Please welcome Pirate to the Pack....New pic in #35

[Glacier]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v38/Glacier1998/Dogs%2008/pirate.jpg
This sweet old girl arrived yesterday, although I've known her a bit for a number of years. Pirate was brought to the shelter in 2005 by the same musher who dumped Anvik. She was nine at the time and the options for old sled dogs are pretty limited. After a couple failed fostering attempts, Pirate ended up at my neighbor's place.

We used to be friends with these people and I thought they were a good home for Pirate. They have other dogs and lots of horses. They built a beautiful new home last year--that was when they quit talking to us mostly. We aren't rich enough and our house isn't nice enough. Over the weekend, they called the shelter claiming Pirate was a foster dog after over 2 years with them. Said she was crippled, incontinent and "unsuitable" to be allowed inside their new house. They suggested that she needed to be euthanized immediately. They dumped her back at the shelter yesterday morning. I picked her up a couple hours later. We had decided there would be no new additions for awhile. I certainly don't need anymore dogs, but there was no way I was letting Pirate die in the shelter!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v38/Glacier1998/Dogs%2008/piratedrink.jpg
What Pirate really is, is depressed, confused, a little stiff and stone cold deaf! You can see in the first picture that her eyes are cloudy, but she sees well enough to get around. She hears nothing though. She has no startle response; didn't react when 20 or so dogs starting barking at my truck; no response to loud voices, clapping ect. She's either deaf or she takes husky selective hearing to a whole new level!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v38/Glacier1998/Dogs%2008/traet.jpg
She's also quiet, gentle, a little shy and very sweet. She settled in quite nicely last night. I crated her in my bedroom. She went in with no trouble, although she didn't like walking on the lino much. She spent almost 8 hours in the crate without making a sound. She also didn't make a mess--no feces, no urine. She ate and drank plenty last night. She obviously has some control of her bodily functions! I think the problem, besides callous people who are more concerned about their floor than their dog, is that Pirate isn't housetrained. She's always been an outdoor dog; she may have some old dog leaking problems, but she's not incontinent! Her back end is stiff and likely causes her some pain, but she is by no means "crippled"! Sleet is stiffer somedays. This morning when I walked her to her pen, she had a little wiggle in her stride and tentatively wagged her tail. Not sleeping outside in -25C temps for one night already helped!

I have a vet appointment booked for Thursday morning. She's going to get a senior blood panel, a complete check-up and hopefully pain control medication. I think a soft, warm bed and a little Metacam will make a world of difference for Pirate! She may not have long left on this side, but she is not ready to go yet. Age has it's privledges at my kennel so she will spend whatever time she does have left getting pampered and spoiled.

Welcome Home, Pirate.

[Husky_mom]

Aaarrrgg.....!!.. welcome home mate!!

how sad how it turned out to you.....but you surely just found out the best home ever!! you´ll have a happily ever after life with your new mommy.... and quite lot of good friends there.....

[Killearn Kitties]

:( What a lovely dog. I'll never understand that type of situation.
You are a saint!

[pitc9]

Major LES here....

Gentle {{{HUGS}}} to you Pirate... welcome home sweetie!

And special {{hugs}} to you Glacier for taking her in.

[Lori Jordan]

What a beauty she is..Sad isnt it how people are?


Some love and comfort will make all the difference in the world to her!


Welcome to Pt Pirate,i look forward to hearing updates on you,and ofcourse lots of pictures sweet girl!

[gemini9961]

She is a stunning senior lady I say. How did her name come about? She doesn't look like a pirate? :)

Welcome home Pirate!!

[cassiesmom]

Hello, Pirate! How very nice to meet you today! I like your pretty ears. I thought from looking at the first picture they're grey, but in the third picture I see they're brown, too. Gentle hugs to you, sweetie! And huge hugs to your mom, too! I hope you get some nice petting today. Consider yourself petted for me.

(P.S., Tamara, you said Pirate is sometimes a little stiff and sometimes confused -- I was thinking that applies to me, too! :) )

[jennielynn1970]

Oh my gosh... and she looks so sweet and loving. How could anyone be so cruel and just heartless to an older dog?!

I'm so glad she's with you. I've been checking dog general to see who the new addition was since reading Tehya's thread.

Welcome home sweet Pirate... big hugs and kisses to you my dear!

[Taz_Zoee]

Oh, I have mixed emotion LES here. Very sad about her prior situation, but very happy that she now has a loving home to live out the rest of her life in.
I love happy endings. :)

[shais_mom]

wow - you've done it again!
congrats to Pirate and to Tamara!
those other people will get their's someday. :mad:

[caseysmom]

Hey sweetie it sounds like a lot of humans have really let you down but rest assured you have hit the jackpot sweetie.

[kimlovescats]

What a heartwrenching story! :( THANK YOU SOOOOOOO MUCH for showing Pirate some REAL love for whatever time she has left! I agree that old bones and negative temps are not a good match! Poor girl! I am so happy to think of her on a nice warm bed now though!!! :D

She's beautiful too!

[kuhio98]

Gentle hugs and many kisses to you sweet Pirate.
Don't worry. Just relax. You have a forever home now.

[Jadapit]

It amazes me how *shallow* people can become. Pirate is beautiful. Bless you Tamara, for taking him and giving him the home he deserves!

[Glacier]

How did her name come about? She doesn't look like a pirate? :)



No idea. That was her name when she was surrendered to the shelter. I suppose since she can't hear me anyway, I could call her anything!

[Queen of Poop]

Hello Pirate, welcome to the greatest home in the world. You should expect to be pampered and spoiled and so well looked after. It is unfortunate you had to experience such dreadful humans prior to now, but trust that you've been rescued by a true angel. Relax and enjoy HOME. Please give her hugs and kisses from me, she so deserves them.

Thank you Tamara. You truly have a heart of gold.

[Sparklecoon]

Welcome home Pirate! Bless your heart Glacier for giveing this old girl a final home.

[Alysser]

She is stunning!! Thank you for rescuing pretty Pirate! I like the name, it's different. I WILL not even COMMENT on these stupid, stupid people. :mad:

[Canis-Lupess]

You'll always get your snobs of the world. I don't know how people can just give dogs up like that. I'd quickly get too attached and never be able to give them up unless it REALLY was for their own good due to me not being able to care for them anymore. It would be a terrible last resort though. Like a mother giving up her child.

Good to know poor old pirate has landed herself a good home to spend her twilight years. Our Jess just turned 14 yesterday and having our Mist before she died, I know all too well that old dogs have a character all of their own. Something they seem to lack as younger dogs.

[Grace]

Tamara, you are a saint.


I think a soft, warm bed and a little Metacam will make a world of difference for Pirate! These will help, but the love and kindness Pirate receives in your care will be the best gift of all.

[chocolatepuppy]

Pirate is beautiful. Bless you for taking her in.

[AdoreMyDogs]

She's just darling! I don't understand people sometimes. I personally think the elderly years of a pet are some of the finest years they have to offer. They're calm, they know the 'drill', they don't chew stuff, they don't misbehave. I love the senior years of animals, and I think that is one of the most important times to be there for your pet. I can't imagine dying alone, and I know it's the same for a pet. Poor Pirate. I'm so sorry for her that she lost the only family she knew. Shame, shame on them. What a disgusting thing to do to a sweet old pet, dump it at a shelter to be disposed of :( I'm so sad that anyone would do this. What a blessing you are to Pirate! She'll finally have the life she deserves, even if it's not much longer. She'll never be alone again. Thank you for saving the sweet girl. Bless you!!!!!

[wolf_Q]

Way to go Tamara for taking in this sweet girl. She's beautiful, I'm sure she will enjoy living out the rest of her days at your place...husky heaven. :D

[finn's mom]

My goodness, she's wonderful. Thank you for sharing her with us. My heart has a spot for pretty Pirate, now.

[critter crazy]

OMG!! She is just gorgeous!!! I cannot believe she was just dumped like that!! Esecially at her age, some people realy have no heart!! But you sure do! You are truly wonderful for taking this Gorgeous old Girl In!!! Welcome to PT Pirate!!:D

[lizbud]

A million thanks for taking Pirate home with you. :) Those people
should be ashamed of themselves. She does look so sweet. Welcome
to Pet Talk pretty girl. :)

[anna_66]

Bless you Tamara.

Welcome to the best home of your life Pirate:D

[captain]

Welcome to your new, better than ever, Home, Pirate.

All I can say about those people is Karma Baby Karma..... :mad:

and all I can say about YOU Tamara, is Karma Baby Karma ... :)

As usual, I am humble in the presence of such a lovely person ....

[cyber-sibes]

Tamara, I think you're the one ending up with the real treasure - Pirate! She's a lovely girl, and I have major LES here too reading how poorly she's been treated. Her story really touches me.
She may not have long left on this side, but she is not ready to go yet. Age has it's privledges at my kennel so she will spend whatever time she does have left getting pampered and spoiled. Welcome Home, Pirate.I pray I am blessed with people like you who'll respect & care so much about me when I'm old-but-not-quite-ready-to-go, too! :rolleyes: Not holding out too much hope, though - You're one in a million! :D

Welcome, Pirate, your wandering days are over!

[Cincy'sMom]

Welcome home Pirate!!

[Cinder & Smoke]

Tamara, I think you're the one ending up with the real treasure - Pirate!

I pray I am blessed with people like you who'll respect & care so much about me
when I'm old-but-not-quite-ready-to-go, too! :rolleyes:

Not holding out too much hope, though - You're one in a million! :D

DITTO!!

Pirate got the GOOD Deal here ...

Wish I could slip into a Husky costume and move in myself. :D

I'll try to *fluff* Cinder's Tail and teach her to *curl* it ...
SmokeMutt's gonna be a problemo, though --- no Furr to *fluff*!
Guess we'll need TWO Husky costumes.

Leave the Light ON, please.

:D

[Suki Wingy]

You are such a good person. Any old dog would be mighty lucky to end up in your loving care. :)

[K9karen]

I want to be reincarnated as one of your dogs, too, Tamara.

You are an angel on earth. The mold was thrown away when you were born.

[CountryWolf07]

You are a wonderful individual. Welcome home, Pirate! =)

[Catty1]

It's maybe too much to hope that Pirate's vet exam may show some neglect or build-up in the ears that might be treated to give her a bit of hearing.

What a sweetheart! I can hardly wait to see her bloom with your love and care! :D

[kallisto4529]

Pirate you are a Beauty!!!! This is just wonderful you having a new home and with such a wonderful mom!!!!! What a sad story and how horrible those people are, that kind of stuff just makes me so mad. Thank you for being the kind soul that you are.

[Glacier]

Thanks everyone. She's a sweet old soul. I am not the amazing one around here. The dogs are the amazing ones. I am constantly stunned by their ability to forgive, try again and live in the moment!

I fed Pirate in the shop tonight and then I decided to make some beads. She's definately deaf--my oxygen concentrator squeals when I start it and she didn't react at all! Even the dogs who are used to that sound jump when I turn it on!

When I checked on Pirate I saw this:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v38/Glacier1998/Dogs%2008/piratebed.jpg
She was out like a light! Didn't take long to find the comfy dog bed!

There was some definate urine leakage when she got up from her nap. She tried to get away from me when she got up. Just broke my heart to see her so scared! She's clearly been yelled at or something for that before. I just rubbed her ears, let her outside and put the bed in the washing machine. She'll learn that she doesn't get in trouble for what she can't control around here and hopefully, after her vet app't she will be able to get better control.

She didn't have any trouble with the lino tonight and went straight to her crate when she came inside! That denning instinct is one of the things I love about huskies, makes them so easy to crate train!

[captain]

Tamara,
I have LES of JOY looking at this pic.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v38/Glacier1998/Dogs%2008/piratebed.jpg

She looks so peaceful. Thank you again for taking her in.

Karma Baby, Karma :-)

[Pawsitive Thinking]

Hey Pirate - welcome to your new home. You have certainly landed on your paws there sweetheart

[Animalhouse26]

Your AMAZING for all you do for the dogs. And this poor girl I feel awful for what she had been through! And I am sooo glad she ended up with you! She will have a happy life now.. even if it isn't for a long time! Good for you!

[finn's mom]

She sure knows how to enjoy a good bed. Is she all white except her ears and that little bit by her mouth?

[Pawsitive Thinking]

Any old dog would be mighty lucky to end up in your loving care

Woof!

[Glacier]

Is she all white except her ears and that little bit by her mouth?

Yup, she just has the two grey splotches over her ears and a black muzzle, with the cutest snow nose!

[lizbud]

I came back for another peek at Pirate. :) The shot of her in the dog bed
is so sweet. I'll bet she loved it, poor baby. Best of luck tomorrow at the
Vet checkup. I'll be anxious to hear what the Vet thinks about her.

[cassiesmom]

I want to be reincarnated as one of your dogs, too, Tamara.



I do, too! (Does the ability to carry a tune translate into the ability to go, "Arooooo!" in the next life? I hope so!)

I am just here looking at the photo in #37 again - it's making my eyes leak! :)

[Grace]

I wonder - you're giving Sleet DES for bladder control. It might work for Pirate also?

[gini]

Such a heartwarming thread!!

[Glacier]

I wonder - you're giving Sleet DES for bladder control. It might work for Pirate also?

I hope so. She's off to the vet tomorrow morning. That's one of the things I want to talk to him about.

I suspect she has some spinal problems that are contributing to the problem. Spondylosis is very common in sled dogs(Sleet has it too). If she has a neurological problem in her lower spine, she may not be getting the "I have to pee" message. Anti-inflammtory medication and maybe some prednisone would help with that. I don't usually like to use too many meds, but with the seniors, I figure the benefits outweigh the risks.

[Canis-Lupess]

Spondylosis occurs in nearly all old dogs, it just depends on whether it causes clinical symptoms. As with people, in a lot of cases it doesn't but most people over 40 have it to a degree but most wouldn't know.

There was a border collie lived just round from me and they lost him a couple of months ago. He had always had digestion problems but he took a turn for the worst. Turned out he had severe spondylosis and the calcified bone had grown downwards and caused his bowels to detach and collapse so his ability to control himself was non existent and he was in a lot of pain and the vet said his bowels could be expelled from his rectum at anytime. He was only 10 years old too. You wouldn't have been able to tell from looking at him beforehand. No roach back or anything like that and I used to see how he could still sprint after the ball when his owner threw it for him. Maybe the bone grew more downwards rather than upwards. In any case, they had to have him put down. Problem with spondylosis is that it just keeps growing and will grow back even if they operated to remove the horns of calcified bone that grow. I think in his case, the symptoms were a more worst case scenario for spondylosis. Most of the time, it wouldn't cause such massive problems.

That shot of Pirate sleeping reminds me of our Jess sleeping, lol. Our Jess still has her hearing but she sleeps that deep these days, she can sometimes scare you into thinking she's dead.

[Freedom]

What a beauty. Was she always deaf? I know in cats, the all white, blue eyed ones tend to be deaf and if a male, well, just about a given that it is deaf. I don't think that is true of dogs, though.

Such a time she has had, several homes, several times to the shelter. It's OK now, Pirate, your adventures are over and you can settle. (She doesn't really seem to have any trouble, settling though!)

You can see she is an older gal in the earlier photos. She has that thick neck area the older dogs get. You know to just learn to tap out Morse code on the floor for her, right? LOL.

People, GRRRR!!!

Dad always says, if he has to go to a nursing home at some point, as long as they care for the people as well as I care for the animals here it will be OK!

[Glacier]

Was she always deaf? I know in cats, the all white, blue eyed ones tend to be deaf and if a male, well, just about a given that it is deaf. I don't think that is true of dogs, though.

(She doesn't really seem to have any trouble, settling though!)

You know to just learn to tap out Morse code on the floor for her, right? LOL.



No, I think the deafness is age related. If I remember correctly she could hear when she first came to the shelter. The white coat, blue eyes doesn't affect dogs the same way as cats. She wants to follow me around and stays pretty close. As long as I can get her to look at me, she seems to be able to figure out what I want from her.

She is pretty settled already, it seems. This morning she trotted right over to her little pen. She seems to be catching on to the routine quickly. She had some trouble getting out of her crate this morning, but once she got her feet under her, she was ok.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

What a terrible story. I'm so glad Pirate found such a great home with you though. :)

[robinh]

for taking in this beautiful, gentle old soul.

I want to come back as a dog with people like you...someone with compassion and a forgiving heart for things that are sometimes beyond ones control.

Pirate, you are definitely safe with Glacier!

[slick]

Tamara, you never cease to amaze me. You are truly and angel and bless you for taking in this lost soul. I have the utmost admiration for you and I really wish I could meet you someday. I know that my life would be richer for it. Are you sure you are hooman???;)

Welcome home Pirate! I wish you could know know what a wonderful home you have now. You will come to know love you've never felt before. You will finally know what it's like to never be yelled at and never be punished or ignored as you shiver in the cold. It just breaks my heart that you've been treated this way. Well no more dear boy!!! Enjoy the pampering that's coming your way.:)

**yet another thread that's given my LES**:o

[cassiesmom]

Pirate, I read on your mom's blog (http://wanderingspiritskennels.blogspot.com) that you had a Gotcha day! Happy 1-year Gotcha Day, sweetheart!

[FurkidsMom]

Thanks for taking this sweet girl under your care. I don't understand people who can just throw animals away when it suits them.

[luvofallhorses]

Happy gotcha day, Pirate. :) She is so lucky to have you and your crew, Glacier.. :)

[AllAmericanPUP]

awww she's a beautiful old gal!!!

[MonicanHonda]

This dog is verrry lucky to have you. She's gorgeous. I absolutely love snow dogs!!! ^.^

[Taz_Zoee]

Wow, its already been a whole year since Pirate arrived. My how times flies! :D
Pirate is such a lucky girl to have landed in the bestest place in the Yukon!! :)