Dirty Dog Bath.

It's time to wash the winter out of your dog and get a jump start on spring! Or is it summer? I don't even know anymore. The recent weather has confused me and my closet.

In any case, head down to Critter Jungle today for some sun, fun, and help a great rescue while you're at it! All proceeds go to New Beginnings Pet Rescue.

The waiting game.

Nelson has been adopted!

.. Or at least, that's how this blog post was supposed to begin.

A family and their schnauzer met Nelson last week, fell in love, and wanted to adopt him. Adoption papers were printed, vet records collected, and plans were made to sign the adoption papers Thursday evening. Unfortunately things took an unfortunate turn when we woke up Thursday morning to a sick schnauzer.

At some point throughout the night, while everyone was sleeping, Nelson threw up. When we woke up in the morning we tried to coax him out of bed and he wouldn't budge. This is highly unusual since Nelson's favorite time of the day is waking up because it's breakfast time. He frequently gets out bed and hops around with joy like a kangaroo, so for him not to move even an inch was worrisome.

Randie helped Nelson to his feet and he managed to walk one step before throwing up. He walked two more steps, peed on the spot like a zombie schnauzer, then he fell against the wall. 

We hightailed it to Bells Corners Animal Hospital and they squeezed Nelson in because they're awesome like that. The vet confirmed that Nelson likely had a seizure Wednesday night, and there were some indications that he'd had a history of seizures. They did a complete exam, took some blood, and then gave Nelson an injection to help with the nausea. We'll find out the results in a few days and hopefully that will give us an idea of what we're dealing with. 

Without any past medical history due to Nelson being a stray we've been in the dark the past few months about his quirks, and the first vet we saw (at a different vet's office) for Nelson's initial exam said his unsteadiness was due to luxating patella, but then said it was cataracts and he couldn't see well. I'd had a feeling since the very beginning that it was more, but I don't have an expensive diploma hanging on my wall so what do I know. Suffice it to say, Nelson will continue to receive care at the Bells Corners Animal Hospital.

Nelson's adoption has been put on hold until we figure out what is going on with him. I would feel terrible putting him under the additional stress of going to a new home, and depending on what the results are, he may just stay with us. It's all a waiting game right now.

On the positive side, Nelson's spirits are up today and he ate breakfast this morning. I took him for a short walk afterwards -- he walked at a snails pace -- and he's spent the rest of the day sleeping. We'll likely spend the long weekend cuddling and watching movies.

I can't think of anything better, personally.

Hanging with Mr. Cooper.

When you're a foster parent you have to get pretty creative to catch a potential adopter's eye. This includes the usual things like having professional photos taken of your foster monster (most photographers are willing to donate their time for a good cause) and posting a witty bio on Petfinder. And when that isn't enough, sometimes you have to dig deeper and find other resourceful ways to make your foster monster stand out from aaaall of the other dogs who are also waiting for their forever homes.   

One of the reasons I started this blog was to pimp out a so-called unadoptable dog (ahem, Snoopzilla) and I had hoped that with any luck, someone would fall in love with him -- quirks and all. Luckily for him, it worked. He scored the best home imaginable and was adopted just over two years ago on April 30, 2011 (happy belated rescue-versary my little cabbage).

Blogging is just one way, though.

Heather, a LOYAL Rescue Inc. foster mom, created this adorable adoption video for her foster dog Cooper. Cooper is a teeny tiny 8 year old poodle who was rescued from a freezing balcony in the middle of winter. He's tall, dark & handsome, trilingual, and a professional lap warmer. If Cooper was human, he'd be the perfect husband.

Take a look at Cooper's adoption video below, and then check out his Petfinder profile. 




Sharing is caring, so it would be super if you could spread the word that Cooper is looking for his forever home!

The magical healing powers of Polysporin.

My friend always used to say that if something went bump in the night, it wasn't ghosts or goblins -- it was Mel.

I'm the biggest klutz known to mankind. I walk into walls and doors (glass and screen). I'm constantly tripping down the stairs, burning myself, and if I'm near anything sharp, chances are I'm going to cut myself or anyone within arm's reach. My body is like a Dexter crime scene most days.

Despite all of the abuse my body has taken over the past three decades I have very few battle wounds thanks to my never-ending supply of Polysporin. In fact, I only have one scar (inherited after falling off a boulder at camp) and that was because Polysporin wasn't invented yet. You know, back when we had to walk six miles to school and back and didn't have the internets. But I digress..

When Nelson arrived in February part of his head looked like mashed up hamburger meat. Yes, isn't that delightful. He'd recently undergone surgery to remove a giant wart between his little palm tree lookin' ears and unfortunately due to lack of supervision and a cone of shame, he managed to rip out some stitches and the whole thing was infected by the time he arrived in our care. He was a mess.

Nelson's head was re-stitched during transport and at his vet visit two days later, the vet advised us that the stitches needed to stay in longer so he had more time to heal. And like a man after my own heart, he suggested that we apply Polysporin to it.

When asked if Nelson's head would ever look "normal" and if furs would re-grow, the vet couldn't say for sure. Well, it's been almost two and a half months since we brought this raggamuffin home with us so I'll let you be the judge.

February

The photo on the left was taken in early Feb, pre-surgery. The photo on the right was taken late Feb, post-surgery

March

April

May

Schnauzer perfection.

The canine vacuum.

Nelson wasn't interested in food when he first arrived. I remember Randie sitting by the patio doors (his "hiding" spot at the time) with this furry new stranger, hand feeding him.

It went on like this for a few days until we coaxed Nelson to the doggy dining room area, and Nelson bravely followed, finding his eating place beside Wookie. It's as though a light switch went off in his head and Nelson realized that he was (finally) welcome somewhere, because it was right around that time when he stopped wanting to spend all of his time in the backyard by himself, and instead, found a spot beside us on the couch.

As with Wookie, there are parts of me that wish I knew Nelson's story. What I do know, however, is that Nelson loves food now. He will eat whatever you put in front of him, and will stare longingly at food not placed in front of him, too.

"I'm just making sure nothing happens to your pizza..."

"How about you stop taking pictures and let me eat my lollipop already?"

Nelson was literally skin and bones when he arrived -- you could feel his spine and ribs when you pet him -- but he's put on some much needed weight and he's filled out nicely now. He's proud of his hour glass shape. I'm quite jealous over the fact that he gets to eat so much in an effort to gain weight. If only we all had that problem.