Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

From our house to yours, all the best for 2011.

Brosa is 2 years old now!

This past Thursday, November 25th, Brosa quietly turned 2 years old.  On Monday, I decided since he was such a big boy now, it's time to start staying out of the crate in the daytime, and he has made me proud of him.  He'd previously had been out of the crate at most 5 or 6 hours unsupervised, and now, he can go the whole day.

Brosa's Auntie Lee Anne had already sent a gift to him, with strict instructions not to open it until his birthday; after I came home from work, it was celebration time!

 First you have to push the gift all around the kitchen floor because it smells so wonderful.

 Then you give it a really good sniff while mama opens the card.

 The front of the card

 The inside of the card:  "Happy Birfday, you little monkey!  Love your CB fam!"


They know us well!

 Gift #1 - a cute new Bandanna which he will wear proudly at a future rescue event.

 Jackpot!  Homemade cookies, a new rubber Chuck-it ball, and a beautiful new collar we were eying!

 Modeling the collar while waiting for one of the yummy cookies.

 Today was Santa Pix day for the SPCA - after our photo (at the end of this blog post), we went to Three Dog Bakery to buy a belated birthday treat (along with a "Good Dog!" treat for the pictures).  Brosa gets a Boxer Brownie.

 Delta and Oscar each get a Puppermint Lickety Split.

 Ready......... set...........

 OKAY!

 Oscar, ever the glutton, grabs all of his treat in his mouth and struggles with trying to break it up to swallow, lol!

 While Delta, ever the lady, politely licks her treat until it's all gone.

Taking his cue from the rat bastard, Brosa picks up his brownie and walks away with it, leaving a delightful mess all over the carpet!

And voila!  Today's Santa Pix photo taken at the Chapters store in Dartmouth Mic Mac Mall area.  We were the first in line today and got in and out before it got crazy!

This is my scanned photo - the actual digital photo, coming soon, will be much clearer.

Enjoy your Christmas season!

A new camera!

Gosh, I haven't been keeping this blog up!  Facebook is still my #1.

I splurged today and bought myself an entry-level SLR - the Nikon D3100 (Merry Christmas to me!).

It took about 90 minutes for the battery to charge before I could finally get my greedy little hands on it.  Here are some of the first photos.... Brosa was a very willing (and photogenic!) subject, while Delta and Oscar were less so. 

Oscar desperately needs a return visit to the groomer - was trying to hold out until next month, to get him cleaned up nice  before the Santa pix, but I may have to cave, and then do a return touch-up.  :)

Bark in the Park

On Saturday, September 25, 2010 from 11-3, the 1st Annual "Bark in the Park" was held at Seaview Park in Halifax.  The Bark in the Park replaces the "Dog Jog" that was held for so many years to fund-raise for the Metro Branch SPCA.

The forecast called for a mixed bag of weather; we didn't get our sunshine, but at least it didn't full out rain either.  The temperature was perfect for the day and especially for the dogs!

Brosa, of course, went with me.  There was live music, snacks, a bbq, a disc-dog demonstration by Lietash Canine Academy (Brosa wasn't interested today, so we didn't take part).  Bobby Mac from Q104 FM radio was the MC for the day - he did a great job, and when he wasn't on stage, he was meeting everyone with his own 3 dogs.  He met Brosa as well, and seemed quite taken by him.

The adorable adoptables started the event as they were led down the path by a piper!

There were many vendors set up, including House of Dogs.  Brosa was in heaven here!

There were dogs of all shapes and sizes, and came in single-breeds or mixed breeds.

Here, one particularly playful Great Dane adored Brosa.  So beautiful - I love the charcoal grey colour of his coat too!

This is Lisa Blackburn-Patterson's Wheaton Terrier, Dexter the Wonderdog!

I absolutely adored this French Bulldog and wanted to bring him home. :)

This is Pocket, our friend Gail's newest family member.  Pocket is a pit-bull-type dog who was rescued from Ontario.  Bred to either fight or be bait; she's not dog-aggressive at all and so they planned to breed her.  Somehow she was rescued and brought to Nova Scotia.  She is only about 7 months old!  She will have a fabulous life now, with Brosa as a friend.

At the end of the day, we head on home.  Brosa is a good dog who stays in the back of the car even without a barrier in place.  He was struggling hard to stay awake; his eyes drifting off to sleep even while sitting up.  His chin is keeping him from falling down, ha ha!

Sleepy boy!

This collection was the contents of the swag bag given to participants who donated/collected $20 or more.

All in all, it was a pretty terrific day thanks to all of the Volunteers, the SPCA Metro Branch staff, and to all of the vendors and sponsors.  Most especially to all of the participants who brought their lovely dogs to socialize and play.

The event raised approximately $22,000 - a phenomenal amount!

September 2010

Goodness!  More than a month since I checked in last??  Just a quick update.

Delta's corneal ulcer is finally on the mend - we have completed all the medication (refills were required) and she's looking really good - so against my inner-conflict, we're assuming all is well now (but that inner turmoil tells me I should buy just one more bottle of drops to make sure it's well and healed!).

Oscar is still pretty weak in his hindquarters and still limping, so I'll soon be making an appointment with Pawsitive Action/Shelly for a checkup and see what is going on.

Brosa has his competition number now from the Canadian Disc Dog Association.  There is a trial in Truro on October 3 that I'd hoped to sign him up for, but he's just not ready.  The little turd would rather socialize with his frisbee than return it back to me, ha ha!

Until next time!

Bad News/Good News

The bad news is that Delta's corneal-ulcer has flared up again and we're back up to treating it with drops 3 times a day.  She is also exhibiting some discomfort and is rubbing her eye, so we may have to add some numbing drops as well (and perhaps make her wear an e-collar to prevent the rubbing).  My poor little girl. :(

The good news is Oscar's staples have been removed and Dr. C says the repair to his cruciate appears to be successful.  I'm to call back in 2 weeks to give him an update on Oscar's mobility, since it's still not great, but I suspect he's tremendously weakened and needs time to build up his strength again.

To be continued.....

Delta Update

Whew, good news!  Delta had her 1-week check up tonight re: her corneal-ulcer, and the inflammation is going down... she's on the mend before it turned bad!

She gets another recheck in 2 weeks, unless things take a turn for the worse and I'm to get her back in asap.

Her drops have now been reduced to every 12-hours (instead of every 8-hours), and she still has her antibiotic to finish.

This is the first time in a little while that I've left the vet's office with a big smile.  :)  Cross fingers things continue to improve for Delta!

Lori Foster's T-Shirt Project

One of my favourite authors, Lori Foster, had an idea to create "The T-Shirt Project" on Facebook; she sent out 300 t-shirts to her fans throughout North America, and other countries, in the hopes that she would receive photos back from those fans wearing a t-shirt, and have a photo to represent each state and province.

So here we are, representing Nova Scotia - rather than just pose in the shirt at home, I wanted to choose a landmark that is clearly recognizable as Nova Scotia.  I would have loved to have gone to Peggy's Cove, but the timing wasn't there.

The Clearwater Seafood sign with the huge lobster is a good choice, I think!  I sent Lori some links to interesting facts about our province as well.

Hope you enjoy the photo as much as I enjoyed taking the dogs out to do this!  Thanks to my friend Angela for being our photographer today.

Not again!

Sigh, when it rains, it pours!  Poor Delta had a vet visit tonight which confirmed that she has another corneal-ulcer (in her right eye this time; the one from January-March 2009 was in her left eye).

Hopefully it has been caught early enough that the RIGHT treatment will work quickly for her and not drag on like it did the first time around.

Sadly, this seems to indicate Delta may be prone to getting them.  My sweet girl is so patient with me with all that I do to her, so at least treating will not be as stressful as it could be.

This was Delta in the healing stage of her previous ulcer (February 10, 2009):

Oscar update - Sunday August 1, 2010

As you can probably guess, Oscar was a pretty sad little boy last night (he actually hasn't been himself since Thursday night when Brosa bounced on him).  We had a very quiet day today, as I was quite exhausted by it all as well, and Oscar slept most of the afternoon away.

He woke up feeling pretty perky by supper time, which is fabulous news.

Tonight's supper (for me) is bbq'd chicken kabobs with a side of garden salad.

Never think that this ordeal has put Oscar off food - the Mooch is alive and well, and begging for chicken at my feet.

He brought the others running as well.

Warrior's Story

Warrior is a Boxer who never had a chance to find his fur-ever home.  Warrior died this week on Wednesday, July 28, 2010.

Some of you know of a wonderful dog whom we called Warrior. Warrior was found at large in June and no one ever bothered to claim him. He was thin and dehydrated but so sweet. We were asked if we could take him in and a wonderful foster home agreed to care for him. Warrior had some fear issues concerning small spaces and being enclosed. He also had very little muscle strength in his body, particularly in his hind legs. X-rays, blood workup, and other tests revealed, too, that Warrior had some kidney and liver damage. With extra supplements, lots of good food, an exercise regime, and an endless supply of love and support, Warrior began to improve. He was neutered and on the road to being eligible for adoption.

Unfortunately, Warrior suffered from 'gastric dilatation and volvulus syndrome', commonly known as bloat. Warrior's foster rushed him right to the veterinarian where x-rays diagnosed him and he was rushed to life saving surgery as soon as it was possible. Warrior did not recover as quickly as she had hoped and, unfortunately, 2 days later, Warrior passed away. There was no explanation for Warrior suffering from this condition such as the typical factors of excess eating or drinking, swelling foods, excessive exercise. This happened first thing in the morning, after he was sleeping all night. The vet acknowledges that with Warrior's other concerns he could have had another complication but we'll never know. Poor Warrior was never able to find his new home but we were glad to let him know that he deserved love, like all dogs should have.

So, please, make yourselves aware of the signs of 'bloat'. Warrior's foster's quick thinking gave him a chance but even with this and a short trip to a vet, Warrior could not be saved. Here is a reference chart you should keep handy:
http://www.gdca.org/Bloat%20Chart.pdf

Although we would do what we can for any dog, the extensive cost of Warrior's treatment and emergency surgery has halted us from this. His total cost has totalled almost $4700 that we just don't have. Although we've been lucky to have a great list of applicants for most available dogs we do still have others in care who are what we call 'permanent fosters' because of health ailments which makes them unadoptable.

We've had to switch gears and go full steam ahead with fundraising now. We've added a store to our website with collars, hoodies and raffle tickets for a beautiful oil painting. We would appreciate any help and, as always, are thankful for your support.


You can donate directly using the PayPal "Make a Donation" button found on this page, or visit the store above.  In addition, FaceBook users can join the group page Collars for Critters, and take part in the current collar auction, which also includes the very wonderful Oomaloo toys!



yours in rescue,
Boxer Rescue of Atlantic Canada
www.boxerrescueatlanticcanada.com

Oscar update again, again....

Sadly, we've had a little bit of a setback...

Those of you who read this blog and my FB updates know that Brosa is a bit bouncy (and should have been named Tigger):

Tigger: [singing] The wonderful thing about tiggers / Is tiggers are wonderful things / Their tops are made out of rubber / Their bottoms are made out of springs / They're bouncy, trouncy, flouncy, pouncy fun, fun, fun, fun, fun / But the most wonderful thing about tiggers is I'm the only one / IIIII'm the only one!
[growls]

But I digress....

Last night, after arriving home from work and taking all 3 pups outside for their nature-calls, Brosa, as usual, bounced up on me, and unfortunately came down on Oscar's back.  Oscar, who had been doing phenomenally well all week, let out a yelp and from there on, I could see a regression in the good progress he'd made.

This morning was his scheduled appointment to remove his stitches with Dr. Carnegy, who unfortunately was quite busy and running far behind and therefore wasn't able to see us.  It was decided to let one of the technicians remove his stitches, and because of what happened last night, he was given another two rounds of therapeutic laser.  He was a very good boy, and even wanted to play with a sweet little Dobie puppy who came in.

After our return home, I got him settled into his crate while I went out for a few hours.  I came home to discover he had been licking at his incision so much that it opened up a bit.

You can't really tell in this photo as I didn't want to fool with it too much.

Minutes later, off we go to the Metro Animal Emergency Clinic.







Sure enough, the very nice (and good looking!) Dr. Alex Hare, the doctor on call, confirmed that I was not over-reacting and that he required 6 staples to close this back up. 

Poor FrankenOscar!











And if that was not bad enough, I've noticed in the past few trips in the car that Oscar is beginning to suffer some anxiety.  Just as we left MAEC, he started open-mouth panting, then crying, then outright squealing, which he has never done before except for when he was high on a drug he was given once upon a time in order to cut his nails.  I did an illegal U-turn at Wright Avenue and sped back to the clinic.  Dr. Hare also believes it's his anxiety as the sedative they gave him is not strong enough to cause any adverse reactions.

Poor buddy - we can't stop going for therapeutic laser treatment when he needs it (and eventual staple removal), but I will have to start clicker-training drives to be a positive thing again for him.  He used to always love drives.  This little guy (no bad nick-names for the time being) is breaking my heart!

Oscar update again

One more day and Oscar's sutures come out!  It's amazing how fast animals recover from this sort of thing - last night he took me by surprise when he jumped up on the couch & loveseat, not once, but twice!

The attached video is from 26 July 2010, walking and bouncing as if nothing was ever wrong with him.



And here he is getting his therapeutic laser treatment to help speed healing of the tissue, etc.

Oscar update

Well, it's done!  On Wednesday, July 21, 2010, Oscar underwent a cruciate repair surgery on his rear left leg, along with dentistry.

He came out of it with flying colours!  It was a very routine surgical repair, and the dental resulted in no extractions - everything was very healthy.

I picked Oscar up after supper around 7 p.m. and after paying the bill (aka the bathroom that won't get done this year), Oscar led the way out of the back area, sporting a very spiffy lime-green bandage.

He was very glad to get back home again!

Last night (Thursday, July 22), his lower leg/foot was quite swollen; about 2 times the size in fact.  I was very concern because obviously the bandage is now too tight.  I made a couple of snips in the bandage around the foot to help give some relief and a while later there seemed to be SOME improvement.  Not quite enough to alleviate my worry.

This morning, his foot was about the same, so a return visit to the vet was made first thing.  They agreed that the bandage needed to be removed and in fact, should come off today anyway.  As well, he was treated with 3 sessions of therapeutic laser, with the next session booked for Tuesday.

And here is a photo of his leg, with 11 stitches.  It doesn't appear to be bothering him too much, although there was a point where he was licking it a fair bit.  If that continues, he'll be wearing an e-collar!

Meet 'n' Greet Bark-B-Que

On Sunday, 18 July 2010, a fundraiser was held in Flynn Park, Halifax, NS, to raise funds for Animal Rescue Coalitions.  ARC are well-known here in the Atlantic Provinces for rescuing, fostering and finding fur-ever families for homeless animals (not just dogs!).

The Meet 'n' Greet Bark-B-Que (Facebook event link) was a small, but fun gathering!  It was a scorcher of a day today, but the event was planned in a lovely shaded area of Flynn Park.

Brosa came with me of course - photos follow!

Oh, a PUPPY!  Brosa has fun playing with this very beautiful Weimeraner puppy.

More puppies!  This pittie loved to pounce on Brosa.

And just look at THIS adorable fella!  This is Brosa's pal Maximo, all grown up!  Max's mom Janet brought him out.

The lovely Miss Nells, the most beautiful Leonberger around!  Nellie's mom Heather brought her today.

These 2 cute Doxie's are Nellie's cousins.

There was live music to serenade us as well.

Joan's regal old lady, Buttercup, working hard to keep everyone away from her mom!  Joan also blogged about the day.

Gail's boy, Bullet, turned 13 years old today, complete with cake from Three Dog Bakery.  Happy Birthday Bullet!

Even with shade, it's hot work being a social boy!

Brosa, taking a break before we head home.