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| Dasia |
Adoptions
10 of our pups found forever homes this week including two with volunteers and employees. Caregiver Cassie Oakes loved our Anatolian girl Dasia from the minute she saw her. Volunteer Diane Wood had been waiting on just the right fit for several weeks. Holly, a sweet standard girl, jumped into her arms and said 'I'm here to stay.' Diane had contemplated switching to a miniature but when the honey colored large variety of poodle picked her out, she couldn't say no. You can downsize in a few years Diane. Holly obviously had other plans for you.
Marsha, a silver miniature poodle and Timone our mislisted peke mix who it turns out is actually a Tibetan terrier found laps as well as Bradley the oversize toy from Columbia. Also adopted were Marie, a spaniel mix, Audrey, Godiva and Forest a senior toy poodle. We always rejoice when a senior goes home.
But it was Elton John, the Portuguese Water Dog, who stole the show this week. Want to know how? Keep reading. Elton's story is in our health segment.
New Dogs
9 newcomers made their way to our sanctuary.
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| Caitlyn |
Kent - senior apricot miniature poodle found as a stray in the Greenville SC area. Kent is a lost boy and is also a member of the Grumpy Old Men Club for he doesn't like to be messed with much. It's okay, he's a poodle and he loves to eat. He has a place with us for as long as he chooses to hang out.
Caitlyn - senior white toy poodle, found as stray but she had a collar and tag and after a few calls to locate the owner, the shelter found that Caitlyn's owner had passed away. She was once a loved companion Sophie - standard poodle, owner cannot care for
Chloe - 1 year old maltipoo, Chloe was turned into the Columbia shelter by her owner after they didn't want her anymore. Patches of Raleigh - a sweet little poodle mix girl whose owner's health declined and could no longer take care of her.
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| Astrix |
Astrix - a Chihuahua mix found as a stray in Columbia SC, Joni pulled Astrix in honor of Tonya who was adopted in New York. Gotta have a Chihuahua around!
Cherry - lab mix and best friends with Samantha, owner losing her home to bankruptcy
Samantha - poodle mix and best friends with Cherry, owner losing her home to bankruptcy
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| Cody |
Cody - tiny 3 lb senior toy poodle found as a stray in Columbia SC
Health Front
Taking care of the health of our seniors in an ongoing task. We realize that most of these will live out their lives with us. It makes this team more determined than ever to take the best possible care that we can of our dogs for whom we are their forever home.
One of those is Max, a senior cocker spaniel. Max has been in the health news now for several months. His ear infection is not improving. I scheduled appointment for Max was a specialist. I will keep you posted.
Nigel, a sweet little cockapoo who was found as a stray, came down with pneumonia. With their systems stressed from no home, new food, new water and often times in horrible condition anyway, the surprising fact is that more of our new arrivals don't come down with pneumonia.
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| Nigel |
Nigel, skin and bones once the mats were taken off, faced all of this and more including neuter surgery and then an extended stay in the shelter since we were in New York and could not make picked up on time. Fortunately he's on the mend and being ill got him a brand-new foster home. He needed a quiet place to recover and Carol Ervin offered just that.
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| Remington |
Sadly we lost one. His name was Remington and he was a red toy poodle, a senior, in foster care. Even the vets are baffled as to why his blood sugar plummeted with no warning. His foster mom had him in to the doctors as fast as her car would take her but it wasn't soon enough. We'll never know why this little one came and went so fast but he will always be remembered.
Elton John, a Portuguese Water dog, was the case this week that caused me to smile. Elton was originally listed as a labradoodle. Found as a stray just outside of Memphis, Tennessee, Elton had a bit of a bad boy reputation in the shelter because he would fence fight with the other dogs. If you don't know what fence fighting is it is dogs snarling away at each other as if they are ready to take each other's throats out but with a chain link fence safely between the two. It's a bar room brawl before the fists start flying. We see a lot and most of the time if you put the two combatants face-to-face suddenly they are best friends. Not everyone knows this and sometimes the two do fight so rather than put Elton into foster care and risk another's dogs we chose to board him.
Fortunately, it turned out Elton was all bark and not much else. Shelters are frightening places with many people and animals coming and going. The vet clinic was much calmer. Elton, when ready for transport to the sanctuary, was now two weeks out of the shelter and the bad boy was turning into a mush puppy who just loved everything.
During Elton's journey he stayed with one of our patrons in Knoxville who happens to have a Portuguese water dog (PWD or portie) who was also originally described as a labradoodle. Please understand that you see very few PWDs in rescue so it is no wonder we can't see one when we're looking at one. The Fischer's identified Elton for the first time as very possibly a portie.
Because they are so rare, word gets around quickly when a PWD is found. After Elton arrived, a member of the Portuguese Water Dog club ask if she could come and meet and evaluate Elton. She told me later she came down fully expecting to explain to me why this was not her favorite breed of dog. She left shaking her head and wishing she had room to foster him herself. Elton did indeed have every characteristic of the PWD's.
While he was being boarded, a front leg that jutted out and forward as if broken was X-rayed to see if anything could be done to correct it. Elton can put weight on it but he cannot actually use it to walk or run. It functions as a pivot when he turns and as a resting point when he is still.
No matter what the breed the boy still needed his leg fixed so we set out to try to do just that. Our regular vet is a real expert with bones. Dr. Bryant took a look at the x-rays and then examined Elton. It turns out it wasn't a broken leg it was a dislocated shoulder. Unfortunately it had been out so long that the tendons had contracted, forcing the bone away from the socket where it belonged. Best guess is a car accident. Under sedation Dr. Bryant attempted to return the shoulder bones where they belonged. Unfortunately, it didn't work. We were now headed to a specialty clinic.
While waiting for his appointment with the bone specialist, Elton's profile was listed on our website. The Portuguese water dog club also profiled the bouncing boy, and we received several applications thanks to their referrals. It was tough, but a family from Greenville, a pair of newlyweds came to visit with Elton before the appointment. They fell in love with him, gimp leg and all.
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| Elton John |
The long-awaited day came this week and I drove Elton to Greenville. We met with Dr. Allen at Upstate Veterinary Specialists. Dr. Allen is known for his work in orthopedics. I once had a local vet tell me, "those guys think bones are silly putty."
Dr. Allen checked out the x rays and then checked out Elton. He was down on the floor with Elton checking that leg from every angle and playing with him, one of the things I especially love about Dr. Allen. He likes dogs and has a rescue of his own. Elton enjoyed the attention and responded with a lot of play bows. It was fun to watch.
Yet the more Dr. Allen touched and checked the leg the more I saw the smile leave his face. He finally looked at me and said sadly that the damage was too great and had gone on too long. There was nothing short of taking the leg off that he could do.
We are frequent visitors to Upstate Vet Specialists. They are expensive but they give us discounts and the level of care from all of the specialists make their price worth it. Just walking in the door for a consult is over $100, a price I was prepared to pay. But this time, Dr. Allen gave another gift to our bouncing portie boy. "There is no charge today for you guys," he said and smiled. My mouth dropped open. I had never had fees waived at UVS. Our boy was touching people in many ways.
Our selected adoptive couple was on pins and needles and they were calling and texting me before I even got out of the office. I gave them the bad news and was greeted with joy. While it would have been fabulous to have been able to restore Elton, remember they loved him just the way he was. Now there would not be a long wait. Now there would not be months of rehab. Elton's new life could start now. Wearing the handmade collar that his original transporter, Vickie, had made for him, the excited family picked him up the very next day.
Happy beginnings Elton.
Rehab homes come in for training
We call our fosters rehab homes instead of foster homes because in our system, these generous families bring our neediest dogs from unadoptable to happily taken home. Our first training for these homes was this weekend. Led by our rehab home coordinator, Debi Raby, our families travelled from all over the Carolina's and Georgia to spend a weekend at our sanctuary learning and sharing what they know.
Debi is a careful and thorough teacher. She covered everything from getting your new foster dog settled, basic first aid, to how to teach your new dog to walk on a leash, to handing the leash to their new forever home. Rehab homes are the bridge, working to resolve either behavior or medical issues so that those that are less than adoptable can still become the kind of pet that owners are proud to own. Thank you to Debi and to her team of rehab homes for their time and their work to bring out the best in our pets.
If you are interested in learning more about our rehab program, please contact Debi at debi@carolinapoodlerescue.org.
Round up
That was the week….we're bringing them in, fixing them up and finding homes. Thanks so much for your support - it is the foundation on which we are built. Without you, none of this would happen. Thank you.
Donna Ezzell
Director
Dreamweaver Farms, home of Carolina Poodle Rescue
www.carolinapoodlerescue.org
864 580 0639
Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not. ~Dr. Seuss
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