Berkeley 99-000-D |
What can we say about this handsome sandy boy? Berekely was born on February 7, 1999. Berkeley lived with a loving family until being surrendered to NASAP as circumstances were such that keeping Berkeley was no longer an option. Why such a prince in special care? Berkeley had an accident while visiting friends at the lake. His leash got tangled around his back legs and cut off circulation causing him to slip a disk in his back. Berkeley had surgery at Calgary Orthopedic Veterinary Clinic where he stayed for a month. With lots of love from family and friends he was able to walk again after 6 months. Berkeley did not know he was handicapped. His hind legs flip-flopped sideways while he ran. He could not climb stairs nor could he jump on furniture. Having a spinal cord injury did not stop this little man from becoming the prince of our hearts. Berkeley joined our home on March 11, 2006. His personality was great. He had a whole vocabulary of grunts that meant different things – food, play with me, take me out, etc. Berekely and his adopted family went for many walks together over the years and Berkeley helped his “mom” heal from a spinal cord injury. Together, we were all inseparable. Berkeley quickly became known in the neighbourhood and often on walks, someone would say “Hi Berk”. Rarely did the neighbours know our names, but everyone knew The Berk. Berkeley was a bit of a diva, he could be demanding and obnoxious. When he wanted to play, it was now. When he wanted a treat, it was now. Don’t consider finishing what you were doing, it was all about The B. We worked closely with Dr. Bennett at Terwillager Veterinary Clinic to continue a rehabilitation program for Berkeley. Berkeley learned to “ski” down the stairs scaring his mom the first time he did it. He would stretch out and body surf to the basement, come roaring around the corner and announce – here I am! Berkeley brought so much joy into our lives. Sundays were spent going on the “rumpley road” to Terwillager Off Leash Park, followed up by a trip through the McDonalds drive-through for soft serve. Don’t try to go to Dairy Queen, he simply didn’t like it! Berkeley taught us that nothing is impossible – you just adapt. Together, we recovered from our back injuries, I learned how to stop and play and Berekely taught our girls (Belle and Toya) that washing one’s face on the couch was perfectly acceptable behavior. Sadly, on July 23, 2013 Berkeley crossed the Rainbow Bridge due to a ruptured cornea. There was no treatment – only removal of both eyes which would have rendered Berkeley blind. As he aged, his little body slowed down and we made the painful decision to say goodbye. Berkeley is now with his sister Toya, chasing cats over the Rainbow Bridge. I miss him today (one year later) as much as I did the day we said goodbye. I miss that Shih Tzu sass, the Berkeley kisses, the talks we had and the love he gave us.
Age : 14 years |
Latoya (Toya) 03-000-D |
Latoya was born on July 26, 2003. She was surrendered to NASAP by a breeder and joined our home on December 25, 2008. Due to poor medical attention while in care of the breeder, Toya’s teeth were badly diseased and turning black. Dr. Bennett from Terwillager Veterinary Clinic advised removal of all her teeth in order to save this little girl. Toya was a trooper and came through surgery without so much as a squeak and it could not have been pleasant to have 9 teeth removed. As she healed, her little tongue would hang out. In a show of support, over the next few years, her sister Belle would hang her tongue out the opposite side of Toya’s and Berkeley would let his tongue stick out to the front. It was quite adorable that the pack supported Toya this way. Toya was the only dog in the house to eat crunchies and we bought the smallest ones we could find. She could run to her dish, fill her mouth, run back to the window and eat her snacks while watching the people coming and going on the street. In 5 years, we never heard Toya bark once and often wondered if she had her vocal cords removed. Toya would make this squealing sound when playing and she loved to play. Often she would wrestle with her sister or come up and tap us on the leg, then run and see if we chased her. We nicknamed Toya “Little LG” (Little Lickey Galore). Toya was the most pleasant, sweet girl you could ever have known. She loved to go for walks with her brother Berkeley and would sit like a little girl on the couch, back up against the cushion, and lift her paws and tap you to indicate she needed to be scrubbed on her belly. To show her appreciation, she would lick, and lick and lick your arm. When her humans decided they had enough, she would endeavor to lick her brother. Toya was heartbroken when her brother Berkeley crossed the Rainbow Bridge on July 23, 2012. She became increasingly cuddly with her sister Belle and her human family. On April 8, 2013, we took Toya to see Dr. Brooks at Terwillager Veterinary Clinic for what we thought was kennel cough. Our darling Toya was diagnosed with a heart murmur that had not previously been detected during routine visits. X-rays showed she had an enlarged left side to her heart. Dr. Brooks gave us many options for treatment and Toya responded well to medication. Suddenly, in the early morning of Sunday, June 2, 2013, Toya passed peacefully in her daddy’s arms and joined her brother at the Rainbow Bridge. We were heartbroken to say goodbye but grateful to Terwillager Veterinary Clinic for giving us a few extra months with our girl.
Age : 10 years |
Oscar 09-085-D |
It is with deep sadness that I pass along the news of Oscar's passing. It was almost exactly 4 years ago that Oscar came into our lives. He came to us as a foster dog at the age of 7. We were able to trace him back to his original owners who had given him to a farmer at the age of two. It turns out Oscar was somewhat of a free spirit and needed more room to roam than the city could offer him. Unfortunately he came into care with Nasap as a stray, and the farmer who owned him could not be traced. Thankfully we did not see the free spirit side of him, he stayed very close to us. It was shortly noticed after in care that Oscar had hip problems. He could barely walk up the stairs, he couldn't get on a bed, and couldn't manage a walk longer than 10 mins. He was put on daily medication and a special diet to help with his mobility. He lived with us for just over 2 months, and we knew he had found a place in our hearts. We could not bare to see him leave our family, so we adopted him. We knew that we would have a limited time with him given his age and mobility issues but it didn't matter, nor did the medical bills. His hips showed a huge improvement. We were able to take him off his special diet, and he could exercise like any other dog. Oscar had a deep, intimidating bark. You were not getting in the yard or in the door until we gave the okay. In reality he was an extremely gentle dog, who had lots of manners. He hated taking food or a treat from you, as if in fear that he might hurt you. He would slowly put out his tongue and take the treat, making sure he didn't touch your hand. He was by our side for so many moments in the past four years. He was great with our kids, cats and other dogs.
Age : 11 years |
Helen 11-118-D |
We are sad to report that we had to have our sweet natured old girl, Helen (previously Beulah), euthanized last week. We adopted Helen from NASAP in Aug. 2011 when she was anywhere from 10 to 12 years old after she had been rescued from the pound where she had been taken, after being picked up as a stray. She was very stiff and arthritic when we adopted her and x-rays at our vet clinic revealed that at some point in her life she had been greatly loved by someone since she had old injuries - a fractured hip and knee, that had been surgically repaired in what would have been expensive surgeries. How an old girl like this who had been so loved could end up abandoned at a pound is hard to comprehend, but unfortunately Helen is just one of the many heart-breaking cases like this that NASAP volunteers have to deal with on a daily basis. Once the nature of her lameness was revealed, regular administration of acupuncture and manual therapy made a huge difference in her comfort level and she was transformed from an old girl who could hardly walk to a lively gal who would actually run around the yard with her canine buddies Bodie, Penny, and Bonnie. Helen had a dominant personality but ruled the other dogs like a benevolent dictator, correcting them with great gentleness only when necessary. She was also very gentle with the resident cats that she shared our home with as well. Last fall she started losing weight and after having an ultrasound peformed it was discovered that she had several tumours on her liver and that her kidneys were in very bad condition. She did quite well on the various meds that were prescribed for her but last week, after getting progressively weaker throughout the winter, the time came to show her the greatest display of love that a pet's family can demonstrate, by giving her a peaceful end by euthanasia while we talked to her and gently caressed her. Although we only had her for a year and a half, she greatly touched our lives and the lives of our other pets, and she will be greatly missed. After our experience with Helen, we would strongly encourage senior citizens or other people who can't commit to long term care of pets to consider fostering or adopting senior animals from rescue societies like NASAP. You will provide these deserving animals with peace, love, and dignity in their few remaining years of life, qualities of life that many of them might not have been fortunate to experience in their previous years. We can guarantee that it is a win/win situation for both the people and the animals. Les and Faye
Age : >12 years |
Juice 05-143-C |
NASAP is very sad to report that one of our long time permanent care cats has passed away. Juice suddenly became very ill on March 23 and sadly had to be euthanized. Juice was an elderly boy who was deemed unadoptable after coming into care with us back in 2005. Happily we were able to provide him with a permanent foster home until his recent passing. His foster home describes him this way: "He was very particular & could be quite prickly with attitude. But, underneath that prickly attitude, he was a very regal and affectionate little man. He loved his catnip, wandering around the backyard in the summer, curling up on his favorite chair for a nap and annoying his sisters when he thought the day needed a little excitement. I will miss our little brushing sessions (he hated them but grew to love them!) and the way he always came to give me a few purrs and ask for some ear rubs every night at bedtime. Miss you, my little JuJuCat."
Age : >15 yrs |