Dave and I sat down and really talked - finally no interruptions and worked out the logistics of the next TG Bus run. We have the 10 pups who need two vaccinations before leaving - as there is parvo in the lower mainland. And we have the older pups, teenagers and adults that have prospective homes waiting for them. It was either two runs 3 weeks apart or amalgamate both runs by delaying one and pushing up the other. It made a lot more sense to amagamate the two - there was enough room for the pups as well as the others. And a bonus - the pups would have their mom with them - so less stress! Therefore we are delaying the proposed TG run until next weekend. We are looking at leaving Thursday with arrival in Surrey  Friday at noon. We will need rides to the South terminal for 3 dogs flying PACIFIC COASTAL (they fly rescue dogs at no charge!! please support them) Two - Chewbaca (a large shepherd mix) and Survivor (karelian bear dog pup) will go to Nanaimo while little Coon is flying to Victoria. Eight pups will be going to fosters in Langley - thank you Marka! The rest will go to their families throughout the lower mainland and Chaska will travel to Seattle with her new mom - her grandmom Ann Bonny aka Cookie is also in Seattle. Lots of planning for the TG Bus run to go smoothly!!

and a Happy Endings - Little Raven who has grown into a big, very big teenager!

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

It was an extraordinary day yesterday. I actually left the yard. Don’t get me wrong! I am not agoraphobic but I am very much a homebody. I spend a lot of time on my computer interacting with potential adopters, happy adopters, friends and family. I talk on the phone to friends and my boys call me every day. But I am very happy to stay at home and interact with my everchanging family of dogs.

So I did my chores in a hurry, wrote my blog and checked my going out clothes and ate a quick brunch. Because I live with a bunch of dogs and they can get smelly when it rains; my goung out clothes are in a special drawer with pure scented soap - they smell pretty darn good! The time to shower came way too soon, and I got dressed as Lorna drove up - perfect timing.

I grabbed Silas and away we go for our talk to the Topley Elementary School
. Lorna brough Rayla and Kitsa.

We soon set up the crates for the dogs, a bed for Silas - he hates confinement; our display boards were put up and we were ready for the children. 46 kids go to the Topley School - grades kindergarten to Grade 7.  They filed in and were watching us as we were introduced. I was first so Silas and I talked about Turtle Gardens and then why dogs need to be kept safe at home. Silas’ missing leg drummed home what my words never could - dogs running loose can get hurt.  And too - Turtle Gardens helps hurt animals as well as rescuing dogs from pounds and bad siruations. The kids asked good questions - what a good group of animal lovers!
Silas was such a good boy!

Then Lorna talked about  spaying and neutering and we showed real pictures with a real population explosion - the nauticals!!
One dog, one year - more than 27 offspring!! Real dogs.

Then Lorna talked about responsible pet care. And showed what her dogs could do. They were so well trained and well behaved and Turtle Gardens adoptees - what great ambassadogs they are!

Kitsa lies down and rolls over

Kitsa brings down the hoop and goes thru!

Silas watches from his bed - what a good boy! I am taking pictures!

Rayla waves!

Rayla does obedience!

Then the kids got to meet the dogs and ask questions. Silas was touched on his shaved side - and his stump as well. The kids were fascinated with his  missing leg. Silas was great with all the attention! He is ready for his own family!!!

Kitsa loves to be petted.

Silas and the kids and me too.

Then it was time to take everything out and go for ….coffee - my day out hasn’t ended yet!

Silas and Kitsa playing while we take everything back out to the van.

While Lorna and I were at the restaurant who walks in but Bear! There was a prospective adopter at home but Dave didn’t know which dog was Peter Pan!!! So I gulped the rest of my coffee asked Lorna to doggie bag the rest of my dinner and into the TG Bus back home. Jackie had driven 3 hours from Prince George to meet Peter Pan. So I went in , put a collar around his naked neck - Thank you Marka and Langley Animal Protection Society for the collars, blankets and dog food!!! The puppies were already out of premium puppy food - they had the last this morning!!! THANK YOU BANDSTRA TRANSPORTATION for transporting a pallet of dog food at no charge!! Please support out supporters! We appreciate your generosity and kindness.

Peter Pan was exactly the kind of companion Jackie and her family wanted. Peter Pan was strapped into his brand new seatbelt and away he went to PG and his new life!

What a busy day for Turtle Gardens!!

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

Our last transport saw 9 dogs going to their new homes. One of these dogs and only one ended up up with a serious illness shortly after arrival. We try very hard to ensure only healthy dogs are sent to new homes but we can’t guarantee they will stay healthy. Our vet said this was a ’skookum pup" when she saw her for her examination and vaccination before her arrival at Turtle Gardens from the pound. A lot of our dogs have never had a home. Some are second generation stray dogs who have never had a family to love them or ever been inside a house.  So when they come here they really like it here. They have all the food they can eat, all the water they can drink, warm, dry comfy beds to sleep in or on and lots of fun playmates to play with. Most dogs adapt very well to TG. We don’t ask a lot of the dogs. They should have basic manners, go potty outside, learn to walk on a leash and go for rides to the veterinarian for medical care such as their check ups, vaccinations and speuters.  They learn good doggie social skills and we try to help them transition to good family pets. They all live together so we try to keep disease at a minimum using bleach and utilizing our veterinarians knowledge and skills. There would be no Turtle Gardens without our veterinarians. Thank you especially to the Burns Lake Veterinary Clinic for their above and beyond care and help to Turtle Gardens.

A lot of our dogs have never eaten dog food. They ate scraps, garbage, bones from bitchering moose and deer, small furry animals  and salmon carcasses. Most of the areas they come from are on major salmon rivers and lakes. There is a bounty of things to eat. There is also worms that live in their guts. And they are very dificult to eradicate. We start all dogs on strongid T. But it takes multiple doses to get rid of the infestations that even the pups have. Their mothers may never have been wormed their entire lives! Often I wonder how they can survive with the load they are carrying in their guts. Their systems are used to the food and the worms. When they arrive here they are wormed and fed dog food. For a lot of dogs this is the first time they have had dog food or even food every day. As much as and as often as they want. And yet it is rare that they are gluttons. They eat until they are full and stop. We rarely see overweight dogs here because the actitvity level is also very high. They are very active in their play. They run playing tag, an dfollow the leader. They wrestle and play fight. They have fun. Their days are full.

The transport is quite stressful even though they know each other and have been in the bus before. Usually they sleep the entire 14 hours down. Dave says that they settle by the time he reaches Burns Lake - an hour drive. And they won’t hear a peep unless they need to potty. Then he will stop at a rest area and walk the dog or by then dogs out to potty. And then back on th eroad they go.  Once they arrive in Surrey they all go into our son’s small but fenced backyard. Stan and Kelsey are usually there to help Grandpa with the dogs. Their transition to the city begins. Remember these dogs come from a wilderness life. They have never seen a sidewalk, stairs, traffic of a lot of people. They come from 3500 feet above sealevel and arrive at sealevel - even the air is different - heavier. They have already seen and felt a lot of changes. Now they meet their new families. And that IS stressful. Expectations are high. And families with children stress the dog most - they don’t allow her to rest and relax. They want to play with the dog, show her off and pet her. They don’t want to let her sleep for 5 or 6 hours to recharge. And that leads to more stress. Stress can make a dog very sick. Stress can wear down a healthy immune system. And allow disease a free rein in an otherwise healthy dog. Strange things can make a dog sick. My son fed his pomeranian a fast food hamburger thinking he was giving her a treat. He almost killed her instead. She was vomiting yellow slime, foaming at the mouth and had bloody diarrea. She needed iv therapy and hospitalizatiion. She almost died because she couldn’t digest the fat in the hamburger. Our dogs are the same - they have a hard time digesting fat - because they haven’t had the opportunity to eat fatty foods. And that includes high fat premium dog food. They have a hard time eating rich foods. They aren’t used to it. They also are not used to a lot of greenery in winter and spring - and our seasons are lot longer. They love greens - like grass and plants, some can be very poisonous like the common ivy!! Or shrubs like yew or hydrangeas, holly or mistletoe. Combine these things with lots of stress and we have a very sick dog.

At  the beginning of this blog I mentioned one of the dogs from our last TG Bus trip was ill. Her veterinary bill is $753. Her family can’t afford to pay this and need our help. With all the extra expenses with the puppies, Silas’s surgery, Bailey’s medications we don’t have any extra funds. For every donation of $25.00 or more I will give a beanie baby. I have been given 60 discountinued pristine beanie babies. So for any donation over $25.00 I will send you a gift to remind you of your generosity in helpng TG" s adoptee stay with her family.

Chocolate Moose - 1974

Pinky Flamingo

Pugsly the Pug

Zip the cat and many more varieties!!

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

.Hi Yvette !

How are you all doing ? I understand the flooding was pretty bad around you.
Were you able to survive with all the dogs etc. ?

Just wanted to send you some pics of Ginger ( now named Jax ! ).

Ginger has been a very welcome addition to the family ! he’s growing up and learning quickly at obedience school.
He’s had his shots and will neutered over the summer.

I wanted to send a few pics but not to overload  your e-mail so will only send a few at a time.
Write me back and let me know how your are doing.

Bye for now.
Janet

Possum before grooming!

After grooming - He’s another colour underneath!!!

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

There are some days that the blog is so very easy to write than there are days when my brain just shuts down and no ieas pop in at all! Usually I will then just post pictures. Or go through all the articles I have written or something - anything to write about. You would think that living with a bunch of dogs would have plenty of differnt things to see or complain about or laugh about.

  The daily routine is the same so mention it once and it gets stale repeating it. Puppies are cute, bad, destructive but can’t mention that all the time or else they will never get homes!! I have alreay stated that Silas is doing very well and is not missing his leg - is having fun running around the yard. He likes to play with the puppies ’cause they don’t play rough and hurt him. He comes in and out now on his own. He is very clean, very quiet and very very well behaved. He needs someone who walks fast or jogs as his gait is quite fast once he gets going - and smooth too. His favorite of all fave things is going for a ride! He loves the vehicle and will hop in everytime. He even tried to jump the gate when Dave was leaving him behind - he doesn’t think he is handicapped at all!

Silas and Survivor!

Puppies LOVE Elvis - a bunch of groupies!

A big yawn! - looking pretty is hard work.

Silas and dogs in th elong grass. It has finally dried up enough that Dave can cut the grass. New pics tomorrow as he finishes mowing the yard!

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

Was I always a puppy freak (sorry Kelsey it just fits here - her email handle!!)? Actually no. Because I was asthmatic as a youngster – I had a bird as a pet growing up. Then when I was 16 I had a serious accident that left me with lifelong reminders of that evening. Two minutes to closing time on the last day of my vacation I dove in a swimming pool and fractured my neck. I was supposed to die but of course I didn’t then I was paralyzed for a month but I recovered. Now I know why.

When I got home after 3 months in hospital I was given my first dog from my older sister – a terrier/beagle mix and I was allowed to keep her – I had almost died – crass but I really wanted her. Cindy was my introduction to the dog world and the beginning of a lifelong love affair with the animals.

She went with me when I married Dave in ’69; stayed with me when I had both my children, when we moved our family from Ontario to British Columbia in ’74 she was part of our family so she came too. Four days on a train with two kids less than 2 years of age, 2 dogs and a cat made for a long very long trip but our family was complete. Cindy passed away when she was 16 years old – in my arms where she belonged.

It wasn’t until 1988 when I became Granisle’s animal control officer that destiny/karma/cause and effect whatever you want to call it, was fulfilled. Turtle Gardens has made a difference in my life and for animals in the north. Over 4000 animal lives have been changed not counting the human lives that have been made better because an animal has enriched their lives. One moment in time can change everything we believe in. And be a different season in life’s journey.

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

Sometimes the daily chores seem to be just too much. Puppies, new dogs that have no clue about housetraining, old dogs who forget they were ever housebroken can certainly make a huge mess of living places. It seems like the work never ends. And the thanklessness of the job is overwhelming.

The dogs do prefer a clean area to hang around in but they have no qualms about dirtying it either. Their idea of clean and my idea are not quite the same. As long as they have a clean corner to lie down in is all they ask for.

I think the foam pieces are messy – they think the foam and stuffie parts are great toys.  They need toys to stimulate their little brains – to learn to think and reason out problems such as how to get their toy from under the bed?

that was a decoration from my garden! I didn’t think they could reach it.

But do they have to tear them apart to see how they work?

Silas, Elvis and Jaxon enjoying good weather.

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

Avery BIG THANK YOU to the Lions Club of Houston who had a Purina Walk for DOG Guides  recently. They donated the left over sponsor packs to Turtle Gardens! Each package has a bandana, a bag of Purina Begging Strips and a red leash. Over two dozen of  them!!
Lots of treats for our guys. We appreciate your thoughtfullness.

Tinkerbelle modelling the bandana!!

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