07.29.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:23 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
Just over a year ago, I happened upon a little dog, Bailey, who had been adopted from us in 2005. I ran into the owners and the little dog at the vets office where they were discussing Bailey’s horrible allergies and were contemplating having Bailey euthanized since nothing they had tried for a year had helped the sweet little two year old pupster. Steroids didn’t work (big shock here) and nothing else they had tried did anything to alleviate the allergy symptoms. The vet had basically told them Bailey would NEVER GET BETTER. And he was absolutely miserable from chewing all four of his feet totally raw. They were terribly infected and he could barely walk because his feet hurt so badly.
The owners let me take Bailey for a little “allergy boot camp” and I kept him at my house for about two months.
Above are his before pictures showing the chewed-raw, bloody feet and a picture of him this week.
Notice the absence of bloody, raw feet this week - but rather, in their place, bright white little socks on his toes.
Turns out that even though he tested negative for demodex, he had, in fact developed demodex from slamming his immune system so badly from repetitive chewing and infections on his feet.
Good food, no corn, no wheat, no soy, no dyes, no preservatives. Supplemented with Mega C Plus and the Missing Link. Plus a course of ivomec to get the demodex under control.
His allergies do not trouble him any longer.
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07.28.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 7:57 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
As of 8 pm on Saturday evening (yes, I’m sitting here working on fundraising for these fluffs on yet another Saturday night), we have raised just $1405 towards our vet bills for Heartworm treatment and overflow boarding.
Huge thanks to Barbara Grabell, Laura Douglas, Camille Ryan, Cary Stuart, Tyler and Amelia De Lane, Kathy Westerfield, Kim Carlisle, Carol Klodginski, Sheryl Young, Patricia Edenfield, Roy Edenfield, Lori McGaughey, Susan Gregory, Julia Skidmore, Jean Smith, Sandy McPherson, Julia Atalay,Candice Pantano, Lorraine Dadamo, Elaine Hicks, Marty Howard, Melony Robichaux, Nancy Croft, Cheryl Oyaski, Julia Atalay, Stephanie Jones, Charlotte Thorwegen for their very generous contributions to date.
I know I should not have let this pile up for so much time after Myrtle, but now these little fluffs desperately need your help and please don’t let them be adversly impacted because of my inability to get to work!! Our vet bills just this month were astronomical – $13,466. Remember, we have picked up SEVENTEEN, yes I said SEVENTEEN, with heartworms in the past month. SEVENTEEN – heartworm treatment, the split treatment way, averages about $350 per dog. That is almost $6000 in just heartworm treatment that we need help with.
Add to that the fact that we absolutely had to board 5 dogs in the DFW area for the past month, at an average of $6 per day per dog, which is extremely cheap, PLUS EIGHT (8) in the Houston area, at an average of $8 a day, we’re hurting. Thankfully, intake has slowed way down for now, but we still need to be able to pay for these sweeties that have been saved ONLY because there ARE places that will allow us to board for this relatively inexpensive price.
Please help, we need to write the checks on Tues 7/31!!!
To help the sweeties needing heartworm treatment, GO HERE for paypal or HERE to pledge a check!!
To help the ones needing boarding sponsorships, GO HERE for paypal or HERE to pledge a check!!
OR….drum roll please…..
WE CAN NOW TAKE CREDIT CARDS!!!
Yep, that’s right, we are now able to take your donations via Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover!!
Email your phone number to me at TERESA@shihtzu-rescue.com and I’ll contact you to let you know how to do it. DO NOT send credit card numbers over email. We will either take them over the phone or via a fax.
And, don’t forget our fantastic fundraiser raffle…
We desperately need to generate a lot of funds with our ART FUNDRAISER. You will adore the custom portrait by Jeremy Booth – his art ROCKS.
And, don’t forget our anonymous donor’s challenge – get your friends, family, neighbors, kids schoolmates, co-workers, everyone to enter the raffle using YOUR name as the referrer. For the single most prolific referrer, the anonymous donor will match all funds donated!! Fantastic way to make your dollars count double!!
Currently in the lead is Rick Brezik with $130 in referred donations. Followed closely by Wyatt Edenfield with $100 and Cat Martindale with $65. Come on, this is a fun challenge. Surely you buy cookies, candies and holiday wrapping paper to benefit your co-workers’ children!!
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07.25.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 3:53 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
Ok, we took a few days off to work the Houston Dog Show – can you spell “T I R E D.” But it was such a blast. We had tons of volunteers – thanks to many of you new volunteers from Houston! We had plenty of coverage for the first time ever.O
After the sadness of Myrtle and then the dog show and Monday and Tuesday working on a HUGE transport of nine of our little fluffs to their adoptive or foster homes in PHoenix, now I MUST get back to my real “job” in this rescue – helping dogs!!! And for those of you that thought I was depressed about Myrtle, I was!!! But in her honor, we will continue rescuing those who need us!
Of course, while I was “off” the dogs kept coming so here we go….. we desperately need help!!!
I give up! I cannot even keep up with all the dogs that need us. It seems like everytime I close one email, another shows up with yet another dog or two that has ABSOLUTELY NO TIME. Thank goodness, Princess got a home, but there are 20 more waiting. What is going on????
Everyone acknowledges that this has to be the absolutely WORST year in many, many years of doing rescue. Never have there been so many dogs left at shelters. Never have there been so many dogs turned in by their owners.
We have taken in a lot. All of the absolutely wonderful volunteers in the group have been running at breakneck speed to pick up dogs from shelters. They’ve been on the phone begging and pleading with our vets to let us shove in just ONE more. We’re treading water fast but so far our heads keep bobbing up barely long enough to catch a quick breath.
I have to be honest with you, we have taken in many, many, many more than we have room for. And at such a fast pace, I did not even have time to come and get funds in place to pay for their boarding. We’ve been moving dogs in and out well, our throughput is excellent, but we’ve still been using a ton of boarding – mostly for the quarantine/isolation period, but a little just because there is just NOT A SINGLE FOSTER SPOT to put them and I didn’t want them to die just because their owners picked this horrible time to dump them.
So, I’m coming hat-in-hand to tell you, we’re incurring massive boarding bills right now. We have at least eight boarded in Houston OVER our free boarding spaces and another 4-5 in the DFW area. We’ve incurred these boarding fees for right at a month now and have an other month to go.
On top of THIS, most of the dogs we’ve taken in lately have been HEARTWORM POSITIVE. So, we now are in REAL dire straits!! We need to treat heartworms for the following dogs: Edith Burke, Braxton Harris, Hobo Ranger, Aerosmith Harris, Hendrix Harris, Kelsey Davis, Clara Ranger, Kiera Capers, Santana Harris, Julius Davis, Augustus Davis, Octavius Davis, Flavia Davis, Mae Davis, Toby Turner, Winslow Oaks, Jazzy Oaks. That is SEVENTEEN DOGS! SEVENTEEN that we’ve taken in lately that HAVE HEARTWORMS!! It’s easier to count the ones that do NOT have heartworms.
So with the boarding fees PLUS the heartworm dogs, we need to raise several thousands of dollars with our ART FUNDRAISER!! Please help us by sending a link to this fundraiser to each and every friend, co-worker, relative, hey send it to your enemies, and help us get the treatment these dogs MUST have to get into a home!!!
Each and every $5 donated from now until July 31 will result in one entry in the fundraiser. This is a chance to do good and be rewarded yourself!!
Please, please help us!! We are so stretched right now and I just do NOT want to close intake.
Here are the dogs we’ve been worried about these past few weeks – and their disposition.
PRINCESS
Princess – sweet little 13 year old shih tzu dumped at the Canton shelter by her “folks” who were having a baby. Our volunteer Missie was watching carefully for many days, but when her time became limited, she started getting a lot of publicity. Well, you know that, YOU all were some of the first to step up and say “give me that girl!” Fortunately for her, another rescue also stepped up, Love of a Lhasa Rescue in the DFW area, and she is now SAFE!! Go Darlene and thanks Marty for offering to foster her anyway!
We picked up this one – let me introduce Doolittle Collins.
We got this little cutie. Please meet McDermott Collins Lone Star.
We got this little gal. Her name is Pink Worth and she is a six year old lhasa. I think she could be Hiram Galvez’s sister.
This is little Garrett Mesquite – another little Lone Star dog!
Adopted at the shelter – lucky little boy is now in his OWN forever home!
This little gal is now a Lone Star dog – say hello to Kiwi Mesquite.
This little sweet guy is now a Lone Star dog – I’m pleased to introduce Navin Worth.
This cutie was picked up by STARS in DFW. YEAH!! Thank you STARS.
Teah Oaks – another lucky Lone Star dog from Dallas Animal Control.
This is little Garrett Turner. Can you spell C U T E??
Ok, I’m running out of time right now and want to get this posted. I’ve been working on this post for two weeks now. I will update with more pictures and information as I find it.
Please consider donating to the little dogs needing heartworm treatment and/or those needing boarding sponsorships. We desperately need to generate a lot of funds with our ART FUNDRAISER.
To help the sweeties needing heartworm treatment, GO HERE for paypal or HERE to pledge a check!!
To help the ones needing boarding sponsorships, GO HERE for paypal or HERE to pledge a check!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you
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07.18.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 2:13 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
This is just so hard to deal with – I received one of the worst calls in my life at around 9 this morning. Myrtle crashed again this morning and they could not get her back.
This one has drastically affected me – if you could have just seen that adorable sweet face – she was so looking forward to knowing love. It just is not fair that she had to leave this earth without knowing what a beloved pet was supposed to feel.
Evidently, she threw another clot this morning and it threw her into massive heart failure. Dr. Moore’s partner, Dr. Brady, performed CPR but to no avail.
I just cannot believe that she’s gone! She did not deserve this – a $5 a month pill would have prevented it and it’s just not fair.
I need to take a break – when these things happen, it makes you wonder why we put ourselves in this position time after time after time. It is HEARTBREAKING, but people tell me I have to look at all the ones that we have saved. I have to say, it’s hard to do that when you lose one so sweet and deserving!
You people are so wonderful – do you realize how many dogs would have died in the past few years without you? Dogs like Myrtle that just never had a chance for love without you. Over 1000!
Teresa
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07.17.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:15 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
Whew, as of right now, 9 pm Tuesday night, she has stablized and is breathing normally. Thank you Dr. Moore!!!
Evidently, Ms. Myrtle had the horrible Pulmonary Thromboembolism – information below from the American Heartworm Society.
Pulmonary Thromboembolism
The primary post-adulticide complication is the development of severe pulmonary thromboembolism. Pulmonary thromboembolism results from the obstruction of blood flow through pulmonary arteries due to the presence of dead heartworms and lesions in the arteries and capillaries of the lungs. If heartworm adulticide treatment is effective, some degree of pulmonary thromboembolism will occur. Pulmonary thromboembolism is an inevitable consequence of successful adulticide therapy and may be severe if infection is heavy and pulmonary arterial disease is extensive. If signs of embolism (low grade fever, cough, hemoptysis, exacerbation of right heart failure) develop, they are usually evident within 7 to 10 days but occasionally as late as four weeks, after completion of adulticide administration. Mild embolism in relatively healthy areas of lung may be inapparent clinically. A pivotal factor in reducing the risk of thromboembolic complications is exercise restriction during the critical month following treatment. Administration of diminishing anti-inflammatory doses of glucocorticosteroids may help control clinical signs of pulmonary thromboembolism, but studies to evaluate the effects of glucocorticoids on the efficacy of melarsomine have not been reported.
Thankfully, she has responded to the life-saving treatment and, at this time, is expected to recover.
Thanks so much to all of you for your wonderful donations. Myrtle’s urgent care bill was only $400 and she received donations just under that amount so it can be paid. Thanks to Donna Wilt, Marty Howard, Kristin Gerstley, Melissa Lombard, Byron Leger, Susan Lewis, Deborah Baynard, Alexandra Augustyn.
Further note, Oscar did not have glaucoma disease in his eye. Just a massive infection. The vet put him on extremely strong antibiotics and will recheck in five days. If not better, he will be going to the speciality clinic for evaluation.
Thanks to all of you who pulled it off for these little fluffers.
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07.15.07
Posted in July 2007 HSPCA Breeder Tzus at 10:08 am by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
I had to share. Remember the little breeder dogs in the story below. Here are the original videos when they were rescued…
VIDEO ONE shows Mae and Flavia in one cage and Augustus and Octavius in the second.
VIDEO TWO shows Julius all by himself – all matted up and just “checked out.”
Here is a video I took this afternoon staring JULIUS, MAE and AUGUSTUS. Octavius does a quick cameo, but little Flavia had to stay inside - she’s still really sick with kennel cough.
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07.11.07
Posted in July 2007 HSPCA Breeder Tzus at 10:35 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
UPDATE: July 13, 2007
We are pushing to get them to the vet for heartworm treatment next week – so really need to try to get their funding in place.
These situations are difficult to deal with because we cannot say anything until the very end – although we knew for several weeks that we might get one or two, it wasn’t for cetain until ownership had been granted to the SPCA.
You know the story – mid June, the SPCA was called out to a home in north Houston and found horrible neglect conditions. Eight tiny little shih tzu living in a small shed in the back yard – breeding!! Horrible conditions – the dogs were all totally matted (surprise!), several had severe eye infections and their eyes were stuck shut with pus and mats. One was in such bad shape, they had to euthanize him.
The others were transported to the SPCA where they allowed me to come and take pictures. I finally found THE VIDEO I took that day. The first two in this video are Mae and Flavia. The second two are Octavius and Augustus. HERE is a second video of little red and white Julius. Please notice how five (the five we got) are totally non-responsive to my attempts to engage them.
All seven of the remaining dogs are heartworm positive – the SPCA is going to treat two and asked us to take on the other five. Here are our little new Lone Star Dogs.
Click on the photos below to expand. Check out the before and afters.
BEFORE
AFTER
Mae Davis – tiny, tiny girl. No more than 7 pounds, about five years old, but 95% blind and her ears are so full of GUNK that I’m not sure whether she can hear or not. Has kennel cough right now but is slowly recovering. UPDATE: Yes, Mae can hear. After cleaning those gunky ears twice a day for a week, I can say, this baby can hear. She cannot see, but when I call her name, she comes straight to me. And she is so loving. When she’s walking around, if she finds me, she puts her front feet up on the couch to tell me she wants up. She LOVES to sit in a lap. She does not bark yet.
BEFORE
AFTER
Augustus Davis – beautiful brown with black tips boy – about 12 pounds – only about two years old and very friendly. This one is almost normal. But, sadly, he sounds like he has been debarked. Oh well, let’s make lemonade from this lemon – perfect apartment dog. And, he is doing extremely well in learning house training.
BEFORE
AFTER
Julius Davis – this is the red and white that I thought had “checked out.” He was almost catatonic. Absolutely no reaction to anything when I first visited him – just sat there barely even moving his head. Now, after being here for a week, he is slowly starting to come out of his shell and he LOVES to be petted. Very thin and of course, now has kennel cough, but doing ok. UPDATE: Julius has become a playing fool. He runs after all the other dogs AND my husband just begging to play. How cute. I must try to get some video of this. After seeing his “checked out” state the day he was rescued by the SPCA, I honestly thought he would be one that stayed in the “terrified” state. Nope, his little tail wags all the time now. And he eats a ton. Good too, because he needs to add about 1.5 pounds.
BEFORE
AFTER
Octavius Davis - C U T E little blond boy. Very nice and pretty friendly. Around two years old. He is the most “normal” of the five. Has NOT been debarked, to that I can attest – LOL.
BEFORE
AFTER
Flavia Davis – just precious little girl about 11 pounds. Crawls on the floor asking for attentiong. Just beautiful little gal. Maybe two years old. UPDATE: Very shy and unsure of herself. Coming around nicely on housetraining. Really bad kennel cough right now. And not eating so I’m having to syringe meds and food into her!
All need heartworm treatment and won’t be available for adoption for at least three months. All are already making huge strides towards housetraining!!
Of course, we need to do their heartworm treatment! We have about two weeks to raise the funds, they all have pretty serious kennel cough and we cannot do any medical procedures to them (surgery, shots) until they are clear of kennel cough.
If you can help these little guys get healthy to get a new home, please CLICK HERE FOR PAYPAL or go HERE to send a check.
Fund update: Noon Friday, July 13, 2007:
Wow, you all must like these little faces – we already have enough to pay for Mae’s heartworm treatments…huge thanks to:
Melony Robichaux in honor of Kimmy, CM&C,C,C, Joan Samara, Nancy Croft in honor of Kentucky Lucky, Donna Ferris, Cheryl Oyaski, Melissa Lombard, Denise Welch, Wyatt Edenfield, Lelia Yeutter, Marla Barrow!!
Looking good!!
Now we just need to raise the funds for Julius, Augustus, Flavia and Octavius!!
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Posted in Uncategorized at 12:38 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
Well, it looks like another rescue DID beat us to Princess this morning. Darn, wish we were this disappointed for the other three we need to get today!!
Anyway, huge thanks to Pat and Susan for offering to adopt her sight unseen and to Marty for offering to foster her. You all are great.
I do apologize for the “false alarm” but frankly it took me by surprise that someone else was interested. And don’t get the idea that we’re going to let you off the hook for future needy dogs!!!
Just because this one found a place quickly doesn’t mean the others we beg for will.
Such is life.
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07.10.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 10:28 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
Unless someone else beats us to her in the morning, Ms Princess will become a Lone Star dog and soon be moving to Arizona where she will live in a great resort town with brothers Axl and Charles.
Go Princess. I can GUARANTEE that dog will NEVER be abandoned again!!!
Go Princess! Go Princess!
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Posted in Uncategorized at 8:43 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue
This story is sort of symbolic of what can happen in a household. This is Princess. She is 13 years old and is in the Canton Animal Shelter right now. Her age makes her prospects dim. But Hope, the lady at the shelter says, ”She is a really great dog. She is potty-trained and fully-vetted. Would make a great addition to any family.”
Why was she placed in a kill shelter? Hope says that Princess’ family felt she “had to be given up to the shelter because a new baby came along.”
The dog’s PTS date is Friday. To offer to adopt this dog, e-mail cantonshelter1@yahoo.com.
My question is why the HECK is she at a shelter at all. As someone with THREE 13 year old dogs, I just could not fathom the idea that one of their old, creaky boney bodies would spend a single night on a cold concrete floor in a room with another hundred barking, yelping dogs. Breaks my heart.
Please, if anyone can take her in, email the Canton Animal Shelter NOW!!
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