Cleveland, OH
From Vinton County to Cuyahoga County….please welcome Wendy to Secondhand Mutts. There are so many volunteers to thank to who made her journey to us possible and to all of those volunteers we are grateful.
Each week we receive dozens of emails from various shelters in the tri-state area networking and sharing pictures and stories of dog after dog after dog looking for an opportunity to transfer to a rescue or shelter equipped to find these dogs homes. The networking emails are often times sent by volunteers who give their time to the shelters in their community doing all they can to help the dogs they are caring for get an opportunity to find a home. Often times the rural shelters, like the one Wendy came from, don’t have the quantity of adopters looking to adopt as the rescues and brick and mortar facilities located in the ‘big cities’ here in Ohio.
Being a volunteer run organization admittedly our inbox is usually backed up and it’s difficult to keep up with all of the pleas and requests to help the thousands of dogs who are waiting for a transfer. Two weeks ago we missed the original plea for Wendy sent by Tammy who volunteers for the dogs at the shelter she came to us from:
“This is Tammy with Vinton County Dogs. Wendy is the survivor of a hoarding situation. Wendy has lived a horrible first 2 years. Litter after litter of pups, tied to a nasty, dirty, dog house, when she is just a puppy herself. She may be pregnant now although at this time we cannot tell. Even through all this, she is a sweet, friendly, calm gir. She gets along with other dogs, not sure about cats. She walks on a leash. She has been off the property for 2 weeks. Seems to be healthy.”
It was early last week that Alysse and Eric, who are ‘Constant & Committed’ foster providers for Secondhand Mutts, reached out to Becca, our Founder and Director, to say they were ready to take on a mama dog if one comes our way. That same evening the second plea email was sent by Jamie who is a volunteer for the Friends of Gallia County’s Animals and the subject line read: Vinton county Wendy is pregnant.
Within the body of that email the dedicated volunteer Jamie wrote and attached a picture for those reading the email to see:
“No one has spoken for Wendy yet, can anyone help her this week they are concerned she may be down to her final week??”
One of the volunteers at the shelter Wendy was staying had taken her into their home knowing she was about to give birth to a pack of puppies. We saw the email, inquired about her temperament and swiftly went into action. We have dozens of dedicated volunteers on our team who give up their time, gas and wear and tear on their car – not to leave out the occasional pee or poop along the way – to transport dogs and get them to our facility safe and sound. We did our outreach to our volunteer group and had several options lined up and quickly got to work with the coordinates to get Wendy to Alysse and Eric.
We are so grateful to have our volunteers standing by to help whenever possible: without you our work to ‘Respect the dog™’ would not be possible.
This past Saturday our volunteer transport volunteer Beth, who was coincidentally transporting a dog for another rescue, was driving through the same area Wendy was in and she was able to meet Gallia’s volunteer Tammy along the way and get her to us the quickest. Wendy, clearly pregnant and due any day now, made her way to Alysse and Eric’s home and made herself comfortable.
On Monday Wendy took her first trip to Gateway Animal Clinic for an exam and X-ray to give us some sort of indication of how many puppies to expect and when. Knowing she was an outside dog we anticipated she would likely test positive for diseases commonly found in dogs in an outside environment. We received the results today she tested positive for Ehrlichia. This is tick-borne infectious disease of dogs that develops in dogs after being bitten by an infected tick. To learn more about this disease, it’s causes and treatment options click here.
We are dedicated to Wendy and her puppies and we will go The Extra Mile and work with our veterinary team to treat Wendy for this disease and do everything we can to start her treatment as soon possible. This is not a life threatening disease and she is not symptomatic therefore her treatment can wait until her puppies are done nursing. We recognize taking in litters of puppies may be viewed as counter productive to the mission in animal rescue but the facts are if rescues like ours don’t step in to help the future generations may not have the opportunity to be spayed and neutered which ultimately helps reduce the pet population. The Extra Mile program does not currently have a specific program for dogs in Wendy’s condition however this program shows the extent we will go for the dogs we care for while they are ours before moving into their forever homes. It’s support from you who make it possible for dogs like Wendy to get a second chance at a better life.
We are excited and just a bit giddy with excitement waiting for the arrival of the pups. Wendy’s X-ray showed she is carrying NINE puppies! With a belly like the one she’s nearly dragging to the floor and taking up an entire couch cushion and a half we expected a half dozen pups but never did we think she had nine.
We are hopeful all of the pups survive the birth and are extremely grateful to Alysse and Eric (and their resident dogs) for inviting her into their home (be careful what you wish for) and for setting up a room for their arrival. Wendy seems excited too!
Wendy has landed in the best spot possible to land in. She’s got a home with lots of love and dog friends to help her feel at home. She has a yard to play instead of a dog house to be tied to, she has one last litter to give to this world and then she can move on and be a dog for once in her life and not a puppy-making-machine. Wendy, when it’s time and her pups have all moved into their own homes, will be spayed and then she will find a loving forever home.
Of course we will keep you all updated on the puppies arrival in the coming days. In the meantime if you would like to contribute toward her care consider making a monetary donation to in her name. Click on the donate link below to make a donation through Paypal:
To make a credit card donation by phone call us at 216-664-9660, or mail a check to:
Secondhand Mutts
2603 Scranton Road
Cleveland, OH 44113
Our pantry is full with a supply of puppy food however we are always ready to store additional adult and puppy food donations. To learn more about what items we accept click here. Donations may be dropped off weekdays from 10 am to 7 pm and weekends from 10 am to 4 pm at the address above.
Thank YOU for your support, for continuing to allow us to help animals in need and for believing in the work we do.
