4 Border Collie Mix Breed Puppies for adoption!

4 Border Collie Mix Breed Puppies for adoption!
These adorable puppies were found in a plastic bag in a street. A passerby (thank you whoever you are!) noticed the bag moving, picked it up and found these newborn puppies inside. 5 weeks later the pups, 1 male and 3 females, have received their fist puppy shots and are de-wormed. If you live in the Stephenville, Texas, area and are interested in adopting one of the puppies, please click HERE.

Top 10 Tips About What — and How — to Feed Your Puppy or Kitten

Newborn kittens and puppies receive complete nutrition from their mothers’ milk for the first four weeks of life. As they gradually begin to eat on their own, they will be fully weaned after a few more weeks. During the first weeks of life, body weight may double or triple, and this rapid growth will continue—although at a gradually decreasing rate—until maturity. Large amounts of energy and nutrients are required in balanced quantities to support this spectacular growth.

Here are our top ten tips for feeding puppies and kittens:

1. Kittens are best fed mom's milk; it's 100-percent perfect for their needs. However, if the mother is ill or doesn’t produce enough milk, or if the kittens are found as orphans, it is necessary to feed them a commercial milk replacer.

2. Generally, orphaned or hand-fed kittens can be offered moistened kitten food at about three weeks of age. Use a commercial milk replacer to moisten the food, and gradually reduce the amount of milk replacer you use, until the kittens are eating dry kitten food at about five or six weeks of age.

3. At first, curious kittens will probably want to play with their food rather than eat it, but the youngsters will soon catch on as they watch mom eat. By the time kittens are five to six weeks old, they should be nibbling on dry food consistently. This process of gradually introducing kitten food is important in training the cats to eat when they are weaned.

4. After weaning, kittens can be fed free-choice—dry or nutrient-dense kitten-formula canned food. Make sure fresh water is available at all times.

5. Most queens will suckle their kittens until about eight weeks of age. By this time, 80- to 90-percent of the kitten's total nutrient intake should be from kitten food. Kittens need large amounts of energy—about two to three times that of an adult cat. Kittens also need about 30 percent of their total energy from protein. Make sure the food you offer is specifically formulated for kittens; your pet will need to eat kitten-formula food until she reaches maturity, at about one year.

6. Canines generally begin eating puppy food at about three or four weeks, and are completely weaned by seven or eight weeks. They require up to twice the energy intake of adults and, depending on the breed, will need to have 25- to 30-percent protein.

7. As with kittens, puppies should have puppy food available prior to weaning. These meals should begin when the pups are three to four weeks old; start with small quantities. Puppies often play in their food when it is first introduced, but they will quickly learn what to do with it! By the time the pups are ready to wean at six to eight weeks old, they should be eating their dry food consistently.

8. Small breeds of dogs reach mature body weight in nine to twelve months, while giant breeds may not be mature until they reach their second birthday.

9. Just who are we calling SMALL? Small-breed dogs are 20 pounds or less. As pups, they can often be fed free-choice. When food is readily available, most small-breed dogs will develop good eating habits and not become overweight. If you have other pets, you should probably feed your small-breed dog by the portion control method.

10. Most medium-breed puppies (adult size between 20 and 50 pounds) and all large or giant breed pups (more than 50 pounds as adults) are best fed with the portion control method.

BONUS! Special Concerns about Feeding Large- and Giant-Breed Puppies
If puppies are allowed to overeat, they may consume too many calories and too much calcium, grow too rapidly and develop bone growth problems. In breeds that are prone to these diseases, such as many large and giant breeds, overfeeding can lead to an increased frequency of hypertrophic osteodystrophy (HOD), osteochondrosis (OCD) and hip dysplasia.

Clinical signs often seen with bone growth disease include bowing of the front legs. Sometimes, these signs are misdiagnosed as calcium deficiency (also known as rickets). Radiographs are crucial for an accurate diagnosis. Adding more calcium to the diets of dogs with HOD, OCD or hip dysplasia will actually worsen the condition—and may result in permanent damage.

It is important to aim for a slower rate of growth with large and giant breed puppies. Do not overfeed, or try to push the growth rate too fast. Controlled feeding of a balanced diet specifically made for large- and giant-breed puppies facilitates optimal skeletal development. Remember, the adult size of a dog is determined genetically—not by how fast the animal grows.

Source

Trinity and Honey Story in the Newspaper

Today, Trinity's story made the cover page of the local paper's Lifestyles section. I don't think they put that part online, so I scanned the article and pasted the text below it for easier reading:

Click picture to view larger scan:

Honey and Trinity Success Story

How two dogs can create a lot of human winners.

Not everybody in Erath County knows about the Humane Society Animal Shelter and its adoptable pets. A few of the people that do know about it have the wrong impression. They often think of it as dog pound-hell. Maybe after reading the following story of the combined efforts of many people to make happy endings happen, they will change their minds and convince more pet lovers to adopt a pet instead of purchasing one from a pet store or a breeder. It was a cold and damp morning on New Year's Eve 2007. My small wildlife rescue was empty for the winter and I was enjoying the relaxing moments before spring would present me with its orphaned critters again. That's when the phone rang and my life was about to be changed forever. On the phone was Judy Hallmark, the Erath County Humane Society's shelter manager. In the previous 8 years, I have fostered quite a number of domesticated animals for the shelter in addition to my own wildlife rescue efforts. Judy had taken me under her wing when I was new in town and encouraged me to become a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. I admire her with all my heart and will be forever grateful for the help she gave me. She is a true hero to me with whom I have the honor to work hand in hand to do what I was born to do: to bring people and animals together so they may understand, assist, and complete each other. On that particular morning of New Year’s Eve, Judy asked me to bottle-raise six newborn Yellow Labrador Retriever puppies. She told me there were eleven in the litter and that five were too weak to be saved and had to be humanely euthanized. They were found frozen half to death under some porch with the mother too far gone to care. She did not have the heart to euthanize the remaining 6 healthy looking pups, Judy said. I could hear her swallowing hard, near tears. "Too many innocent ones had to go this year before they even had a chance," she sighed. I agreed to raise the puppies, but I also wanted to help their mother, so I took her home too. She was such a sweet dog that I named her Honey. In the following weeks Honey recovered from her obvious past neglect while her puppies grew strong. The entire Lab family was such a delight to take care of, especially one female puppy, the only one with the tan nose. She was the first to walk, to eat solid food, and to be weaned. This puppy will play a bigger role later on. Six weeks later, in mid February 2008, the puppies were almost weaned, the phone rang again. Judy told me about a litter of five newborn Border Collie pups that had been found in a plastic bag on Alexander Road. A caring passerby stopped, picked up the bag, and drove it to the shelter. I picked up the pups and brought them home in a laundry basket. I put the basket down to get fresh towels. Upon my return I found Honey sitting in the laundry basket with the five black and white puppies suckling peacefully. She looked at me with this glare in her eyes that only a mother has.Needless to say, Honey raised those puppies too. Honey displayed such high intelligence that I decided to keep her a while longer after all the puppies were adopted into new homes. I had her spayed and vaccinated and took her to obedience classes. It was clear to me from the beginning that Honey had a higher purpose in life than just being a pet. My plan was to take her to hospitals, nursing homes, schools, and more to make people smile while educating them about animal behavior. Honey was the perfect dog for such a job. She stayed with me for eight months. Somehow the word got out about her skills and my phone rang again. This time it was a lady named Susan Branham. She told me about her son Jacob, who suffers from spina bifida, a serious birth abnormality in which the spinal cord is malformed and lacks its usual protective skeletal and soft tissue coverings. Confined to a wheel chair, her son had been having a difficult time lately and was not very motivated to do anything, she said. A dog might change that, but it has to be the right kind of dog. With every word Susan said, that feeling deep inside us that tells us clearly what's right and wrong, grew louder and stronger, screaming at me that this is it! It was time to say good-bye to Honey. Susan picked her up next day and Honey won everybody's heart in no time, especially Jacob's. There couldn't have been a better ending. A lot people have asked me how I do it, why I am not sad that Honey is gone. How come that I don't miss her? My answer is always the same "Don't cry because it's over; smile because it happened!" The story is not over, however, far from it. Remember the female puppy with the tan nose that stuck out? She was named Trinity and ended up being the "shelter dog", like a mascot to the shelter. She grew up amongst dogs and people, displaying the same sweet character and intelligence as her mother Honey, even though she lacked obedience and leadership. It was planned that I take Trinity in over the winter months to teach her the basics. In November 2008 Trinity turned up missing from the shelter. Previous occurrences at the shelter led us to believe that she was stolen. We immediately started with the search efforts: printed out flyers, informed the police and animal control, called the newspaper; even Crime Stoppers offered a $1000 reward for her safe return. We all were worried sick! Exactly a week later she was found at the Dublin animal shelter! How she ended up there will probably never be known, but she was safe and healthy. Or so it seemed. It was obvious that life at the shelter was not in Trinity’s best interest. After she was spayed, I took her in to teach her basic obedience and then put her up for adoption. Trinity looked and behaved so much like Honey, even my husband and my neighbors started calling her Honey. Trinity turned out to be a fast learner and she absolutely loved to do tricks. As with Honey, I pictured Trinity visiting hospitals and schools. I taught her how to stop, drop and roll and dreamed about a future with the fire department. Surely such a smart dog had a bright future and if not, I was more than happy to call her my own. As with her mother, I knew Trinity was meant to be more than just my pet. On a hunch I contacted Susan Branham to see how Honey was doing and if she wasn't by any chance interested in adopting a second dog. She replied stating that they are in the process of adopting a chocolate Lab from a Lab rescue in the Metroplex. What a shame, I thought, I asked a little too late. I continued working with Trinity and started to look for ways to permanently keep her, when she screamed out in pain one evening and started to walk on three legs. She always had a slight limp to her right hind leg, but she never showed any signs of pain, so we didn't pay much attention to it. Her condition worsened and I decided to take her to the vet for an x-ray. The diagnosis was hope-shattering: she must have sustained a severe hip injury as a puppy which was left untreated. As a result her bones had suffered severe damage. Only extensive surgery or pain medication for the rest of her life would make her life comfortable. She was only one year old. There was no doubt in my mind what had to be done. I immediately started a fundraiser and with the help of my own mother in Germany, Randi Baldwin from the TSU Wildlife Society, and many other generous contributors, we were able to raise the funds for the necessary hip surgery. During that fundraising process I decided to check back with Susan and see if the adoption of the chocolate Lab worked out. It had not. I explained Trinity's situation and Susan agreed to give her a chance. We set up a visit and had Trinity spend a day with Honey before the surgery. If mother and daughter get along, they would consider adopting Trinity after the surgery and recovery. I was thrilled! It all worked out like a Hollywood fairy-tale. The surgery was a success. Trinity recovered nicely and was officially adopted by Susan Branham, her husband Weldon, son Jacob, and of course Trinity's mother Honey. "We are all enjoying her very much and think she is going to be absolutely as wonderful as Honey is," Susan says. “The two dogs make our lives so much richer. We laugh while they play and, honestly, I don’t know how some people live without having the love of good dogs as a part of their family like what we have here.” Animals like Trinity are taken to the shelter every day and without people to adopt them into their own loving families, many will be put down. Instead of going to a pricey breeder or a pet store to buy a puppy or kitten, please take the time to visit the Erath County Animal Shelter. If you have online access, their adoptable pets are also displayed on http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TX1178.html . The shelter in Stephenville is open Monday through Friday from 9am until 3pm with extended hours available by appointment. Their phone number is (254) 965 – 3247. Donations for pet care items and repairs are always very welcome and extremely appreciated.

Rainbow Wildlife Summer Newsletter

A very HOT Summer 2009 at the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue

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158 animals were admitted to the RWR in 2009 so far
My name is Birgit Sommer. I am a licensed wildlife rehabilitator for the State of Texas, director of the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in Stephenville, TX , as well as a volunteer and foster parent for the Erath County Humane Society.
I, like many other licensed wildlife rehabilitators, work out of my own home and volunteer my time and just about every spare cent I can gather towards animal rescue efforts and public wildlife education. No local or state funding is available for animal caging, veterinary care, medicine and food.
That's why most rehabilitators gratefully accept donations towards the care of animals they receive from the public. Some folks find the idea of wildlife rehabilitation ridiculous or claim it's "messing with nature". These folks neglect to see that most wildlife related calls that require our human intervention ARE the direct result of unnatural conditions such as careless behavior of people, toxins, poisons, automobiles, guns, traps, lawn mowers, to name just a few. Often we are confronted with animals that have suffered traumatic wounds and horrific injuries. Some animals come in poisoned, shot, injured by cars and left for dead by humans. The stories and cases are endless and heartbreaking. We, as wildlife rehabilitators, are dedicated warriors on the front lines between suburban development and natural habitat and are grateful for every bit of support we can get.
We need your HELP! One morning last week, I was outside in the large enclosure, bottle-feeding Rocky, one of the 3 female raccoons living outside, when I glanced over to the neighbor's back yard and froze on the spot! This guy was aiming a BB gun at trees and shooting away happily! His toddler grandchildren were playing catch around his legs. When I saw the first squirrel fall I was already so mad, that I had interrupted feeding Rocky and marched outside to call the police, because I knew for a fact that discharging a gun of any kind inside the city limits is illegal. Leave alone with small children running around. The old man received a citation from the police, but I started to get very scared that he might feel like aiming his gun at my cages next time he gets the urge to take out his guns. After all, they are passionate hunters and just shake their heads about what I am doing here. To them I'm a complete joke. To me they are cruel and have no regards for life. So I spent all the money I had for July on privacy fence panels, poles, plywood, nails etc.. It was just enough to partially cover the side of the property behind the enclosures to block out the neighbor's view. And prevent the older kids in the neighborhood from noticing the raccoons, because they "make such keeeewl pets" and "how much do you want for one?". Any attempt to explain or reason with them falls on deaf ears. Kids! Now the coonies have more shade, are better protected and I can sleep a bit better. This is one reason why I see myself forced to do a fundraiser this month. A lot of things have piled up during the past few months, that I was not able to take care of, because I had over a 100 animals to take care of first!!! The most pressing items are as follows and are listed by priority: 50 bags of Concrete for the large enclosure floor ($200) Feline and Canine Distemper vaccines - (25 shots of each = $300) Antibiotics Refills (clavamox and amoxil) - ($60) Advantage Flea Prevention for Puppies - ($50) 4 more Privacy Fence Panels 4x4x10 poles - ($250) Drontal prescription de-wormer refill - ($90) and various items such as Purina Kitten Chow, canned dog food, Purina Puppy Chow, rawhide bones, wood shavings, bark and shavings, cat litter, Timothy hay, fresh produce, detergent, bleach, towels, fluffy blankets, etc - ($100) There are a few reasons why the large enclosure needs a concrete floor rather yesterday than tomorrow. At the moment only 3 raccoons are residing in that enclosure, but in 2 weeks three more raccoons will follow. Having a dirt floor covered with wood shavings is nearly impossible to keep clean, leave alone disinfecting it. The animals carry food around, eliminate in different spots and the insects are having a field day. The flies are horrible, ants are invading the place, mosquito's and fleas are present as well. There is no way I can bleach a dirt floor. I had tried to put plywood down, but since the raccoons use a lot of water, the wood is constantly wet and I keep slipping. A concrete floor would allow me to simply bleach and hose everything down. Another huge hurdle that needs to be overcome is finding volunteers to help me mix the concrete and lay a somewhat leveled floor that will drain well. If you are local and know how to "play" with concrete or know of a company that might donate it's supplies and/or services, give me a call!!! If you want make donation or purchase any of the needed items and have them shipped directly to the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue, please click HERE! Alternatively you can mail a check to the following address: Rainbow Wildlife Rescue 502 E. Clifton Stephenville, TX 76401 Phone: (254) 968 - 4626 Email: help@rainbowwildlife.com What else is happening? Raccoons, birds, opossums, cottontail rabbits, dogs, puppies, cats, kittens and even a couple of published newspaper articles! Lets start with Coco Banana, the pregnant Chihuahua that was thrown over the fence at the Humane Society and ended up in my care. Five weeks ago she gave birth to 6 beautiful and healthy puppies that all look just like her. I'm happy to say that we found great homes for all puppies and even Coco herself!!! They will remain at the RWR for another couple of weeks before going to their forever homes. Animal Control presented me with a very weak orphaned kitten 2 weeks after the puppies were born. The kitten had a hard time nursing from the bottle and since she appeared to be same age as the puppies, I offered the kitten to Coco and she adopted her without hesitation. I named the kitten "Puppy" just to make the confusion perfect! Puppy spent 2 weeks with Coco and her litter. Then the puppies outgrew her and she had to be removed. She is now in foster care with other real kittens. Thanks to my friend Loree, who has been such a great help with fostering the kittens, she's going to have a great start in life. THANKS LOREE!!!!! While I am in the thank you mode, I want to say a very special THANK YOU to Tom Piperson!! He has been my backbone through all of the writing and publishing related ordeals! Thanks to his talents and skills, we were able to reach the public through newspaper articles and spread wildlife awareness as well as clearing up a lot of misconceptions. Thank you Tom, you are a true friend! Psssssst, don't tell anybody yet, but Tom and I are discussing writing a book together! *wink wink* Our newest articles are covering the rabies virus and the misconception surrounding it. The shorter version, suited for Erath County, was published in the Empire Tribune on Sunday, June 28, but they didn't put it online so you can read it HERE. The longer version is available for reading HERE. Last but not least, a VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU goes to my husband for his never ending support and sacrificing his weekends to help me with repairs and tasks that I can't do by myself! Birds Birds that were admitted to the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue since mid March 2009: 7 White-winged Doves, 2 Red-tailed Hawks, 2 Great horned Owls, 2 Black Vultures, 2 Mockingbirds, 1 Burrowing Owl, 4 Sparrows, 2 Grackles, 3 Phoebes, 3 Mourning Doves, 4 Starlings, 1 Killdeer, 1 Yellow-billed Cuckoo, 5 Blue Jays, and 2 Robins. That's a total of 41 birds! Many of the birds were transferred to an experienced avian rehabilitator in a neighboring county, some were raised and released here, and some did not survive. Raccoons and Opossums This has been the year of raccoons and opossums for me! I have already released over 40 opossums! 6 orphaned raccoons are currently residing at the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue as you have gathered by now, if you actually read this far down (thank you for that!). They have literally stolen my heart! There are 5 girls and 1 boy from four different litters and different ages. 3 of the older girls named Pumkin (the oldest and sweetest, weaned), Sandra (2nd oldest and very feisty, weaned) and Rocky (completely Momma's girl and still on the bottle) are not related and already live outside. The other three babies, Abi, Lena and Ian, are 6 weeks old now and still inside. They will be joining the other 3 girls at the age of about 10 weeks. All of these babies were rescued by kindhearted and generous people that have gone FAR out of their way to save these critters. THANK YOU Judy, Stephanie, and Robin!!!! I have posted many many movies and pictures on YouTube and my Rainbow Wildlife Blog. I think I have talked enough for the next 3 months! Thank you so much for taking an interest in my work! Erath County Humane Society Animal Shelter I do want to mention the ECHS, since I update their Adoption List on petfinder.com. I go to the shelter as often as my time allows it and take pictures to update the petfinder page. It has been a great success! Don't Buy, Adopt a Pet! Whether you adopt a pet from a local animal shelter, rescue organization, or human society, it doesn't matter because you're saving lives! You probably want to adopt just one kitten or cat, right? Adoption saves more than just the life of the pet you adopt. If you adopt from an animal shelter, you're making room for another dog or cat, or you're allowing other dogs or cats at the shelter to be kept for a longer period of time, giving them a better chance at being adopted. If you adopt from a humane society or a rescue organization, you're allowing that organization to rescue another dog or cat for adoption at a public shelter, which, of course, saves the life of that little guy plus the lives of others at that shelter by creating space so new pets can be kept longer. As you can see, adoption is truly a continuous cycle of saving lives and it's the right thing to do!

Yard of Horrors

Unbelievable what happened on Sunday.

It started out with my neighbor coming home from church and running over a kitten with her car (a stray). I cleaned it up for her and disposed of the dead body at the shelter. They have a disposal place I can use even when they are closed.

Before that I was happy to have been able to find homes for 2 of the dogs I have up on petfinder for the shelter, so I thought the Sunday started out pretty good.

But after the cat incident, my neighbor comes over and tells me that another neighbor's puppies are dead, or at least some of them, the others were in the process of dying. I went over there, and sure enough, dead dogs everywhere.

The owners had moved away and left the dogs to random juveniles that appeared to live there off an on. We had fed the 8 puppies (3 months old) plus mom, who's a pitbull. That's why we never called Animal Control on them, because we knew that pitbulls will be euthanized at the shelter, no matter what. It's their policy.

So we kept feeding the dogs and deworming them and thought they were healthy looking fat pups. 3 days ago one was dead and we thought the mother had killed it, because they are weaned now and won't leave her alone and she had no place to get away.

So the teenager that lived there put the mom, into another pen finally and this morning, the pups started to drop dead one after the other, foaming at the mouth.

So I called the cops. I knew Animal Control wasn't on today, but this had to be addressed ASAP. 4 puppies barely alive and suffering, the others were already bloating and crawling with ants and maggots. The one that had died 2 days prior was half dug up and about to explode.

So you can imagine that smell.

Anyways, so I called the cops and the dispatcher refused to even talk to a cop, just told me she can leave Animal Control a note, he'll be back on Wednesday. My jaw dropped!

I asked her again to make sure I understood correctly "you want me to leave these dead dogs in the heat and watch the other remaining dogs suffer and die, until Wednesday? 2 more days?".

She said "Yes, but I can leave the ACO a note." Just kept repeating that. Outrageous!!!

Not only are TWO city ordinances violated here, (you find them at the end of this post) but I believe that animal cruelty is a crime in itself. Well, wrong address!!! I don't give up when there are animals suffering, that is not an option.

I hung up, alarmed my neighbors and they called too. Of course then she couldn't ignore it anymore and finally contacted a Sergeant about it.

He came out and talked to us and was horrified when we saw that yard.

I took pictures. They are graphic:

Click on the Thumbnails below

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The cop was very nice and tried to figure out what to do. He tried to reach our ACO without luck. I offered my help, since I am vaccinated against rabies and know how to handle this, so he ended up talking to a Vet to make sure we are not dealing with rabies (which we didn't, it's Parvo I'm sure), and then, under his supervision and authority, I cleaned up the carcasses and took them to the disposal at the shelter.

That still leaves 4 puppies and the mother, who has the onset of mange on top of everything. As soon as the next puppy dies, we are asked to freeze it if we can (my neighbor can) and take it the shelter in the morning to have a piece of the brain sent in for rabies testing, just in case.
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Monday Update

3 more pups died over night, one was barely alive this morning. We took them all to the shelter and they are pretty certain that it's not parvo but hookworms! I de-wormed them 2 weeks ago..I saw roundworms crawling out of them after they died too. So much for the over the counter de-wormers.

Mom is still there, with the onset of mange. I'm waiting for her to get out of the yard, so I can capture and take her to the shelter. Seizing her from a private property is so complicated, but she got out every day so far..so I'm waiting.

Here are the City Ordinances that were violated, if not even Texas State Law:

§ 90.20 GENERAL CARE.
No owner will fail to provide an animal in his/her care with sufficient good and wholesome food or water, adequate shelter and protection from weather, veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering and humane care and treatment. Shelter shall be of sufficient size to allow each animal to stand up, lie down and turn around in a natural position and must have three sides, a roof and a floor.
(`75 Code, § 3-21) (Ord. 1997-8, passed 7-1-98; Am. Ord. 1998-24, passed 11-17-9 Penalty, see § 10.99

§ 90.22 ABANDONMENT.
In this section, "abandon" means to leave an animal in any place without providing reasonable and necessary care for the animal, under circumstances under which no reasonable, similarly situated person would leave an animal. Reasonable and necessary care means shelter, food, and water.

A person commits an offense if, having custody, care, or control of an animal, he intentionally abandons the animal in any place under circumstances that expose the animal to an unreasonable risk of harm.

An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor.

Wednesday Update

NO JUSTICE FOR DEAD PUPPIES

This morning I was told that Animal Control nor the Police is doing anything about the dead puppies or about the still suffering mother dog. Animal Cruelty does not seem to be a crime worth bothering with here. They didn't even go out to have a look. I regret that I went through this horror cleaning up the bodies and doing their job for not even so much as a thank you.

But I had to pay a 155 Dollar fine last year because I had an orphaned squirrel baby I was try to help without a permit AND was barred for a year from obtaining my wildlife permit. What is wrong without laws??????

This is not over yet!

7 Puppies and 4 Kittens

So, here I thought I'm going to get bored now that the rescue is empty. As soon as I was done cleaning everything and repairing and/or replacing the little things that broke over the summer, I got the phone call.

7 puppies had been thrown into the trash in a box and if I could and would. Of course! But 7 is a lot of puppies to feed, so I reached out and found 2 sweet and kind ladies, Laura and Kelli, that took a few off my hands, so I'm down to 2 puppies.


Thank goodness so, because an hour ago I received 4 kittens that had been rescued from a fire. It was a very close call. One of the lil noses is burned and they are coughing and stinking of smoke and were all black with sud. I bathed them, put some antibiotics on the wounds and fed them.

The eyes are just opening and they are otherwise in good shape, so I'm hopeful, providing that the lungs didn't get damaged by the smoke and heat.

Stephenville Dog Park Blog

Animal Cruelty-What Can I Do?

Posted January 28th, 2009 by Alex

An 18th-century German philosopher from the Prussian city of Konigsberg once said, “He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.” Immanuel Kant is to this day regarded as one of the most influential thinkers of modern Europe and when I came across this well put quote the wheels began to turn in my brain and tug at my heart strings.

In preparing for the Dog Park proposal that Birgit and I took before the City Council on Jan 13th, I visited a ton of websites devoted to pets and animal laws and their legal rights as well. From a link on one site I came across www.pet-abuse.com that lists animal abuse case within 100+ miles of your zip code, but please head my warning: the details are incredibly graphic and disturbing. I was heartbroken so some people may not want to read the cases—part of me wished that I hadn’t honestly. Every case I opened was worse than the last and I was mortified. How can a human being hurt a defenseless animal?

When I first stepped foot into the Erath County Humane Society a few months back, I had stopped in just to take my two year old daughter to look at the animals. I chatted with Judy, the animal “savior” of the facility and I really felt bad for some of the sweet little animals that were there some of whom had been abandoned by reckless owners and others were caught in traps strayed or orphaned, struggling to grow up and all lonely for the love and affection only a real family can give to them. Judy and her grandson have devoted themselves entirely to their cause working 365 days a year without the financially rewards that they should be receive.

The moment I walked out the door I wanted to know what I could do to help. On my next visit to the Shelter I brought a couple of gallons of bleach which is always one of the main necessities of the shelter because it helps disinfect and keep the kennels disease free and as clean as a place like that possibly could be. The bleach is always at the top of the “Wish List” and if you would like to do something nice that isn’t a big hit to your wallet, you can always get a couple of gallon jugs from the Dollar Store and drop them off any time. If you do so and the shelter is not open at that time you can set them over the fence and they will be taken in by the Animal Control Officer when he stops by later. Anyways~ She told me some stories about her recent successful adoptions and foster families but also some sad tales of how some of the puppies in the back fenced in part of the property had come to be shelter residents. A woman had stopped in her car by the side of the road when she noticed a black trash bag moving in the middle of the street. She tugged the bag open to find four puppies left for dead.

How can someone be so sick and heartless? When I think puppies, I think of fuzzy little warm bodies wagging their tails in excitement from any affection, the smell of sweet puppy breath, soft little bellies and lovable eyes looking at you like you hung the moon. Most people would not throw out their garbage on the highway partly out of obligation to abide by the law, partly for respect for their city roads but mainly from simple common sense!

This all has me thinking: Where do I stand in my views on animal rights? Of course I HATE the idea that anyone would intentionally cause an animal pain, but I am nowhere near being a “tree huggin’ hippie” as my husband so graciously refers to it. How far will I take this? I am a good ol’ Texas girl who loves the smell of a juicy steak cooking on the grill. Half of my freezer is stocked with elk, antelope and wild boar meat; kills from my father’s many hunts which he goes on so that we have tons of meat. So no jumping on the PETA bandwagon for me. (A funny side note on that though- PETA’s most recent efforts to protect animals has now stretched to include the slimy scaley fish as well and they are attempting to rename them “sea kittens” so that people will feel guilty ordering the fish of the day AKA “sea kitten of the day. To me that is totally over the top and ridiculous.

When a hunter covers himself in deer urine and steps into his heated deer blind with some 40 caliber semi-automatic weapon that is better suited bringing down Al Queda Leaders than the year old deer eating from the strategically placed corn feeder, that aint cool to me!

I have a rescued Chihuahua French Bulldog mix from San Francisco, 2 rescue cats both from Stephenville, 2 “feeder fish” that have somehow or other outlived any other fancy expensive breed of fish I’ve ever purchased, 17 adopted goats and a donkey that watches over us all. My husband, daughter and myself love our modest property and our extended “family” of animals that will soon be expanding to include 6+ chickens.

I will continue to work in the right direction- it’s all I can do. This dog park is important to me because with the state of the economy, people are having to work more and more to make ends meet which does leave a lot of dogs stuck inside all day or in the yard with no outlet for built up energy who after a while can start to act out up chewing favorite shoes or scratching up the doors for attention. If some of that energy can be burned up in a healthy way by playing with other dogs in a safe environment and running until their hearts are content then I truly believe there will be many fewer cases of dog abuse or animals jumping or digging out of fences. Plus, the shelter can use the dog park as a place to showcase their adoptable dogs to help unite responsible owners with the perfect, loving animal for them. So, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Rachael Ray’s Nutrish

Posted January 29th, 2009 by Alex

In July 2008, famed Food Network chef Rachael Ray created Nutrish Pet Foods, a line of natural dog foods modeled after her own healthy recipes that she put together for her beloved pit bull Isaboo. A line of products for cats is also scheduled to be launched sometime this year. All proceeds from the sale of these products go to Rachael’s Rescue, a charity founded by Ray for at-risk animals.

Heartbroken by the thought of the millions of mistreated and abandoned animals taken in by shelters each year, Rachael Ray has created the Rachael’s Rescue website to highlight organizations that are dedicated to helping animals in need. Below are some of Rachel’s favorite organizations:

North Shore Animal League America

The largest no-kill animal adoption
and rescue organization in the world

Since 1944, The League’s mission has been to save the lives of pets through adoption, rescue, spay/neuter and advocacy initiatives. Every year, the League reaches across the country to rescue, nurture and adopt nearly 20,000 pets into happy and loving homes. To date, the League has placed close to 1 million puppies, kittens, cats and dogs into carefully screened homes. One of the first animal rescue agencies on the ground in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the League rescued more than 1400 pets from the region.

Check out their website

BAD RAP

Securing the future of the American Pit Bull
Terrier as a cherished family companion

The Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pitbulls (BAD RAP) is a small and active nonprofit organization of pit bull owners, trainers, educators, rescuers and supporters. BAD RAP evolved out of a desire to respond to the difficult issues facing this misunderstood breed.

Check out their website

ASPCA

The ASPCA was founded in 1866 as the first humane organization in the Western Hemisphere. The Society was formed to alleviate the injustices animals faced then, and we continue to battle cruelty today. Whether it’s saving a pet who has been accidentally poisoned, fighting to pass humane laws, rescuing animals from abuse or sharing resources with shelters across the country, we work toward the day in which no animal will live in pain or fear. Come and join us in the fight to end animal cruelty – become an ASPCA Member today!

Check out their website

Here we go again: 3 orphaned Beagle Mix Puppies and a Kitten

We have 3 orphaned Beagle Mix puppies here, all males. I think I see a little Pug or maybe even Chihuahua in them too. One of the litter had already died, cause unknown. They all had diarrhea, but once they got a bottle of warm Esbilac and a snuggly corner to sleep it off, the runs are gone and the puppies are playing.

The kitten came an hour later, barely 2 weeks old, very quiet, little bit dirty, but ok. Boy was he hungry. I named him Cody and am still looking for names for the 3 puppy boys.

Here are pictures:

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Puppies and Birds

Above you see the 2 white winged doves, a mockingbird and a robin. The mockingbird was released this morning.

Below you see the last 3 of Coco's puppies. Coco and the other 3 puppies are already adopted out to their new homes. These other 3 will leave this Friday:

Mallard Ducklings, Starlings, Squirrels, Puppies, Kittens

A Starling named Howdy Doody. I have him for 3 weeks now. He's quite a character lol:

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The 2 (out of 16) surviving Mallard Ducklings, now 1 week old and doing great:

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Other news:



The Chihuahua Beagle mix puppies had to be euthanized due to severe mange mites infection. I had accidently thought that those were ant bites, but when they didn't get better I had the pups checked out and the diagnosis was not good.

Since we don't have the funds to cover the treatment, the puppies were humanely euthanized.

It was not an easy week at the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue, but life goes on and we need to concentrate on the babies that are making it!

Kittens and Puppies

I have been lazy in updating the blog, I admit it! But now I will do some catching up.

2 puppies, 2 firekittens and 4 newborn kittens are the current residents of the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue. All 7 puppies are doing fine as of this writing. 5 are being raised at another foster home along with 2 of the fire kittens.





Here is an update on the fire kittens that had been nearly burned in a grass fire that consumed a barn. The other 2 siblings have recovered too:







Here are 2 cute movies of Doogle, who is slowly coming out of his shell:







He isn't too sure about this jingle bells dog, but I have to start exposing him to non-threatening objects so he can gain some confidence. He got lots of treats and associates the singing dog with liverwurst by now.

How much does it cost? Rainbow Wildlife Rescue 2009

2009 at the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue 221 animals were admitted to the RWR
My name is Birgit Sommer. I am a licensed wildlife rehabilitator for the State of Texas, director of the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in Stephenville, TX , as well as the vice president and foster parent for the Erath County Humane Society.
I, like many other licensed wildlife rehabilitators, work out of my own home and volunteer my time and just about every spare cent I can gather towards animal rescue efforts and public education. Support the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue No local or state funding is available for animal caging, veterinary care, medicine and food. That's why most rehabilitators gratefully accept donations towards the care of animals they receive from the public.	Birgit Sommer releases a raccoon back into the wild.
2009 has been quite a year for the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue!! We are now officially a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization!!!! That means that all donations are tax exempt! Over 220 animals made it through the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in 2009. Unfortunately I had to turn at least 5 times as many away, which will hopefully change next year. More than 80% of the critters survived and were either released back into the wild or transferred to other facilities! We had a beaver, a few reptiles such as turtles and snakes, our share of cottontail rabbits, over 40 opossums, 11 raccoons, about 50 squirrels, nearly 70 birds, and not to forget the foster care for the Erath County Humane Society animal shelter counting 17 puppies and 43 kittens. I had a LOT of help with the kittens and the squirrels. Thank you Loree B.! Eight newspaper articles have been published about or by the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in the Empire Tribune and the Abilene Reporter. The first sub-permittee/trainee will be added to my state wildlife rehabilitation permit and a board of directors is in the process of being put together. Plans for next year include focus on education, training more future wildlife rehabilitators, extending the rescue, getting the community involved and hopefully being able to help more animals than this year. This fall, I was voted vice president of the Erath County Humane Society. There are also big plans for 2010 that will hopefully include a new animal shelter which is attractive and convenient to the community as well as providing us with the means to save the lives of more animals. I also hope to see plans for the already discussed Stephenville Dog Park finalized. For more detailed updates, links to photos, movies and stories, please continue reading below. How much does it all cost??? A LOT! To give you an idea, the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue went through over 50 lbs of Esbilac and KMR milk replacers, that's close to $3000 alone. We spent a lot more on medical supplies, bottles, cleaning supplies, caging, bedding, canned food, dried feed, meat and fresh produce, live food, repairs, maintenance, and not to forget the utility bills that are 3 times as high than average when the rescue is full. The washing machine and dryer are always running and probably have to be replaced next year. The same goes for the 20 year old hot water heater which is making scary noises. Everything put together we spent at least $10 000 on the animals this year. About 30% of the cost were covered by donations and online fundraisers. A HUGE THANK YOU to everybody that had the heart and means to support our efforts! The remaining 70% I earned with online jobs such as web design and hosting, site maintenance, translations, article writing, graphic design, etc. It was rough. So this year I'm hoping to start early with the fundraising and prepare! How YOU can help! We need to raise about $5000 before baby season starts coming spring 2010. The first orphaned squirrels usually arrive mid February. By then I would like to have the MILKREPLACER FUND covered, which is the most important item on my list. I have planned to switch to Fox Valley this year due to a lot of controversy this year over KMR and Esbilac. There are a few different ways you can donate. Remember, all donations are tax-deductible! Support the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue Paypal (accepts credit cards) (click above button to make a contribution) Mail a Check (physical address is provided below) Send needed supplies directly to us (wish list and physical address below) Donate directly to the Vet Clinic for the MEDICAL FUND (contact info below) The following are a few examples of how your donation can help: $1000 helps with the utilities for 3 months $ 500 pays for raising and vaccinating an infant raccoon $ 250 will feed a litter of opossums from infant to release $ 200 will provide a new large cage $ 100 will provide infant formula for 3 squirrels $ 75 provides bird food from nestling to adult $ 50 pays for enough Capstar to rid 5 new arrivals of external parasites $ 25 covers the de-wormer to fight the internal parasites $ 10 provides fresh produce for most critters for 2 days $ 5 pays for the bedding for 1 outside enclosure for 1 week Wish list Committed Volunteers, including Rehabbers & Veterinarians Release sites in Erath County 4 or 5 ft tall ferret type cages with 1/2 to 1 inch gaps for small opossums and squirrels. Small and large bird cages Hamster cages Guinea pig cages Green house frame (I have the avian mesh to turn it into a flight cage) Fencing materials and lumber Infant medical supplies Wild bird and sunflower seed Nuts, Pecans Dry and canned cat or dog food Cat litter Pedialyte Storage bins with lids Paper towels, large trash bags, zip lock freezer bags, laundry detergent, bleach, and much, more more. Please send your tax-deductible donation to: PAYPAL for MEDICAL or MILK REPLACER FUND Paypal Email to use: webmaster@rainbowwildlife.com or click Button below: Support the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue Or mail a check or moneyorder to: Rainbow Wildlife Rescue 502 E. Clifton Street Stephenville, TX 76401 Phone: (254) 968 - 4626 Email: help@rainbowwildlife.com If you prefer to contribute directly to the MEDICAL FUND, please contact the Ark Veterinary Hospital 5613 S. US HWY. 377 Stephenville, Texas 76401 Phone: (254) 968 - 7916
Stories, Pictures, Movies Here is a collection of blog entries, links to youtube movies and newspaper articles related to the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue and Erath County Humane Society: Missing Dog reunited with owner after nearly 3 Years! Find out how Maynard found his way to the Erath County Humane Society and became one of the greatest Christmas miracles! Raccoons Read blog entries about orphaned raccoons that grew up at the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in 2009. Including pictures, movies and heartwarming stories. For more information on raccoons please visit my Animal Forum! Squirrels Squirrels Squirrels! Over 50 squirrels passed through the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue this year. Read some of the stories. For more information on squirrels, please visit my Squirrel Education Website. Opossums Thanks to more folks learning about America's only marsupials, more orphaned opossums where found and taken to the rescue than ever before. For more information on opossums please visit the Rainbow Wildlife Rescue Website. Cottontail Rabbits We also had our share of orphaned Cottontail rabbits this year. For more information on Cottontails please visit the following Link. Dogs and Puppies I fostered quite a few puppies and adult dogs this year. Since I picked up on Cesar Milan's lessons, things are working even better! For more information on puppies please visit our Puppy Education Website. Cats and Kittens Watch the LOLcatZ Movie featuring the latest fostercare kitten Laila meeting Oliver, my Great Dane! More stories, pictures and movies are also shown. For more information on cats and kittens and LOLcatZ postcards, please visit my Kitten Education Website. *** New Website in the Making! *** Wildlife-Education.com This site will include articles and educational material about this planet's wildlife from national and international animal professionals and much more.
A personal note about wildlife rehabilitation Some folks find the idea of wildlife rehabilitation ridiculous or claim it's "messing with nature". These folks neglect to see that most wildlife related calls that require our human intervention ARE the direct result of unnatural conditions such as careless behavior of people, toxins, poisons, automobiles, guns, traps, lawn mowers, to name just a few. Often we are confronted with animals that have suffered traumatic wounds and horrific injuries. Some animals come in poisoned, shot, injured by cars and left for dead by humans. The stories and cases are endless and heartbreaking. We also have to deal with ignorant folks that are proud of doing all the wrong things and are trying to educate everybody that listens. We have to comfort the crying children and their thankful moms for having found somebody to take the critter to instead of having their kids to watch it die. In addition to everything we have to come up with the funds and care for the animals. I have written a funny story about how much work this really is. It's called "When a Wildlife Rehabber has to pee". Erath County Humane Society Animal Shelter I do want to mention the ECHS, since I was recently voted vice president and take in foster animals on regular basis. I also try to keep the Adoption List on petfinder.com up to date. Don't Buy, Adopt a Pet! Whether you adopt a pet from a local animal shelter, rescue organization, or human society, it doesn't matter because you're saving lives! You probably want to adopt just one kitten or cat, right? Adoption saves more than just the life of the pet you adopt. If you adopt from an animal shelter, you're making room for another dog or cat, or you're allowing other dogs or cats at the shelter to be kept for a longer period of time, giving them a better chance at being adopted. If you adopt from a humane society or a rescue organization, you're allowing that organization to rescue another dog or cat for adoption at a public shelter, which, of course, saves the life of that little guy plus the lives of others at that shelter by creating space so new pets can be kept longer. As you can see, adoption is truly a continuous cycle of saving lives and it's the right thing to do!
Birgit Sommer's Websites: Critter Blog with regular Updates - Kittenbaby.com - Puppy Education - Funny Animal E-Cards - Squirrel Rescue Texas - Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in Texas - Pets and Wildlife Forum - Magic Postcards - MissDolittle on YouTube - Stephenville Dog Park - Webdesign in Support of the Rescue