Spay Day!

 

Strelka recovered quickly from her spay.  She was pretty pitiful when I put her in foster mom's car after being spayed at PAWS Atlanta, but now she is back to her adorable and fun-loving self.  She also got some booster shots and a microchip while she was knocked out!  This puppy is officially ready for ADOPTION.

Belka's Big Day and Strelka's Trip to the Horse Farm

Strelka had a pretty exciting day visiting the horse farm.  She played with a beautiful rescued pit bull named Nala and had a blast.  Hopefully, I will have a video coming soon!

Meet Nala.  She was walking Brady the other day and today she played with Strelka!

Belka went straight to the vet after work to get another look over before heading home with a wonderful woman named Megan and her boyfriend, Hunter. Dr Lindsay Henschel at Dearborn Animal Hospital was incredible with her and thought she was quite a catch.  We couldn't agree more.  She went home on a trial basis, but she is already doing great.  Megan got her all sorts of fancy things.  High quality food, toys, treats, a crate, the works.  She texted not that long ago to let me know that Hunter and Belka were crawling around the floor together for cute puppy time.  She says she is confident it is going to work out.  Belka's new name might be Runi!  Don't worry, I will make sure to pass on the updates !

At the Vet's office

Sniffing the flowers outside

Megan and Runi

Strelka and Belka

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Amazing Grace

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If You Would Like to Help Post Fliers

E-mail me at mckelvey.laura731@gmail.com
I will send you fliers that you can post in local coffee shops, independent pet stores, bars, dog parks, vet offices, grooming facilities, antique ships, anywhere you think someone might see them!

Incredible Friends

The progress of the puppies was astounding, but I was feeling very overwhelmed with 5 dogs, 2 gerbils, and 1 fish.  Working at the shelter, volunteering, dogsitting, crating and rotating.  It was just too much.  A coworker and friend, along with her wonderful roommate (also a friend), agreed to foster Strelka.  What a relief.  I had one of my dearest friends come with me to the horse farm to do introductions.  Strelka was scared and shy at first, but it did not take her long to settle in with an adult pit bull and several cats.

I get frequent reports from her now, and they say she is doing great.  She is an incredible dog.  She is doing great with her crate training and la la loves being with the other animals.  She really loves her people too.  She isn't jumpy, nippy, or very loud like some under socialized puppies.  She can only be in this foster home for a short time though, and she is desperately in need of a home.  We are hoping that someone will see one of her online ads, her fliers spread all across the city and beyond, this blog, or hear about her from another friend.  

Belka just learned how to play with toys yesterday.  She was so excited she began hoarding them in a corner.  Collecting them, dragging them across the room, and leaving them in a pile.  She was clearly just happy to be alive and, for once, not afraid of what was around the corner.  She goes into a one week trial adoption on Thursday, and I am hoping for the best!  She deserves it!

Another volunteer stepped forward with $100 for their care and just in time!  They are going through one bag of dog food a week, need more vitamins, cream for their ears, and need another round of vaccinations.

Even if you cannot adopt, you can tell everyone you know about the wonder dogs, Strelka and Belka, and we can make the wrongs done unto them right.  We can show them how wonderful, kind-hearted, compassionate, and loyal humans can really be.

ONE WEEK

After a week of getting regular meals and lots of attention the puppies looked ten times better.  They were filling out, and it was amazing!  Seven days.  A lot had happened.  A lovely woman came by to meet them and went home to talk to her boyfriend about possibly adopting.  They both learned to sit in one day. It took about five days for them to take a step with a leash around their necks.  They had probably never seen or felt one before.  They didn't like baths, but they sat still for them and made it easy on me.   And, after several days of blowout diarrhea caused by killing off their whip worms, they began to respond to crate training.  The taller one (Strelka) was the bravest and the quickest to bond with people, but even the little one (Belka) was learning that people were not so bad and grew quite bonded to me.  They started following me around the backyard like ducklings.  I bought them nice new collars and threw away the ratty red ones they had come to me in.

DAY TWO

The search was on.  I contacted everyone and anyone I could think of for advice.  I posted and people reposted.  A wonderful volunteer and friend gave me $100, knowing that the pups might still end up at animal control, but allowing me to give it my best shot.

 I bought Orijin, high quality puppy food, and nutrical to help with their malnourishment.  They tested negative for giardia and parvo.  They were given a full set of shots, dewormed, and put on heartworm and flea preventative.  Days later they would be skin scraped and given a DTM.  Their spays were being scheduled with a wonderful local group who had offered to do them for free.

DAY ONE

I came home from work and found a miserable, emaciated black puppy in my driveway.  My heart broke for her, and I agonized about what to do.  I have dogs that do not play well with others and did not know if I had anything to offer her.  I went inside to grab a bowl of dog food.  First things first.  I came back out, shook the bowl, set it down, and lo and behold, out of the bushes comes another black and white face.  I saw every bone in their bodies as they scarfed down the food.  I knew that I had to give them small meals no matter how hungry they were.  If they ate too much, in the condition they were in, they could die.  I broke down crying, sitting in my own driveway, cursing the people who had left them like this, and unsure of what I could possibly do for them. 

After they were done eating, I sat with them and lured them to me with treats.  I scooped them up and took them to the vet.  Upon returning home, I put them in the bathroom while I made up a Great Dane sized crate.  I put linens, fresh water, and toys in there and urged them inside.  They slept most of the day and night.  They needed to gather their strength for whatever was ahead of them.

Animal Control was closed and it is always overrun with pit bulls and pit bull mixes anyway.  These girls did not stand a chance.  I figured I could give it until Tuesday, three days, knowing full well that I probably wouldn't find anything for them in the meantime.  I posted on Facebook, Rescueme.org, and gathered helpful information from vets and pit bull rescues.  They were posted on petfinder.com.  I contacted local groups about joining up with them at their offsite adoption events.

That night I had nightmares about my other dogs and woke up to a nasty mess at 5:30 in the morning.  I cleaned up the babies before heading off to work to clean up more babies.  I was frantic.