The Bond Between Hospice Program

01/23/2025

Please give a loving MN welcome to Justice Petey to our Hospice program. He has been in our hearts for quite some time now from a far and anxiously awaited his arrival. His amazing shelter advocates down in Arkansas worked tirelessly to give him comfort and love while he waited for his transport date to MN and his loving foster waited 2 months for his arrival. He was noted to have VERY advanced heartworms. They realized that he may not make it through heartworm treatment, but he is only 5 years old and hoped for a comfortable last chapter in a forever hospice home. He is a pit bull and about 60 lbs, but he is the most gentle dog. They desperately wanted to save him, but many things were against him there.

He has just recently met our amazing Dr Asher who is our director of veterinary Services at The Bond Between Vetting Center and is in amazing hands. We will keep everyone updated as his care plan is finalized but Petey has settled in well to his amazing fospice home. His sweet mind still wants him to act and play like a puppy but his body quickly reminds him, he cant get excited without passing out. Lots of rest, cuddles and comfort in his future and we are there to help in any way possible. Please keep Justice Petey in your thoughts.

You can follow along with Justice Petey and all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for his medical care please use this link to sponsor Justice Petey https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

01/19/2025

Please keep all the animals safe.

The best way to prevent frostnip & frostbite this winter is to not expose pets to the cold for prolonged periods of time – in other words, know when it’s time to go back inside or just stay inside in the first place!

View the graphic to learn more about frostnip & frostbite, and then read about more cold weather safety tips for pets here: https://aercmn.com/how-to-keep-your-dog-or-cat-safe-this-cold-minnesota-winter

01/17/2025

Please give a loving welcome to our new hospice boy T-bone.

01/15/2025

Most often, pets have a shorter life expectancy and our time with them is limited and precious. We as their human guardians, enter into the relationship with that knowledge, and maybe love them a little more fiercely because of it. Our hospice foster families already know they are on limited time. We commit to their comfort and their quality of life, over our heartache of helping them pass when it is time. We celebrate every good day, every comfortable day and we never apologize for loving them so fiercely.

Thank you to everyone who supports, advocates, fosters and adopts a Senior animal. Their time with us may be short but their presence in our hearts will last our entire lifetime.

01/13/2025

Please give a loving welcome to Jojo. He is a long time foster in our rescue who recently moved to Hospice who is blissfully unaware of this status change but from day one had settled into his forever foster home who has this sweet pupdate to share for all the Jojo supporters :

Meet Jojo, a sweet and resilient soul who has truly captured our hearts. After being surrendered by his previous owner at the end of 2023, Jojo found his forever home with us and has been a cherished part of our family ever since. Despite his blindness, deafness, arthritis, tumors, OCD, and Cushing's Disease, Jojo faces each day with a joyful spirit that is absolutely contagious.
Jojo’s love for life shines through as he joins us on camping trips, hikes, and countless adventures outside. His love knows no bounds, and he has even helped welcome two other hospice dogs into our home this year, gently guiding them as they crossed the rainbow bridge.
Jojo adores his foster brother, Leo, and the two can often be found sharing a cozy bed. He loves his walks, sniffing everything in sight. Jojo's favorite place to be is right next to us on the couch. His sweetness, courage, and unconditional affection make every day brighter, and we’re so grateful to have him in our lives.

You can follow along with Jojo and all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for his medical care please use this link to sponsor Jojo https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

01/12/2025

Have you recently lost a pet? 💔 We know the absolutely heartbreaking feeling that comes along with our four-legged friends crossing the rainbow bridge. It can be lonely, isolating, and confusing to go through that on your own.

Our pet loss support group, The Bridge Between, is held twice a month to connect with others around the loss of your beloved pet. We offer a safe, compassionate environment for those who want to share about their pet with others who have gone through similar experiences. This is the only IN PERSON pet loss group in MN- and we're honored to host it in honor of Seth Friedell.

Tag or send this post to anyone in your life that has recently lost a pet. There's a community here to support you 🐾❤

01/08/2025

Please give a loving welcome Ollie to the Hospice program. This sweet girl was dumped in a rural area on MN back in November. Thankfully she found her way to a home that was able to help get her safe after confirming the previous owner did not want to reclaim her. Her very caring rescue angels quickly noticed she needed medical care due to masses and reached out to our rescue. They helped advocate for her comfort and she had a successful mass removal surgery. Unfortunately in the pre op process, it was determined that more unknown masses were detected and had spread though her body. Ollie is healed from her surgery, settled into her forever hospice home and doing wonderful. She loves her naps, warm beds and short walks on the not very cold days. She will never not have food, will always have a warm bed to curl up on and loves being apart of the Hospice program.

We will share more updates on her bio once the site is updated as well as all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for her care please use this link to sponsor Ollie https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

01/03/2025

Please give a loving welcome to Zaria. She is a 11+years wise gal who loves other dogs and recently visited her first hospice playdate. She is sweet as can be. Due to medical issues, she has moved from the respite program to the Hospice program last month. She is living her last chapter for however long that may be in her loving fospice home.

We will share more updates on her as well as all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for her care please use this link to sponsor Zaria https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

12/31/2024

We honor our Hospice Animals that passed in 2024.

Thank you Hospice foster homes: You opened your hearts and homes. Thank you for being the final chapter of their rescue journey, their comfort and ensuring each animal knew when they left this world, they were apart of a family. The memories we hold dear and will forever be in our hearts.

12/31/2024

Recently we snuck in what we thought would be one last 2024 small quiet Hospice Playdate to meet a few new members, visit with foster families and say thank you to so many of the supporters of our tiny but mighty program. A mini New Years Eve photo booth, a pool full of Squishmallows for dogs to choose their favorites in honor of Jazz who recently passed, a make your own pupcup station with bacon, marshmallows, pumpkin and blueberries topping, bags full of winter clothing to help get our hospice members sized with upcoming cold, and LOTS OF LOVE….. Many of the long time in rescue fosters were gifted with a present from the Chuck and Dons Christmas tree and they were so thankful. It was our biggest turn out with friends, family and our pups were party animals!

Cup runneth over with gratitude for the love, care and support you all give for our Hospice animals. We do not count the days but focus on the moments. Our Heartfelt THANK YOU for 2024 and we look forwarded to 2025.

12/29/2024

Please give a loving welcome to Elisi, a sweet old lady that joined our hospice program at the beginning of December. The first picture is her in the shelter and the second was after we said yes so she was able to settle into an amazing temp foster home till she arrived. She was given the name Elisi by the sending shelter that advocated for her. Elisi was a stray found wandering the street alone in Alabama and no one came to claim her. She was listed as an elderly dog with limited movement and possible partial blindness/ very underweight with bloodshot eyes/ multiple scars and minor wounds. We just KNEW we could find a loving home to help her settle into and living her remaining days in comfort and care. And we sure did. You will see alot of sleeping pictures for that is what she does mostly but that is exactly what she needs right now. The resident cats have accepted her since essentially she is just a warm cozy couch cushion. She is being seen for several medical issues by our amazing Vetting center for her comfort care plan. 12 years wise and 57 pounds of love who is slow and wobbly, we are so thankful to have Elisi apart of our Hospice family.

You can follow along with Elisi and all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for her medical care please use this link to sponsor Elisi https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

12/25/2024

Holiday photos captured with our sweet hospice gal Ginger brings such a smile to our faces. Her love, resilience and chitude ensuring she proclaimed she was Forever home the second day she was in her fospice home makes her last chapter, for how ever long that may be a true gift. Ginger and everyone at the Bond Between Hospice program wishes a joyous and bright Hanukkah to all who are celebrating beginning December 25th! May this Festival of Lights bring love, hope, and miracles to your home. Happy Hanukkah!

12/24/2024

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring but our sweet hospice girl Smudge.

The grandmother of the household, estimated to be 10+ wise, she came to rescue on Jan 5 of 2024. So coming up on the 1 year Rescue anniversary, we know that Smudges wish already came true. She has been such a good girl and living her comfort with her forever fospice family.
You can follow along with Smudge and all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for her medical care please use this link to sponsor Smudge https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

12/24/2024

Santa is ready for this evening delivering….Oh wait, that is Bentley

12/24/2024

I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light ~ Helen Keller
Sending out Holiday Cards with the beloved that we have is a beautiful tradition for many. And the photos captured this past October of Betty and Cole, two current Hospice members along with their resident pups were priceless. I bet you are wondering how we can get picture perfect poses with a dog that is blind, a dog that is very food motivated but cannot have any treats, a young sibling with lots of energy and the resident best boy??!!! Well they all seemed to know it was their very important day to shine while their mom was out of town and boy did they. You see, even our hospice fosters need temps for vacations, work etc and we always appreciate our temp fosters. And this temp went above and beyond for this special day to keep this tradition going. The love and care each member takes to give good detailed notes on what each needs can be pretty long. And Betty and Cole each have a small chapter book each but they sure make it easy at the end of the day with all the cuddles.
It takes a village, our rescues support, the vetting centers care and your donations for special pups like Betty and Cole. You can follow along with Cole and Betty along with all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for either of their care please use this link to sponsor Betty or Cole https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

12/23/2024

Celebrating Holiday moments captured continues with our short and sweet gramps name Frank. His constant support comes from his resident weinie gang and his amazing fospice dad.
Frank was found abandoned in a ditch near a river... a 12 year old, 11 pound dachshund alone and cold outside. He's old, he had masses that needed to be removed, he's slow, his liver is struggling, he has a cough. But the shelter staff in Arkansas advocated for him and he arrived in August of 24. He immediately settled into MN life with his loving forever fospice family. Medical needs are being addressed, his comfort is top priority and his favorite human lap is always ready to receive him. He will be spending the remainder of his days knowing he is loved, comforted and never left again.

You can follow along with Frank and all of our members here https://www.thebondbetween.org/hospice And if you would like to make a one time sponsor donation for his care please use this link to sponsor Frank https://www.thebondbetween.org/donate

12/21/2024

Holiday Hospice Photo day allows us to see many of our members we may not see at playdates or at social events. Some Hospice members prefer to be the one and only. Some prefer the quiet life they have found in their forever fospice home.

Thankfully we were able to say Hi Good Boy to our long time rescue boy Buddy. His amazing forever fospice family brought him to the office to say hi back in October. Buddy is a lovable older pup who's been with his foster family for almost three wonderful years. In true Buddy fashion, he seems to have decided his fosters are his forever home. As a senior black lab mix with dog reactivity, Buddy has faced some challenges, including arthritis, hypothyroidism, LCL surgeries on both hind legs and chronic ear issues that led to total ear canal ablation, leaving him 95% deaf.
Though he’s a bit anxious and prefers the company of humans over other dogs, Buddy still has a playful spirit and enjoys his daily walks, where he’s on the lookout for any stray food scraps. He’s also always quite the cuddle bug—his favorite pastime is getting his head and ears scratched, and he’ll let you know when he wants you to keep going!
Buddy may not have furry friends, but he has an abundance of love to give to the humans in his life. He’s truly living his best life.

Please know that our program allows his comfort and care thanks to your support. Please send Buddy some love in our comments.

12/20/2024

The first year without a beloved is always hard. We never put a time limit for grief. Finding your way of honoring the loved ones that have passed, for it is so very personal and important. And especially during the Holidays it can be extra difficult. Remembering all of the special ornaments that were a tradition to hang and all the beautiful memories of what used to be can be especially difficult during the Holiday season. And nearing the End of the year brings reflection, togetherness or the opposite, even loneliness. We hold you in our hearts, knowing the Holidays may feel a bit different this year. Please find your comfort, your peace and a way to honor them in any way you are comfortable with.

The Holiday photos we have been sharing are specifically captured each year for our hospice members in October for many reasons. Reserving in advance the photo room at our rescue for the whole day to capture as many animals as we can is key. We never want to interrupt the rescue operations and weekly intakes that happen for the new animals that come into rescue. Another reason is respecting the time for our volunteers and fosters before the true holiday seasons hustle and bustle start up. And the last reason is always so bittersweet…. We try to capture Holiday photos for we never know when this quote becomes true for one of our hospice animals. Honor the space between no longer and not yet ~ Nancy Levin

In November we shared the loving passing of our longtime cuddle girl Tippy. Today we share her amazing Holiday photos that we were so blessed to have captures just a few weeks before her passing with her faithful sister Mimi and fospice mom. No one knew the end was near and neither did Tippy. But the photos just remind us, she lived an amazing loved filled last chapter and this is why our program exists.

We honor all our beloveds that have passed this year but are never forgotten. Please share a picture of your loved one that you will hold dear this holiday season in your memories and hearts.