Big D's Big Dog Rehab

08/03/2024

07/16/2024

George is making the moves on Baby Girl.

05/21/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY

Amber is still waiting on her forever home. She is 4-5 months old, gets along with dogs and cats and loves cuddles and kisses. If interested, please PM me.

05/10/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor

I know it's long, but please read and share:

These past weeks, I have learned more about Parvovirus than I ever wanted to know. Three of the 5 Pittie pups we rescued tested positive for Parvo within a week and a half of arrival. When they arrived, we noticed diarrhea and assumed it was giardia or coccidia and did the usual rounds of Panacur, Fortiflora, etc. While Sandy initially rebounded, she eventually became lethargic, started vomiting and was taken to the vet where she died.

Parvo is highly contagious illness that any dog who is unvaccinated or under-vaccinated can get, but don’t be fooled: even your vaccinated dog can pick it up. You can look up the signs of Parvo. It has a 14-day incubation period. It is not airborne. It is a contact disease that dogs pick up by coming into contact with a contaminated surface on which there has been infected f***s or vomit (even if it has long dried). Even if a dog recovers, they shed the virus for about 14 days after.

One thing I’ve learned that may be helpful to many other smaller rescues is that the vaccines you buy at your local feed store may not always be effective because it is impossible to know if they were stored properly. They came with two rounds of shots. Could this be why three pups came down with Parvo and the males did not? I don’t know. There is no way to know where the pups picked it up because they had been in foster and then went on relay volunteer transport.

I am not interested in blaming anyone. But what has upset me has been how the transporter has accused me of getting the dogs sick, and that I am the one who was reckless and exposed them. Why, you might ask. Well, this transport team dropped off three other puppies to my home the following week and I sent them a video of the pups, in their crate, with our pups checking them out. The Pittie pups had already gone to foster the week before.

Anyone who follows me has seen many videos of any news pups who come into our home. Except for pups we have whelped, all puppies who have come in, have had at least two sets of shots. All of our dogs are fully vaccinated and healthy. Even our feral dogs who are human shy get yearly physicals and shots. We removed our wood floors years ago and replaced them with laminate that we can bleach and we replaced our grass in the back with turf. Everything gets cleaned regularly. Our dogs do not go into shelters, dog parks, kennels, etc. They have each other and are in a bubble in our home. The only one who goes out is Hagrid who does not come into the house because he gets annoyed by puppies and stays in his own room on the porch. Even he does not go around other dogs. The last pups who came up (again with 2 rounds of vax, came up 3-4 months ago and never had Parvo). Despite all of this, the transporter stated all of this means the pups picked up Parvo at our place. If that is the case, why has there never been a case of Parvo in our home before? Why did the second batch of puppies not pick it up (they also only had two vaccines)? Puppies cannot pick up Parvo from healthy dogs. It does not just materialize out of thin air.

I am a very careful person who does not do anything that I have not discussed with our vet and that I have not re-checked Online and confirmed with other vets. Everyone has said young, under-vaccinated dogs should not go out in public and have no paws on ground. However, they can be around and interact with adult, fully vaccinated, HEALTHY, dogs and it is important to let them be around to help socialize them. As I said, our home is a controlled environment. Even with turf, no dog here goes outside til they get their third shots.

The transporter decided to remove me from the chat groups, but I see they have posted the Pittie pups on their page and basically accused me of being the cause of death of a pup. We are bordering on libel. I will not call them out by name, but you are free to do your own digging.

Why am I telling you this? Because in the effort to cover their own asses, they are continuing to operate as usual. When I told them they had likely been exposed to Parvo, it was so that they could be sure to sanitize everything. Has that been done, or did that get lost in the sauce because it’s easier to lay blame on me? I don’t know. I’m generally inclined to accept you can’t argue stupid, but I would hate anyone else to have this experience.
This experience has set us back $5K of our own money. Did we have it? No. But that’s what credit cards are for and I will always do for any of our dogs if there’s hope. I’m glad I did because the two girls recovered and the boys never got sick. We paid for the new monoclonal antibody therapy and it was a miracle. I am also attaching links about socializing puppies and Parvo in case anyone wants to pile on and tell me I’m wrong.

In the meantime, I’m not on FB much since this all happened and I realize that I’m actually a lot happier not being on social media, so if anyone has questions, please PM me.

https://vetmed.tamu.edu/news/pet-talk/protecting-dogs-from-parvo/
https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/health/can-puppy-meet-dogs/

04/29/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor

Amber, Shadow and Knockout are 3 1/2 month old pups looking for their forever homes. Dad, reportedly, is a corgi. We don't know what mom was. We do know they were surrendered to a kill shelter in OK when mom died. These babies are high energy and love to play. Currently, they are 11, 15 and 14 pounds, respectively. We are working on puppy manners. If interested, please PM me.

04/08/2024

They cut off my balls today. I mean they literally cut them off. WTF, man?!?

03/22/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY

Simon, Oreo & Maisie are all still looking for their forever homes. Simon and Oreo are about five months old and Maisie is about six months old. Please PM me for more info.

03/09/2024

Paisley is officially a foster fail!

03/09/2024

Toya & Koya were adopted today (of course!). These beautiful husky/shepherd mix girls were the lucky ones. Unfortunately, Simon, Oreo, Hattie, Maisie & Scrappy were overlooked. They still need forever homes.

03/05/2024

Puppy pile.

Don't forget: we'll be at Pet Supplies Plus, Stony Point, NY at an adoption event this Saturday, March 9 from 11am on. You can fill out our application for pre-approval at www.bigdsbigdogrehab.com.

02/29/2024

Daytime cuddling.

02/25/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY

This is an urgent post. These are Toby and Lily. They are about 3 years old and they were in my first rescue pull when they were just pups. They were adopted together and have been living in NH with another, smaller dog. Last night, there was a fight. No one knows how it started since their adopter was in another room. The smaller dog was bitten (he's fine), but foster mom wants them both gone now. With the amount of scuffles and outright melees we have had here (without getting rid of any of our dogs) I can't tell you how upset I am that there is no desire to try to figure out the issue and work on it. Especially since it was the first and only time in 3 years something like this happened. But I need a foster/adopter for both. We have no room here, especially for a fully grown male. I also don't have the money to board them both. They are currently in Hudson, NH and I'm fighting the clock to find them a place to go either separately or together. Toby is white and Lily is fawn colored. They lived in our home with multiple dogs and cats without incident.

02/19/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY

These two 3-4 month old sisters will be coming up from SC where they have been in foster. Mama is a husky. Papa was a rolling stone. If interested in fostering or adopting, please complete an application at www.bigdsbigdogrehab.com.

02/17/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY

Everyone, meet Hattie (brindle) and Maisie. These two 4-month old girls will be making their way to NY next week. They are currently in foster in GA. The back story we have is that both, separately, were discarded like trash, as so many other dogs are. Each made their way to safety. Maisie was initially alone in foster and terrified of everyone and so the decision was made to put another puppy in with her (enter Hattie). Hattie has brilliantly gotten Maisie out of her shell and we are hoping to find these two a home together which I know is a big ask, but the reality is that having two dogs is decidedly less work than having one. They entertain and comfort one another. We always provide the option to foster prior to adopting if anyone thinks they would like to try it out.

02/04/2024

They’re heeeeerrre!!!

01/28/2024

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY
Meet Oreo & Simon, sister and brother. Oreo has the white face. These two mixed breed pups will be making their way from GA to NY next weekend. They will be 9 weeks old, UTD on vaccines and they will be chipped when they arrive. These babies love to play and reportedly get along with all. If you think you might be interested in filling out an application to meet one of these cuties, please do so at www.bigdsbigdogrehab.com.

01/02/2024

What is it going to take to get Paisley adopted? She's truly a pain in the ass. She has a bark that can break glass, is impulsive, plays rough with other dogs and can be a downright bitch to them when she's in a mood. She doesn't like sharing her toys or food with other dogs either. And yet... she's a complete cuddle bug with people, is like Velcro, likes cats and does have fun playing with other dogs. She responds to verbal correction, walks wonderfully on leash and loves the car. Paisley is only about a year old and was set to be put down for space back in July when she rescued her from a rural shelter in Louisiana. She deserves to have her own home or family where she can continue being a young, playful dog working on her manners. She is fully housetrained and crate trained (but would love to sleep on the sofa or your bed).

12/31/2023

Who remembers Puck? It's been almost a year that he is with his new people and he could not be doing better. They have continued to work with him and he has lots of doggy friends and has even begun to trust new people. I'm told he has about 10 people in his trust circle and no longer barks or huffs at new people.

Puck is my reminder not to give up on a dog because, for a while, I thought I might have to. I thought he was going to be a lifer in my house who I'd have to crate every time my cat wanted to come upstairs. I certainly couldn't bring any new dogs in. Oh, that first morning he was here, I can remember him trying to bite my husband because he was just so scared to come out of his crate. I had to upend the crate to shake him out and immediately put him in a slip lead before leashing him. We formed a tense tolerance of each other for the first several days until he saw that I was remaining consistent with him. By the end of that first week, he was playing with the others. We had one incident when an unneutered male was brought in and Puck was able to open his crate to attack and my daughter and I had to jump into it, at our own risk, to get him off.

I spoke with the behaviorist who originally worked with him who told me I should consider behavioral euthanasia. I'm not saying that should never be an option, but I just felt Puck was something different. I could sense a lack of confidence in him mixed with general Chow Chow tendencies and I kept refusing, even after another rescuer told me I should seriously consider it.

And then that application came in from a couple near Boston who had twice previously adopted difficult Chows. I explained all of Puck's issues and still they drove down and spent an hour getting to know him and walk him with me, together. It was cute to see Puck try to hide behind me and it let me know for all of his aloofness, he trusted me to protect him from these new people On a cold winter's day, they sat in my driveway, on the ground, so that he could get comfortable with them. He even nipped at the husband's hand, and still the decided they wanted to rescue him. We had found our unicorn.

And here he is... they adore him, have continued to work with him, and he has become as social as a Chow Chow can be.

So what have I learned? Well, first and foremost: never again rescue a Chow Chow or Chow Chow mix. Second: go by my instincts on when it's time to seriously consider behavioral euthanasia, and don't let anyone convince me to do it until I've exhausted everything else. And third: consistency is key. By the end of his tenure here, Puck had grown to trust me and was my shadow all over this house. I could not get up and move without him following me and planting himself at my feet. I didn't give him an inch to catch me off guard, but I also kept my energy calm with him knowing dogs can pick up on our anxiety and react badly.

Not every dog will be a success like Puck was. I have encountered many aggressive dogs in my life, have been bitten and attacked in the past, and I still love dogs. I actually studied dog training and dog psychology to make me a better dog parent and rescuer. Learning to read body language has made me more confident in myself. I will never resort to aversive methods like I have seen other rescuers and trainers do (e.g.: pinch or prong collars, E-collars, etc.). I'd rather not rescue a dog than have to use pain to correct a dog and aversive methods of correction result in temporary successes and long-term problems when a dog finally snaps. Every dog who comes here is given love and compassion (tired, though it may be) and a good life until he or she finds a forever home.

In the three years we have been rescuing, I think Puck's adoption has made me the happiest. It has shown me my instincts are right and that there are still unicorns out there.

11/26/2023

Rex is moving around better and goes to the surgeon tomorrow to see how he has healed. This boy needs a forever home or a foster. He would prefer being the only fur baby, but definitely gets along better with strong females.

11/20/2023

Rex is a 1-year old, solidly built pit/lab mix who needs a home. He is two months post surgery to repair his right hind leg and is ready to run around again. He will have a follow up with the surgeon this coming Monday just to give him the green light but I can tell you nothing has been able to slow this boy down or break his spirit. He is a strong boy and we are working on leash skills. He is good on leash, but is a puller when he is initially out. He still has young dog impulsivity, so we are working on sit and wait, but it's a work in progress. Rex is housebroken and should be a one and only. He hasn't met a person he hasn't liked and everyone who meets him says he's a love. If you'd be interested in adopting or even fostering Rex, please complete our application at www.bigdsbigdogrehab.com.

11/14/2023

Foll are Yasmin are 10-11 months old and still looking for their forever homes. Both do well with other dogs, are crate trained and housebroken. They do better with older children.

11/08/2023

Paisley is still waiting for someone to show some interest in her. She’s 8-10 months old, housebroken, loves kids and adults, plays well (though rough) with other dogs and respects the resident cat.

10/27/2023

Pris has been with us since July and has absolutely no interest. She is a beautiful lab mix who loves kids and grown ups, walks well on leash, doesn't mind cats and enjoys playing with other dogs. She does not like to share her food or toys with other dogs, though, so happily goes to her crate to enjoy both. Pris deserves to have her own person/family.

10/09/2023

Update: Adopted

Big D's Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY

Prue is a beautiful 8 month old Great Pyrenees mix. She was born and raised on a farm so is used to being around other dogs, cats and chickens. She needs a farm, now. Prue has been with us for about a month and while she has made some progress, she really would prefer to be a working dog and not a pet. She is human shy and needs a home where she will be treated with patience, kindness and given love as well as a job to do. She is happiest to be outside, walking a perimeter during the day and enjoys a warm spot inside to sleep at night. Prue will need an appropriately contained yard with a fence at least six feet high as she can jump and climb. She will let you know if any wild animals are around and let out her great booming bark. She has been spayed, chipped and is up to date on vaccines.

10/05/2023

Would anyone be available as a medical foster to Rex? He is an adorable 1-year old lab/pit mix who needs time and peace to heal. He must be crated unless he's outside to go potty, and can only go out on a short leash so that he can't jump (believe me, he will try because he's such a happy boy). He needs a foster for about a month. He's already been on crate rest for two weeks, but with so many dogs here, he just gets frustrated wanting to play with everyone else. Please PM me if you can give him a quiet place for a bit.

10/05/2023

Sammy is a 2-3 year old rat terrier mix who was regularly beaten by his previous owner before ending up at a high kill Louisiana shelter. He will be making his way to NY in a couple of weeks and will need a home to show him that not all hands will cause him pain. If you might like to give him a forever home, please apply at www.bigdsbigdogrehab.com.

10/05/2023

Where are my Pittie lovers? Tuck is an Itty Bitty Pittie weighing just under 30 pounds. He loves to play. He's not aggressive with cats, but will chase (I'm waiting for Lucy to finally show him whose boss). He has an average temperament but will defer to a more dominant personality and he walks great on leash. He's happy on car rides, sitting up in the backseat to look at the world passing by. Tuck needs to find his own home, either alone or with another dog. He is about 7-8 months old, neutered, housebroken, crate trained and UTD on shots.

09/24/2023

Courtesy post

Shiva is a 6yr old female Cane Corso. She has been spayed and is up to date on shots.
Shiva loves children. She will lie down for them to pet her and she's great with people. No cats for Shiva,though, and no female dogs either. If you have a male dog a meet and greet must be done. Shiva is 147 pounds. She has shown no food aggression and no guarding tendencies. She's very obedient and is looking for her forever home. Shiva is located in Orange County, NY.
If interested, you can email Hudson Valley Rottie Rescue at [email protected].

09/20/2023

Big D’s Big Dog Rehab, Cortlandt Manor, NY
Do you know what a Baladi dog is? It is an Egyptian street dog with a noble history going back centuries. These dogs are survivors, learning from early on how to live rough on the streets of Egypt where they are considered nuisance dogs and often abused by people. These three babies below are preparing for their freedom flight from Egypt to the US where they will hopefully find their forever homes.
Candy is 10 months old, shy and low energy. She is good with people and dogs (will cat and kid test when she arrives). She is 33-35 pounds and has been spayed. Candy is described as a shy girl who was rescued from the streets with her mom and siblings when she was only two months old. She does warm up and would do well in a quiet home either alone or with a dog buddy or two.
Yasmin and her brother Foll are 7 months old and about 30-35 pounds. They were going in a dumpster when they were only about four weeks old, where they had been thrown to die. They were taken in by our rescue partner and raised around other dogs, cats and people. They will be kid tested. Yasmin and Foll are high energy, attention seeking dogs who love to be loved. They are described as high energy, but they live cuddles and kisses. Both have been altered, are crate trained and need to work on housebreaking and leash skills.
If interested in any of these babies, please PM me.