Meet Carissa Anne

Welcome to Rescue, Carissa Anne. Carissa is a Greek word meaning “beloved”, which she has become to everyone who has met her. She was a back yard dog with a beautiful red coat that had not seen a brush for the 6 years of her life. There were mats the size of a fist, so close to the skin they had caused irritation.

When she came in from a local shelter to Culver Palms Animal Hospital, we noticed she was favoring her right rear leg. X-rays showed an old cruciate ligament tear that had never been repaired. The pain of this tear was made even more intense by the fact that Carissa weighs 104 pounds, about 30 pounds more than she should.

Carissa Anne is a sweet, loving girl. Her mobility is so limited now, that the walkers take her to a fenced grassy area just outside Culver Palms, for fresh air and petting. She will sit between their legs, facing them, with her paw on their knee asking for petting. If her paw comes down, and they stop petting, the paw is immediately back on their knee for more petting. She smiles into their eyes the entire time.

Her surgery is scheduled for July 28. There will be updates as Carissa Anne begins her recovery.

Baldwin doing very well in foster care

Baldwin continues to gain weight and is now at 53 pounds. The photo of the top of his head shows what color his hair really is. His hair when he came in had been bleached out from laying in the sun for a long time. He is having fun at his foster home, playing ball, and just hanging out with his friends. Baldwin is a great dog and really enjoys human contact. We are currently planning his neuter for the first week of August.

Baldwin's 2nd heartworm test is negative

Baldwin is doing much better and is now in a foster home. He is very slowly gaining weight after being fed 3 times a day at the vets. We have run the initial tests again and now find out that the heartworm positive is now negative, and the Ehrlichia positive is now negative. I am so happy about these results. We also tested him for EPI which is a problem with the dog absorbing the nutrients from their food. That came back negative, also. He is currently receiving Vitamin B12 shots weekly and being fed 3 times a day. He eats very rapidly so is now using a special bowl to slow him down. Baldwin is a wonderful, sweet, great with all size dogs, boy. He still needs work on his house breaking, and still needs to be neutered when he has gained enough weight.

Baldwin tests positive for heartworm

This morning I drove to visit with Baldwin.  These pictures were taken that morning.  What a sweet, dear boy and oh so happy in spite of the physical condition he is in.  He is now walking - not distances, but at least walking outside to go potty and sniff the bushes.  His tail wags all the time and he is so thankful for the good care that he is getting and all the food - wow 3 big meals a day, every day.  We got some of his tests back and while he is not positive for Ehrlichia, he is Heartworm positive.  The reports said to do a retest again in a week or so to see if it still comes back positive before starting treatment.  This is very hard on the dog and he has to be kept very quiet and calm during the initial treatments.   We still need to get weight on him before this can be started.

Baldwin update

Last night I received a call from the veterinary clinic where Baldwin was taken with their findings. The X-rays showed that nothing was broken and there was a slight limp on his right front leg but nothing was broken. I was very happy to hear that. We sent out bloodwork to verify the diagnosis of Ehrlichia and start treatment. He was able to walk on his own to go out and go potty but laid down several times before coming back in to the clinic. He is very weak but thankfully is eating well and drinking on his own. I will be going to visit with him this week and get updates plus more photos. Hopefully, he will start putting on weight which we will monitor.

Meet Baldwin

Baldwin, estimated age 4 years, came in to rescue today. He was terribly underweight at 43.6 pounds, covered with fleas and ticks, and had trouble walking. Baldwin is a very sweet boy, good with other dogs, and so lucky to now be in rescue where we can take care of him.

Merry is adopted!

This is a very BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!!! Merry has officially been adopted by Alexis, Don and Deborah of Laguna Niguel. This girl has come a long, long way. I want to first thank everyone who donated generously to her medical care and rehab. She came to us with a very guarded prognosis and thru her determination, lots of help from her foster mom, Katie, and fabulous personality, she is walking again and enjoying life.

I will start with the phone call that I received from the OC shelter that this girl had been hit by a car, could not walk, had a fractured pelvis and was in pain. She needed help and immediately. I got approval to take her in to rescue and then called two volunteers - Nobuko and Donna to ask if they could help bring her in to rescue. This was not going to be the usual shelter pickup. Nobuko had to drive and Donna had to sit in the back with her to keep her still all the way from the shelter to San Clemente for assessment. I ran up there from my home to be at the vet's when she came in. I am so thankful that Dr. Scibelli, Dr. Gertmenian and Dr. Murray were all there that day to give their input on her care and prognosis. There were heads shaking and worried faces, but her tail was wagging all the time. We said give it a try and then we worked out the plan.  Thank you Nobuko and Donna, first for being there to help transport, and for spending time with her initially.

I would like to next thank Dr. Scibelli, Dr. Gertmenian, and Dr. Murray and all the staff at Pacific Coast Veterinary Care for Merry's treatment, love, and time - 2 months - spent there while recuperating. She had a private room with a baby gate located where she could see the comings and goings all day. No kennel for this girl. She also had people bringing her bones and treats so she knew already how to 'work the crowd.'

I now would like to send a tremendous thanks to Katie and her family for fostering Merry from February until just this month. Katie spend so much time with her, took her to her twice weekly rehab sessions, drove her back and forth from Orange to San Clemente for rechecks, and took her to work daily, as you can see in the photo. With her new family, she has the same routine and goes to work daily with them. Thanks also to Donna for completing the home visit. Thanks also to Bruce and Cindy for going up to Merry's rehab sessions and taking these great photos.

Thanks, again, to everyone who gave of their time, donations and love to help Merry. She truly is our Christmas girl.

Carole