Vet Day!

Today was vet day for Melody, Tess, and Waldo. The "crew" and I went to see Dr. Booman, our primary care vet. Tess had a rabies vaccination so she can be licensed, and Dr. Booman had the chance to thoroughly look at her deformity. After her physical exam, she determined that Tess is perfectly healthy and shouldn't have any trouble with her leg!

Melody had blood drawn to check her Phenobarbitol blood levels. While Melody thought it was quite unfair she had blood drawn, I thought it was important to make sure she's on an appropriate medication dose for her epilepsy!

Waldo thought it was completely ridiculous to ride in the car with dogs! He had initially responded quite well to the steroid injection, so today was a recheck. We were very sad to see that, while most of his mouth looks good, he has a growth about the size of a kidney bean under his tongue. It may be just irritated gum tissue, worst case scenario is cancer. The most common form of oral cancer is squamous cell carcinoma, which has no treatments that offer a cure. Cancer may have reared its ugly head yet again...

Dr. Booman also found a growth in one eye that may be a tumor too, we have to watch it closely. At his first exam, it just looked like a little color change. The borders of his ears have started to change since he's been with us, so I asked her to look at them too. With pigment changes and small areas of skin starting to disintegrate, Dr. Booman feels it's probably vasculitis, a lack of circulation to the affected area.

Waldo is now in our "Pawspice" care (animal hospice) program. We will provide palliative care to keep him comfortable and make his remaining "golden days" as happy as possible! If you would like to learn more about pawspice care, please click here.

New Friendships

It hasn't taken long for Tess to make friends with everyone. I was afraid a new dog would be a hard sell for Melody, who can be really ugly in new situations. Tess and Melody became fast friends, as did Tess and Maverick, Quincy and Luna too.

Tess can be found running and playing hard or wrestling after breakfast first with Melody, then when she's worn out, Tess moves on to play chase with Maverick. That continues till he's tired, then she grabs a tennis ball and plays fetch with herself - she tosses the ball in the air and then chases it, which rounds out her morning. The whole cycle repeats itself after dinner - boy I wish I had her energy!

The crates in the picture above are used for feeding Scooter and Waldo, in order to make sure each kitty eats only his meal. Tonight, they got a dinnertime show too!

A New Sweetheart

Meet Nessy (new name Tess), a Border Collie/Retriever mix who just arrived from the Humane Society of Utah, via Stacy's dad and his travels. While she looks pretty normal and happy, she was born with a severe deformity to her left front leg.

The ulna and radius (the forearm of a person) didn't grow down and straight with a paw (or hand) at the end. One bone grew too short with one toe, while the other curved, and a partial paw, with 2 pads and 3 toes rests at the end of it.

The wonderful folks at the Humane Society tried for quite a while to place her with no luck. I gave them suggestions of messageboards and forums to post her story which they did, and while many people thought she was cute, no one wanted a young dog who doesn't look normal. When asked if she could come here, of course we said yes! With some time and training, we hope she'll make a wonderful ambassador for the sanctuary and play an important part in our humane education and pet therapy programs that are in development.

We're calling her "Tess" because it's pretty close to Nessy, and we thought it important to have a name not so close to Loch Ness monster fame. She's really brought new life to the other dogs, because at 18 months old, she's still all puppy, and Border Collies can play all day!

A New Name & New Attitude!

Can you believe this is the same kitty who's in our July 29th post? This is Swope, who is now known as Waldo! He's feeling much better, thank you! His response to steroid treatment is amazing, the hole in his tongue is filling in, and the swelling is down in his gums. He's making up for lost time, eating 1 1/2 cans of food a day. (The "D" word is in his future, but I haven't told him yet!)
In the photo, he's trying out one of the dog beds, and while he doesn't mind dogs, he's certainly not planning on befriending them yet. He enjoys spending a good part of the day out in Shiloh's Yard, a small yard designed for newcomers. His favorite activity ~ anything involving people, as he truly wants nothing more than sit next to anyone who will provide continuous attention!

Can You Find The Kitty In This Photo?

Tara & Uno work hard to open the closet that holds both the blankets and the dog food, each with a different goal. As a matter of fact, it's a daily ritual. If at first you don't succeed ~ well, keep on tryin'. Today proved it ~ Tara enjoyed the blankets while Uno tried hard to unscrew the lid to the dog food. The dog food never opened, and all the blankets were on the floor before all was said and done. But they had fun (and needed a nap afterward!)

A New Way to Support the Sanctuary

There's an easy way you can support the sanctuary animals! We've signed up with GoodSearch.com, which allows the sanctuary to earn while you use their Yahoo powered search engine.

I've been trying it out, and it works very well. Just go to www.goodsearch.com, and in the second box down, type in "Golden Hearts Animal Sanctuary" and click "verify". Then, search away. There is a feature that even allows you to track how much the sanctuary has earned.

Every little bit helps, so please, give it a try, and if you like it, spread the word to your friends and family!

Kitty Update!

A couple of the boys have ongoing medical issues that we're hoping are either resolved or will be soon. Here's a run-down on who we're watching ~

Scooter - this afternoon his purse-string suture was removed, and hopefully his rectal prolapse episodes are over. His medication (Lactulose) has been increased, he's back on a low residue diet (which produces low stool volume), and he's spending a good part of his day in the main house so we can keep a close eye on him.

Leonard - has been slowly dropping some weight. He had lab work done last week and an abdominal ultrasound looking for cancer, hyperthyroidism, or a heart-related cause. His heart looks great, the Atenolol dose he's on is working well. That leaves us with the potential diagnoses of intestinal lymphosarcoma (yuck, don't want that one!) or tapeworms that we haven't seen yet (much easier to fix).
As he's the primary groomer of all cats, we're first eliminating the parasite possibility with a dose of Droncit. Reweighing him in a couple of weeks will determine whether we need to proceed with an endoscopy to look for cancer.

Swope - (still working on his name!) had completely quit eating over the weekend, in spite of the antibiotics and pain meds he was taking for his mouth. We began subcutaneous fluids daily as well as force feeding. After much research, and talking with Dr. Booman, we opted to try a steroid injection, treating him as a stomatitis kitty. This is more of a "shotgun" approach to dealing with the problem, but we felt he just wouldn't do well at this point with anesthesia and the subsequent healing from a biopsy.
He got the injection Tuesday afternoon, and now he's feeling great! He's eating, drinking and feeling much more comfortable. There are potential side effects we have to watch for, but the benefits far outweigh them. If he continues to improve, he'll receive a second injection in a few weeks, then start on oral meds which will taper over the next month. He will also stay on antibiotics to combat infection too.

He's Got A Hearty Appetite...

And a pretty big mouth too! This is Ballou quietly requesting his dinnertime meal (not!) Most of the kitties start asking for dinner about 3:30-4:00 in the afternoon, and dinner is at 6pm, which never changes. I believe they're hoping I forget someday and maybe feed twice!

It took Ballou a whole week to figure out the routine, he chimes in during the early afternoon requests, then like everyone else, waits till later. I still don't have pictures yet of his post-meal bath time, he gets embarrassed easily!

A New Face With An Ouchy Problem!

This sweet face belongs to Swope, a kitty first on the euthanasia list at the Grayson County Humane Society in Kentucky. He arrived in California last week on Monday evening, and I picked him up Tuesday afternoon. This is his first photo opportunity since he's been here.

How'd he get cross-country? Does he know where the cheap gas prices are? Does he have a secret transporter device? Kentucky Beth (there are 2 Beths - 1 in Kentucky, 1 in Florida) and I have been e-mailing back and forth about this guy trying to figure out what's going on with him. I told her if there was ever an opportunity for him to come to California, he'd be welcome here. She found one! It turns out that her family friends Robert and Carla had a direct flight from Nashville to Los Angeles, so Swope packed his bags for a whirl-wind day of adventure! They kept him overnight until we could meet the next day so he could come home to the sanctuary.

Swope has inflamed gum tissue and a tongue ulcer that makes it really difficult to eat. He's a senior citizen by all accounts, with a (low) estimated age of 15 years old. He's had lab work and a cardiac ultrasound since he's been here to make sure it's safe for him to have anesthesia ~ and he can!

He's pretty handsome, isn't he? He's not particularly attached to his name either ~ any ideas for a new name?

Wow It's Warm!

Here's wishing everyone cool summer breezes as the weather continues to heat up across the country. At an unseasonable (and unreasonable) 112 degrees today, I found myself praying to the rain gods while trying hard to keep everyone cool. All critters fared pretty well, with the Cabana kitties getting the worst of the weather (if I just had a fan big enough to cool the entire outdoors!) All of the dogs and most of the Cabana cats received cooling baths this afternoon, and the only complaint came from Hot Rod, who thought that was the dumbest idea I'd ever come up with!

How Can Someone This Cute...

Cause such an uproar that dinner is delayed? (Only by a couple of hours!)

Scooter had a rectal prolapse happen late this afternoon, probably an hour or so before dinner tonight. He had an emergency visit to our veterinarian Dr. Booman (who fortunately was available) and we managed to "put everything back" and put in a purse-string suture. This allows stool to pass, but should keep the bowel inside where it belongs.

Scooter will be on antibiotics and subcutaneous fluids for several days. He's also now moved in to an extra large dog crate in the kitchen (where he spent many days as a kitten) so he can be closely monitored and receive 6 small meals a day (he's hatin' that part!) He'll have to have an x-ray or ultrasound in the next 24 hours to make sure that he doesn't have an intussusception, a serious condition in which the bowel telescopes inside of itself.

We're also discussing surgery for him also. This is, unfortunately, the third time this has happened, and the problem is incrementally worse each time. The surgical fix is an abdominal surgery to go in and actually tack the bowel to the abdominal wall so it physically stays in place. With his deformities, general anesthesia and surgery are an especially big concern. We'll keep you updated as we know more information.

A Boy Named Ballou

This handsome boy, Ballou, arrived late this afternoon after a long journey with his rescuer Beth. Their adventure began very early this morning in Florida ~ yes, Ballou has now traveled coast-to-coast, making friends and racking up those "frequent flyer" miles! Thanks to Beth, the folks at Delta airlines, and Beth's friend Paul, Ballou's adventure to his forever home is now complete.

Ballou looks like pretty much any other handsome black cat you would meet, that is, until you watch him eat. Due to an accident earlier in his life, part of his tongue was amputated, leaving him unable to groom himself or eat mashed up canned food (he needs the can shape so he can grab it to eat it!) His forever home in Florida turned out not to be the case, and Feline Friends has been working hard to place him during the heat of kitten season. When asked if he could live here if they could get him here, I said "Why not?" (Maybe Phoenix would consider grooming him instead of herself!)

He's pretty shy, and I'm sure trying to figure out what the last 24 hours we're all about, so here's a picture of him before he left Florida, contentedly "making biscuits" with his paws. I hope that with some time, he will learn there are many friends here who can help him stay clean!

Visitors!

It was a warm yet exciting afternoon for the animals today. One of our Friends of the Sanctuary stopped by to visit, meet the animals, and best of all, deliver chicken jerky treats! Thank you, D.C., the dogs are still wagging their tails!

Thanks For Your Patience...

Our phone troubles are over and you may now leave a message if you need to!

Phone Troubles...

If you've tried to leave a message for us at the sanctuary over the last several days, we're having phone troubles, which should be resolved by tomorrow. If you call our phone number, it will let you know how to reach us. Thanks for your patience!

Fidelity Leaves Us...

But will forever remain in our hearts. Our "Head Dog in Charge of Cats" lost her battle with kidney failure and chronic sinusitis, and passed away at home last night. She was surrounded by her human, canine, and yes, even some of her feline family. The picture above is one of our last trips to the Del Mar dog beach, where she introduced Luna to the ocean and swimming!

She also leaves behind a large void in the daily sanctuary operations, which now takes 3 dogs to fill ~ Maverick, our Aussie, is now in charge of cats, Luna is Sanctuary Ambassador, and Quincy is in charge of keeping me out of trouble.

This morning, as I went out to care for the Cabana Kitties, I noticed all of the Hibiscus I planted along their yard was blooming ~ proof to me that "Diddle" (her nickname) is still watching over all of us, especially her kitties!

San Diego County Fair Pics

Here, finally, are our pictures from this year's booth at the San Diego County Fair. This was taken before the fair opened on Saturday. We had an excellent location near the entrance to this new building, so Luna, pictured in this photo with me, spent a long weekend as Sanctuary Ambassador. She and I had a 12 hour shift, including the early morning set-up. I really thought she'd be exhausted after such a long day, so Scooter took a bath in preparation to work on Sunday. When Sunday morning came, Luna was at the door, ready to go ~ sorry Scooter, how could I say no? This was a wonderful weekend, with the opportunity to share the sanctuary's purpose, stories of the animals, and to answer questions about special needs animals. To those who we met ~ thank you, it was a pleasure!
Special thanks to Sandra, the sanctuary's treasurer, as she and her Aussie Jake spent almost all day of both days helping out in the booth. As a large wind came through the building on Saturday, she even caught the display before the entire row of booths collapsed! Luna thought Jake was a pretty handsome guy too (he's pictured in the crate taking a nap). Both dogs got to see chinchillas for the first time too, which provided endless entertainment!

Looking For A Weekend Outing?

Stop by and visit Luna on Saturday and Scooter on Sunday at the San Diego County Fair! It's a fun way to stay cool along the coast!

We will post pictures early next week!

Now He's Got A Fan Club!

Scooter expects fan mail any day now! And he tells me he'll read and reply to every letter, signing it "Scooter, GHAS Ambassador". Scooter and I, along with Dr. Booman, our regular veterinarian (and my boss!) hit the road Friday night to do a presentation for a troop of Junior and Senior Girl Scouts in Oceanside. Dr. Booman spoke about animal laws, environmental hazards and careers with animals. I, on the other hand, had laryngitis, so Scooter did most of the talking! We told the girls about the sanctuary and its variety of residents. Scooter demonstrated his charm; they were surprised he doesn't expect sympathy, he just wants to have a chance at life (and to play!), just like all of the animals here.

This is just the start to our educational outreach programs. There may be no living with Scooter, now that he's a star!

Road Trip!

Look for Scooter, Luna and myself at the San Diego County Fair Pet Care Center on Saturday, June 17, and Sunday, June 18.

We are hitting the road to spread the word about the joys of living with senior and handicapped pets, and offer ideas and resources for people who live with pets in their "golden years".

Come by and introduce yourself as you enjoy the 2006 fair!