Monday, July 15, 2013

The saddest part of rescue

I'm going to delay telling you about my super-fun, bath-requiring day yesterday for one more day because I want to talk to you about something very sad and impawtant. It's hard work being part of a rescue. Momma said that people always ask her how you can foster a dog and give it up again. Well, we've done that, and it's sad every time, but it's also happy, because you've taken this sad little pup, gotten them all healthy and happy, and sent them off to a furever home where they'll be loved and taken care of for the rest of their lives.

That's why returns always hurt so much. Sometimes, no matter how hard we work to make sure all of our approved adopters are the bestest people ever and will take pawfect care of our dogs... well, it doesn't work out. Sometimes things change, like someone loses their job and can't take care of their dog anymore, or they have a baby and it turns out to be deathly allergic to dogs.

Sometimes, though, the returns are because the adopters are the grreat family we thought they were after all. :( This is Obie and Pancake. No, they're not boxers. There aren't good bulldog rescues in the area, so we'll sometimes take them in as "honorary boxers" when there's one in need. Obie is a very tiny Old English Bulldog, and pretty Pancake is a French bulldog.


Obie and Pancake ended up adopted by the same home, and we were SO happy for them. We knew they'd be loved and spoiled and taken care of for the rest of their lives. Well... here they are last week when we got them back.


Turns out "forever" only means "until we get a divorce." Then their momma just left them, and their daddy put them out in the backyard and didn't take care of them. Poor Obie is badly emaciated and has lots of problems. His poor little toenails were horribly overgrown -- one of them had even grown all the way around and embedded in his paw pad!! When our volunteers trimmed it, blood and pus came out. Ugh.


Pancake was in better shape, but she was still skinny and hadn't been taken care of.


Fortunately, they are both back with LBR now and in new foster homes. They'll have a chance to get well again, and this time we'll see if we can find them real furever homes. But it's so hard to think about giving them up again, because we already promised them furever once. :(


Keep your paws crossed for both of them today, please! They're going to visit the dogtors for full check-ups. Our biggest worry is that they'll turn up heartworm-positive, since they were being kept outside and probably weren't on preventative. Both had heartworm treatment during their first round with LBR, and a second treatment often has complications and can be fatal. So we're really hoping for HW-!!


Welcome home, Obie and Pancake. We're so sorry you had to go through this. :(


Update: Good news! Obie is heartworm negative!!! Woot! He still has a lot of other health problems -- he has to have lubrication drops on his eyes and his, er, manhood to deal with problems, he has meds for skin infections all over his little body, and he's going to have to go to a dental specialist to see about getting teeth pulled. His anal glands were full of gunk, and he had so many fleas that they're still coming out after three flea baths! Yuck. Long road to go for poor Obie.

I haven't heard back from Pancake's foster momma yet, but she was in a lot better shape than Obie!

15 comments:

  1. We don't even know the right words to say except we are so sorry it turned out like this for these babies, once again it is a matter of who is really considered family and who is not. Stress, such as divorce can bring out the worst in a person, BUT we don't forget about our furkids that depend on us for food, water and love. Thank you for taking them back in, and I know now they are loved and well taken care of. I am just shaking my head.
    Stella Rose's Momma-----(they sure are little cuties!!)

    ReplyDelete
  2. OH NO! I have a soft spot for the bullies! My Calhoun is part bulldog. I'm sure so many people would love to love Obie & Pancake forever.

    Mamma Heartbeat

    ReplyDelete
  3. This breaks our heart. Don't understand how this happens. Prayers for them that they will get a loving home.
    hugs
    Bailey, Hazel & Greta

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh dear, this just breaks our hearts! It is something that should NEVER happen to these sweet, little, innocent animals.

    We are VERY thankful that you are there to help them once again. Bless you from the bottom of our hearts!!

    We are praying that the Vet's visit goes well for these two little sweeties.

    Hugs,
    Lily Belle & Muffin

    ReplyDelete
  5. Our HEARTS HURT fur both of them... You didn't say how you got them back butt we are GLAD that you DID... and Just in Time.. from the sounds of it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. CASEY THIS JUST BREAKS MY HEART. I AM GLAD THEY FOUND THEY WAY BACK TO YOU AND I PRAY THEY WILL RECOVER AND FORGET...WE ALL KNOW DOGS HAVE A FORGIVING NATURE AND WILL TRUST AGAIN WITH TLC.

    THOSE TWO SUBHUMANS WON'T GET AWAY WITH THIS. WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND.
    HUGS MADI AND MOM

    ReplyDelete
  7. That is so terribly sad. How can people treat animals so carelessly? People like that should be tattooed across the forehead that they abuse animals so they can never have one again.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh no. That is just so hard to read about. I hope that they come back with a clean bill of health and that this time around, they can find real forever homes.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Ugh! We just HATE that. You signed a CONTRACT PEOPLE! We couldn't have made it more CLEAR.

    Hate hate hate. We even tell people to give the dogs back to us if you can't care for them. This guy needs kicked.

    NOra

    ReplyDelete
  10. WAs just checking back in to see how the vet visit for the two kids went today? We have been thinking about them all day long?
    stella rose

    ReplyDelete
  11. We volunteer for the French Bulldog Rescue Network and hear these stories a lot. It's hard to understand some people. If you need help we have volunteers all over the place
    Benny & Lily

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sad. To think that such sweet innocent babies who are dependent on us for everything , would be so terribly neglected by not one , but by TWO people!

    It's hard to understand what goes on in a person's head some times.

    We don't know how they found their way back to you but we are ecstatic they did. Hang in there sweeties! There is a special and loving family out there anxiously awaiting you :)

    the critters in the cottage xo

    ReplyDelete
  13. That's so very sad. My husband and I were looking into French Bulldogs before we found Rocco. I wish them all the best in their recovery.

    (By the way you might want to change this sentence: "Sometimes, though, the returns are because the adopters are the grreat family we thought they were after all." Because these people don't sound grreat at all.)

    ReplyDelete
  14. That's so very sad. My husband and I were looking into French Bulldogs before we found Rocco. I wish them all the best in their recovery.

    (By the way you might want to change this sentence: "Sometimes, though, the returns are because the adopters are the grreat family we thought they were after all." Because these people don't sound grreat at all.)

    ReplyDelete