donated these 2 gift cards. Incredibly generous and your donation fed some felines that we serve through the Mattie's Place pet food bank service.

06/23/2025

[ ENOUGH WITH THE DOGS ALREADY, LET'S SEE MORE CATS! ]

3 year old Broccoli was adopted through an Ontario shelter 2 years ago. Her Adopter's lifestyle has changed drastically and having a cat in their life was no longer an option.

Yesterday, I welcomed Broccoli to Mattie's Place.

Really sweet cat.

She's not seen a vet since adoption, so we'll get her basic vetting care up to date and then she'll be available for adoption.

She's a great girl, so if you're looking for a cat, she should be considered.

Dog-friendly and kid-friendly.

Welcome Broccoli to our Mattie's Place rescue family.

06/22/2025

[ IT'S HARD FOR ME TO SAY NO TO A MIN PIN ..... ]
.. so when One Last Chance Rescue emailed me about a Miniature Pinscher needing out of a Canadian shelter, it was a yes.

Yesterday, 1 year old (05/16/2024) Pogo, arrived to Toronto, via the always awesome Critter Cabs: Animal Rescue Transports.

11.5 pound Pogo was ditched at the shelter because his owner couldn't housetrain him properly. The owner also put he was a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel. 🤷

Pogo lived with 2 children under 6 years old and 1 cat with his owner and he's doing great with the resident dogs in foster care.

Pogo lacks environmental exposure and is quite timid outdoors, but we'll get him more comfortable.

Pogo has never seen a vet in his 1 year of life, so we're on that this week, beginning with his neuter with thanks to the shelter for vaccinating him and getting his parasite prevention started.

I love so much that his ears & tail are still natural.

Oh, his owner also said, "he's a picky eater, does not eat a lot, prefers eating cat food"

Really thankful this good boy has now joined our Mattie's Place rescue family. He's the sweetest guy.

06/22/2025

[ WYLIE --- A.K.A WILE E. COYOTE ]

This sweet, lovable and oh so endearing 9 month old, 45 pound puppy joined Mattie's Place yesterday from an Ontario shelter through One Last Chance Rescue, who let us know he needed rescue support.

Wylie is currently being fostered with me, so I can get to know his needs, but I am seeking a foster home for him this week now that I have a better understanding of him.

The shelter says: with strangers … friendly, good with dogs, good with cats. Nervous with kids.

I'll agree with those facts, but Wylie is SUPER shy meeting new people, though he warms up quickly. He lacks all environmental exposure, so he's really hesitant outdoors, so he'll need a secured backyard to start getting more comfortable outside.

He's low key in the home, loves a good couch cuddle, no separation anxiety and is really respectful.

Wylie is absolutely gorgeous and an amazing smorgasbord of many breeds I'm sure. I even see a little Akita in him, I think.

With the right guidance, he's going to grow into a spectacular adult boy. I'm 100% certain of that. He's just so incredibly kind at the core.

If you'd like to foster Wylie, please complete a foster application. The noted context is important and he'll need someone dog experienced with kindness and compassion to help him figure life out. A dog friend would also be excellent for him as a mentor.

➡️➡️➡️➡️ www.mattiesplace.ca/fostering

Thank you Critter Cabs: Animal Rescue Transports for your exceptional transport support yesterday and everyday.

06/22/2025

[ THE BEST, REST OF HER LIFE CHAPTER ]

10 year old Nellie, had a life of struggle. I'm sure she was loved, but dogs need more than just love. Nellie lived many years with a raging UTI & massive bladder stones that consumed most of her bladder. Her owner labeled her continued peeing for years as just her "thing". You can follow the link below to the size of the stones we removed from Nellie's bladder.

Poor sweet soul.

She was taken to the vet once at 4 years old to be spayed and vaccinated and that's where her vet visit journey ended with her owner.

In June 2020, an amazing adopter, adopted a senior dog from Mattie's Place. Sadly, Harley passed away after some good adoption years under the care of his Mama, Anne. Anne, heartbroken, unsure she would ever welcome another dog home after the heartbreaking loss of her boy, started fostering dogs for Mattie's Place and many, many, many had the pleasure of calling Anne foster Mom.

I called Anne up when I needed a foster for Nellie, knowing they were a great match. And knowing Anne had the grit and determination to see Nellie through a challenging post-op recovery. Anne, of course, said yes, bring her over.

Let's fast forward, 2 weeks later and Anne went ahead and fell in love and Nellie has an equal amount of love to give back to Anne. Her tail just never stops wagging and she has the best dog smile.

I'm happy to say, that June 2025, Anne has adopted her 2nd Mattie's Place dog and Nellie is officially home.

Nellie has been all cleared from her bladder stone surgery and can now have her much needed dental surgery, so that's upcoming and all her major surgical care will be behind her.

These 2 will have many great years together and Nellie will never have to feel pain or distress again and will be loved deeply for always.

🟢 FOR 2025 I'M POSTING ADOPTION FEE VS. COST FOR EACH PET, SO PEOPLE CAN HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF MATTIE’S PLACE COST PER DOG/CAT.

ADOPTION FEE: $875
(she kindly sent $1,000)
MATTIE'S PLACE COST: $4,253
(includes bladder stone removal surgery, dental, basic medical care & supplies)

BLADDER STONE UPDATE:
www.facebook.com/share/v/1EGhsDQ59w

NELLIE WELCOME POST:
www.facebook.com/share/p/16gKeX5iFP

06/22/2025

[ HE GRABBED THE INTERNET'S ATTENTION YESTERDAY! ]

Yesterday, we had a request from a past pet food bank client to intake a puppy she had bought.

Puppies are A LOT of work and this puppy was much bigger than she anticipated. I know they're adorable, but they dedication and commitment it takes for a puppy for the 1st year of life is immense. Thankfully, she realized she was overwhelmed early on in the pup coming home and she reached out for immediate help.

There was also some concern by the buyer that he has hip problems, which we'll explore more with our veterinarian this week. His mobility seemed fine to me yesterday, though a little poodle puppy clumsy.

The person she bought the puppy from was not returning calls or messages.

The 1st puppy vaccine records says he's Moyen Poodle and Cocker Spaniel. I'm not sure that's accurate. He's probably 15 pounds already at 10 weeks old so he's charting in the standard poodle weight range (60 - 70 pounds). His age is likely right as almost all his deciduous teeth are fully in and a couple are partially erupted.

We'll see how this sweet puppy grows.

I received over 100 foster offers yesterday, which was amazing. He's with a great foster family with a couple kids, so we can get him really comfortable with that lifestyle and hopefully adopt him into a home with kids as I know it's a challenge for many families to adopt.

This boy is just a really good boy. He's a puppy though and he's a lot of puppy work.

He'll have a deeper dive on his hips this week and when we have answers on that, if there's anything to have answers on, he'll be made available for adoption.

Mattie's Place will cover the cost of all his continued puppy vetting (vaccines/dewormer/parasite prevention) and his neuter when he's 6 months old, which will be a contractual obligation with location and date already confirmed.

A big welcome to the darling boy, now known as Frost, for his grey streak on the top of his head, to our Mattie's Place rescue family!

06/21/2025

UPDATE: FOSTER FOUND. THANKS EVERYONE!

[ FOSTER NEEDED TODAY ]

This little guy was purchased from a BYB and he's not a match for his buyer.

They were expecting a small dog but he's already 15 pounds so will likely be a medium sized dogs - 40 pounds, given the breeds, but who really knows from BYB's.

He may or may not have bad hips. The buyer feels he wobbles when he walks. We'll have to see on intake and deal with whatever comes.

Breeder is not returning messages/calls.

If you're interested in fostering, please email: [email protected]

💚 💚 💚 IDEALLY .........

💚 East end Toronto or Pickering border for easy pick up for me for vet appointments

💚 Puppy experience - puppies are A LOT of work!

💚 Secured backyard to burn off puppy energy & easier to potty

💚 Friendly & good natured resident dog to help guide this little one, though not specifically needed

💚 COMMITTED foster that fully stands by a 2-3 month commitment made to welcoming a foster dog.

06/21/2025

[WITH GRATITUDE]

I had a chance today to go through items that came in off the Mattie's Place Amazon wish list.

I love you guys. Mattie's Place has such an incredibly supportive community and I'm truly honoured by all that each of you do to support the pets in foster care.

This is an amazing end to a challenging couple of weeks.

06/20/2025

[ OPEN FOOD DONATION ]

I get many offers daily, that I appreciate so, so, so much, of open dog food donations.

Most people reach out saying the bag is open, but the expiry date is far into the future, sometimes 1 year and it's believed the food is still ready to be served to dogs in our care or our pet food bank clients.

Mattie's Place does not accept open bags of food if they've been opened longer than 30 days. I also require food to be in their original packaging if opened less than 30 days. And it's important they've been stored in optimal conditions.

Mostly, open food can not be accepted as it does not meet the standards required to feed forward.

💡 DID YOU KNOW?

Once exposed to air, the fats in the kibble begin to oxidize, often leading to a rancid taste and smell. It's generally recommended to use the food within 4-6 weeks after opening, even when stored in an airtight container, to maintain optimal freshness and nutritional value.

4-6 weeks is when stored under optimal conditions (no plastic containers) and moisture, temperatures, light, humidity all play an important part in keeping food fresh for your pets.

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