no sooner

had parvo buddy beagle Lenny found a more permanent foster home (til mid dec!)  than my phone rang ....

could I find a spot for a little 4 week old husky (maybe? now I think she is more likely keeshound )

well I had already spoken to everybody who dog fosters ... so guess where the little one is??

in my sweater

she is pretty darn photogenic ...

buddy beagle baby

not the greatest picture but he may just be the cutest puppy ever! This little soul is bouncing around foster homes hoping for a home of his own ... he has tested positive for parvo so needs to be away from other dogs for awhile .. but he is feeling FABULOUS!

like many of his breed what he really wants is cuddles, food and great things to smell ...

just a dear little fellow

kiddens getting along ...

geesh Ali is a nice little girl - super shy but so willing to take a little one under her arm ... she is wrestling and snuggling with Louie ..

Louie has yet to hiss at us and he no longer freezes in place but he is not purring nor does he seek attention yet ...

they are awfully cute shy babies tho!

Weirdo ...Edwardo ...Louie ...

One little kitten with a whole lot of names has taken up the emergency extra foster spot in the house. (we will not mention anything about guinea pigs OK?)

Edwardo is a mutation of Weirdo - Louie is for Louie Riel .. as this kitten looks a lot like our Dumont  ... (Dumont the human travelled with Riel the human).

Mighty cute he's currently getting used to the idea that dogs and people aren't monsters. He seems to be getting it. Ali is THRILLED to have a kitten to play with and snuggle again so hopefully we'll have some cute pictures soon.

Sometimes it just sucks ...

Little Lizzie died last night

She had moved onto lapping from dish and had just started  eating canned food well too - she was bright, playful and happy

then yesterday she sneezed after lunch

by midnight she was gone - her breathing was laboured and she was suddenly very congested

I could have raced to emerg and left her in an oxygen tank overnight and hoped she survived for awhile but to be honest, having done it before, I had little faith that she could or would survive. I simply could not leave her to die alone and afraid. This way she faded slowly and peacefully with Ali and I. It was sad, no it was tragic, but Lizzie was never afraid nor was she ever cold. She mostly slept and when she woke up she would nestle in against Ali or I.

We will miss her.

hoping for a little help

Mimzy needs our help ... she is a 10 month old spaniel setter mix. Abandoned as a stray she ended up in a shelter my rescue of choice Project Jessie works with ... We've taken her in - to discover she needs surgery for her hip dysplasia - the rescue will need $ 2,000- 3,000 to make that happen
hoping lots of people are touched by this sweet face and sad story and can help make a real difference in one dogs life

www.projectjessie.ca to donate - or 416-462-9541. Thanks.

if I end up fostering her you know I'll take lots of pictures!

On bottle feeding babies ...

Over the years we have raised hundreds of orphan kittens ...I wish I had kept better track of them all but you'll have to believe me when I say they have ranged from hours old right through to nearly weaned...

always a great day when orphans start lapping formula

Some key points in raising an orphan successfully

• if they aren't warm -DO NOT feed them- they MUST be warm to process the milk properly
• follow the directions for milk replacer carefully -no guessing!
• for the first three weeks (at least) treat your kitten infant  as if it was human - sterilize equipment and keep everything clean
• I always mix up the formula with boiling water- water in first then powder seems to work best for me
• Be very very careful not to force fluid into your baby -they need to control the intake - aspiration pneumonia is no fun and can be deadly (I use a long necked syringe rather than a bottle now)
• kittens need a tummy rub to keep all systems operational -my usual pattern is tummy rub, feed, play (or snuggle), tummy rub again - you may want to use a warm damp face cloth -I use a paper towel quite successfully
• if you are raising litter see if you can break the litter into pairs or trios -kittens will suckle on each other and wake one another up - when really little they do best in small groups when a human has to raise them -as they get closer to weaning age you can put the litter back together
• did I mention keeping baby warm? they don't thermo-regulate well for quite awhile so pay careful attention to environment (my kittens usually have to travel with me - I use a box, many towels and a microwavable Snuggle Safe to create a nice dark, cosy, warm micro climate for the littlest babies
• be very careful about fostering orphans into already nursing litters -mom cats are generous souls - and I often share kitten raising with a cat if I can -but mixing litters can lead to real heartache and needless death
• and, perhaps most importantly, don't beat yourself up if your orphan doesn't survive - I've been doing this since 1994 and I still lose one occasionally - heartbreaking but true.