Happy New Year! Let the rescues begin
File this under ‘it never rains but it pours’. Since the New Year, we’ve all been rather swamped with rescue inquiries – like the one from the people who bought their Frenchie mix puppy the week before Christmas, and decided the week after Christmas that they couldn’t keep her any more. Or the older single lady who was moving into a nursing home, and whose children didn’t want to take her two older French Bulldogs for her. Both of those scenarios got resolved, and things seemed to be back on an even keel, until today.
Today is when we heard about Winston, a French Bulldog puppy who has been through four homes, another rescue (we’ll be his second) and one (or maybe two) operations – and he’s just fifteen weeks old. Winston, who has what we suspect might be permanent nerve damage from a rectal prolapse, wears a diaper and is a pretty happy go lucky guy, considering all he’s been through. He’s also going to be a pretty expensive little guy – just the initial ‘walk through the door’ appointment at Guelph is probably going to come with a $2,000 to $3,000 price tag, but it has to be done if there’s a chance that we can keep Winston’s condition from progressing from ‘needs a diaper’ to ‘paralyzed from the waist down and needs a diaper AND a mobility cart’.
Winston will be coming into the joint care of Eastern Canada French Bulldog Rescue and French Bulldog Last Chance Rescue this week – stay tuned for more details.
This evening, while we were still planning out Winston’s care and treatment I got a phone call about two more French Bulldogs in need. These ones come with a story so simply stunning that I am having a hard time absorbing all of it. They are safe for now, after being removed from a home where the woman who was planning to breed them was sleeping on the floor in a house empty of anything but dog crates and a half empty bag of food – which she and the dogs were sharing. Thankfully, they are being cared for by the couple who owned the house, and we’re making plans to go and get them as soon as we find a foster home willing and able to take them in. They sound like nice dogs, other than the female’s ear conditions.
You’d think that would be surprising – that dogs who came out of such a horror story could still be happy and well adjusted, but we see it time and again. French Bulldogs somehow can manage to come out of the most horrific conditions, and yet still will happily lick the hand of the first person they meet. There’s a lesson in that, someplace.
So, here’s what we need. We are looking for one or two foster homes, preferably in Southern Ontario, who are able to take these two adults in. We know they’re good with other dogs, but we have no idea about cats or kids. You’ll need to be willing to drive them to their vet appointments. We also need help with transports – can you help us to get these dogs from their current situation to their new foster homes? The couple looking after them would like to see them placed as soon as possible, so there is a degree of urgency. If you can foster and/or transport, please email us at rescue@frenchbulldogscanada.com
Finally, of course, we need money. Winston is going to be an expensive little dog to care for, and we need to give him the best chance possible at a great life with no need for a mobility cart. Our intrepid pair of horror story survivors are going to need vet care, alterations, shots and other care, and possibly additional treatment for the little girl’s ear issues.
If you can, please send a donation via the paypal link below, and we’ll promise to do our best to help all three of these Frenchies, who have overcome so much in such a short period of time. Additionally, we will have our new “Bee My Valentine” fund raiser starting tomorrow or by this weekend (I had said tonight, but I’ve gotten rather side tracked).
As always, we couldn’t do this without you.
