Shelter Stories: When rescue isn't enough.
This is from Mack, who is involved with Florida Dachshund Rescue (and, in his first Shelter Stories post, told us how he meet his wife through his love of doxies.) A sad reminder that sometimes, rescue comes too late.
The success stories keep us going in rescue. We love to watch the happy tails of dogs newly sprung from the pound, then to see them blossom into wonderful pets and ultimately find a new home.
But this is not one of those stories. It's the story of Itsy, a little dachshund that deserved better. A little dog that gave love but got very little until she found her way to one of our foster homes for the last four months of her life.
Itsy died a couple weeks ago, never leaving the foster home that graciously took her in when her owners moved from Florida to California.
I opened the email from her owners this past May, reading how they were moving out of state and didn't think Itsy would "do well'' on the long trip. As the coordinator responsible for taking in dogs to our group, Florida Dachshund Rescue, I knew of a foster home who liked the seniors. As it turned out, it was a good thing we got Itsy.
Itsy, 12 years old, hadn't seen a vet in six or seven years. Her teeth were horrible. Her toenails were so long they were curling and cutting into the pads on the bottom of her feet. The foster dad in Cape Coral took her to his vet. Itsy had to have nearly every tooth removed.
But soon she was gobbling her food and barely missing her missing teeth. She was groomed and her nails let her walk correctly again. Seniors are more difficult to adopt than younger dogs, but we were hopeful. There are always folks who come along smitten by a senior's frosty face. It would only be a matter of time.
Then Itsy's foster dad noticed labored breathing. Another trip to the vet. The diagnosis: a malignant tumor wrapped around the trachea, cutting into her air supply. There was not much to do. It was inoperable and we couldn't even make her comfortable. Itsy was stretching out her head and neck trying to get comfortable.
We made the decision to let her go. She was euthanized.
I'm still thinking about Itsy. And I'm also thinking about the callousness of the owners, who allowed their pet (I guess they didn't think of Itsy as a family member, as we do) to get in this condition.
Worse, I think of the two young dogs that Itsy's former owners took to California with them. I guess they were young enough to make the trip. Or old Itsy just wasn't worth the trouble. I pray the two younger ones don't suffer the same fate at the hands of these people.
Click here for more information about Florida Dachshund Rescue.
Do you have a Shelter Story to share? E-mail dlade@sun-sentinel.com and we'll post it.
ANGIE BRENNAN, a Sun-Sentinel page designer,
lives with four dogs and one boyfriend. And has a lifetime of animal stories to share.
DIANE LADE, a reporter on the Sun-Sentinel's Help Team, has lived with cats, dogs, reptiles, fish, an iguana, and an armadillo.
CYNDI METZGER, editor of the Sun-Sentinel's Outlook section, is smitten with Bella, her poodle who regularly ignores requests to sit, stay and get off the ivory-colored sofa. 
JOHN TANASYCHUK, a Sun-Sentinel lifestyle writer, has lived with cats as long as he can remember. He and his partner currently share their home with three.
Comments
My heart breaks when I read this story...for every one of us, who love animals, there is someone who just doesn't care enough to really take care of the dog,see him as a family member...I cannot even conceive of people just letting this dog run around their house for SEVEN years, with no trips to the vet, no nothing. Truly, I understand that vets cost money, but I would give my dog up to a good rescue, so that he could get the help he needed, before I would let this heinous neglect take place. I guess all we can think it that, cancer at times, can't be prevented, and I lost two 14 year old labs to cancer, several years apart. Maybe no matter what would have been done, Itsy wouldn't have been able to be saved. But at least he had a loving home and was out of dental pain and could eat, spending his last times with people who cared about him. That is a lot more than many get. I know that this is cold comfort, but this is how I would have to look at it. Thanks again, great post....
Posted by: TJF | September 3, 2008 12:09 PM