crossroads dog rescue

2012 in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 05:13:00 +0000

2012 was quite the rollercoaster - absolutely the toughest in our short history, as well as some amazing saves.

The year started off when I was just 2.5 weeks out of brain surgery, but I could not turn away tiny puppies that needed me.

By Valentine's Day, these babies all had their own furrever homes. While I always say I am going to take a break after the hard work that goes into caring for puppies, it never lasts long. Within a week, I felt the need to go help Joplin Humane Society. Crazy dog lady kicked in and I came home with a car full including the precious Feisty (now named Piper) and incredible boy named George (Saint Bernard/Basset hound mix - Oh I loved him).

We had a season where one to three young puppies came in at a time, which made it a wonderful opportunity for our amazing foster homes to help start house training and socializing. Unfortunately, this also introduced us to the awful, yet treatable, tummy bugs including coccidia and giardia. Sanitizing absolutely anything and everything the puppies touched became even more of a priority.

We took a huge leap of faith in March on a precious dog with the absolute worst case of demodex mange that our incredible vet had ever seen. Yes, I mean Nani (means "beautiful" in Hawaiian").

95% covered in mange. Every crack in her skin infected. Her eyes and paws horribly infected, yet she seemed to know that I was there to help get her feeling better. She started on ProMeris (topical that kills the demodex mites), antibiotics, extremely high quality food, and vitamins for wellness and skin and coat. Within just a couple weeks, she looked like a different dog.

During this time we were also trying to help a small litter of puppies, our dear Stormin' Norman that was a challenging case to adopt due to his medical needs, owner relinquish Maddie (absolutely gorgeous amazing girl) and dear Georgia who also was taking many months to find a good home. While my KS State license allowed me to care for this many dogs, the city does not. So we had to move dogs around. Thanks to an amazing rescue community, a couple fosters, and Maddie being adopted, all dogs were safe. We just had to refocus on only having puppies in my home and adult dogs had to have foster commitments if we pulled them.

Stormin' Norman was adopted through another rescue to be spoiled and medical needs cared for.

Georgia was adopted by a sweet, older couple, and I am not sure I have ever seen anyone more excited as her new dad.

Max, Jackson, Teddy, and Digby were all single pups that came through our rescue in the spring and found amazing furrever homes. We had the Scooby Doo pups that I only fostered until they were transferred to the Wisconsin Rottie Rescue - they completely stole hearts.

Early April we were called about 10 day old puppies whose mom had been shot by police as she tried to protect them. We took half the litter and another person took half the litter since they would need bottle fed for at least a couple weeks. Precious little pit bull mix babies.

Late April we took in a litter of puppies to help find homes for them. These babies will remain forever in my heart as the biggest scare and learning opportunity. While we are always so careful to keep their area clean, sanitized, and watch carefully for any symptoms the puppies may have, these puppies broke with parvo the weekend they were supposed to be going to their furrever homes. Two puppies had already left. I made sure to get the adopters their fees back to go towards their care and focused on making sure to get the puppies still here back to optimal health. I was incredibly emotional and know that I could not have learned more in such a short amount of time as I did with these puppies. Bleach and I became the best of friends.

The sweet girl climbing out of the pen is now an AKC Canine Good Citizen! Take THAT for starting out ornery!

These gorgeous pittie mix puppies all found amazing furrever homes!

Now we come to the most difficult part of our year... Millie and the Miracles. We pulled this sweet girl from a small Arkansas shelter with her ELEVEN babies. Millie was so skinny and we just knew we had to help. Trish drove all the way to Springfield, MO to meet transport and get the brood.

It wasn't long before we knew something wasn't right with Momma Millie. She had a runny nose and an awkward head tilt. We reviewed her vet paperwork and health certificate - nothing noted except antibiotic at the shelter for possible uterine infection, but it was not continued at the vet. HUH? Of course we got her to the vet and started her on meds and high quality food, homecooked rice and boiled meats, Dyne, and anything we could think of to get her healthy for her and the puppies.
Then the puppies started having runny noses. We rushed them to the vet and started them on meds. Needless to say, symptoms just kept getting worse. Spots appeared on some of their faces, coughs started, mucus got thicker and a couple could barely breathe. Vet visit after vet visit and we finally had some tests run. The news was absolutely devastating. The sickest puppy tested positive for Mycoplasma (worse than pneumonia), Distemper (life long issues), and Canine Herpes (a certain death sentence). All with similar symptoms and all extremely serious.

Ultimately, we lost all of them and let Millie go as well. 12 lives that could have been saved with a simple vaccination to Momma Millie, and unfortunately we got her too late. They will forever be in our hearts.

In honor of Millie and the Miracles, we had to push on and rescue others. I had to go see Nani. She spent some time in a wonderful foster home and was even adopted for a short period, however we came to learn just what a challenging case Nani was being a street dog prior to our rescue. She is happy and healthy and in the hands of some wonderful rescuers. Happy, goofy girl!

We pulled some more puppies - Logan & Kindall, the pure bred American Eskimo puppies. Then we had two chihuahuas and a min pin (Sunny, Summer, and Vegas). All are in wonderful homes.

We also snagged a gorgeous lab mix boy just before an animal control agency was going to have him put down. Thank Goodness! Jet is now a spoiled boy with an amazing mom!

Then came the next scare of the year. I agreed to pull a litter of healthy puppies from a shelter that were ready to be adopted. They had two puppy vaccinations and just needed homes.

Within 24 hours of being here, I noticed symptoms in one of the pups - loose stools, mostly. Praying it was worms or easily treatable stomach bug, but unfortunately it was again the dreaded Parvo. We fought aggressively and even hospitalized Rita and Rollie. Rita came home quickly while Rollie gave us quite the scare. However, after 6 days of IV fluids and professional love and care, Rollie came home to be adopted by an amazing woman that had already fallen in love with him. Yet another litter of puppies that have an extra special place in my heart, especially Rollie (now Samson). Rae (now Cordy) is impressively well trained already and I received a beautiful Christmas card from Rita. It brings tears to my eyes to know these babies are now such treasured family members - prayers answered!

October brought the adorable and precious blue pit puppies. Oh how so many of us wanted one. They too are all now in amazing homes!

End of October was a time when some beautiful, wonderful dogs were on death row at various shelters simply due to being extremely full! We had some wonderful fosters step up for FIVE amazing dogs. Alfie quickly found a home to be spoiled in and Baby instantly foster failed (foster mom kept her). Shockingly, three of these dogs are STILL waiting for their furrever homes. First there is the adorable Presley, a 4-5 year old pug/beagle mix. Who can deny that face?

Then we have the gorgeous Lily - 1-2 year old bully breed mix of some sort. Her hugs are absolutely priceless - such a snuggle girl.

The incredible Jambi - 1-2 year old boxer/bully boy. Yet another snuggler, tires easily and so well trained.

End of November we also took in a litter of abandoned puppies that a shelter wanted rescue for quickly so they wouldn't get sick. These little shepherd mix babies have been wonderful. All the girls have found homes and now we are hoping the last 3 boys find their homes quickly in 2013.

While we unfortunately lost 15 precious lives this year, we were able to save 73 lives. Over 2700 miles driven to get dogs to safety, 9 temp fosters, and just an amazing year of loving on furrbabies. We could not have done it without our wonderful foster homes, volunteers, and incredible supporters. Thank you for an incredible 2012 and we wish everyone the VERY BEST in the new year with lots of slobbers and furrhugs.

Love, sometimes, is not enough.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 02:19:00 +0000

Rainbow bridge gained two more Crossroads' canine friends in the past couple days. This time it was not due to illness or old age, but human aggression. Brett Titus of the Denver Police Department, says it quite well, "The dog is one of the most amazing creatures in the world. The unconditional love and companionship of dogs is unmatched by any comparison. Like anything managed by Mother Nature, they do come with faults. One of the greatest faults is the unwarranted aggression towards humans. Often times we attribute this to abuse, especially when it is an adopted dog. But that is not always the case."

In these two cases, it was simply not explainable. Colby Jack was bought as a puppy, fed good food, neutered, maintained his vaccinations and wellness visits, and even worked with a trainer for some time - beautiful home and wonderful family. Big Boy Max was adopted from Crossroads as a puppy at 9 weeks, went through puppy kindergarten, evaluated by another trainer, extremely well socialized, regular at doggie day care, fed good food, perfectly healthy - neutered, vaccinations and preventatives all current. Again, beautiful home and wonderful family he lived with.

So what changed? What happened? For Colby Jack, maybe it was all the changes of his mom moving, getting married and having a baby, or maybe it was a medical issue we could not find. Something over his almost six years of life had him terrified of loud noises, any sudden movements, or of even being petted. He resource guarded (vehemently protected) absolutely everything indoors - the person he was sitting with, his bed, the room he was in, and his kennel. Colby just wanted to be left alone. I could walk him for short distances, but if a loud truck went by, he would drag me back to the front door. As soon as we were inside, he would growl, show his teeth and nip at me. Two weeks of constantly, patiently working with him and the only time he would respond appropriately was if I had cheese. It broke my heart when he would give me a glimpse of normalcy by offering a play bow, or briefly run with the other dogs. Sadly, Colby had a history of many nips and bites, including at least a few that drew blood. His original family had worked with a trainer and sought advice and meds from their vet, yet Colby lived in fear and anger. This is no way for this boy to live. After many discussions with our vet tech, Colby's former trainer, vet behaviorist, and our own vet, the decision was made to let him rest in peace. We tried everything for this poor boy. Dog speed and white light, Colby Jack. We love you.

Then there was this little guy that I called Mr. Ornery from the day I sat by and supported his Momma Violet while she delivered him. He quickly became a family favorite, as he scooted away from mom and cried. Mr. Ornery grew to be the biggest pup, so he was then called Big Boy. With his unique tri-color markings, he was incredibly handsome to look at as well.

Big Boy was adopted by an amazing family and named "Max". Not only did he get a great family, but CDR gained incredible supporters. Not only did they contribute financially, but eventually became one of our amazing foster homes. In fact, if you follow us frequently, you will know that Trish frequently took our single pups until they found homes, until she got very brave and asked if she could open her home to a mother dog and babies. Yes, Max's family is the one that took in Millie and the Miracles back in May. Trish spent countless hours and sleepless nights caring for Millie and her 11 sick babies. We all know that even though we tragically lost Millie and all her babies to illness, her hard work did not go unnoticed - it was the BEST six weeks Millie had ever known in her life and her puppies on had the best of care.

Just 4 short days after we lost Millie and the Miracles, she found a baby deer on the side of her house covered in ticks. Big Boy Max knew by smell that something was on the other side of the fence. As neighbors came over to help clean up the deer, Max was very excited and barking. Trish's son was asked to let Max in the house. It was late in the evening and the house was dark. Little did her son know that the neighbor girl was standing in a dark corner by the front door. In an unfortunate, freak situation, Max thought there was an intruder and bit the young lady. Max was immediately kenneled and the young lady rushed to receive care. Suddenly an amazing family dog is deemed vicious. While I do not make light of the situation at all, had this truly been an intruder, Max would be a hero.

After a 10 day rabies hold and further discussion with animal control and the courts, it was determined that Max could not stay in his home. Trish and family fought for their dog by gathering reports from doggie day care, trainer and even seeking an expensive evaluation with a vet behaviorist. The liability and risk that he would bite again was still too high. This amazingly gorgeous boy that was so incredibly loved by his family went to rainbow bridge this past week.

If there is a lesson here, it is even when you seem to do everything right, love, sometimes is not enough.

Colby Jack: Work in Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 02:26:00 +0000

Bless his heart - this sweet, 6 year old, poodle/shih tzu mix is absolutely terrified. He is nervous meeting new people and is not fond of loud noises. Poor boy has a very difficult time relaxing. Since bringing him into my home, he has attached himself to my daughters. There are times he is so terrified that he will not even eat.

So we are now implementing classical counter conditioning techniques. This may take a very long time, as this is an even more severe case than the other three fear cases that I have worked with, but Colby is worth it.

What is classical counter conditioning all about? Basically I want to re-teach Colby to have a pleasant experience with something he once feared, in his case it is generally with strangers. While Colby is quickly bonding with my children, he is still anxious and showing warning signs when I approach him. To overcome this, I am tossing a high value treat in his direction, such as tiny piece of ham. After a few minutes, I am able to offer him the ham from my hand. There can be no sudden movements or loud sounds to interrupt our session. Nothing can be forced. After four days of doing this at random times of day for a few minutes, Colby now allows me to approach him and put his leash on. Baby steps. This may seem like a very slow process, but as I said - nothing can be forced or he will regress.

Tomorrow, we are venturing to Dr. Jarrett's office to update his shots. With his fear of strangers, he may need to be muzzled, however we want to make sure he is healthy and there is no medical reason for his fears. We will also be updating his shots.

Millie Plus Eleven

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 04:27:00 +0000

Friday, May 11th, our wonderful foster mom, Trish, had no idea how much her life was about to change. She has been amazing in fostering 1-3 puppies at a time, but never a mom with ELEVEN babies! Bravely, she drove to Springfield, MO to pick up this skinny mom and her precious brood. Trish took to this like a natural, while realizing just how much work is involved in keep momma fed, clean water, and a puppy pen of eleven puppies clean.
We knew Millie was not well due to her malnutrition, but were not sure the extent. She also had a little bit of a runny nose. By Sunday we noticed that she didn't want to get up very easily, and seemed lethargic. First thing Monday morning we rushed her to the vet and ran a complete blood panel - slightly anemic, but otherwise healthy. Hmm...We also did another fecal and she still had some roundworms. So nothing was obvious about why she was acting that way. Her stools were a little loose, so she went back to Trish's on antibiotics, panacur (for worms) and metronidozale (for loose stools).
For the next 10 days all seemed well as Millie started feeling better, gaining weight, and settling into life as a spoiled, special girl in a warm, loving home. Her only issue continued to be periodically having issues with her hind legs and a quirkly head tilt every now and again. Then I got a message from Trish that a couple puppies had snotty noses, so off to the vet again for the normal cold/kennel cough that we are used to with every litter that comes from a shelter... or so we thought. We started them on amoxicillin. Then a few days later the snotty noses turned green and 2 of the puppies had really weapy eyes, even a bit of crust - like you would see in a child with conjunctivitis. I rushed over with a gel that is an antibiotic for the eyes and knew we needed to go back to the vet the next day. Obviously amoxicillin was not working. The vet changed to a stronger antibiotic and gave Trish drops instead of gel, and to come back in 5 days.
Within 5 days, the first puppy started feeling better and a few others had a short couple days of
not feeling well, but had recovered. A black puppy with quite a bit of brown still was not feeling well and others were just starting what seemed like a bad cold that spread to their sinuses and eyes. Third vet visit (Saturday), he said just keep doing what Trish was doing and gave more oral and eye antibiotics.
Well, yesterday (Tuesday, June 5th) Trish said that the two blonde boys were not doing well. As you can see in this picture, poor Lucky's eyes look awful. We also noticed that some started coughing, and a few were pretty lethargic. One of the original ones that got sick almost two weeks ago, was still not acting right. I felt it was time for a second opinion. This is one of the reasons that we work with two vets, so I made an appointment with our other vet.
Which brings us to today. After extensive conversation with other long term rescuers, our vet tech, and then our vet, we agreed that it was necessary to test for distemper. After having just gone through our first outbreak of parvo, this was the scariest thing I could imagine, and it was right before us. Our other vet was pretty confident it was just a bad cold because in a well vaccinated community, distemper just does NOT happen! However with Millie's history of coming from a possible drug house with unknown caregivers (if any), the probability of her ever being vaccinated is pretty low. Here is a link to read more about distemper.
This may be the longest 24-48 hours in our rescue history as we wait for the test results. Our vet took 4 swabs of Lucky's eyes, nose and mouth, plus 2 viles of blood. She is testing for every possible respiratory illness it can test for. We have started the puppies on yet another antibiotic (doxicycline this time) and a different eye drop. We are watching for further symptoms such as head shaking, vomiting and watery diarrhea. As we have shared, all puppy visits are on hold, and we will not finalize any adoptions without more information and making sure the puppy is as healthy as possible. Sweet Murphy, 2nd puppy chosen for adoption, looks great. But again we want to be sure she will always be healthy!

Miss Charlotte still has goopy eyes and is coughing. Lucky and Thunder (blonde boys) both have horrible looking eyes and poor Lucky is struggling to breathe. Trish has a cool mist humidifier going for them, and is taking Lucky into a steamy shower room to help loosen up his congestion. I am telling you, Trish is an angel for these babies. Erica and I have worked incredibly hard for all the babies that have come through our rescue, but it seems Trish jumped into rescue full on and is getting broke in quickly. Bless her big time!

So. We. Wait.

In the mean time we can focus on how beautiful Millie has become! As of today, she has gained 18 lbs while in Trish's care, is learning to play, chew, and act like a dog. She was a perfect lady on the ride to Lawrence and back to Trish's in the passenger seat of my van, occasionally giving me kisses or dozing off. I am so proud of how far she has come and what she has in her future.

As usual, thank you so much to everyone for your unending support, well wishes and prayers. If you would like to donate to Millie and her puppies' care, please click the link below. Every dollar is extremely helpful and appreciated!

KU COMS Team Fundraiser

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 02:13:00 +0000

Once again, we have a wonderful group of KU Students working to raise money for the rescue. The money raised will be split between caring for puppies and a building/facility fund. They will be having a car wash on ~~Saturday, April 14th~~ oops! SUNDAY, April 15th at CVS at 23rd and Iowa St from 12 noon to 4 p.m. They will also be collecting old towels and blankets to be used for the care of the dogs and puppies.

If you are unable to go get your car washed and would still like to donate, you can do it through this link.
Thank you so much for your contribution!

Love Thy Neighbors

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 04:03:00 +0000

"Love thy neighbors as yourself." Mark 12:31
Ugh. I wish this was not so difficult lately.

Here is the back story and the reason for me needing to move all but four dogs out of my home.

We bought our home here about six years ago and it just seemed perfect for us. We met our neighbors and everyone seemed really great. I started getting involved in rescue about three and a half years ago now. Since we already had a dog, we were conscientious of our neighbors by making sure the yard was clean, free of smell, and not excessive barking - certainly not after 9 p.m.

No! Not this sweet face. ~Frank

Then Frank started jumping our fence. He barks at people, but it is all bark - fear bark. My neighbor behind us, Cindy, freaked and started calling animal control. There was only once that I did not catch him before they arrived. We made accommodations to our fence to prevent him from jumping, and he also gained enough weight he is too fat now to jump anyway.

After I became a Kansas State Licensed Group Home Foster Rescue, we had always tried to keep the number of dogs in our home as close to the city limit of four as possible, but as is the case lately, there is so much need. I began recruiting foster homes, however I also fully understand that not everyone is "the crazy dog lady" like I am, so dealing with certain issues is more challenging. I do not ever want my foster homes to feel trapped or stuck with a dog, so I always provide support and take the dog back if necessary.

Well, between my four children and four (or more, but I never have more than four in my yard at once) dogs playing in my backyard, it was too much commotion for Cindy. Over the past 2 years I am aware of two calls to child protective services and over thirty calls to animal control. The calls to animal control were for excessive noise, bad smell, not picking up when my dog eliminates on walks (but I have a box of poop bags by my front door - those are just for decoration), and dogs at large (when dear Titus was jumping the fence, but I always caught him before he got in trouble).

Then came the visit on Wednesday. My husband was in the backyard with the kids and our personal dogs. They were barking for him to throw the tennis ball. He noticed that Cindy was peaking through the fence slats. We both kind of blew it off since she is so nosy. But about an hour later, Chad woke me up from a nap saying that animal control was at the door. This time she was not so nice. Cindy had called them 12 times in the past 4 days with complaints of all kinds, including way too many dogs. Unfortunately, even though my state license allows me up to 19 dogs, the city limit is 4 and takes precedence. While they have always known about my rescue efforts, due to the number of complaints from Cindy, they are having to enforce the city ordinance. They gave me 48 hours to be back down to 4 dogs and/or puppies under 10 weeks of age.

Did I mention that the north edge of our property is the city limit? Yes. If I lived across the street, this would NOT be an issue.

So needless to say, I would have to find a new home for even one of my personal dogs to continue with adult dog rescue. I can have orphaned puppies, but they have to be gone by the time they are 10 weeks old. I will not give up one of my personal babies.

I am so thankful to be a part of a WONDERFUL rescue community that all came together to help in this situation. Within minutes of AC leaving, the animal welfare director at Lawrence Humane Society offered assistance. By end of the evening, I had offers of help on almost every dog and puppy. Many people have asked about Nani. While I miss her immensely, Nani is in GREAT hands at Winding River under direct care of Julie Jones and her colleagues. I will be visiting her, covering the costs of her vetting, and getting regular updates.

Two reasons that I got into rescue: 1) When I was younger and more naive, I bought a 12 week old puggle puppy that needed to be rehomed... little did I know it was a backyard breeder who wanted the puppy gone because he was too old. That puppy is now my whole heart - Frank, aka Butt Munch (when he's in trouble). It was him that had me doing research on animal welfare and how I could help make those breeding conditions STOP! 2) I also wanted to do dog training to help prevent families from taking dogs to shelters for what seemed like dumb reasons. However, once I spent a little time in the shelter environment, I found a passion for wanting to get them out of there and rehabilitate their fears and pain. So my rescue efforts began.

At this point, I am not sure what direction Crossroads Dog Rescue will take. I LOVE the rehabilitation and training side of rescue. I also really want to help families that are having challenges so that dogs will not end up at the shelter. I am not sure I could turn away a plea for help bottle feeding puppies. I am going to take some time with my family and we will see. One thing is for sure - I will ALWAYS be available for our adopters - please do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions or concerns about your dog if it is a Crossroads' Alum.

There are no words to express my level of appreciation to our adopters, volunteers, supporters and friends.

New Life for Nani

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 05:19:00 +0000

The opening sentences of our mission statement are:
"Crossroads Dog Rescue specializes in the rescue and placement of abused, unwanted and abandoned companion dogs. We never discriminate on the basis of health, age or breed."
Today's rescue pull, I believe, epitomizes our goal to not discriminate on the basis of health. While I am fairly new in rescue (about three years), many others I spoke with said they had never seen a case this bad.
Meet Nani.

This was the first picture I saw of her when she was posted on Facebook. Nani (meaning "beauty" in Hawaiian), was a stray brought into the shelter. She is only about 8 months old. My heart sunk, tears came to my eyes, and I immediately shared. But that was not enough for me. I had to do more. I shared her over to the rescue page and begged (I don't like to beg, but Nani was worth it!) for our supporters to help foster a couple other dogs in our rescue. My heart NEEDED to help her.

As is always the case, our amazing supporters stepped up within minutes! So I emailed the shelter and said I would take her. While I did have a moment of extreme anger - WHO DOES THIS? or rather does NOT do anything for a dog that is suffering? - I quickly moved past that to thinking, "how quickly can I get to her to start her on the path of healing, toys, hugs, and a new life?"

When I arrived at the shelter, the coordinator took me back. As I looked in her kennel, she wagged her tail! We carried her to the car and I put her in the kennel with quite a few towels. I looked down at my sweatshirt and I was covered in scale-like dandruff and had drops of blood on me. Again a moment of - WHO DOES THIS? Moving on... While driving home we had to have the windows partially open. The smell... there are no words to describe the smell.

When we got home, she stood up and wanted out! I put a loose lead on her, but she was so excited to be free that I had to hold on tight. We went for a short walk and she had to potty! Then I took the following pictures:

Looking back at these pictures bring tears to my eyes. No living thing should have to live like this. She kept shaking and trying to itch her face, which is already torn and cracked. Every move of her face and blood and puss oozes out. Her left eye is almost swollen closed with green puss oozing out.

I took her in to get her settled in my master bathroom. The smell... oh. my. goodness. Nothing can prepare someone for the smell of mange. Then I made her some boiled chicken and rice, mixed in her antibiotics and pain meds, and she snarfed it down! Well, at least she is eating well. I walked her again and then came in to get a treat - YOUCH! She likes treats - watch your hand if you have one around her! :-D

Upon putting her in her kennel for the night, she was shivering. We put a t-shirt on her and gave her more towels to stay warm. I will go buy some fleece tomorrow for her to sleep on, as that is easily washable too. Here are some pictures I took before saying good night:

Nani, our beautiful girl, has an amazing future ahead of her. Today is her first day of a new life. Tomorrow we see our vet and get her on her way to being the healthy, happy puppy she should be. It will be a long journey, but so worth it.

If you'd like to make a donation to Crossroads Dog Rescue for Nani's care:

You can also contact us at crossroadsdogs@gmail.com.

Replenish after Gypsy's eye surgery

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:03:00 +0000

This beautiful girl, Gypsy (formerly Liberty) came to us in early July. She was severely malnourished and trying to nurse EIGHT puppies. She also had an awful Cherry Eye that was infected. We tried oral antibiotics and antibiotic eye drops, but the infection came back. During her spay, the doctor found she also had severe mastitis, and tried to repair the cherry eye. While extremely strong antibiotics are helping the mastitis, the surgery for the cherry eye was unsuccessful. We took her to an Animal Eye Specialist in Kansas City, where she received a 2nd eye surgery. In total we have spent over $2100 in vet care for Gypsy, which has completely drained our vetting account. We would like to replenish it a bit so we can continue to help other dogs. Thank you so much to those that already donated. Please share so we can continue our mission of saving dogs.

Happy 2nd Birthday Roxy's Babies!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 02:45:00 +0000

Two years ago today, Erica and I went on a wild ride! We received a call a couple days previous that a woman had a chocolate lab that was about to give birth within the next couple weeks. We made arrangements to meet her halfway, as she was 2 hours away, on Monday afternoon. Sunday evening I get a phone call that the dog is peeing everywhere. Then I get another call that the dog is in labor and just delivered a puppy (note - the dog wasn't peeing everywhere. Her water broke.)

Well, the woman did not exactly have a very strong stomach, so she LEFT! While momma dogs usually do take care of everything on their own, it is best to help her and make sure the amniotic sack is broken immediately and umbilical cord is cut. Also, it helps to know that all the placentas for each pup come out so momma doesn't get an infection later on. (Sorry if your stomach is not so strong either.)

So about 10 p.m. at night, Erica and I grabbed a Sonic Diet Coke (it is a staple in rescue) and headed out to go be with this poor momma! By the time we got there (two hours away), Momma Roxy had delivered NINE babies! Erica was SO anxious to see a baby deliver, so our hope was she would have at least one more.

We loaded Momma and the babies in the warm van with towels and blankets and headed back to Lawrence. As we are about two blocks from Erica's house, Momma Roxy starts panting again and we are freaking out that she might be delivering another puppy. Erica climbed into the back cramped into my son's car seat to be ready when she delivers...

Nope. False alarm. Roxy never delivered another puppy. Nine gorgeous babies and the awesome Momma Roxy got settled at Erica's house about 2:30 a.m. (I had a different litter at my house.)

This is the beautiful Jetta girl from that litter of puppies. She has been through the ringer, but is still much loved in her furrever home with our awesome foster family - Millers. All 9 puppies got amazing homes, and Momma Roxy lives not too far from Erica. She is always so excited to see Erica - the lady that saved her.

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY TO ROXY'S GORGEOUS BABIES!!

P.S. With all the litters of puppies we have had since then, Erica has still never seen an actual delivery of even one puppy.

Adopt-A-Less-Adoptable Pet Week!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 04:17:00 +0000

Who does THIS look like?

For the love of Titus - we so love this boy. He has such joy and excitement in not just his eyes, but his WHOLE body when you are ready to play and spend time with him.

He is such a great boy that LOVES his tennis balls, (on the verge of hoarding), long runs or jogging beside your bike, and snuggling up with you on the couch or bed. If you are looking for a new BEST FRIEND, Titus is your guy. Now who can deny a dog that loves to do THIS? (YouTube video).

Gypsy's ChipIn for Cherry Eye Surgery

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 02:39:00 +0000

This beautiful girl, Gypsy (formerly Liberty) came to us in early July. She was severely malnourished and trying to nurse EIGHT puppies. She also had an awful Cherry Eye that was infected. We tried oral antibiotics and antibiotic eye drops, but the infection came back. During her spay, the doctor found she also had severe mastitis, and tried to repair the cherry eye. While extremely strong antibiotics are helping the mastitis, the surgery for the cherry eye was unsuccessful. Crossroads has already spent over $400 on her medical care, so we are now asking for help so that she can see an Animal Eye Specialist in Overland Park. Would you consider a donation for her care? You can donate through the ChipIn fund below (goes through PayPal) or mail donations to: Crossroads Dog Rescue 819 N. 7th Street Lawrence, KS 66044

THANK YOU!

Snowball of Otto-matic Joy

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 18:33:00 +0000

December 23rd, 2009 - the day we rescued this scared, sick puppy and his sister. We called him Snowball and his sister, Angel. Unfortunately, they both had Parvo. Angel did not make it. Snowball was a fighter and after two days on IVs at the vet hospital, the vet called me and said "Will you come get your yappy puppy??" WAHOO! Absolutely!

Just over a week later, he was adopted by a wonderful young couple. They were SO excited to adopt their new baby, they did not care that we had no clue what breed he was, how big he would get (note - we had him listed as Chihuahua mix), or that we didn't even know really how old he was. It was a late evening that I approved their application, and they were on their way.

Within a couple days he was settling into the lap of luxury, being spoiled as any only furr-child should be.

Unfortunately, just 20 short months later Otto passed away much sooner than anyone could have guessed. He developed Canine Lymphoma that metastasized very quickly. A cherry eye was actually something much worse, and didn't allow Otto to live more than a week after his true diagnosis.

Otto will always have a special place in our heart. RIP sweet boy.

Lesson 1: Loading the clicker

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 05:01:00 +0000

Thanks to Robin Menard of Gentle Giants Rescue and Training!

This wonderful woman and I have a very similar belief that there are SO many animals in shelters and rescues because of lack of training, socialization, and simply lack of a dog being made a member of the family. We hope by sharing some simple education and training methods, we can prevent MANY more dogs from ending up in shelters.

Day 1-3: Loading the clicker
This simply involves click and treat. Click and treat. Do this about 20 times twice a day. Do it before a meal when your dog will be more food motivated and not lose interest. The smaller the treat, the better so they can get it down quick - helpful later on. Cat pounce treats, tiny pieces of hot dog, or tiny pieces of turkey or cheese work best.

By the 3rd day, pause very briefly after the click to see if they look for the treat. If they seem to be expecting a treat, you have successfully loaded the clicker!

KEY NOTE: DO NOT click without a treat!! This will cause confusion!

Both Titus and Patches seemed to be expecting a treat by the end of day 2, so we are very excited to move forward.

Stay tuned!

It's "Just a dog"

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 02:16:00 +0000

A favorite photo from Feb. 2011

"From time to time, people tell me, "lighten up, it's just a dog," or, "that's a lot of money for just a dog".They don't understand the distance traveled, the time spent, or the costs involved for "just a dog."

Some of my proudest moments have come about with "just a dog." Many hours have passed and my only company was "just a dog", but I did not once feel slighted.

Some of my saddest moments have been brought about by "just a dog", and in those days of darkness, the gentle touch of "just a dog" gave me comfort and reason to overcome the day.

If you, too, think it's "just a dog", then you will probably understand phases like "just a friend," "just a sunrise," or "just a promise."

"Just a dog" brings into my life the very essence of friendship, trust, and pure unbridled joy. "Just a dog" brings out the compassion and patience that make me a better person. Because of "just a dog" I will rise early, take long walks and look longingly to the future. So for me and folks like me, it's not "just a dog", but an embodiment of all the hopes and dreams of the future, the fond memories of the past, and the pure joy of the moment. "Just a dog" brings out what's good in me and diverts my thoughts away from myself and the worries of the day.
I hope that someday they can understand that it's not "just a dog" but the thing that gives me humanity and keeps me from being "just a human."

So the next time you hear the phrase "just a dog", just smile, because they "just don't understand."

~Borrowed from another great rescuer and trainer, Robin Menard

Extreme Makeover Crossroads Edition UPDATE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 03:39:00 +0000

No. All the hoopla about Extreme Home Makeover being in Lawrence/Kansas City, KS is, sadly, NOT for us. :-(

We have the application 99% finished - just need my husband to get the measurements of our lot. Then, early next week, when my teenage son, David, is not doing BOTH marching band and 7 hours a day of rehearsing for a Summer Youth Theater production of "West Side Story", he will be able to be a part of the video we have to make. He is extremely talented and animated, so we thought he would be just the right person to give the "tour of the house" that is required.

However, this production shindig is affecting Crossroads' in a way. Erica and her family have been living at the Hampton Inn since her mastiff, Marla, set her house on fire. Well, the production team of Extreme Home Makeover bought out the Hampton, and Erica has to move her family to a different hotel until they are done cleaning and repairing her house. Justice (great dane in rescue) has been adopted, but remains in boarding until her adoptive family gets back from vacation next weekend. She is doing great at day care and healed nicely from her spay surgery.

Lawrence Landscape, from just down the street from our house, will be doing the landscaping for the project. Here is the link in the Lawrence Journal-World.

If you are interested in volunteering for the Extreme Home Makeover project, here is the link to their volunteer page: Join Extreme

So let's make this a good experience for those involved in the production so they will want to come back to Lawrence SOON for US!!

Really? Breeder over rescue?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 03:29:00 +0000

My soap box has come out quite a bit lately, but when it comes to animal welfare I will not apologize.

Today we received an email from a woman very interested in adopting Justice and wanted to know her age and price. Erica responded with our adoption process, that she is just over a year old and her adoption fee is $250. (Note: The wonderful Rocky Moutain Great Dane Rescue charges $350 for a pure great dane under 2 years of age, just for comparison since we are an all breed rescue.) Justice has been vet checked, heartworm tested (negative) and started on preventative, Capstar for fleas and flea/tick treatment, nails trimmed, updated on all vaccinations, micro-chipped and spayed.

This woman responded that there were breeders selling AKC registered Great Danes for the same price, so she would just go there.

REALLY?? Obviously she has no clue. I am not sure what breeder she is speaking of, but I would be shocked if they are that cheap. Is the dog from the breeder current on vaccinations, vet checked, heartworm tested/on prevention or spayed? Oh well, spayed probably isn't an issue.

Does she have any clue that if she buys a dog from a breeder for (give her the benefit of the doubt) $250 that should she choose to properly vet her dog what the cost would be? As a rescue we get significant discounts, so the following numbers are from our vet: Heartworm test $35, Nail Trim $9, Micro-chip $40, Distemper/Parvo $20, Bordatella $20, Rabies $25, Capstar $5, spay for a great dane - anywhere from $250-$500 depending on weight. So on top of her purchase price, she would still have to spend $400-550 plus monthly heartworm prevention and flea/tick prevention to appropriately vet the dog. AND there is no guarantee the dog is healthy. Treating a great dane for heartworms could cost $700+ alone.

So $250 for a healthy, sweet, loving great dane from a rescue or $250 for a great dane from a breeder with no further information?

And seriously, who can deny this face?

The Paw Wash is AWESOME!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 03:37:00 +0000

First of all, Crossroads Dog Rescue does not benefit from the sale of The Paw Wash. However, I was SO impressed by the results, that I just had to share. I bought this back in April at the Pet Expo in KC. I heard about it through various Facebook posts, but had not heard personally how well it worked. I was leery, but my dear goldendoodle, Hannah... Her sister's mom (a dear rescue friend) and I joke about our girls and their black go-go boots (mud up to their knees). So I bought it to give it try (developed by a KU student - it had to be good, right??)

Well, to tell you how leery I was, I did not try it until today. I put a little doggie shampoo in the bottom and filled to the line with warm water, per the instructions. I had the microfiber hand towel, but also had 2 more towels just in case. I put Hannah's paw in and out just a couple times, and WOW! I am glad I had the couple other towels there because of her thick hair, I needed to dry her paw quite a bit. I did both front paws, then went and rinsed out the container. I put more warm water in to rinse the soap off. A couple times on each paw and here are the final results:

AWESOME!!

Cleaner than me putting her in the bath tub, I think!

To give you an idea of how dirty she was, look at her back paw times 2 or 3. I tried to wash her right back paw, but she wouldn't stand up for me. So back paws are a challenge on her - I just towel scrubbed them down.
Basically, I am really impressed. So head on over to The Paw Wash and get yourself one!

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY Rynn's babies!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 04:07:00 +0000

Many of you may not remember this picture. For others, as for me, it is a picture we will NEVER forget.
It is a picture I received via email with this picture:

I forwarded the email to Erica and called her. You see Erica is the rational one in this partnership. "Is she good with other dogs?" "How bad off is she?" "Are you going to get her and all those puppies????"

I could hear her thinking, "She is nutz! She is going to get that mom and babies!", but Erica knew the answer to the last question. The first two questions I ignored and was already making transport arrangements with the wonderful Laura Oesterhaus that works with the Manhattan, KS shelter. Was there any question about me rescuing this poor girl and her 9, yes NINE, babies??? She had been brought into the shelter by a gentleman that said he found her on his property with the puppies. Someone dumped a momma dog with 9 puppies out in the middle of nowhere with no shelter, water, or nutrition?? I will not take responsibility for my actions should I ever meet that person face to face. How in the WORLD are they still alive??

The thing about this girl and her story is it spread like wild fire to Colorado, Oklahoma, Missouri, and of course, Kansas. When word got out that Crossroads was rescuing her, suddenly we had emails of offers for sponsorship, adoption, and $150 in donations!

I took my teenage son and we met Laura in Topeka on July 28th, 2010 to pick her up with her babies. She was so skinny we were almost scared to touch her, but at the same time wanted to hug her and tell her everything was going to be okay now. She rode all the way home snuggled next to my son.

We got her home and gave her a much needed bath. This is what we pulled off of her - in all, seven engorged ticks, mostly from under her chin and on her neck. *blech*

After her bath, she continued her bonding with my son, David. We were trying to think of an appropriate name when David asked if he could name her. He came up with Ryne. No particular meaning, it just sounded good to him. She seemed to like it and she stayed close to David all night.

We also got her puppies settled.

Warning!! CUTE Alert!

As emaciated as Momma Ryne was, look at how healthy these approximately four week old puppies were! Nine precious, adorable, beautiful babies - 2 girls and 7 boys! Love at first sight for sure. You can see these and over 150++ more pictures on our Facebook page. Look for "Momma Ryne and babies" and "Ryne's babies 8 weeks and up". The pictures say so much more than I can put into words here.

Ryne was an INCREDIBLE mother to these babies. She willingly nursed and cared for them. She socialized them and disciplined in such a gentle, loving way. The following is one of my favorite mother/kids pictures:

"I'm gonna miss these boogers when they leave."

And so the puppies began to find furrever homes.

This is Ryne kissing Riley good-bye. Still brings tears to my eyes.

In the end, all 9 puppies ended up in AMAZING homes. I am so blessed to be able to keep in touch with many of them through email and Facebook. This is full grown Riley with his friend/sister (and the next Crossroads' momma) FLASH! Yes, we are blessed to already have repeat adopters!

And then there is our dear Biffle, originally Green collar.

He was accidentally hit by a truck in December and was our first Crossroads' baby to go to Rainbow Bridge. The day I received that email will forever be etched in my brain. I bawled for the longest time and it still brings tears to my eyes. He will forever be in our hearts, and I'm sure he is watching over all 8 of his siblings and momma!

(Note: We may finally have some progress on his memorial sign,

as we renamed the puppy run out back BIFFLE'S RUN!)

But what about Ryne? Well, a lady from Wyoming inquired about Ryne middle of August. We began emailing back and forth. It had been laid on her heart that Ryne could possibly be a good companion for their other sweet girl, Auri. Email after email, back and forth, an increasing comfort came over me that this is where Ryne should go when the time was right. Sometimes a family comes around and there is just a solid feeling, a God Wink I would call it, that says - give her to that home. Ryne meant the world to our family. She was so loving and gentle - practically the perfect dog in every way. There was no way I could let her be adopted by just anyone.

After we approved their application and continued to communicate, we decided that we wanted to meet in person, meaning I would personally transport her halfway (7 hours one way). So on a Sunday, end of September, I got up early with Ryne and headed towards central Nebraska. Ryne was an angel girl the whole way. When I finally met up with this incredible couple that I had been communicating with, it seemed as if we had been friends for a very long time. We found a beautiful park to walk Ryne and her new sister, Auri, and spent a long time chatting, sharing, and watching Ryne and Auri get to know each other. (Okay, now I'm crying just remembering that beautiful day.)

I said my good-byes to Ryne as we put her in this soft bed next to Auri in the back of their SUV - just within reach of her new mom and dad. Ryne was not 100% sure what was going on, but I knew she would be fine. I got back in my car and drove to a gas station. I sat there for quite some time having a good cry - a bittersweet, happy/sad cry. With that said, to this day, I have never been so confident in my decision to drive 14 hours round trip and take a dog to a furrever family.

Here is Ryne's (now Rynn) first Christmas in her new home:

And here is her running free and happy.

Enough said.

Happy 1st Birthday to Rynn's beautiful babies!!

You did an amazing job, Rynn.

To Rynn and her children - we love you!

HOT, HOT, HOT!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 04:34:00 +0000

The next week or so is going to be treacherously hot. You may be hearing it on the news and other animal pages you follow, but it does not hurt to repeat this warning. Our dogs need to stay cool just like we do!

For Lawrence, KS, we are under an Extreme Heat Watch and the temperature will not be below 90 (mostly upper 90s) for the next 8 days at least.

Please do not leave your dog outside for very long. Do not exercise your dog for very long periods of time - even early morning or late at night when it can still be high 80's, low 90's. A dogs' normal body temp is higher than ours - 100.5-102.5 degrees F, so they are already higher than a human. Plus they carry a coat and if it is dark, it will be that much warmer. Their bodies are not as efficient at cooling itself either - only through their paws and panting.

Speaking of their paws - do not walk them on hot surfaces. If you would not walk on hot cement or asphalt, neither should they.

So besides being inside in the air conditioning, how else can we help dogs stay cool?

Obviously, ample cold water to drink.
Plenty of shade
Limited physical activity
Kiddie pool - Titus loves having the pool outside.
A cold toy - I put a few rubber toys in a clean ice cream bucket then fill it with water and put it in the freezer. Once it is frozen, I run the outside of the bucket under cool water which allows the big ice chunk to easily fall out on the patio. The dogs love licking it and working their way to the toys.
Frozen treats - Spoon all natural pumpkin (No spices) into an ice tray and freeze. These are healthy, cold treats that are great for their digestive system.
Misting fan
Obviously the best option is to keep your dog indoors and only allow outside briefly for potty breaks.

So what to do indoors with a dog that needs to burn off energy?

Play "Hide & Seek". This is a great way to work on recall. When they find you (or the kids) they can reward with a small treat.
Fill a Kong toy (on sale cheap at Amazon) with a treat, all natural pumpkin, yogurt or cottage cheese. This will keep the dog busy for a while while he/she works it out.
Kong and Nylabone are the favorite toy brands around here - many are mentally stimulating and almost indestructible.
Puzzles - Kong has the beehive shaped one. There is a puzzle cube that you can fill with part of their meal for them to work out. Frank LOVES these. If your dog doesn't destroy stuffed toys, there are some great ones available as well.

Last but, certainly not least - Do NOT ever leave your dog in the car in the heat. If you see a dog in a car, have the owners paged and/or call the authorities. Do SOMETHING. It will not take very long for the dog to overheat.

Thank you for loving and taking good care of your and other furrkids!

Extreme Home Makeover - Crossroads edition?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 04:43:00 +0000

Those that know me well, know that I am very bad about asking for help, or anything else for that matter. I am also very bad at accepting offered help or gifts too. I am a take charge kind of person that wants to take care of everyone else, and of course have a passion for the plight of homeless dogs.

In the past 3 years, I feel like I have finally found my calling and that is in dog rescue. These precious, helpless animals need a voice. They need someone to step up and show the world how much love they have to offer if only given the chance. They also need help being spay/neutered. This is what I believe I was called to do.

Rescue, as in life, is not without challenges. Shelters are overflowing with animals needing rescue and adoption, and it is heartbreaking to have to "ignore" many, many emails and Facebook postings with pictures of dogs that look so sad, or are sick or injured. The number of animals in need is way more than there are volunteers and rescuers can help. Sometimes it seems even a momma and one litter of puppies is a lot for just me to handle. But our goal is to do it RIGHT and to do it WELL.

And then there is life... During the past 3 years, we fought diligently to figure out what was wrong with my youngest son, Jeffrey. He screamed since birth and very little gave him any relief. Finally, at the age of 20 months, other life threatening symptoms appeared that finally got one of the many doctors we had seen to order an MRI of his head.
Diagnosis: Severe Chiari Malformation of the brain blocking all cerebral spinal fluid from flowing freely down his spinal cord. Due to the lack of medical understanding of this condition, it took further pushing and fighting, until finally a doctor at Cleveland Clinic listened. Jeffrey had decompression surgery (craniectomy at the base of his skull and laminectomy of the C1) in Cleveland on May 11, 2010. This may have saved his life, as well as prevented him from being paralyzed from the neck down.

Due to the amount of time it took to get the decompression, there is some brain damage - IGF-1 deficiency, hypoglycemia, Intracranial Hypertension, and Severe Apraxia of Speech. With this information under our belts, we are now using it to see if it is the cause of our 2 daughters' health issues, including gastric vulvulus, headaches, body pain, ketotic hypoglycemia, exercise intolerance, and frequent dislocation of their joints - at the young ages of 5 and almost 7 years old.

I do not share this information lightly or for people to feel sorry for us. It is what God gave us, and we believe He does not give us more than we can handle. But as Mother Teresa says - we wish He did not trust us so much. :-)

The animals in our home are therapy for our family. I only hope and pray that we can give these animals half the love and loyalty that they give us. With every extra ounce of energy I have, I want to save more animals from being euthanized. I want to educate the community of resources available to help with the cost of spay/neuter, and the benefits and life long reward of adopting shelter/rescue animals.

It is a two fold request that we now ask for your support by nominating us for Extreme Home Makeover - to raise awareness about Chiari Malformation, to raise awareness about the plight of homeless animals and spay/neuter, and obviously, have the home that will allow us to not only care for our medically challenged children, but continue to rescue dogs in need.

The information is posted on the Crossroads Dog Rescue Facebook wall as well as here:
Taken from Pilots N Paws Facebook page: NEWS FLASH! After seeing a news article on one our rescue flights, Pilots N Paws was contacted by Extreme Makeover-Home Edition. Pilots N Paws would love to nominate a family who is making a difference in the animal rescue movement to bring about change and awareness to the cause. If you know a family that are heroes to animals and that and need a home, please send an email to producer Kelly Mooney ExtremePets@EMHE.TV as soon as possible. Let's get moving people!

Thank you will never be enough if we are chosen. For now, thank you for considering us and supporting our rescue cause!!
~Stephanie Richardson & Family
Crossroads Dog Rescue
crossroadsdogs@gmail.com

Callie's Babies

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 15:05:00 +0000

Meet Bubba - one of 8 adorable puppies from Callie's litter. There are 5 boys and 3 girls. We believe momma Callie is an Australian Cattle Dog mix (not sure what). The puppies appear to be mixed with Keeshond or something similar. All of the puppies will have been vet checked twice, given first shots and wormer prior to adoption. They are available June 10th, 2011. If you are interested in adoption, go to our website and read through the adoptions page: http://www.crossroadsdogrescue.org

ChipIn Set up for Vet Bills

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 19 May 2011 01:26:00 +0000

To our wonderful friends and supporters:

We have reached a point in rescue that is uncomfortable for us and we need your help. In order to move forward and save more lives, we have to pay our vet bills for Sammie (Jack Russell that passed away from diabetes and pancreatitis) and Hershey that are just not being covered by adoption fees. We continue to have to buy adult dog food, a collar (cheap, but quality) for the adult dogs, and tags (we buy off eBay very inexpensively).

We greatly appreciate any amount that you can offer. Just $10 from 100 people and we have it raised. With over 600 friends and if you can share our link to spread the word about our mission, I just know we can do this quickly! THANK YOU!

If you would like to mail donations directly to us or to our vet, here are the addresses:
Stephanie Richardson
Crossroads Dog Rescue
819 N. 7th Street
Lawrence, KS 66044

Eudora Animal Hospital
1905 Elm
Eudora, KS 66025
(Please note that it is for Crossroads Dog Rescue)

For the LOVE of Titus!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 17 May 2011 04:14:00 +0000

Probably a rescuers worst nightmare would be losing one of the rescue dogs. Having the dog get out and not being able to find a dog one has just pulled from a shelter only to be picked up by animal control and put back in another shelter...

You see our dear Titus has figured out how to jump the 6 foot gate by using the cross bar! We do not usually let him out back without supervision, and the few times he has gone over, we are right there to get him back in. (Have I mentioned he has GREAT recall?!)

Dear sweet Titus

So this morning, Titus wanted out with the rest of the dogs one more time before I ran the girls to school. I let him go and prayed he would not jump. Instantly the kids came to me saying he jumped. *sigh* I run out front and there is no sign of him.

I ran back in, changed a diaper quick and threw the kids in the car to go find him. I drove everywhere in our neighborhood, searched the farms to the North of us, drove a couple streets over... all the while PRAYING people would not see him and call Animal Control. I also called Erica for emotional support. She offered to come drive around. We drove around for over 20 minutes before I had to get the girls to school. *ugh* I hated leaving our neighborhood not knowing where he went!

But I had to get the girls to school, and I did - just barely on time. Then I rushed back home as fast as I safely could and continued to drive around looking for Titus. My little Jeffrey (that has very few words he can say) kept saying "Tidey come home!"

However, Rodman's adopter was supposed to be here to pick him up! So after 45 minutes of driving around, we went home, and I was SICK to my stomach with worry about where Titus was. I called Erica devastated.

I go in the house and look to the back door window - THERE STANDS TITUS! He never left us!
I could swear I checked out back thoroughly before leaving. I guess not.

Yes I am blonde and feel free to get a good chuckle out of this.

Crossroads Dog Rescue is GROWING!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 11 May 2011 04:13:00 +0000

Great news abounds at Crossroads Dog Rescue!
We have people stepping up and offering to foster. We've had offers of volunteers. Donations of bowls, towels, paper towels, newspapers and food have been amazing!!
We cannot thank you enough! These are much needed so that we can continue to help these precious lives.

We are also growing our network base with many other rescues, shelters, organizations that make products for dogs, and getting our name out by being listed on other websites! This is all incredibly exciting!

With growth comes a need for more money. We would love to begin microchipping all the dogs that come into our rescue. The initial investment with HomeAgain is $500 for 100 microchips and a scanner. Having the vet do a microchip is $40 each - not cost effective for us, so purchasing our own in bulk will save us $35 a chip!!

As soon as our 501(c)3 is finalized, we will begin applying for grants. We are soon going to be selling adorable homemade dog toys, house training doggie door bells and homemade doggie treats. Eventually my wonderful husband, Chad, says he would like to make Kuranda-like beds to sell. (There is an organization back East that has all the plans to make them in bulk for around $12 each! ) We would also like to have a "Mom and Pups Reunion" this summer which will include a fundraiser!

While all these plans are great, there is one piece to rescue that will never stop being a need - vet bills. As we have shared in my post "Why does it cost so much?", much of the time our adoption fees do not cover the cost of vetting a dog so that our amazing adopters get the healthiest dog possible. Many of you also know that we recently have been on an emotional roller coaster.
So let me lay it out:

Hershey's vet bill was $220 to have her put down due to needing a rabies test since she had bitten.
Sammie's vet care was $721 for 5 nights in the hospital, glucose checks, IV fluids, antibiotics, and ultimately having to be put to sleep.
Callie's vet bill will be well over $700 for heartworm treatment, all her shots, and spay.

This does not include Titus' shots, Marley's shots, puppies' shots and wormer, any other dog we might be asked to take in, adult dog food (puppy food is once again being donated by No More Homeless Pets KC) and supplies to care for the animals.

So while we are THRILLED that we are growing and able to help more animals, we can only do it with your monetary donations. If you would be willing to donate any amount of money, we are setting up 3 different funds: Sammie Memorial, Callie and puppies, and HomeAgain MicroChip funds. You are welcome to donate to the general fund, or to these specific needs - just leave a note with your donation which fund you would like it to go to. If there is no note, we will put the funds towards our greatest need.

If you would like to mail donations directly to us or to our vet, here are the addresses:
Stephanie Richardson
Crossroads Dog Rescue
819 N. 7th Street
Lawrence, KS 66044

Eudora Animal Hospital
1905 Elm
Eudora, KS 66025
(Please note that it is for Crossroads Dog Rescue)

We thank you in advance. Until every nose has a home...

Wordle - fun new site!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 05 May 2011 04:28:00 +0000

Is this not cool?!?

Fun site to play with words and even print them!

Best of all - it's FREE!

Gotta check out Wordle!