Oscar The Cat Is An Inspiration!

Although we are admittedly "hound-centric" we do have a soft spot for kitties as well. So when my friend Sara sent me this amazing story about Oscar the cat, I just had to share it! Oscar is a jaunty English chap who lives across the pond. Last October he tragically lost both his back feet after being struck by a combine harvester while he was napping in the sun.

Now he has made history as the first kitty to receive receive custom prosthetics developed by professor Gordon Blunn and the biomedical engineering team at University College London. The prosthetics were surgically implanted to "peg" Oscar's ankles to his new feet, mimicking the way that deer antlers grow through the skin.

The procedure was astonishingly successful and the same technology is being tested with humans, enabling people with missing limbs to receive more functional prosthetics.

Click here for a video of Oscar taking his first steps on his new legs, but have some Kleenex handy; I admit that I teared up when I watched it!

The Deaf Dog Atlas Puts Hearing Impaired Dogs On The Map!

One of the biggest challenges of having a special needs dog can be the lack of understanding from others who can't appreciate your best friend's uniqueness. Often, the greatest support comes from those who also share their homes with extra special pooches who are "less than perfect." In recognition of this, the folks at the Deaf Dog Education Action Fund (DDEAF) created the Deaf Dogs Atlas. This amazing map features hearing impaired dogs across the world and state by state in the U.S. The atlas currently features over 1,500 dogs and is a great resource for people who already have a deaf dog, in addition to those who are considering adopting one.

Speaking of lovable deaf dogs in need of forever families, check out this video of Alice! She is a super friendly Dalmatian / Pit Bull mix available for adoption at Oakland Animal Services here in California. Alice loves to socialize with people and other dogs. In fact, she had a best doggie buddy at the shelter and they played together every day. Alice's pal was recently adopted, though, so she is a bit lonely these days. Hopefully it won't be too long before she finds a home of her own soon...

Purdue University Offers Hope For Paralyzed Dogs (And Humans)

With help from disabled dogs like Bo the Cocker Spaniel, the Purdue Center for Paralysis Research is pioneering new treatments and technology for humans and canines with spinal cord injuries. Over the past 15 years, the Center for Paralysis Research has been operating in partnership with with the Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine in Indiana. During that time, they have conducted ground-breaking research with dozens of paralyzed dogs.

For instance, Dr. Richard Borgens has shown that spinal cord nerve fibers will grow when exposed to a steady, low-grade electrical field. This discovery has led to the application of electrical fields over the injury to the spinal cord using an implantable device called an Extraspinal Oscillating Field Stimulator (OFS).

Twiggy is a five year old Dachshund who experienced the sudden onset of hind limb paralysis due to vertebral disc herniation. As anyone who shares their home with a Dachshund knows, this is a terrifyingly common scenario; three years ago this July, the same thing happened out of the blue to our Greta.

Fortunately for Twiggy, she was able to receive treatment at Purdue and the implantation of an OFS allowed her to regain the use of her hind legs!

The Center for Paralysis Research has also had great success using Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) to restore nerve impulse conduction and recovery of sensory and motor functions dependent on those nerve impulses in dogs with severe spinal cord injuries. When PEG is injected directly into the site of the spinal injury within 48 hours, it can effectively form a sealing film across the breaks in the nerve fiber membranes. Consequently, PEG rescues the nerve processes from further degeneration, facilitating rapid recoveries in function after a spinal injury.

With such great results, it's easy to imagine that folks with paralyzed dogs would be flocking to Purdue for treatment. Unfortunately, they are not currently accepting any more dogs for clinical trials. The Center for Paralysis Research is still a great resource, however. Click here for their information about Intervetebral Disc Disease and tips on post-surgical home care.

Tripod Agility!

From the start, it has been obvious that our tripod, Dewey, will do almost anything for food. This got me thinking about agility. I had a hunch that Mr. Dewey would gladly jump through hoops (literally!) for treats. So, when we found out about a small dog agility course earlier this year, I decided to sign us up.

Even without a right hind leg, Dewey proved to be a true champ! He gamely ran through the tunnel, zipped around weave poles, and scampered across the teeter-totter alongside his four-legged peers. I was so proud every time the instructor would say "Aim to get all four feet on the board" and my tripod would hop up without hesitation on his three little paws.

A San Francisco Chronicle article about tripods included this quote from a veterinarian: "Dogs are born with three legs and a spare," and Dewey's experience with agility definitely demonstrated that tripods can get along great without their "spare."

The Rescuer's Creed

I promise I will take your unwanted animals.

I will heal their wounds, their diseases, their broken bones.

I will give them the medical attention they need and deserve.

I will nurture their starvation, and give them a warm place to sleep.

I will spay and neuter them, vaccinate them against the diseases that can harm them.

I will treat them and honor them. I will buy them toys, blankets, balls, and teach them to play.

I will speak softly to them. I will try to teach them not to fear, not to cry, and not to hate.

I will whisper sweet, kind, gentle words into their ears, while gently trying to stroke their fear, their pain, and their scars away.

I will face their emotional scars and give them time to overcome them.

I will socialize them, potty train them, teach them to be obedient, show them dignity, and hold their paws, and stroke their ears if they have endured too much and walk them over the Rainbow Bridge.

BUT most of all I will teach them Love.

~Author unknown~

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Photo note: The little guy show above is Nacho, one of our former foster dogs. He was found as a stray with a broken leg last summer when he was just a pup. I am glad to report that Nacho's leg healed and he was adopted by a wonderful woman!

Get To Know Kemo!

I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Kemo today at Oakland Animal Services. I was on my way inside the shelter to inquire about becoming a volunteer, and this congenial chap was outside basking in the sun with a volunteer. It wasn't until I had pet him for a bit that I discovered he is completely blind, which just goes to show you how well dogs with vision impairments adapt to life! The folks at Oakland Animal Services are not sure how he lost his sight since he came in as a stray, but they do know that he is exceedingly friendly (don't let those tough looking cropped ears fool you!), and he adores belly rubs. Even if you can't adopt Kemo, seeing this video of him in action is bound to bring a smile to your face!

Blind Frisky - A Hurricane Katrina Hero

Back in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, George Mitchell nearly lost his life to the storm. The octogenarian was stuck in his house, treading water for hours. Exhausted, George felt himself "about to let go" when he was encouraged and revived by his ever-loyal companion Frisky, a blind 19 year old schnauzer poodle mix. To see a CBS interview with George (and his canine hero!), click here.

A Healing Haven For Ill & Injured Dogs In South Africa

We discovered this touching article about a South African animal clinic over at Modern Dog Magazine (www.moderndogmagazine.com), one of our favorite canine publications. Although it's hard to imagine such challenging circumstances for ill and injured dogs, it's amazing (and inspiring!) to see what a positive impact a dedicated group of people can make. Read on...

Health And Hope: Dogs of a South African Township
By Chris Cutter, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)

Cape Town is a beautiful city. Ringed by a flat-topped rise called Table Mountain, Arcadian wine country, and a wide open sea that stretches to Antarctica, it’s a favourite of European vacationers and draws comparisons to San Francisco. The drive from the airport into town, however, isn’t pretty. The N2 highway runs along a length of one of the ugliest stretches of the city: the township or informal settlement called Khayelitsha.

A fence separates Khayelitsha from the road and behind the fence is another world. Shanties made of corrugated tin, scraps of wood, and rubbish are hewn together into lopsided houses. Tin roofs are held down by rocks, tires, shopping carts—anything heavy. Electricity poles stand like sentries with wires sloping down to nearby shacks like ribbons on a maypole.

Khayelitsha is a hangover from the apartheid era when blacks were prohibited from living in the cities. It is one of the poorest and most dangerous areas of urban Africa, densely packed with people, many of whom are squatters or illegal immigrants. Diseases such as HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis are at epidemic levels, violent crime is common, and most of the population exists hand-to-mouth in abject poverty. Khayelitsha is home to an estimated population of 500,000 to 1 million people, though it could be 2 million or more; it’s impossible to tell.

It’s also home to a countless number of dogs.

In the middle of Khayelitsha, located in three converted shipping containers, sits the Mdzananda animal clinic, a project of the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). The staff of the Mdzananda clinic—the only veterinary facility in the township—are all Khayelitsha residents.

Until recently, when IFAW was able to purchase land, the clinic, like many of the residents of Khayelitsha, squatted illegally on a parcel of land, and stole electricity and water to survive. Residents bring their dogs to Mdzananda for basic vet care: deworming, flea/tick dips, spaying, and neutering—all of which are encouraged through outreach programs. The clinic also treats endless cases of tick bite fever, ringworm, hookworm, mange, and malnutrition. A growing problem is poison. Residents buy an illegal industrial farming poison to kill rats. It doesn’t work; the rats stay away, but the dogs find it and eat it.

“We are finding more dogs dying from rat poison. The other day someone brought in three dying dogs in a wheelbarrow,” says Jane Levinson, project coordinator for Mdzananda.

Inside the clinic is a smell that is equal parts wet dog, ammonia, and a sweet medicinal odour from sterilization. The noise is a buzz of dogs being shaved for surgery and the scurry of dogs waking uncertainly and ripping at the newspaper-covered floor of their cages. The barking sounds confused, uncertain.

A number of dogs live at the clinic. There is AJ, a dog with a mangled paw. AJ was hit by a car. His paw is raw, twisted upside down with the permanent look of a wound that isn’t quite healed, but he hops around and frolics with the other dogs.

Another dog nimbly hopping around the clinic is a brown female named Pirate. She was brought in with a severe infection in one leg and the owner was given a choice: amputation or euthanasia. Two weeks after the operation, the owner brought the dog back, complaining that neighbours abused and ostracized it, and, further, he didn’t want the dog anymore, he wanted Pirate put down. So Mdzananda took her in.

One dog was dropped off by a man who said his neighbour abandoned the animal when he was sent to jail. The dog had exposed black skin where his fur had worn away from sitting and laying on concrete. He was severely emaciated, his ribs protruding and all his bones visible, including the outline of his hips. His skin hung slack, showing dehydration, and he was infested with hundreds of ticks. This beautiful dog, maybe part Mastiff and part Golden Retriever, laid there, semi-conscious, his eyes unresponsive and his gums completely grey.

Clinic worker Cora Bailey sat next to the dog and stroked his head, thinking: this dog is not going to make it. But Bailey produced a pack of food and pushed it carefully into the dog’s mouth. At first the dog, with his last reserves of strength, swallowed as if by rote, seeming to hardly realize he was eating. But as recognition took hold, he propped himself up and began licking the package of food, first slowly, then faster, greedily.

More food was produced. The dog ate and drank. He nosed Bailey and the other workers in appreciation. He was not healthy enough for a flea/tick dip and the 21-day course of medication he needed, but this dog would make it. A month from now he would be transformed, fully recovered and would make someone a very good pet.

“Let’s call this dog Lazzie,” suggested Bailey. “He’s just like Lazarus, returned from the dead.”
Every day, half of the staff ventures out from the clinic in search of dogs that need medical attention, operating daily mobile clinics at fixed locations in the townships.

Amidst the poverty and disease, Levinson also finds something surprising: hope. Many of the people served by Mdzananda have little beyond the clothes on their back, but often their dogs are remarkably well cared for.

“There’s no food in the cupboard, but the dog bowl is full,” Levinson says. It’s a testament to the special bond between dogs and their guardians.

Children in matching uniforms stop by the clinic on the way home from school and Lazzie makes friends with two boys. Bailey smiles.

“We find that working with children and teaching them to be kind to animals teaches them to be kind to each other,” she says. “These kids are exposed to an enormous level of violence. We need more kindness in this country and it’s got to start somewhere.”

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To follow the Mdzananda animal clinic blog and learn about ways you can support this worthwhile organization visit www.mdzananda.co.za (fittingly, the homepage has a photo of a dog in a stroller!)

To learn more about the International Fund for Animal Welfare visit www.ifaw.org