Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Rest in Peace, Soldier

Just wanted to let you know that Soldier passed onto doggie heaven this morning/overnight. When we woke up he had passed on in his sleep. I must say I was rather relieved because we have been discussing euthanizia due to his difficulty in even getting up and walking lately and I was having a very hard time knowing when to make that decision. We gave him a proper burial this morning in our pet cemetary and there were many tears present. He was special and will be missed greatly. One of our personal dogs had really connected with Soldier and used to sleep him, and he seemed very sad this morning.

Thank you for all of your support, it means so much to us and to Soldier. I know he is up in doggy heaven smiling down on us and I am sure he is glad to longer be in pain.

Thanks again for everything.

Amanda Johnson
Rural Iowa Animal Rescue

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Soldier struggles

Just wanted to give you an update on Soldier. We have had a few tough decisions to make over the past couple weeks, and have decided to not allow Soldier to be adopted out. He will live the rest of his life with us.

His hip displaysia has gotten worse and the vet felt that at his age he would not make it through the surgery, so he is on a pain killer for that. We ordered some tests for him to see what was making him so sluggish and he has liver disease. He is on cortecosteroids (sorry if the spelling is incorrect) and an antibiotic to help fight the liver disease. I should have seen the signs of liver disease in him earlier, but he did not get real sluggish until the last couple of weeks.

He continues to live in the house and we have set up an area that he now uses to go potty if he has to. It has a plastic sheeting underneath it and he seems to understand to go potty there when needed. We have started giving him some gatorade and pedialyte daily to help keep him hydrated.

He is a sweet boy and we did not want him to have the stress of moving homes throughout this so we decided to just keep him with us for the rest of his life. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers as he fights this disease.

Thank you so much for your support!

Amanda Johnson
Rural Iowa Animal Rescue
Rowley, Iowa 52329

Monday, February 9, 2009

Update on Megan & Piper sponsored at Home for Life

MEGAN
Dear Friends of Flicka,
Thank you for your sponsorship of Megan and Piper at Home for Life. Enclosed are recent photos we hope you will enjoy.

Thank you for your patience as we restructure the sponsorship program. We are trying again to get letters with photos out to you once every 4-6 weeks. Staffing turnover and shortages at HFL, plus two major special events this fall have made keeping up with photos a challenge in recent months when we had to refocus on the basics and give our primary attention to keeping the sanctuary's animals safe, warm, fed, exercised and well. We apologize for not being able to send current photos and thank you for your loyal support during what has been a very trying time for HFL. However, we believe that the changes in our staff have been for the best and we look forward to 2009 with a renewed investment in our mission and dedication to the work of the sanctuary. Several talented volunteer photographers have signed on to help us with the sponsorship program and are committed to helping us keep up with the photos of the animals each month. We are excited to be able to share their work and interest in helping the sanctuary and our animals with you. However, this month, you will all have to bear with us as I took the photos with my 35 mm camera. We hope you still enjoy the pictures!

Happy New Year from Home for Life!
Sincerely,
Lisa LaVerdiere Executive Director

PIPER

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Bruce has been adopted


Bruce was the senior dog I found in St. Cloud whose time was nearly up at the pound. RAGOM had missed him because he was listed as a yellow lab instead of a golden retriever. We were lucky to save him and now he has found his home. Read his whole story on the RAGOM website.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Keeping Soldier Warm!

NOTE FROM SOLDIER'S FOSTER MOM:
A big thank you to everyone who made it possible for Soldier to get his coats! He stays so much warmer on them! I attached a couple pictures of him in his outside coat! The velcro wouldn't stick when it was below zero temperatures so we were safety pinning it, but now that the temperatures have warmed up it works great! He continues to show signs of hip displaysia despite being in the warmth of the house, so we will be making a vet trip tomorrow to see if there is something else I can do to help him out with this. He is a sweet dog and deserves so much better than what he had before coming to the rescue. Thanks again everyone for your help! It is GREATLY appreciated!

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Rescue organizations need support in many ways. I help abandoned animals find loving homes. You can, too. . .