DHS lost a much loved long time resident at the foster farm yesterday. Frankie came to us with his two brothers (Deano and Sammy) as newborns. His mom died giving birth to the triplets and the farmer who raises meat goats, wasn't able to bottle raise them so Dr Talley gave out our number. Frankie gave us much love and laughter for over 13 years. In return, we were able to give him a gentle passing which wasn't nearly enough payback from us. But he wasn't in pain and didn't feel bad. He was just unable to get up and down any longer. At 165 lbs, PK and I weren't very good at helping him and we're grateful that our neighbor, Chris Lowry, came over and gave us a hand getting him into the van for his final trip to Dr Talley's. In the late afternoon on Monday, we noticed that Frankie had left his odd ball herd in the pasture to lay down in the stall where they all sleep. That was odd behavior so we went to check and saw that he couldn't get up again. We were able to get him comfortable and warm for the night and feed him and water him. And we sat with him most of the night to keep him company although his buddies kept watch too. It was comfortably warm in the stall and peaceful. It struck me that it must have felt like this in the manger on Christmas except they were waiting for a birth.
Frankie and his brothers did a lot to introduce children and even some timid adults to goats and livestock in general during their years at the foster farm. They were fed untold amounts of peppermints and cookies (that we keep in stock here) by people having their first encounter with livestock because we knew they would nibble them gently and hopefully be goodwill ambassadors for kindness and respect for animals. If you ever met Frankie or his brothers we hope that was the desired result.
It's a happy New Year for DHS for sure as Nouvia and her baby both seem to have made it through the night and are holding their own this morning. She is just the sweetest girl and a very good mama from what we can tell. We will give you more details later when we have more time to spend with them. This morning we are still just in the feeding, cleaning and medicating mode.
**Update** Thanks so much to everyone that donated and shared to help this dog. "Roddy" is safely at TVS for the weekend and we are headed back to the farm to finish getting everyone tucked in for the cold weather tonight. Please make sure your pets are cozy as well.
We will give you more pics and information on Roddy later today. For now, we want to give a big shout out to a volunteer from the Richland Parish Sheriff's office who knew about the situation, lived close by and stopped by to help. Roddy was frantic when he heard someone coming and if I hadn't had help removing him from this trailer, I'm afraid he would have hurt himself badly on the broken glass. It wasn't pretty, as they say, but between the two of us we managed to get him down safely and away from the awful situation he was in.
We need help with boarding in order to save a dog. The sheriff's office just called us about a dog that has been abandoned inside a trailer without electricity or water. There are broken windows and the dog appears to have a cut but the neighbor that called us could only throw it food through the broken window. We have absolutely no place to put a dog its size but if someone could sponsor boarding at least through the weekend that would give us time to figure something out. If you can help, please see our PayPal address at the top of the page. And if you can foster, that would be even better. (Be aware that you would not be fostering this particular dog as we know nothing about him or his health or behavior) at least temporarily, you would be fostering one of our DHS dogs that has been in our care for a while so we know more about it. We haven't seen the dog yet. We're told it looks like a chocolate lab mix puppy. We are headed to the location now to meet law enforcement. Pictures and details to come later. Please share. If you would prefer to call TVS and pledge toward the boarding for the weekend, the number is 318-435-7774.
We promised yesterday that we would show you Brenda's sister, Gwen, who seems to have recovered from her unintentional poisoning. She seemed unhappy last night because she was alone for the first time so this morning we got a "loaner dog" her size to keep her company. It looks to us that rather than a playmate Gwen just wanted an audience.
We're headed to TVS later this morning with Brenda. She has started to spiral downward again. She is becoming lethargic and isn't eating nearly as well as she had in the past 2 weeks since her last stay at TVS. We had already decided after her first three trips to the vet that if she started to fail, Dr. Talley would test her kidney values and if they didn't show improvement, we might just end things. Chronic kidney failure does not heal. You can just postpone it. She doesn't have a quality of life the way she is becoming now. If she even eats a tiny bit her abdomen distends and she acts as if breathing is painful. She looks at you with those big brown eyes and just tells you she doesn't want to feel like this. Cross your fingers that maybe there is something more to be done but it looks bleak at the moment.
After a month of back and forth urgent trips to TVS, special food, special care, IV's, lab work, fluids, etc., I can honestly say that I hold out hope for Gwen and maybe Brenda's recovery from the toxins they absorbed when they were unintentionally poisoned. It's been over a week since Brenda was discharged from TVS after her third stay there. She still has an appetite and still gaining weight slowly and has now started to show a little interest in playing. That's the longest that she's ever gone when she continue to eat and have a good quality of life. I don't know how to thank everyone for the donations and encouragement and offers of help since we've had these girls. Unbelievably, the rest of their litter that we have here too, weigh from 12 to 18lbs more than the two who have been so close to death at times that we considered giving up. Everyone had a part in helping us help them but especially the Wags and Menace Makes a Difference Foundation who funded all of Brenda's extensive and prolonged veterinary care. Watch this video from this morning and you'll know why we have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving week!
Look who's headed home today!. We finally got the text we've been waiting for this morning... that the puppies were eating well enough and that Brenda's kidney values had dropped enough until they thought they should come home. The entire staff at TVS came out to tell them goodbye and to give us their suggestions on what they seem to prefer to eat, which ranged from Vienna sausages to Science Diet Cat food. They also sent a to go bag along with them of food that they'd had success with. So now it's our job to keep them on what's going to be a very slow climb towards being healthy puppies. They sure have a long way to go to catch up with their siblings. Dr Talley says it's not going to be overnight but they're headed in the right direction and we know she's just a phone call away if we have any concerns. Once again I can't thank the Wags and Menace Makes a Difference Foundation. We have so many animals right now and have had so many medical cases this year until if they hadn't stepped up, we wouldn't have been able to attempt to save these little ones. 💙
Yesterday we were lucky. The heavy rain held off long enough that we could go out to the farm where the remainder of the puppies were and collect them. The farmer had put together a pen after our first visit when we told him that it was important that the puppies not be allowed to roam. Although he continued to have escapes, he was keeping most of them contained. There were five in the pen when we arrived but catching the three that had escaped was quite a circus and we never did catch the last female. First thing this morning though, the farmer texted me and said that they caught her when she returned to the pen to eat. The pen was just four sides with cyclone fence and no covering it all. That's why it was so important we got there before the heavy rains arrived. We really didn't have any place to put them but we evicted three of the male bunnies who had been in a kennel in the garage. They went into a smaller 5x5 kennel and we revamped their old enclosure for the pups. We were drenched transferring the pups from the van to the garage last evening but everybody settled in safe and sound and it sure didn't hurt their appetites.
The farmer mentioned to us that the two sisters that we intaked last week (because they were so debilitated) were always the smallest and were pushed away from the food when he fed them. That's why he removed them from the kennel and fed them separately. As I said before, I truly believe this man was doing the best he could with the knowledge and resources that he had. Don't be so quick to judge unless you've lived here. But to end on a good note, the report from Dr Talley this morning is encouraging as both puppies are eating a bit more even though they still are getting IV nutrition. Neither are out of the woods yet and we worry about Brenda especially, who's x-ray showed a slightly enlarged heart and elevated kidney values. But we are happy with just a little encouragement for these two. Keep those good thoughts coming.
A big shout o
Gosh, we shouldn't have to say this. We have two little babies that have been fighting for their lives since Sunday. All because of what we call benign neglect but what some might call stupidity. If you have a question about your medication, do you ask your pharmacist or your doctor or do you ask a golfing buddy or someone you go hunting with? Shouldn't you give your pets the same consideration and consult a veterinarian when it comes to their care? We recently checked on a litter of puppies that had been born to a stray mama dog who showed up at a home. The owner contacted us and said they couldn't stay but did agree to keep them until we made a place for them. In the meantime, he noticed that they had a really bad flea problem so rather than checking with us or his veterinarian he asked a friend who suggested that he dip the puppies in pine oil. When that didn't work the first day, rather than decide on something else, he dipped them again. After no success the second time he decided to dip them a third day but added insecticide to the mixture too. I know he meant well but we found the two weakest puppies in such bad shape until we brought them home with us. We don't know if they will make it or not. They do not want to eat or drink and have not had bowel movements the entire time they've been here. They have been getting fluids and are being syringe fed and finally today they seem a little bit interested in drinking and what's going on around them. Granted, they were likely already malnourished and anemic from the fleas but double dosing them with toxic chemicals certainly didn't help. If the situation arises and you need advice on caring for your pets, is social media or the opinion of a non-professional friend really the best source? For gosh sakes, ask an animal care expert. Puppies shouldn't have to suffer like this. I don't know one veterinarian (and I believe that I know all of them) in the surrounding parishes, that wouldn't give you advice if you asked.
Milli, found on the median strip on Interstate I-20, Alison rescued in Winnsboro with her brother Boyd and her friend wink, who are still with us. Rem the poodle, Juju and Princess.
Chiquita, found on a sandbar in Big Creek. She had to be rescued by boat. She has been with us for 3 years while she went through heartworm treatment and learned how to be a trusting family member. We are so excited for her to finally get her chance.
The three culvert puppies dumped in a culvert the night before flooding rains from Hurricane Francine.
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