Heartbreak and Hope: Our August Update

 Carmen, Diesel, and Shea

When we last updated you on Nika's litter, we were holding onto real hope. We had already lost Dora and Freya, but Carmen and Diesel had come through their emergency care and were home with their foster, bright and busy and doing all the things happy puppies do. Two more of Nika's babies were out in the world too: Shea, in the care of Southeast German Shepherd Rescue, and a puppy who had been adopted privately from the shelter. We let ourselves believe the worst was behind us.

It was not.

Not long after that post, Diesel was living his best puppy life. He came barreling into the kitchen to see his foster mom, gasped, and was gone in an instant. Before we could even find our footing, we learned the same thing happened to the puppy who had been adopted privately. Two more babies, lost suddenly, with no warning at all.

We were still awaiting Freya's necropsy results, and now needed answers more than ever for the sake of the two remaining puppies, Carmen and Shea. Both rescues worked hand in hand, sharing everything we learned as we learned it, and doing everything possible to get to the bottom of the situation.

And, for a while, we let ourselves hope again. Every day that passed felt like proof that Carmen and Shea were fighters. Shea was seen by a veterinarian more than once after the other losses, and each time we were reassured she was healthy. We were so close to believing in a happy ending.

Then, early Wednesday morning, the president of Southeast German Shepherd Rescue reached out. Shea had woken in the small hours of the morning, cried out, and was gone. After everything, it was a blow almost too heavy to carry.

Carmen and her
Lambchop

Now only Carmen is left. Our sweet, brave Carmen. She is battling considerable heart failure, and we have taken her for every test we can, with more results still to come.

So we are asking you for one thing: send Carmen all the love you have. We adore this little girl beyond measure, and are determined to give her as much life as she can have, and to make every bit of it as happy as possible. If there is any mercy in this, it is that each of these babies lived a joyful puppy life and, when they left us, most left instantly, without suffering. That is the one thing we could not bear, and the one thing they were spared.

Carmen has stolen all of our hearts. Every one of these puppies has. And the thought of losing her too is more than we have words for. 

And still, the rescue moves forward.

What Else Is New

This month we welcomed three new dogs: Aries, Pope, and Penny. That may not sound like a big number, but we are full to the brim right now, and every single space matters.

One hard trend we are seeing; more and more of our dogs are coming to us heartworm positive. Both Aries and Pope are heartworm positive and will need to complete treatment before they are ready for adoption. And let us tell you, these two are worth every day of the wait. Both of their fosters keep asking the same thing: how did a dog this good end up in a shelter? It is a question we ask ourselves every single day.

Aries’ webpage: https://gsdrescue.org/dog/ares/

Pope’s webpage: https://gsdrescue.org/dog/pope/

These two stunners will blow you away. They are sweet, well mannered, smart, and honestly, just all that and a bag of chips. Because of their heartworm status, they will not be available for adoption until October, at the earliest. Once we have their treatment scheduled, we will have a better sense of timing and will keep you posted.

Then, last but certainly not least, there is little Penny.

Penny

Penny came to us as an emergency call from a local vet office. This sweet young girl, only about a year and a half old, was there with an open wound that had become badly infected. She had been seen the week before, but the antibiotics were not doing their job. With the vet out of the office that Friday, she needed the emergency clinic, and her people could not cover the cost. So GSRA stepped in and agreed to get her treated through our Community Fund.

Once she was treated, her people asked to surrender her. In the end, that may have been the best thing for Penny. It turns out this sweet girl is fighting two antibiotic resistant bacteria, pseudomonas and serratia. Both are serious. If you think of something like MRSA, you have the right idea of how tough these can be to beat.

GSRA jumped into action to find her a foster, and here is the good news: we pulled her on Thursday! She went in for extensive treatment on Friday and is now resting comfortably in a foster home. Her foster is taking great care, because both of these bacteria can be dangerous to anyone with an open wound or a compromised immune system. That reality might have given some people pause, but our fosters are tough cookies, and the answer we got was, simply, "bring it on".

Penny’s webpage: https://gsdrescue.org/dog/penny/

You are all going to fall in love with this pretty girl. We are hoping she will be well enough to join us at for a meet and greet in a couple of months, although we will have to play that one by ear.

Come Meet Us

If any of this has tugged at your heartstrings, come see us in person. Our next event is right around the corner, and we would love nothing more than to introduce you to our dogs, answer your questions, and just talk.

Maybe you are ready to adopt and one of these faces is your future best friend? Maybe you want to volunteer? Or maybe you are looking at what our fosters do, the tough cookies who look at a scared, sick, or heartbroken dog and say “bring it on,” thinking that might just be you. If so, we would be thrilled to welcome you into the best and toughest group of folks around.

See all our available dogs: https://gsdrescue.org/available-dogs/

Come out, meet the dogs, meet us, and see what GSRA is all about.

Saturday, August 8
10:30 am to 12:30 pm EST
Hollywood Feed Pet Store
9660 Falls of the Neuse Rd, Raleigh, NC 27615

See all our upcoming events here: https://gsdrescue.org/event-calendar/