No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

 I guess the new furbabies didn't want to stay in the barn and were looking for a way out ... and tore the insulation in the barn in a few different places.

Thankfully we can patch those areas with the roll that we had over, and we are going to have to get some boards to cover the bottom so's they can't do it again. UGH! They also destroyed some of my  plants and pots. 

Sonny seems to be adjusting well, Bonny is still pretty much shut down around me BUT did allow my husband to pet her and, in fact, met him at the door just before we left. I'm thinking that, because she rode in his truck from the shelter, and he carried her into the barn, that she trusts him more than me at the moment, and that's ok. I just want her to feel safe and to start eating, drinking and acting normally so that she knows she is ok. And so that she will be ok. This will probably be a long process, but at least they are now around humans who will care for them.

We still have to find Mama her puppies and the other female though. I drove by the abandoned trailer that we think may possibly be where they were trapped at by Animal Control, but I didn't hear anything that would suggest they were there. They may have gone deeper into the woods/swamp to hide, and if that's the case, I hope they'll start coming back around, although it may take longer for Mama to start trusting me again.

This is Mama and the 2 missing puppies. They'd been coming regularly to the porch to eat, and I'd been worming them in the food, and giving them the daily Capstar flea treatment in ground beef meatballs. Not the greatest solution but one that was offering them some protection from fleas and worms since they wouldn't allow me to touch them, so I couldn't use topicals on them.

The female's face def looks like Mama so we're thinking maybe siblings. 

Monday update:

We've been so busy, I didn't get chance to finish or post this.

The past few days have been emotionally and physically draining BUT we have accomplished a lot. 

We had the bright idea of putting one of our goat pens inside the barn, and setting it up for Sonny and Bonny. They still have space but can't destroy the barn any more than they already have. They even tore a screen out of one window trying to get out. I'd thought the run of the barn would be less stressful, but it seems that Bonny is more relaxed in the smaller space. What did I know???

Mark and Levi, the lad who helps us out (what a Godsend he is!)

have walked them on leashes and we'll continue working on that. Sonny is really good but won't leave Bonny alone to do her business, so future walks will be with them separated a bit to give her space. She is still nervous, but is now eating (very thankful for that) and seems accepting of us. With everything we've done, she's never growled or anything, it's like she understands we're trying to help even if she may still be distrustful of humans. We'll be working on that.

I had asked on a local Facebook group if anyone had fencing panels so that we could make an enclosure for them outside to hang out in, while we are there. One kind lady paypaled me $300! Blew me away. Mark has gone for Jury Duty Selection this morning, but when he gets home we are using that (and some of his social security money) and going to buy some livestock fencing, chicken wire (so's they can't dig under), and posts to do the enclosure more quickly.

Kelley, the rescue lady who's been helping me from afar, has another pen that we will be going to pick up, and Mark said we can set it up inside as well, so we're thinking getting a row of them down one wall for the furbabies that come here. We'll try to find homes for those that are adoptable, but those who aren't because of fear of humans basically, will just stay with us and become part of our family.

It's an ongoing journey, one we didn't expect to be taking, but a necessary one. These poor dogs deserve better, they don't deserve to be neglected or mistreated because humans have let them down.

Oh What A Day!

Having not seen the stray Mama and her puppies in 3 days, I had reached out last night to local shelters to see if anyone had them. I woke up this morning to a yes! A few minutes of messaging, and then we got on the phone. It seemed that they had Mama, based on the pictures I'd sent ... only to find that nope, the 2 that looked like Mama and a puppy were not them at all. The "puppy" is about 5 years old and def has adult teeth, and though a twin face-wise, the one that we thought was Mama does not have her saggy boobs, and we don't think they'd have shrunk that much in 3 days.  

Sooo ... they had basically shut down in the shelter, traumatized. We said we'd take them. They are now in our barn with food, water, bedding, pee pads and peace and quiet.

The boy, who they'd named Sonny, is a sweetheart and started setling in right away, he knows he is safe. 

Unfortunately, the female, who they've named Bonny" is extremely stressed. She stood near one corner, facing the wall, and Sonny kept going by to check on her, then coming back to eat, checking me out for some loving and then back to her. We are thinking they may be siblings, or mates, but they are def bonded.

We've set up a fan for them, and left all the windows open for air flow and hoping that some of the familiar scents will help calm her. Neither was one of the ones we've been feeding for the past few weeks, but we are wondering now if that was why Mama kept stealing the bowls and running off with them after she and the puppies had eaten. Feeding the pack, we now think.

However, that's not all!

Sooo ... of the other dogs picked up that day (and yes it seems there were a few, and they are now part of an investigation for abandonment) the tan female I'd asked about (the one I think may have been a former puppy of mama's or a sister) the shelter said yes they had her too.

Unfortunately, when they sent me the pic, nope that wasn't her BUT she's obviously a part of this family/pack since they trapped her at the same location ... so we're going back on Sunday to pick her up and the 2 puppies they have. We are hoping that the puppies may be adopted by then so that they get special homes where they are the only dog, or one of 2. We want them to have happy loving homes. Us taking these animals in is a last ditch effort so that they are not left and forgotten in the shelter.

However NONE of these that we will have are the ones I had asked about, so Mama, her 2 babies (although we do think the other babies are hers from the original 6, just that we've only seen the 2 in recent weeks) and the tan one we think is Mama's sibling or a previous puppy, are still missing.

The general thought among the staff, us and rescuers, is that Mama and the others may be in hiding since Monday and may come back in a few days when they feel safer again. We put food outside for them, just in case. We intend to walk Sonny around the property edges where Mama used to come through, and let him mark territory, in the hope she will realise he is here.

So, tomorrow I will be changing the GoFundMe to encompass the new challenges we have, now needing to get fencing to give them an enclosure to roam in but not be able to be semi-feral, and shelters for them to be able to hang out/sleep in while outside. I want them to be happy, so being semi-feral, the outdoors is a big thing with them for their sanity.

I'll no longer need the GoFundMe to cover vetting/spaying/neutering as PAWS of Anderson are doing all the vetting and spaying/neutering for free. They heartworm tested and microchipped Sonny and Bonny, wormed, de-flead and spayed/neutered them today. They are just happy that we were able to take them, since they are less likely to find homes being semi-feral. Like many shelters in our area, they are doing their best but overwhelmed with all the animals being abandoned, owner relinquished or the abundance of kittens and puppies due to unspayed animals.

The GoFundMe link remains the same though as it did begin for medical care costs. 

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-little-bit-stray-dogs-get-medical-care 

If you can donate, please do. If not, please share this blog and the fundraiser, and please pray for us, our rescues, and all the shelters and rescues out there.

Mama Ate Out Of My Hand Today!

There are blessings ... and there are BLESSINGS, and today was the latter. Another small step in the ongoing "thing" of the stray mama and her puppies. And it all came about because I'd forgotten to bring the ground beef meatballs to put the flea meds in ... and had the grand idea of plain McDonald's cheeseburgers (since my dogs love them so much as a treat). Oh and I got more than I bargained for. The puppies greedily wolfed them down, and then I was coaxing mama ... and she took her half a burger gently out of my hand. Then, since the other adult didn't come by, I broke the other half into three pieces and hand fed her those, and she took them sooo gently. I told Mark, I guess if I want to continue this, then tomorrow I'll be heading to McDonald's again. Hand feeding is one step further in the relationship with her, since even after trapping her and vetting/spaying her, I don't think she'd do well in a home situation or shelter, so will be having her back with us, free to roam on our property and with us caring for her.

Tomorrow I am thinking of putting one cheeseburger with the Capstar in, in the carrier and trying again to trap whichever of the puppies goes in for it, so that I could get him/her vetted before the weekend. Once I have a heartworm result and know it's negative, I can start the Symparico Trio, which is a once monthly pill (which I use for mine). It does everything - fleas, worms and heartworm prevention, so makes that part of getting/keeping them healthy, much easier. It also works out cheaper - mama's 6 days of Capstar, and the puppies 3 days each was $100 today, and only kills the fleas daily. Thanking Kelley for helping me pay for those, and for the dog food she sent me! These dogs can def eat! I now mix 2 cans and 6 large soda cups of dry food together, daily, between the 2 adults and 2 puppies. They may come hungry, but they eat well. And if they finish it all, I put additional dry down for while we are not there.

I am just so thrilled though, that mama ate out of my hand. 

Despite the puppies remaining somewhat aloof, when they hear me by the barn, they come skedaddling over and are def happy to see me ... even if it's only "ok, food's here!" They are just so cute. Sometimes, one will come alone and mama or the other doesn't come for a while. So I do feel they trust me and feel safe around me, but they just don't want to be handled, which is making me catching them, harder. 

If you'd like to help support me with getting them vetted and spayed, I have a gofundme at https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-little-bit-stray-dogs-get-medical-care . You can also paypal me at iluvnubians831@aol.com or Cash App at $RoseDempseyAuthor. I appreciate any and all help, these furbabies are so worth helping and finding homes for.

A Very Good Weekend!

Despite the rain, it has turned out to be a very good weekend.

Hubby moved the one pen into the new goat area, and put it back up. We need to buy a new tarp to cover it, to protect the goats when it rains, but hopefully we'll have it all set up how we want it so that the boys can move into it by next weekend. They were in and out of it while he was putting it together. Once we move them into this enclosure, we'll move their original pen in their original field, and set it up again, ready to move the girls over into that field. That'll give me chance to bleach and scrub the pallet bed and let it air dry before we put everything back in the pen, for them.

Then today, his helper, Levi, came for a couple of hours and they put up the final side of the fencing, so that enclosure is complete. It rained a little at first, and I told them to take cover, but Levi said he was ok and they worked through it. He is a blessing, he and Mark work well together.

Yesterday was good with mama and the puppies, and I gave them their Capstar but today they didn't show, so I prepared their food and just put wormer in it. Trying to keep them as healthy as possible since we've not been able to catch them and get them to the vet yet.

The little boy was the worst but I'm hoping the Capstar is making him a little more comfortable. His chest was so sore and red. He sits and watches me sometimes, just out of reach, like he knows I can't get him, yet he's fine running to me for the food when he sees me out there prepping it! 

The puppies are getting so big now ... I guess I must be feeding them well!

I still have the gofundme up for help with their care and vetting costs so that we can get them took care of and the puppies adopted.

The link is:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-little-bit-stray-dogs-get-medical-care Any and all donations are much appreciated, as this whole effort has proven to be way more expensive that I ever imagined. That said, I have to do this, these babies deserve a good home and mama and her sister/older daughter deserve to be safe on my property but not have to be pregnant again. God gave us this land, and with it comes great responsibilty, some of which is to care for the strays that come onto it. Be they dogs or cats, we've had a few felines that we've fed as well.

I had a lovely surprise yesterday when I checked my melon plants ... I saw a baby melon!

When Mark went to put the support under it, he found another 2, so I have 3 so far ... and still lots of flowers on it so maybe a bumper harvest. I hope so. It's hard to see, but if you look above the 3rd leaf on the right front, you can see a tiny round mass that's a slightly different green mottled. That's the one that I saw. The ones Mark found are hidden under the leaves.

We also shared our first peach yesterday. It was very nice! It wasn't on one of the trees we've planted ... we found the tree over near the woods at the back over by the 2 junk buildings that were left on the property. The poor thing has been neglected, but this year it will get pruned properly and given some TLC. There is so much junk, over around that area, that we still haven't managed to clear. We have to wait for the grass to die down so that Mark can mow in there and not run the risk of damaging the mower or tractor.

He's in demand at the American Legion, and is going there on Wednesday to help them do some plumbing. Most of the members are in their 80s, it's kind of odd that he's the 3rd youngest ... the youngest being 59. It's a pity more younger veterans and military don't join. I'm glad he's meeting new people though, and feeling needed.

All told, it's been a pretty good weekend, despite the on/off rain and storms.

 

Update on Little Bit

Little Bit is coming on in leaps and bounds - our $3000+ stray puppy who has decided she is home, so we are now keeping her. Her right eye has healed pretty good, and her stitches were taken out a few days ago. The vet is pleased with her growth, she was 7.8lbs on Monday but has probably added another pound since. She eats well! In fact she loves food. She doesn't like drinking water though, so I add it to all of her food, or I add beef/chicken stock/broth. I have to be sneaky or she'll end up dehydrated again and with me needing to dropper her water. This is so much easier.

Her favourite spot is on my bed, sometimes she snuggles, sometimes she plays, and her little tail wags nineteen to the dozen. She's a very happy puppy other than when I have to give her meds! I'm thankful that both cyst/abscesses are gone down now, although we can see where she is still missing fur on the skin where they were.

We have a gofundme set up to help cover her (and her siblings/mama/aunt) medical care and expenses, and are grateful for all shares and donations. Every little helps. The link is https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-little-bit-stray-dogs-get-medical-care

She is a darling. We didn't intend keeping her, our goal was to find her a home where she'd be the only puppy and be thoroughly spoiled. Unfortunately, with all the additional care she needed, and the longer period of time she was with us, she is well and truly bonded to us, me in particular. It would be cruel now to move her on.

 

A Very Good Day!

 It began with rain ... and more rain ... and more rain! We had quite a soaker of a morning. Mark had 2 appointments, one with the VA for bloodwork, and the  other with our family doctor for his regular check up. Both went well, for which we are thankful.

We didn't even go down to the property until late afternoon, as we needed it to stop raining. The boys were happy to see us, and I wormed them with their feed. I also put wormer in the dog food for the strays. 

The boy puppy was in a sorry state,

very sore from fleas on his chest, so I'd taken Capstar over in a ground beef meatball, and he gulped it down. Since I can't handle him yet, this is the only way that I can do it. Tomorrow, I'll give him another, and it looks like the other female is beginning to show signs of sores as well, so I'll try to give her one. 

He also has a couple of thready areas on his shoulder, but I'm hoping that a daily Capstar until I can get him trapped and vetted properly. He is a sweet boy but he is so shy if we move so much as a foot, he scarpers.

He has such a sweet little face, and at least we're feeding them well as both the remaining puppies are a good size.

I so need to catch him, I just wish I could stand or walk unaided. I'm hoping to have some help on Sunday, and maybe we can manage it then. I want him to have a home, instead of being stray and just running on the property.

Mark started erecting the other pen in the new goat area, and digging a trench near the barn to try to make a run off area so that it doesn't flood every time we get a deluge.

For all that, it was a satisfying day.

Today Has Been Good So Far!

We'd set the alarm for 7.30am but the dogs woke me earlier, so I made use of the extra time. First of all I let the dogs out, put down their food and left the front door open so that they could run in and out. Little Bit was jumping up at the door of her crate, yapping wildly and grinning at me, happily. She knows what happens next! I had her tub of Beneful, and I brought her in on my bed, on the towel, so that she could eat her food and then get some snuggle time. She loves that.

Mark then put Sunshine and Maisie out into their pen and fed/watered them, and we headed out the door and down to the property. 

Our new helper, Levi, arrived at 11am and he and Mark set to, doing the fencing for the next goat enclosure. They did well, and accomplished one side, 

and then took down the one large pen and put it on the trailer, ready to move and re-erect tomorrow in that new area. The plan is to finish the fencing tomorrow,
and then move Solomon and Max into this area, and put Sunshine and Maisie in the other. We'll also be moving the pen in there to another spot.

My little melon/cucumber patch is doing good. One of the 

plants has started to sprawl and has yellow flowers on it. Another is not quite as big but starting to do the same, and then I have one that's just starting out with its 2 little leaves.  The others all withered and died. I'd planted watermelons, tiger melons and cucumbers and they all got blown about during a storm, and since the plants all look alike, I have no idea which these are. I love them all though, so no matter what comes up on them, cukes or melons, I'm happy.

Our tomato plants are getting tall, and bushy. We seem to do well with them in the huge tubs that I grow them in.

I need to start thinking what I want to start ready for Fall planting.