©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

There is about 800+ feet of donated fencing sitting on the SAINTS property in Mission, and for the past several days, we’ve been trying to figure out a way to transport it up to Turtle Gardens. Guess what? Transport dilemma solved!!! Thanks to a couple of very special angels – Karen and Mike have offered to pay for the truck rental plus fuel to TG! Can you believe the kind and generous spirit of these two wonderful guardian angels? Yvette’s compassion and dedication to her work is truly infectious….thank you so much!

Now here is the problem – we’ve got the U-Haul truck rented, Stan’s the driver, but we need a couple of guys to help Stan load the truck in Mission. Can anybody spare about 2 hours this Friday afternoon, July 11, around 3pm? The fencing comes in rolls, not sure how heavy they are, plus all the posts and gates….can anybody help Stan?
SAINTS is located at 33860 Dluglosh Ave in Mission
Please email me at cyndasgot3@gmail.com.

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

Hi Yvette,
I have been meaning to write to update you again on Hunters new life. He has been with us for 7 months now. His first month was a breeze and then the other Hunter revealed himself. He started digging, chewing the kids toys and shoes, jumping on the kitchen table, stealing food from the counters, barking at the neighbors and their dogs. It was a rough few months in the dreary weather down here. We went to doggie parks and he would be the dominator and bark and charge every dog who came in.
We decided to buy him a Dogtra Training Collar. I was not one who likes this sort of thing, but my patience had run out with him. I was either phoning to purchase a collar or phoning you to take him back. We gave him one last chance and boy are we glad we got the collar. It arrived mid April just before our holidays.
After a couple weeks with the collar Hunter did a 180. Now he has had so many compliments around the school and by family on how well behaved he is. He still has his moments, but for 75% of his time he is doing great with his rules!! He only needs the collar at the dogpark and offleash times now.
The kids absolutely adore him and he does them too. He still has his Beagle girlfriend, Ginger and our other dog Katie has come alive again. There is another Beagle rescue are our kids school, and it is like reliving the early days of Hunter. The owner has high hopes that her Beagle will turn around too.
We have been able to take him off leash on 10KM bike rides and he keeps up. Sleeps very well for the next couple days. We are off this summer to Cannon Beach where he’ll be able to explore the Pacific Ocean. He has done really well camping. With the summer heat a door got left open and he was no where to be found. We called and whistled and he came running back (without the collar on). I think he knows he has finally come home!

<<...>> <<...>> <<...>>
Kelly Grisley

And a very special update- Indi and Mairin are competitive dogs all (Kato may not be a TG Alumni but he is family!) have Herding certificates, compete in Rally O and Agility!! Deb has also adopted a kitten from TG as well!

well its seems like such a short time but Mairin will be 2 next month! wow how time flys … this weekend Mairin ran her first run at a trial and was excellent - I was so please ne refusal - my fault on a pinwheel turn - but other than that wonderful - Lance my husband was so shocked as he did not think she had come along so far! unfourunately the cameras battery was dead so no pictures yet.
The weather for the regionals was great as well, no rain and not too hot. the courses well great - Indi came 10th overal in the 16 vets and had 4 clean runs - missed only one down contact in a standard run and missed only one of the gambles she had over 500 points! way to go Indi.
Kato had a fabulous weekend with 5 clean runs and only one rail down - the last one in the jumpers course - we can’t figure that one out as he did not hit it - could have been his tail or just bad luck - he came 3rd overal! Which is excellent!
Mairin starts her agility camp next week with Richard and Wendy from the CAT team (Canadian Agility Team) a fundraiser for them as they are off to Europe to compete in September this year. No rest for the wicked theu say.

Hope all is well, I am busy with the raffle ticket sales at work - more tickets are on the way. Have attached some artsy photos of the dogs
Cheers,

Deb and the dogs - oh and the cats too

Miss Indi

Marin.

Kato.

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

Sometimes when dogs have always lived outside - just can’t adjust to going in and out. Such is the case with Dudley - he refused to go outside - he wants to stay inside where we are . You will notice that newbies wear a leash for a few days. This is so they can taken outside at regular intervals to learn the appropriate area to pee and poop. And to prevent drama in newly neutered adult dogs. Dudley has no drama but holy cow - he is a blockhead. I drag him outside to the potty area and he runs right back inside. When he starts to pee or circle to poo inside I yell “No” and drag him outside. Over and over and over again. He is taking up all of my time. I know from past experience that he will understand that he is ALLOWED back inside when he does go out - eventually. It is all part of teaching him how to be a dog, how to behave and how to get along with all the resident dogs. He has to learn how to learn. Cuz basically he has never learned anything - no one has ever asked him to do anything. He was just there on a chain. But he has retained his happy, friendly outgoing personality. Now if he can only learn to go outside by himself!!

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

Sleepovers are very useful to see if the new dog is a perfect fit. Especially for inexperienced people who have never had a dog before. Or where young children are involved. Spring went for a sleepover yesterday. There is two toddlers in this family and Spring walked into the house, lay down and made himself at home. The toddlers walked over to him, hugged him, patted him and he lay there slowly wagging his tail and grinning. He was home. I think he is home too.

Trinket has also gone to a sleepover - no kids but an out to lunch min pin mix who needs a buddy. Trinket needs redirection when greeting - she gets so excited -she jumps up and nips butts. From a scared little dog who peed if you picked her up to a social butterfly who greets everyone too enthusiastically. Her new dad keeps a toy in his pocket so when she runs to him she has the toy to grab instead. She is cuddly and loves to play with her canine brother. She will come back Tuesday for her spay appointment on Wednesday. Then she will be ready for her family.

Marin has been adopted. I received a phone call from Shirley whose doctor prescribed a “dog”. Her husband is in an extended care home. She needs to get out and walk for her arthritis. She needs company. But it had to be small so she could bathe it in the sink, and wouldn’t pull on leash and liked to sit on her lap. Could I help her? I knew i had found Mairin’s home. so she called her friend and they came to see Mairin and Cara. It was love at first sight. When she picked up Mairin - she put her little head on her shoulder. When she put her on the ground in her new harness and small leash, Mairin was ready to go for a walk. She bounced and pranced - she was so darn cute!! I imagine Shirley will have slow walks as everyone oohs and aahs over her tiny fluffy companion. But she is already smiling!

And new arrivals. Minnie and Moses’ mother has come in as well. But Samantha already has an adoption pending! She is calm, quiet and very obedient with beauty and brains. A perfect companion for a first time dog owner.

Moses, Samantha, Tuxedo and Minnie

Yesterday was pound pup day from Burns Lake. Jackie from the clinic named him Dudley and he is a young husky/shepherd who was tied up on a short chain his whole short life. He was fed whenever they thought of it and by the looks of him - it wasn’t often. Yet he is super friendly. But he has no life skills or doggie social skills or manners. He has never been indoors so he has a lot to learn. He learned to sleep indoors last night and today he is coming inside on his own. He is learned proper greeting etiquette too - he is too big to jump up! He is very smart - he has learned “sit and I will pet you”. He will be an awesome companion with a little more manners and life skills. He sure is striking!!

Beautiful Dudley!

The other side of Dudley:

And finally a stray from here in Topley - he is an older fellow and looks to be a husky mix. He slept in the kitchen last night and went out early to potty - he is housebroken! What a bonus. It was pouring rain this morning. But he came right back in. and lay in his corner of the kitchen.

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

I am a tad late with this update but our beautiful Sam is doing well!!

Hi Yvette,

We arrived home last night safe and sound. Sam was just fantastic on the drive.

We combed him out and gave him another quick bath today just to ensure that all the knots were gone. He is now knot-free (believe it or not!) It took a couple of hours but he was very cooperative once we got him on the grooming table.

He and the other dogs are getting along great. Foxy is a bit miffed at there being a BIGGER dog here and one who doesn’t really rise to her being grumpy. Mooshie has been trying to play but gets a bit intimidated by Sam’s size. But all in all they are doing just fine.

I have attached a couple of pictures for you.

I will try to get my niece to take a new “family” shot sometime in the next couple of days.

It was great meeting you and all the puppies. We’ll keep in touch!

Linda and Vince

Sam and I!! Everybody takes my picture lately!!

Sam and Moosie playing.

Handsome happy Sam on the knoll.

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

Sometimes living in the rural north has its distinct disadvantages - the distance is one of them. We are rural - there is no doubt about that. We live in almost pristine wilderness far from the amenities that run society. I am not whining here just stating facts. Our nearest Macdonalds is 90 kilometers away. KFC is 65 kilometers the other way. Our veterinarians are 65 kilometers as is my own family doctor. The nearest feed store for premium dog food is also in Burns Lake. so when we were offered chain link fencing -a lot of it too - this is how Carol from Saints describes it - I don’t know how many feet of fencing…there are 2…8 foot high rolls and 6…. 6 foot high rolls….very large rolls…..plus all the posts and poles and 2…16 foot gates…it filled a very large u-haul truck…maybe about 800-1000 feet of fencing…maybe even more…it came from a school yard/sports field..all in very good and clean shape but it is taking up my parking areas and i would like it to go away. I sure don’t want to lose this opportunity to finally have decent fencing here at Turtle gardens but and it is a very large BUT transportation is a problem. The large U-Haul truck is $900 to rent plus mileage and gas. It gets 8 miles to the gallon and at $4.35 a gallon for fuel - and 797 kilometers to drive - it is way too much for our budget. What a wondrous opportunity lost.
Does anyone have any ideas?

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.

Turtle Gardens is proud to announce our small contribution to saving cats in our northern area. This is their story :

This is a picture of our little shelter - three spacious kennels with access to an outdoor pen. This was made possible by Kathy Simonds, a local schoolteacher who lost a long, hard-fought battle with cancer. We have taken on the role of sheltering cats and kittens in Burns Lake because there is no other shelter available in our little community. We hold an annual garage sale, close to Valentine’s Day every year, and the people of our community are very supportive and generous to our cause, to keep the shelter going. We vaccinate, deworm, spay and neuter (if old enough), every cat that comes through and ask for a small donation for each adoptee. In 2007, we adopted out 115 cats and kittens!!!

There are two beautiful spayed cats looking for homes as well as 3 - yes 3 litters of kittens in foster care.

This is one of our adult cats up for adoption, actually a long teenager. She came to us in January as a 5 or 6 month old. She has been spayed, vaccinated and dewormed. We have all grown to love her but the clinic staff all have older cats so not sure how to incorporate a youngster into our families, otherwise………………. Tinka is a very beautiful, medium-haired tortoiseshell (although technically she is a calico as she has white on her abdomen which she shows off at every chance). She is initially hesitant around other cats but warms up nicely to her roommates at the shelter with a little time. We don’t know why she hasn’t been chosen for a home yet but I think we have saturated our market here for adult cats (we adopted out 115 cats and kittens in 2007) but more likely is that there is always a more striking cat or kitten in the shelter so she keeps getting overlooked. She is a diamond in the rough though, beautiful personality and very pretty too.

Lois

And:

This is our other adult female cat. We got her about three weeks ago and don’t know her age but think she is 4 - 6 years old. She was found on the roadside at Grassy Plains, Southside. She has an old injury to the right side of her face and her right eye is cosmetic i.e. looks fine but is non-visual. She is very sweet and loves to be held and cuddled. We had her in the clinic for a couple of weeks as our shelter was full and she was a “no-trouble” cat, just content to sleep on an office chair and watch the world go by. She is what we call a dilute or pastel torti, pale gray and orange. We presume she is spayed as she has not come into heat and looks like she is altered. She has been vaccinated and dewormed and we are working at getting some weight on her.

Lois

P.S. we have three batches of kittens in foster care, from 3 weeks of age to 6 or 7 months. I will have the foster parents send us some pictures. Thanks for your help with this.

If you wish to help with a donation or supplies or to adopt please phone Burns Lake Veterinary Clinic - 250 - 692 - 7476 or email me at turtlegardens @ gmail .com (no spaces) for the email address.

©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.