Cold! And good news for Caramel!

Cold, cold, cold! Is winter ever going to end!?!

Okay - confession time. I hate winter. It's true.

Although I love living in Canada and I think we have a great many good things going for us - I really, really hate being cold!

This winter has seemed particularly long and cold - but maybe that's just me.

Because I am so bothered by the cold, I absolutely hate seeing animals outside. I have a cat that visits my property. I think he was a former pet who was dumped because he is wearing a collar. He seems too thin to be an indoor cat who is just having a daily wander. Plus, I have seen him at various times of day. I have been feeding him, and trying to catch him all winter but he is shy and wants nothing to do with me. Yet!

This week we took in a small beagle mix, whose family was leaving him tied up outside for long hours on end. Poor Caramel has very little coat. Certainly not the type of dog who could cope with being left outside! I asked a friend who lives much closer to his former home, if she would be willing on standby to take him quickly if his people finally agreed to let him go. Often in cases like this people will waffle about giving the dog up. Someone close who can react quickly is a definite asset!

Anyway, they finally said he could go - so she was there right away to take him in and foster.

Caramel had been tied up outside or living in a tiny wire crate when he was in the house. He is just a young fellow - only 9 months - but has had 3 owners already in his short life.

I am sure that there will be issues, but so far he is doing well. He adores her other silly beagle and the two love to romp in the snow together. This is good!

Tired puppies = good puppies in my book! ;o)

I got the most fabulous news later in the week - she has decided to keep Caramel.

Lucky, lucky boy! Although it means (probably) one less foster place for me to use, what a great place for him to be. He will be warm and safe, have people and dogs to play with and love and to teach him the proper social skills.

Way to go Caramel! (And thank you Andrea!)

Stay warm!
Shelly and crew =^..^=

Sometimes it hurts to care...

What a week!
Although things started off well, we had tragedy by the weekend.

Because kitty adoptions have been going well, I took in a few new friends this week.

Bunka has a new buddy named Bruno - who looks just like her but a bit bigger. He is about 5 months old and the two of them LOVE to wrestle and play. It is totally adorable!

Bruno came with his buddy Dexy - a gorgeous, gentle all black fellow about 7 months young. Sadly, he had to have a front leg amputated due to an injury that happened while he was a stray. Poor bub!

It doesn't seem to slow him down though, and he even balances and uses his remaining front foot to scoop litter over when he is finished his "business". He is such a cuddler - he has won me over already! ;o)

I will have to get pictures of these new guys up on the website soon. They are lovely!

I also took in a kitten that had been born to a feral mom. The lady who saw them had already caught one baby that was left behind by mom as she was moving her kittens around. That little guy went to the vet and was eventually adopted. This one she caught a couple of weeks ago and has had indoors. (We are thinking of naming him "Frazier) He is gorgeous - soft, soft long fur and all black except for a bit of white on his chest. He is gorgeous, but needs a worming, antibiotics and to be fattened up before he can be vaccinated. He is learning to trust, so he will be a bit of a project for awhile I suspect.

On Friday, I had a call from a friend of mine who is a teacher in Toronto. One of her students had mentioned that they were getting a puppy and would therefore be throwing their kitten out into the street. Yikes! Of course I agreed to take him, and Smokey arrived on Saturday morning.

On Friday, Cameo went to the vet for her spay. She was an 18 month shepherd mix (maybe crossed with corgi?) who looked like a shepherd pup with very short legs. Adorable! And she had a sweet disposition to match. Although we have done hundreds of spay/neuters over the years and they almost always go according to the book, this was to be an exception.

Cameo stopped breathing on the table. The vet was shocked and surprised and couldn't really tell what on earth was happening. A quick xray revealed something really bizarre - Cameo's diaphragm was torn and most of her abdominal organs were sitting up in her chest.

There were adhesions - her liver was wrapped around and actually attached to her heart! It seems like Cameo had suffered some major trauma a few months ago - perhaps being hit by a car? Although there were no outward signs, internally she was very strangely organized and she had healed in a very odd way.

This was emergency surgery now and a second, specialist was called in. After 4 hours of surgery things seemed to be all back in place and Cameo was allowed to wake up. Although she seemed to be recovering fine, she took a bad turn on Saturday, and despite the best efforts of her vets, she passed away near midnight on Saturday night.

Rest in peace gentle girl.

Please give your furry friends an extra hug today.

You never know what life will bring from one minute to the next.

Shelly and crew

=^..^=