Wishing You Well

This story is about four Boston Terrier pups that got mange from their mother. They would have been okay, had they received the proper medical care. Unfortunately, that did not happen. It took weeks and the loss of one of the pups for the breeder to finally relinquish them to the local shelter. Too young to be adopted, they would have been euthanized had the shelter not taken steps to save them, and had a loving foster mom not stepped forward to care for the remaining three.

Demodectic Mange, also called Demodex, is a skin disease caused by tiny mites. Most pups get a few mange mites from their moms when they are born or soon after. A few mites are considered normal, and are to be expected, usually doing no harm. It only get dangerous when an animal with a compromised immune system (like newborn puppies) allows the mite numbers to get out of control. An overpopulation of mites, and prolonged absence of medical care can cause the mange to spread, leading to other potentially deadly infections. Demodex is not contagious, and cannot be passed to humans, it just looks horrible and is very uncomfortable for the animal plagued.

In this case, four puppies were born to a mother already suffering from Demodex. The owner could not care for the entire family, so he kept the mother and abandoned her poor, sick little pups at a local shelter. The pups were barely a couple weeks old, and too young to even be adopted, when the mange had reached a critical point. Their hair was falling out in clumps, and their skin became scaly. What started out as a few spots, soon spread to the rest of their tiny, fragile little bodies.

The pups were sick, weak and in desperate need of medical care. Often, dogs that need costly, on-going medical treatments are humanely euthanized. The understaffed and underfunded shelter simply doesn’t have the time or money to give many of the sick or injured animals the costly care they need. Instead of euthanizing these pups, the shelter reached out to their community, and asked for help. A kind foster mom by the name of Candi Crawford, stepped forward and took on the challenge of caring for three very sick little puppies.

The pups needed costly dips and skin salves. For one pup, the mange caused other, more serious infections, and the toll was too much for his tiny body. He sadly passed away, but within two weeks, his brother and two sisters were doing much better. Their hair began to grow back and they had become the rambunctious little pups that they were born to be.

Today, the pups have recovered and found their forever homes.

Lucky pup, Cora, found a home with foster mom Candi, who couldn’t help but fall in love with this little cutie.

The Baldwin Park Animal Care Center in Baldwin Park Ca. always has so many beautiful animals available for adoption. Please reach out to them on Facebook to show them your support, and share the many dogs, cats and bunnies that are available for adoption. You can see more of their adoptable pets on PetFinder: Baldwin Park. Also remember, no matter what breed of dog you are looking for, they can be found at your local shelter or with a local rescue organization.

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via Good News on Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-pet-collective/puppies-with-a-deadly-cas_b_3298913.html

While Pay It Forward Day is over, one New York City subway rider is keeping the spirit alive.

The anonymous person left a sweet note along with an unlimited metro card — prepaid — for another rider to use and pass on.

Michelle Attardo of NYC spotted the card on 2nd Avenue just past 88th street. She took a photo of the note and shared it on Instagram.

The note reads:

“Unlimited – good ’til midnight. Use, if you can; leave for someone else when you’re done.”

Pay It Forward CONNECT WITH JERRY NELSON ON LINKEDIN

Follow Jerry Nelson on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Journey_America

via Good News on Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jerry-nelson/nyc-metro-rider-pats-it-f_b_3259917.html

The story of Mickey the mama cat is a testament to a mother’s instinct and love for her children. There are so many stories of pregnant cats and dogs winding up at the shelter, and the horrors all animals, especially vulnerable newborns, face in that environment. The statistics are grim, and disease runs rampant.

This sweet pregnant mama cat found herself at the shelter; she was pulled by a rescue group, placed in foster care and gave birth to a beautiful litter of healthy kittens, only to be struck with a near fatal illness, as happens all too often with animals who have been in the shelter. Clinging to life, she barely survived only to find that she had lost her entire litter of kittens to the same illness that almost took her life. Her will and mothering instinct were strong; she mourned the loss of her family, and then a miracle happened. An orphaned litter of kittens came into her life, making mama and orphans whole again.

Mickey is named after the famous Disney character. She’s black with white paws, just like the famous mouse. She arrived at the shelter pregnant.

It is unclear whether she was picked up as a stray, or was relinquished by her owners. You almost never know the full story behind animals that end up at the shelter. Cats At the Studios of Los Angeles pulled her, and within three days she gave birth to five adorable black and white kittens that looked just like their mama.

A day after giving birth, Mickey was struck down with a horrible upper respiratory infection. URIs are common at shelters. They are easily transferable, almost impossible to control, and can be deadly. Shelter workers do as much as they can, but it’s impossible to stop the spread of these infections. You touch one animal, and then another … and sometimes they are transferred in the air they breathe.

New mom Mickey was suddenly congested, and seemed to be having trouble breathing.

Her foster dad immediately contacted the rescue group, and Mickey and her babies were taken to the vet. It was a URI. She was immediately separated from her babies, but it was too late. The kittens had only fed on her milk for a single day, but unfortunately the URI was passed down to them in their mother’s milk before anybody knew she was sick. Normally their mother’s milk would help them to build up their immune systems and battle an illness, but instead Mickey’s milk was making them sick. She had a fever of 106.5 F for a week, she stopped producing milk, and worst of all she refused food and water.

Mickey’s babies were taken to emergency foster care where they were bottle fed, tube fed, and treated for their illness. But it wasn’t enough, without their mother’s milk to help build up their immune systems, one-by-one the babies lost the fight with this horrible infection and died.

Mickey was in the ICU for a week. She was given multiple rounds of medication, and placed on an IV to keep her alive. It was a miracle that Mickey survived, but she did. Once she recovered it was clear to volunteers that Mickey was depressed and missing her babies.

Losing all of Mickey’s kittens affected foster dad, Ryan Kemp, as well. “It was really tough … for everybody.” Ryan promised Mickey he would take care of her kittens for her when she fell ill, and reunite Mickey’s family when she got better. Ryan felt he had failed her. Everyone was heartbroken, but, by sending out this sweet and simple promise into the ether, the universe answered.

Two weeks after first rescuing Mickey, Cats At The Studios received another call: a litter of four orphaned black and white kittens without a mother. The stars had aligned and the emptiness in their hearts was about to be filled.

Ryan and other volunteers united Mickey with the orphaned kittens and they took to each other immediately. Mama Mickey began licking her new babies, and the kittens suckled on Mickey.

Today, Mickey and her new kittens are healthy and doing well, but their story isn’t over yet. They are now looking for their forever homes. If you are able to adopt or would like to support Mickey or her kittens, contact Cats At the Studios in the Los Angeles area. They are still working to raise money to pay for the costly treatment for Mickey and her first litter. You can donate at Kitten Rescue and simply label the donation “Mickey.”

Visit our friends at Cats At The Studios on their website and like them on Facebook.

We can’t thank Ryan, Cats At The Studios, and Kitten Rescue enough for the wonderful work they do every day to help homeless animals in their area. Every creature deserves a chance in life, and thanks to kind people like these, Mickey and her new babies are happy and healthy.

*Foster Dad Ryan wanted to send out a special thank you of his own to Kitten Rescue foster Betsy Lee Koski, who lovingly cared for Mickey and her babies, and guided Ryan through this entire ordeal.

Do you have a Tail of Hope or Survival? We’d love to hear it! Visit us at thepetcollective.tv and tell us your story!

Visit The Pet Collective Website for more amazing Tails of Hope!

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via Good News on Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-pet-collective/sad-mama-cat-who-lost-her_b_3255932.html

Announcing the first ever Buddha Doodles Greeting Card!
One of the most popular Buddha Doodle prints is now available as a greeting card!

This is just like a fine art print! Rich and vibrant colors. Printed with state-of-the-art archival inks.​ 5”x5”.

Envelope: Euro-style, Paper Bag, 30% post-consumer waste paper, archival and acid-free.

Only 8 left in stock! Order here: http://bit.ly/15uPnu8

Follow Molly Hahn on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mollycules

via Good News on Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/molly-hahn/todays-buddha-doodle—ev_b_3239559.html

Follow Molly Hahn on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mollycules

via Good News on Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/molly-hahn/todays-buddha-doodle—go_b_3231168.html

Arwen is a 10-year-old pittie mix. She was one of 89 dogs found in a bad hoarding situation. Our story starts in the Mojave Desert where an animal hoarder with 89 dogs is unable to care for the dogs any longer. It was winter and temperatures were in the 30s as a soft snow fell to the desert floor. 89 dogs were living outside in the cold with no shelter, and not enough food or water. We’ll never know how Arwen ended up in a cage out in the middle of the desert, living with a hoarder and 88 other dogs in deplorable conditions, but we know that her suffering is finally over.

It was January when Karma Rescue caught wind that an animal hoarder living in the Mojave Desert, a three-hour drive from Los Angeles, could no longer care for additional dogs that had recently found their way onto her property. She was desperate and asked for help. When Karma arrived, they found 89 dogs in a bad situation. Many dogs were in makeshift fenced-in dog runs; others were dumped in a field or simply running wild on the property. It was the dead of winter; a light snow had begun to fall and the dogs had no shelters to go into to get out of the elements. They were completely exposed to the sun, wind, rain and snow as it fell to the ground that January morning. Most of the enclosures had not been cleaned in a long time and were covered in wall-to-wall feces. When the dogs were fed, they got dry kibble haphazardly thrown in their pens, it landed on the ground, mixed in with their own waste; the dogs were so hungry, they ate the food anyway.

When Karma volunteers arrived they immediately began setting up makeshift housing and shelters for the dogs, and tried to fortify the enclosures so the dogs could not escape while they reached out to more rescue organizations and figured out how to help all of these dogs. Suzanne Happ, a volunteer with Karma Rescue, assisted in coordinating twenty rescue organizations and independent rescuers to get the dogs out and to safety. The operation is commonly called the Mojave Desert Dog Rescue.

For some reason Arwen stood out to the rescuers who found her locked in a small dog run. Her shy, yet sweet way actually hid a fearful, almost feral truth. Arwen’s exposure to humans had been so minimal, that she did not understand how to react to human interaction or touch.

Volunteers noticed immediately that something was wrong with her eyes. Her eyes were blood red; the inner folds of her eyes were swollen and inflamed. This poor dog was in constant pain. They didn’t know the extent of damage to her vision. Had she spent any more time in the desert, she would have become blind. It was later learned that Arwen and the other dogs had to withstand harsh desert winds that blasted sand into her eyes. With no shelter, there was nothing she could do but sit and wait for the sand storm to end. She had no doghouse to hide behind and no den to crawl into.

During the Mojave Desert Dog Rescue all 89 dogs were brought to safety. Arwen got into a van with a volunteer named Alex and some other dogs to be taken to a boarding facility but then someone suggested that Alex might make a good foster for Arwen and, fortunately, Alex was open to the idea.

In Alex’s loving care, Arwen was finally able to see a doctor about her eyes. They found out that her condition was worse than rescuers had first thought. Arwen had to undergo a painful eye surgery to remove the inflamed tissue from her eyes. The amount of tissue removed was disturbing even for the doctors. They ended up removing scar tissue the size of a cherry from each eye. With the removal of that scar tissue, she could heal and would finally be free from the pain it must have caused her. Arwen’s teeth were another matter. Turns out Arwen had been chewing on the wire fencing at the hoarder’s compound out of hunger and/or boredom. She barely had any teeth left and what was left had been ground down to nubs.

Arwen also had a habit of nervously pacing back and forth. Even though Alex has a sizable home, Arwen was still mentally living in a small makeshift dog run and she paced back and forth, unable to accept that she now had lots of safe and comfortable space to roam freely in.

With time, Arwen’s eyes healed and got better. In a little more time, her pacing calmed and she got more comfortable in her surroundings. And in a little more time, Arwen grew to love and became inseparable from her foster mom Alex, who ended up adopting her and becoming her permanent mom. Through the guidance of Alex and her other pit bull, Keiko, Arwen learned how to be a dog again. According to Alex, Arwen is a “perfect dog.”

Arwen’s story of survival is a story being told over and over again around the world as people abandon their pets. Thanks to rescue groups like Karma, and volunteers like Alex, there is hope for some. But dogs like Arwen don’t think about the years they lived in pain and suffering, without love or someone to care for them. Nope, Arwen just enjoys her long happy days with new mom Alex and her new brother Keiko.

A special thank you to all of the rescue groups involved with the Mojave Desert Dog Rescue. Please visit their pages and like them on Facebook to help them spread the word when animals are in need. Here are a few of the many rescue organizations who helped to save Arwen and the 88 other dogs…

Visit our friends at KarmaRescue.org and like them on Facebook.
Best Friends Animal Society – Los Angeles and like them on Facebook.
DowntownDogRescue.org and like them on Facebook.
DawgSquad.org
NewLeashOnLife and like them on Facebook.

Do you have a Tail of Hope? We’d love to hear it! Visit us at thepetcollective.tv and tell us your story!

Visit The Pet Collective Website for more amazing Tails of Hope!

Connect with The Pet Collective:
The Pet Collective YouTube Channel: /ThePetCollective
The Pet Collective Cares YouTube Channel: /TPCCares
The Pet Collective Facebook: /thepetcollective

Follow The Pet Collective on Twitter: www.twitter.com/PetCollectiveTV

via Good News on Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-pet-collective/unbelievable-89-dogs-resc_b_3212564.html