Faith and her Puppies

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Original: Any pure breed rescue handles hundreds of dogs per year. MAESSR is no exception. We love them, clean them up and send them to their new homes. There are however the occasional dogs that come in that touch our hearts in unique ways. Recently, a little bitch has come into rescue who is destined to affect us all profoundly.

This little girl came out of a shelter in Virginia. She had just whelped 7 puppies and they were all in desperate need. By the time we got to them, 2 of the puppies were already dead. A MAESSR volunteer stopped in, confirmed the dam was a Springer and committed to come back the next day. When the volunteer came back to pull them, another puppy had passed.

Nervous and worried about the remaining puppies and their dam, she took them all home and set up the whelping box in her bedroom. The first night, the fourth puppy died. This little guy had been struggling, but we had all hoped that the supplemental feedings would save him. Sadly, it was too late.

We talked about naming the puppies. We decided to wait until we saw how they fared. It’s hard enough to lose a puppy. It’s even worse when you’ve named them, thus, intensifying the bond.

Today, puppy five died. The high note is that the last two puppies are looking strong, fat and happy.

Let me take you back to the dam. This girl’s physical condition almost defies description, but I must try. She is about 20 pounds underweight. After one day at her foster home, they had to bathe her. They could not stand the stench any longer. After three bathes, the water was still not running clean. This little girl was so weak and tired, they had to stop.

She was dried off, patted and allowed to rest. Later, they went back and began trying to cut through the mats to give her relief. This poor girl was covered with mats. When her foster mom got to her rear end, she faltered. As she cut through the mats, she found maggots. Fearing what she would find, she nonetheless continued cutting away. What relief! The maggots were “only” in her mats, there was no underlying injury.

As skinny as this girl was, she wouldn’t eat. Food after food was offered to her, she would only pick at some noodles, nothing else. Chalking it up to the wormer and stress, her foster mom decided she would settle for giving her her meds. When she turned her nose up at a piece of hot dog with a pill embedded within, something had to be done.

They brought her into the kitchen and opened her mouth to give her the pill. But there was something already in her mouth. Closer examination revealed that it was embedded in her mouth. They worked it, wiggled it and finally pulled out a piece of plastic what was embedded in her gums and worked between her teeth. Removing the plastic must have been painful, but throughout it all, the girl stood patiently, waiting, trusting.

We don’t know where she came from or anything about her past. We do know that she has a big heart. She is a patient, doting mother. Yet, she trusts all of the people who come to see her. She welcomes her new human family as they come to view her family.

Now we are ready to name the babies. We hope the worst has passed. With few exceptions, we name our dogs in alphabetical order. In this case, the puppy boy and girl need A and Z names.

And momma? Her name was the only one that was obvious to us – Faith. After all, in situations like this, ya gotta have faith.

Update: October 2, 2002:
The puppies continue to do well, see their pictures below. They have been named: Angel and Zach, thanks to Anne Gilliam for the specific story that drove our choice.

Update: October 25, 2002, here is an update on Faith and the pups:
Zach & Angel went to visit the vet today to make sure they are doing okay. Zach received a clean bill of health and Angel was diagnosed with a slight case of coccidiosis. Evidently she has not recovered from her previous fight against it. She will be on meds for about 10 days. The vet agreed that both pups are immature and may be a little small for their age. Considering their early lives, they are doing very well. Faith and both pups are schedule to visit the vet again on Monday for vaccinations.

Zach weighs 4.2 lbs. and is starting to show his playful attitude a little. His dark black coat is about as shiny as can be. He is getting a mouth full of teeth and is a very pretty pup. One cute thing about Zach, he barks in his sleep. We’re sure he’s dreaming of something fun.

Angel is very pretty and weighs 3.2 lbs., a little smaller than her brother. You can tell she is a bitch just by looking at her, she is very feminine. Her coat is a little lighter than her brother’s, with almost a little brown tint in the sunlight. Angel likes to be held and cuddle up under your chin while she falls asleep.

Since they have been so dependent on their mother, they almost refuse to be weaned. They have absolutely no interest in eating anything but Momma’s milk. Our goal is to wean them during the next week, and it will be a challenge. The vet gave us a can of special puppy food to help get them interested. None of the usual things have worked. She said that no dog will turn it away. We are going to follow her instructions and see how it goes. WISH US LUCK!!

Faith had a urine test today to determine if she has a suspected infection, which she does. She has a lower urinary tract infection. Meds were prescribed so she will be fine in a few days. She has been drinking a LOT of water and peeing a lot, both good signs for testing.

Now for the good news, Faith was at 21 pounds when she entered rescue and now weighs. . . ready for this? 34 lbs.!!!!

She’s not there yet but is on her way. Based on her frame, she should be about 38 to 40 pounds when at her best. She will be a lovely lady when her weight is back, and she has grown a nice coat. Faith still has one of the best personalities that anyone could ask for. She likes to lay by the TV in the evenings and nap.

We want to thank MAESSR for allowing us to provide a foster home and care for Faith and her pups. It isn’t often that you come across that one in a million dog, and Faith is definitely that! She is friendly, loving, gentle, wonderful mom, playful, and VERY willing to please. She obviously comes from a home where she had some training. She knows a few commands, but she needs a little reminder that doggies have to do it outside. We believe she will be totally housebroken by the time she goes to her permanent home.

Her new family will be getting a wonderful treasure.

Update: November 10, 2002: This young lady came to us with her sweet little babies about 5 weeks ago. Faith has fallen into the household routine beautifully and is a terrific companion for our 9-year-old female Springer, Sadie. They have become best buddies.

Faith is one of those dogs that likes to rearrange her bedding to suit herself. We love watching her paw at an afghan for a good 30 seconds before settling into a small ball to take a nap. She still wants to look at her puppies, but only from a safe distance now. Those little critters have teeth you know!

Faith loves to look at herself in the mirror too. After all, a girl has to check her hair every now and then. She was groomed this week and she was just perfect on the table. After her grooming we found that besides having an inner beauty, Faith is beautiful on the outside too. She is great about going outdoors to relieve herself and only has an occasional accident (wet) in the house. We attribute these accidents to her urinary tract infection she’s been battling. The vet wasn’t able to give her strong antibiotics until after the pups were weaned. Now that she’s on Baytril, she’s doing much, much better! We are attempting to teach her to go on command, just like we have taught our other springers. We use the command “go potty” which once learned, is a wonderful command to have when traveling, or on a rainy day.

Faith is a terrific cook ~ at least she seems to think so! Hayes can barely fix a meal without her assistance. She lounges in the doorway from the kitchen to the dining room while he’s cooking. She’s also a wonderful bed buddy (when invited) and loves to cuddle up to you and keep you warm, and she just loves a down comforter to sleep on.

Now ~ about Zach. What a little pistol! He’s such a funny little puppy! Zach enjoys tearing off a piece of paper and jumping at Angel with it in his mouth as though he’s trying to smack her with it! He loves to play and romp and he howls just like his mama. He’s a little larger than Angel but we still don’t expect him to be any larger than a springer, about 19 to 20 in height. You could call him Mr. Personality.

Miss Angel is one of the sweetest puppies ever born. She loves to cuddle up under your chin, with a paw on each side of your neck. However, don’t let that fool you! She also likes to romp with her brother, and she has a particular toy animal that’s her favorite. She takes it in her mouth and shakes it really hard until she falls over. It’s so cute to watch! Just this morning, she napped with her little head on the toy. Oh, and she howls just as well as her brother and puts everything she has into it!

Both puppies are very healthy, with shiny alert eyes and very shiny coats. They both carry their tails up and wagging ALL of the time. Their attitudes are terrific! They’re happy to play with you or just rest happily in your arms. Remember the pumpkin from their Halloween photos? Well, that plastic pumpkin made a great puppy toy. We cut the carrying straps off and pulled out the rivets so they wouldn’t get hurt. They roll that thing around their pen and attempt to climb on it, just to roll off. Angel puts her head in it and walks around, too cute for words!

What a joy this has been ~ having Faith and her family stay with us.