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.