Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue

Nika
Hello to all at Turtle Gardens.

I am not sure if you remember me, but my name is Nika and I was adopted from Turtle Gardens in September of 2003.

My family had moved to Telkwa from Northern Ontario and decided they needed a “bear dog” to protect them from those ever prevalent visitors. My mom was not so sure she wanted a dog, but my dad and my kids were pretty excited. My mom was referred to Turtle Gardens from a lady who worked at Eskay Creek Mine office in Smithers, so she called Yvette to enquire.

Yvette assured my mom that she had a good 2 year old husky/lab/whatever cross that would be just the right fit. Mom still wasn’t too sure about a dog.

Boy, did I ever surprise her!! The first night at “home” I never moved off the spot in the kitchen where I was told to stay. Brownie Point number one for me. I was very timid and afraid of most people for a while, but now I love people and want everyone to love me too. I did a great job keeping my family safe from the bears, I “babysit” the two cats we adopted, and even let one of them sleep on my bed with me, and I always let my family know when there is a car in our driveway. My favorite thing to do was to go swimming in the river every evening and walking to the Provinical Park.

Now we live in the Cariboo and I have a great big yard to play in and bury my bones in. I have three beds…….one even beside my mom in her bedroom. My “gramma” lives close by and takes me for long hikes when my mom is working. I get sooooo excited when I know gramma is coming over I can’t stop talking. I still take great care protecting my cats. I don’t have to work so hard now since we don’t have very many bears in our yard now.

I just wanted to let you know that I have a great life and my family (even my mom) loves me so much. Mom still says she doesn’t like dogs, but I’m not a dog, I’m Nika! She even loved me the day I pinned a skunk up against our fence and wore skunk perfume for months!

Attached is a photo of me with Santa, I have apparently gotten over the fear of men.

All the best to everyone at Turtle Garden,

Nika and family

Jazmyne is doing very well. Her stitches from being fixed healed well. She is getting very tall. We love her very much and are still thrilled to have her. Her days consist of beating up meiko (our border collie) and annoying jax (our cat). Then she curls up in comfort on the couch, on the chair or one of us.
thanks
from
Jo-Anne,

Hi Yvette!

Just wanted to let you know everything thing is going great. Benji got
a haircut (spa day!), so now we refer to him as Benjamin Button,
because he is a good looking blond like Brad Pitt. He is still limping
a little bit but went for a good off-leash walk yesterday and he was
great. He came when called and generally hung out pretty close to us,
unless he was exploring the woods with Magnus and saying hello to
other dogs. He likes sleeping in on our bed with Magnus in the
mornings, they both jump up there when we wake up and they sleep a few
more hours with their heads on the pillows. He will start his dog
hikes next week, if his leg is better; the vet thinks it will be.
Today I am taking the dogs to the beach.

Hope all is well with you,

Jordan

Hi Yvette,

Just wanted to send these photos of Chewie. She’s very comfortable here
now, as you can tell. She loves to sit in the story chair in the kitchen
when we read to Edison. I think she likes the books almost as much as he
does! She also likes to sit there with David when we are making our meals.
She really loves to be close!

Chewie’s really been eating well these days. We discovered she likes
salmon, so we give her some dried salmon with her meals and as treats. Her
coat is getting full and glossy from all the Omega 3s!

She and Edison are going out together for Halloween. We couldn’t resist the
Star Wars reference, so they are going as Han Solo and Chewie. A preview
picture of them is attached.

Hope you are feeling better and keeping warm!

Lisa, David, Edison and Chewie

And last but not least – Opie enjoying his bone!! – Opie actually lives in Duncan with Ineke.

We need more clicks!!!
The shelter challenge – We are # 2 in Canada which means we are in line for a $1000 grant. But we could aim higher –We have gained !! to #33 in overall ranking. #1 gets $20,000, #2 gets $5000 and #3 gets $3000. We can do it!! Email schools and ask the kids to support Turtle Gardens Spay Neuter Society (our full legal name!!), emails family and friends. The animals are counting on us!
VOTE EVERYDAY!! Click here!

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

Two of my buddies, Del and Lynda have been busy stitching up these stylish fashion accessories just in time for Christmas and gift giving. We have Christmas patterns and solid colours with an iron-on TG logo– just $4 each OR, with a $20 donation to TG, you will get a free bandana of your choice. (receipts for income tax purposes will be issued with your donation)

I am blessed to have met so many wonderful people through the Turtle Gardens network. When the idea for this project first came up, both these ladies did not hesitate, “What can I do to help?” I do not have a sewing machine so I thought I might have to do some arm twisting… but their hearts are big, and getting involved (haha…if they only knew what they were getting into!) shows true dedication. We’ve had so much fun with this, it’s especially warm and fuzzy when we all share a common desire to help the dogs at Turtle Gardens.

Every dollar from this fundraiser goes directly to helping the dogs.

I hope to hear from you soon and Yvette would love to see pictures of your dogs (or cats) in these bright and colourful bandanas – all lovingly made by Del and Lynda.

We need more clicks!!!
The shelter challenge – We are # 2 in Canada which means we are in line for a $1000 grant. But we could aim higher –We have gained !! to #33 in overall ranking. #1 gets $20,000, #2 gets $5000 and #3 gets $3000. We can do it!! Email schools and ask the kids to support Turtle Gardens Spay Neuter Society (our full legal name!!), emails family and friends. The animals are counting on us!
VOTE EVERYDAY!! Click here!

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

This week at Simond’s Sanctuary:

Oprah under went surgery this Tuesday and after recovering she made her trip to Houston and into the arms of a very good family. As soon as she settles in we will give everyone an update on her progress.

Also Luke and Tuffy have found homes this week. Good luck little ones!

Last week the ladies who work in the Houston Veterinary Clinic rescued two little male kittens from the side of the road. They are staying in Houston as our Burns Lake shelter is full. We call the twins Daniel and Henrik. They are still frightened and staff are working at teaching them the world separately during the day and then letting they stay together at night when the clinic is quiet. These two little guys really need a foster home with patience. If you are interested please call the Burns Lake Clinic at 250-692-7476.

In our shelter we are still taking good care of Maude, Allana and Mara.

Allana underwent surgery on Tuesday and has recovered nicely and is back in the shelter with her kitten. Allana is very friendly and loves attention from visitors. She had two young boys visit her the other day and she rubbed up against them and purred. We have a new resident in the shelter who we call Frownie. We don’t have pictures yet, but they have been taken by our award winning photographer so I am sure they are worth waiting for! Frownie is a young tabby female who was found on a dumpster being chased by a pack of dogs. Lucky for her someone was watching!

Our foster home who has Kuro and her 5 kittens (”the gang”) says they are all doing well and slowly coming around.

Kuro was a young mother who was left without a home when her owner died. There are also 3 other cats that we are feeding at their now abandoned house as we have no place to keep them at the shelter. We have a second unfinished shelter at the clinic that we have been using to store donations for our Mother Millie sale in February. We are working very hard to find someone who will donate storage space so we can open up that one room shelter to a group of cats. It is a hard time of year for these cats to be left without a warm place to sleep so we hope that a resolution will present itself soon.

Jet and Blackie are doing well in their foster home but need a home to call their own. These little guys are adorable and very sweet. They live in a house full of dogs, kids, and another cat. They are very well rounded little kittens!

Lucky is doing better in her foster home and has come out of seclusion to tolerate the other animals. Lucky really needs a home where she can be “queen bee” without other animals to compete with.

Pinky is doing well in her foster home but also needs a stable home to call her own. She is about 1 year old and is spayed and vaccinated.

Spookie is now alone at her foster home and we are hoping that she will be forced to come out of her shell and realize her foster parents are very sweet people who only want the best for her. I’m sure it will be an adjustment without Oprah or Tuffy but it may be just what she needs!

Please call the Burns Lake vet clinic if you are interested in any of the cats you see here, 250-692-7476.

We need more clicks!!!
The shelter challenge – We are # 2 in Canada which means we are in line for a $1000 grant. But we could aim higher –We have gained !! to #33 in overall ranking. #1 gets $20,000, #2 gets $5000 and #3 gets $3000. We can do it!! Email schools and ask the kids to support Turtle Gardens Spay Neuter Society (our full legal name!!), emails family and friends. The animals are counting on us!
VOTE EVERYDAY!! Click here!

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

The problem with doing rescue in the north is that we have real and long winter with snow and cold. Yesterday it was in the minus all day. Last night we had heavy snow with snowfall warnings on weather network today!! To supplement our heating bills – electric, we use wood. Wood keeps you warm 3 times – 1, when you cut it down, cut into blocks, load it on a truck and haul it home. 2. Split the wood, stack it in a huge pile hopefully before snow comes. 3.Burn it!! The warmth filters all the way into your bones – there is no warmth like it! And the dogs love it – they will stack all around the stove. No pictures yet cuz the stove isn’t going yet!! Here are pics tho of Dave and crew getting wood:

The beginning -standing beetle killed wood

Cutting it up

Bluestain wood on the truck

The truck is full again and again!

This morning the dogs are so happy to play outside – it is milder after all!

Pooh Bear and Willow

Fun in the snow

Puppy like snow too!

There is a new face in these pictures. Running bear is here because he is no longer safe in his community. There is a neighbour who has a fenced yard – but with wire strands not dog proof. The law is – you can shoot dogs IF they harass livestock. He doesn’t have any but uses the law loosely. Running bear was shot yesterday. It was a graze and bled profusely. But he is alright. His family decided to send him here for his safety. Thank you Stuart and Linda for facilitating his rescue. Running Bear loves kids but is very afraid of adults. He will learn to trust again. Turtle Gardens welcomes Running Bear.

And inside – Mia does not like winter!! It is cold out there.

I have received a phone call from Roz with the donation of a treadmill – how cool is that!! And an email from Susan and Bailey#1 with a recumbent bike! Thank you for your concern on my health and my commitment to lose that weight so I can be the best that I can be!

We need more clicks!!!
The shelter challenge – We are # 2 in Canada which means we are in line for a $1000 grant. But we could aim higher –We have gained !! to #33 in overall ranking. #1 gets $20,000, #2 gets $5000 and #3 gets $3000. We can do it!! Email schools and ask the kids to support Turtle Gardens Spay Neuter Society (our full legal name!!), emails family and friends. The animals are counting on us!
VOTE EVERYDAY!! Click here!

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

Dave and I are very proud to announce our newest addition to the TG Bus Fleet. The original TG Bus is in Victoria with Stan who drives across to the mainland , loads with dog food and donations and drives up to Topley. He sleeps 8 hours, loads up the dogs and drive down to deliver the dogs and cats (from Simond’s Sanctuary) to their adoptive homes. This relieves Dave to get the firewood and batten down the hatches for winter!

The all wheel drive TG Bus will be our winter workhorse to take dogs back and forth on snowy roads to the vets for speuters and to pick up dogs from the pounds. This TG Bus will be safe and dependable for winter conditions.

The new little van is economical on gas, is in beautiful condition and will be used for clean highway driving. Why 3 vans? Stan is also our back up when Dave does do the TG Bus Runs. If he breaks down (it happened once in Cache Creek with 8 dogs on the side of the road for 10 hours!!) Stan can come and rescue him and the dogs. Another safety feature. Last year we put almost 100,000 kilometers on the TG Bus! So this little van will work her little heart out.

Many many thanks to : Al and Jan Keefe of Rocky Mountain Chocolate of Edgemount Village in North Vancouver. They donated this newest TG Bus. They are also going to help in a TG Fundraiser – a yummy CHOCOLATE Fundraiser – Wendy will tell us all very soon.

Here is our TG Bus:

And our sad situation?

We had a PAIR of these beautiful magnetic graphics on our doors – Thank you Rosemary and Sarah of Victoria who donated these. This week someone removed/took/stole the passenger side sign! How dumb is that!! Of what use could the sign be to anyone else? It is very well done but where can you display it? Please return the sign – no questions asked – just leave it on the van and we will put it in its rightful place. Do the right thing – the dogs and us will thank you.

We need more clicks!!!
The shelter challenge – We are # 2 in Canada which means we are in line for a $1000 grant. But we could aim higher –We have gained !! to #33 in overall ranking. #1 gets $20,000, #2 gets $5000 and #3 gets $3000. We can do it!! Email schools and ask the kids to support Turtle Gardens Spay Neuter Society (our full legal name!!), emails family and friends. The animals are counting on us!
VOTE EVERYDAY!! Click here!

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

I thought it was a good time to remind the blog readers and everyone to try to keep their pets safe and out of harms way during what can be Halloween scarey times. It’s loads of fun to dress them up and have some giggles but please remember our Doggies dont understand the meaning of the loud noises, crashing, booming sounds, bright lights and children who are sometimes playing loudly through out the night. They may also become very frightened of people in costumes.

Please watch for any candies left on the ground after Halloween that doggies may like to chomp on. Candy – especially chocolate – can be extremely toxic to your dog. Artificially sweetened candy, gum and other goodies may also contain xylitol, a highly toxic substance. Dogs may also ingest food wrappers, causing a risk of choking, upset stomach or gastrointestinal blockage.

I read some good info on this website listed below and thought I’d share it with you.

http://dogs.about.com/od/caringfordogsandpuppies/qt/halloweensafety.htm

Have a Safe One
Del & Mark
PS
Princess Molly & The King
Will be safe at home with us cuddling downstairs watching a Disney Movie

“Lady & The Tramp”
( hee hee hee)

We need more clicks!!!
The shelter challenge – We are # 2 in Canada which means we are in line for a $1000 grant. But we could aim higher –We have gained !! to #33 in overall ranking. #1 gets $20,000, #2 gets $5000 and #3 gets $3000. We can do it!! Email schools and ask the kids to support Turtle Gardens Spay Neuter Society (our full legal name!!), emails family and friends. The animals are counting on us!
VOTE EVERYDAY!! Click here!

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