It is Tuesday and that is our spay day! Today it was small dog day - Angel and Kingston. Angel has an application from Vanderhoof as well as a foster in Coquitlam. Kingston has nothing yet and he is so darn cute and cuddly - I can’t figure it out!! Dave was late this morning because I couldn’t find Kingston!! Anywhere. I finally found him in my bed - he has crawled back under the covers - it was too early for this little guy or was it that he knew what was going on?
Angel and Kingston

Dave finally got them in to the veterinarians and was back home pretty quick with a box of blueberries for me - my favorite fruit of all time!! I was born in Sudbury Ontario - blueberry capital!! My parents live just a few blocks from where Alex Trebek of Jeopardy was born and raised. Wild blueberries are best but these are pretty good too!

Then we had a visit from Debbie Goodine of the Prince George SPCA - she was on a call nearby and stopped in to see how we were doing. She follows my blog and we have had coffee together to discuss rescues/shelters and animals in general. She mentioned that she could have several homes for Silas - she has a list of people who want dogs like Silas especially with his beautiful face and good nature. She would foster him if I would let her take him to Prince George. For Silas’ sake it was a go! He has had no interest in him here. And he is the one most needy of a home - he wants so much to bond with someone. He was leashed and his face lit up - he loves to go out that gate! And then he saw the truck door open - he was overjoyed!! He was going for a ride! my last glimpse of him was his smiling face in the passenger seat. He was so happy!! Good luck Silas you will have your home very soon. Thank you Debbie for giving Silas his chance at a good home. It is great when rescuers work together for the good of the animals. Silas’ beautiful face

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

Another good day today tho the phone rang a lot today! Mind you Melanie has an adoption pending in Alberta and Steve is willing to drive 6 hours to pick her up! And another phone call was inquring about Heather’s pups. She was here lickety split - she only live in Burns Lake so she was less then an hour away. The little black and white smoothie was at the gate with me so I picked her up to show Ashley and her kids. She is a natural cuddler so was a hit with her daughter who is not usually drawn to dogs or them to her. I went and looked for the fluffy one they had come to see. I finally found her sleeping and brought her to the gate. Ten went to print out the adoption papers. When I came back with the papers it was to find that the little  smoothie was the chosen one after all. She really liked Destiny and was cuddled happily in her arms. She was thrilled with the little one. So was Mom! And again a dog chooses its own family!! Quite often the dog the people have come to see is not the dog they leave with - it is often the dog who chooses the family. The perfect match is there if the people just agree. The dogs do know best!!
You did very good little one!

And now a Happy Ending Update!

Truman is Nell’s son and Nan aka Tess’s brother from a few days ago!!
Hi Yvette,

 

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

It is a beautiful day in the neighbourhood! It rained all night and the air is fresh and clean. The temperature is very liveable – I don’t like “hot”.  It is just cloudy enough to be very comfortable and the breeze is very refreshing. The dogs are outside playing and all is well at Turtle Gardens.

Another of Heather’s pups has gone to his family who drove 3 hours from Prince George to pick him up. “Mickey” is a very confident, cuddly black and tan fluffball. His little face is quite shih tzu looking compared to Heather. He nuzzled into his new mom’s neck and that is where he stayed while all the paperwork was taken care of. Then I went in to get the little female that looks like him so they could see her too. As I walked to the door Merlin grabbed the adoption paper. As I bent to remove it from his mouth Melanie grabbed the cheque and the game of “catch me if you can” was on! She led me a merry chase until Sweetpea took it away from her. A piece was left in Melanie’s mouth. Laughing all the while – another cheque was written and this time I folded it and held it high as I made my way into the house – followed by all my doggie friends much like the Pied Piper of the Topley zoo! Dogs do have a sense of humour.

It was agreed that the little female was cute but Mickey had the face they were looking for. Another successful adoption.

 

One more week before the renovations begin!! I am so excited. The new dog room floor will make a huge difference in clean up time! And the foundation repairs will ensure the building will stay up safely. Hopefully there will be enough time to build an adoption centre – where we can finalize adoptions indoors – out of the weather. It can be uncomfortable filling out the adoption paperwork in the pouring rain. And as just seen - it can be a trying experience keeping the papers safe from exuberant puppies!! It may be part of our home but the dogs live right in here with Dave and I. There really isn’t anywhere we can call “a dogfree zone” unless you count my greenhouse. That is my dogfree stress reliever.  I enjoy it during growing weather. This year it was started late because of the flooding. Hopefully we will have a long autumn so I can use it longer.

 

During the colder months there isn’t anywhere to “get away” from all the dogs. Dave of course can. He leaves the fence to do the shopping, veterinary runs, pick up the pound dogs, take the TG Bus down to Surrey, or just to visit his friends. By my choice, I stay with the dogs, rarely leaving the grounds or going out of the fence. I am quite content to visit friends and family on the phone, or on the internet. I am very busy and never bored. There is so much to do to keep the dogs happy, healthy and entertained. Having new floors and shelves in the dog rooms will really really make life easier for the dogs and for me too. Thank you “Somebody” and thank you to supporters who are accepting the Challenge to meet or beat the $5000 “double your donation” to Turtle Gardens. An awful lot can be done with the extra donations – the adoption centre and my biggest wish – a new dog proof fence that they can’t jump over or climb so no dog needs to be tethered to keep them safe! And Lorna’s wish for a double gate so when she takes one dog out for training only one dog goes out!! Dreams can come true!

Another of my old dogs - Shaney!

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

 The Turtle Gardens Blog is 1 year old today!! Thank you Dave and Stan for the gift that keeps on giving.

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

It is a cloudy day but a very good day! It was a little  crowded in my bed when I woke up this morning. It seems every small dog had found me during the night. I never felt a thing!!

One of the first phone calls was from a gentleman who had been here three times to look at Heather’s pups. They were up here visiting family and wanted a small dog preferably a puppy. They also wanted a rescue dog not a backyard breeder or puppy mill sale. They have been looking for 6 months - very few small dog puppies come into rescue down near White Rock. This morning they had decided on which pup they liked and asked if she was still available. She sure was. So the little short legged blondie went home with her new family. She is a very confident but cuddly pup!

Then I received a call from a repeat adopter in Houston. She had adopted Bandit - a shepherd/husky 6 years ago from Turtle Gardens. He had chosen them and they are very happy with the well trained adult dog they adopted.  Bandit is getting quite chubby and needs more exercise. They thought a playmate would perk him up.

They looked at all the dogs over the fence, puppies were cute but too much work.   Cap caught their eye but he was already taken.  He will be picked up later today when Taver arrives from Vancouver! He has changed his holiday plans to come and pick up Cap. How cool is that? Taver arrived at 2.30 pm and it was love at first sight. Cap walked away without a backward glance. He was going HOME!

Going home but first a holiday experience!!

Bryan was sure it was his turn!! He did everything he could to get their attention. Finally he found a ball and carried it to the fence so Jason could see how smart he was!! I saw a problem as they were from Houston and Bryan was a Houston Pound dog. That problem was solved when they said they lived just outside of town limits. Bryan was a possible. So Bryan is gone for a sleepover - a foster to adopt if you will. All the papers were signed and a cheque given for his adoption fee. They will call in a week and see if he is a keeper. Be good Bryan - this is your chance to shine!!

Good luck Bryan - you have been here since May 17th!

And another Update: Tess from Vancouver!

Well, I’ve been at my new home for 3 months now but it feels like I’ve been here all my life.  I’ve been having fun with my new sister but she’s kinda older and doesn’t like it much sometimes when I’m dancing around in her face and borrowing her toys. My Mom says that I was just 15 llbs when I got here but I was just at the doctor’s (I got a tick camping) and jumped on the scale and now I’m almost 34 lbs.  Mom and Dad have been calling me the Bull, not quite sure why but they tell me they love me too!

I’ve been on some trips, can’t sit still much though, I get really excited. I’ve gone on sleepovers with friends and been to parties. I love people, especially those little ones. I was camping last week and there were 2 little people and a big black dog. I love him.  He’s not to crazy about me cause I throw myself all over him but he will play chase with me. 

I just wanted to say Hi and send you some pictures. I hope I look okay. (I’m just being coy, I’m soooooo cute)

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

My two new boys have names. Since I have final say - I  and the border collie have chosen Phantom as his name - he likes it! It comes from this email:

Hi there,

I was looking at the blog today and saw the pictures of the new dogs. I think I have one for the border collie we will see if you like it.  The second I saw him I thought of Phantom because of his black mask it is EXACTLY like the one that the phantom wears in The Phantom of the Opera!  Well that is what I would name him if he was mine.  He is beautiful too by the way!

I hope that has helped,

 
The Catahoula has been named Merlin as I think he is "magical" - what a very nice dog!! Lorna helpe dto name him. Thank you everyone who suggested names - I will keep them for another arrival - and there most certainly will be more !

And updates - a wilderness Karelian’s adventures in the City!!

HI YVETTE:  GREETINGS FROM VANCOUVER!  HERE ARE THE PICS I PROMISED OF MEKA.
WE CHANGED HER NAME AFTER A LONG THOUGHTFUL PROCESS–THE NAME MEANS
"BEAUTIFUL EYES" IN HAWAIIAN.  SHE IS DOING VERY WELL AND DEFINITELY KNOWS
WHERE SHE LIVES AND WHO SHE LIVES WITH.  SHE ESCAPED 1 MORNING–WE STILL
CAN’T FIGURE OUT HOW…AND WAS TURNED INTO THE POUND WITHIN 1 HOUR.  SHE
DIDN’T REALLY RUN AWAY, SO MUCH AS JUST WENT FOR A STROLL–SHE WAS FOUND 2
BLOCKS AWAY AND WE HAD JUST GOT HER CITY LICENCE THE DAY BEFORE-PHEW!!
BOB HAS FURTHER SECURED THE YARD AND THERE HAVE BEEN NO MORE ATTEMPTS–BUT
NOW SHE HAS DECIDED TO DIG TO CHINA—ONE PART OF THE YARD IS FULL OF HOLES
AND THERE IS A BIG DUGOUT DEN AREA UNDERNEATH THE DECK THAT IS COOL FOR
SLEEPING ON HOT DAYS.  DID YOU FIND HER TO BE QUITE SHY WITH OTHER DOGS?
SHE HAS ALSO BEEN TO WORK WITH ME SEVERAL TIMES AND IT IS HARD TO GET
ANYTHING DONE WITH PEOPLE STOPPING BY MY AREA TO VISIT…IF I DON’T TAKE
HER, EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW WHERE SHE IS.  HER NATURE IS SUCH THAT AFTER SHE
HAS LEARNED THE BASICS, WE MAY CONSIDER TESTING HER ABILITY TO BE A THERAPY
DOG.  SHE WOULD LIKE A JOB, I THINK.

SHE HAS BEEN TO 2 OBEDIENCE CLASSES AND IS CLEARLY THE STAR.  SHE JUST LIES
DOWN AND WATCHES THE ANTICS OF THE OTHERS.  THE WOMAN WHO TEACHES THE CLASS
HAS A FRIEND WITH A KARELIAN AND SHE IS ASTONISHED AT THE QUIET, CALM NATURE
OF MEKA.

THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL YOU CARE AND ATTENTION TO ALL THE DOGS.
BEST WISHES, KAREN AND ROBERT ANDREW

And beautiful little Ned who may have a sibling here - Angel!

Hello Yvette,

I thought I'd better send a note to let you know how well Ned is doing and how much we alllove him. Ned and Hughie my standard poodle play from sun up to sun down. They are the bestof friends as the pictures show. The size difference doesn’t matter except when it comesto both of them trying to fit into Ned’s bed (Picture) Ned is very smart and learns quickly,which only adds to all of the fun and games between the 2 of them. He has made such a difference for Hughie who lost his old dog friend and was so lonely. Thanks again, he is a great dog and we all love him dearly.

Becky and Steve Metcalfe

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

Spay day again but this time both are girls! Brocade and heather are going in for their big adventure before going to new homes.  Everything went very smooth this morning. The girls are both leash trained and both hopped into the TG Bus willingly. Good girls!!

Brocade aka Cade - she has a tentative home in Fanny Bay.

Heather meeting Melanie - She also has a tentative home.

Dave was back home pretty quick wiht the two new pound boys. What nice dogs they are too!! Why were they in the pound?  One is a beautiful split faced border collie - he appears purebred too! He has a lovely disposition, friendly, calm and very dog social. What a great companion he will be for a very lucky family. The other is a catahoula I think? He is grey with dark patches, tan legs and sky blue eyes. I am pretty sure he is a catahoula and he too looks purebred? He is a young pup about 6 months old. Both have been neutered and vaccinated when they went in for their vet checks. They are ready for new families.

the border collie - he needs a name!!

Catahoula??? He needs a name too and a breed id. What do you think?

And a Nautical Happy Ending Update!!

Hi Yvette, I just wanted you to know how great Ann Bonny (now Cookie) is doing. She is the best, sweetest, smartest dog ever! We are together all the time. She has a wonderful happy life and seems to love everyone. I wish I could adopt many more dogs from T.G.’s! Maybe some day! Thanks again for doing what you do. We are so very happy with our girl! Susan Hunter

Cookie is the original "nautical" the matriarch of the entire group! Also the smallest!

When she arrived with her family!

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

It has finally stopped raining! I am sure little Tessa is senile! She will start barking short little bursts of noise for as long as I not yell  "Quiet - Tess!!" And she needs to hear her name too. Then she moans and groans in protest. She will be quiet for a bit then start again. Usually at 7 am. She hears something I sure don’t. If I get up it seems to chase away her demons and she will sleep again. I believe she is having nightmares of her past life - she was part of a collectors’ hoard and his foster was a very mean person to all the little dogs. Once she knows she is safe with me she is quiet again but she has to see me. Yet she still does not trust me to touch her. But she does eat from my hands now - it is a definite improvement  - baby steps for this little feral dog. Her mother is also with me - Lily is now 18 years old! Tess is somewhere between 13 to 16 years old - too old to really accept humans but she has adapted to our safe sanctuary.

Lily and Tess

It is Chenille’s day for her SPay and Cap’s for his  nEUTER - speuter!! Chenille and Brocade have a tentative home in Fanny Bay pending the homevisit on Friday. Chenille is a typical Karelian - she is quite reserved with strangers - she was not impressed with going with Dave into the van or veterinarian’s office! But she was totally non-aggressive - passive resistance was her mode. Good luck little girl - it is a necessary procedure to help you find your home!!

You will be smiling again by tonight!

Little Cap is in for his neuter today. He was happy to be going for a ride! He has a home in Vancouver. Taver has changed his vacation plans and is coming up to Topley to pick up his little man on Thursday. Cap will have his rabies vaccine and a bordetella vaccine for traveling and for doggie day care when he gets back home again. Taver has registered Cap into day care until he is old enough to stay alone for 4 hours at a time. What a conscientious guardian his new dad is!

Cap and his friends.

And our new arrival - Melanie!
Melanie arrived on Saturday from the Burns Lake Pound. She was vet checked, spayed and vaccinated on Friday with little Heidi.  Dave picked her up when he took the pups in for their second vaccinations. She is a "station wagon" - long and low!! She reminds me of my Sweetpea but slightly taller. And not as chunky. She is listed as a pittie mix but I see very little of the bullie breed in her. Anyways - Turtle Gardens welcomes Melanie - my grand daughter Kelsey named her!

Melanie is quite dog social and loves people too.

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