Puppy Education Blog: olivia fundraiser starved emaciated great dane

Now that we know that Olivia is having a false pregnancy and that a baby would help her, we have tried to hook her up with just about every animal baby we could find...no go. But she made up her mind:

I also officially adopted Olivia yesterday!!!

I had quite a scare this morning! I woke up and found Olivia trembling all over, not wanting to get up at all.

Since she was spayed 5 days ago, she has been displaying strange behavior such as running around in circles and whining, hoarding toys (she was never interested in toys before), looking for something, but I couldn't figure out what. She wouldn't eat, only with lots of enticement and real meat mixed into the dry food to encourage her through the smell.

I was told to look for behavioral changes, because of the rabid skunk incident, to which she was not exposed, but I am a little bit paranoid about that situation and decided it's better safe than sorry, so I rushed Olivia to the vet this morning.

Turned out our good ole gal here is having a false pregnancy! She's got milk and shows all the signs of becoming a mother, but I didn't put 2 and 2 together, since she had just been spayed!

Bless her heart, she sure is going through a lot. I will try to introduce the new kittens I got in yesterday to her, see if she adopts them.

At least now I'm not worried anymore that something is physically wrong with her, it's "just" the hormones going bonkers on her. Welcome to the club is all I can say lol. I know how it feels!!!

Well, we'll get through this too. I'll plan to go to the shelter in a little bit and finalize the adoption.

Olivia has made it through the surgery fine, is back home and resting. The cats are fighting who can be closest to her and she sleeps through it all. Tomorrow she gets her first heartworm prevention medication and then she's covered from top to bottom!! Ready to start a healthy and happy life...with me of course :-). I'll finalize the adoption next week!

Everybody loves Olivia! It's unbelievable!

One more week and Olivia will be spayed. One more time holding my breath while is at the clinic...

Olivia and Gremlin

Olivia and Rosy (Gremlin's sister)

Rosy was NEVER interested in dogs. She tolerated them, but that was about it. Now look at this!

Olivia isn't feeling so good these days. She never was a morning person, but now she cries out in pain when she moves first thing in the morning.

The Vet gave us pain medication, and once she has taken her dosage, she starts to feel better, but her appetite has declined a lot.

I just picked up Olivia from the Animal Health and Medical Center here in Stephenville. She spent 2 days there and received injections that have started to kill those damn worms in her heart. Now the liver has to clean them all out, meaning it'll take up to 5 weeks where I have to keep her very quiet. No playing, no running, no nothing.

Then she will get spayed...and everything is payed for! Can you imagine! The clinic covered part of the costs, which is amazing, because they really didn't have to do this. They never even got paid for the week they had her after she was seized..so this clinic is definitely about animals and not designer furniture in the waiting room, which I appreciate a lot!

Poor thing is still in heat, 2nd week into it now, and she's giving Olliver the eye lol.

Olivia started her heart worm treatment yesterday. She has to stay at the clinic for 2 days, so in about 24 hours I can pick her up again.

I miss the ole gal dearly and it broke my heart to see her getting so excited and wanting to come home with me. I was allowed to take her outside into the backyard a bit for some sunshine:

I just dropped Olivia off at the Animal Health and Medical Center in Stephenville. She is starting the heartworm treatment today. I have to admit I am a little bit nervous, but I also know she is in the best hands possible...the hands that saved her life when she was close to death.

Olivia's story as well as the story of the other rescue dogs here, was in the Sunday paper yesterday. What a great article that was and the layout just blew my mind! Kudos to the writer (Joyce Whitis) and layout artist (Kelly Mason)!

Here is a link to a picture of the Empire Tribune:

http://amazes.us/pics/sundaypaper.jpg

I will add a link to the online version of the article, IF they put it on there at all.

In the meantime, Honey continues to take care of the Border Collie puppies:

and Olliver thinks he's actually helping:

Olivia was weighed today at the Animal Health and Medical Clinic, and is up to 107 lbs now, meaning that's enough weight to start her heartworm treatment this coming monday.

2 more puppies were adopted out yesterday, instead of Honey plus 1, so Honey will stay with us. Look at Butters' celebration!! We are all very happy. The other good news is that the adoptive parents of the 2 puppies offered to have Honey spayed as soon as she is ready for that, so this will be a HUUUUGE help!

The remaining 3 pups and Honey got their 8 in 1 vaccination today and I will take Honey in for her rabies shot next week and have her heartworm tested. I hope she turns up negative. One heartworm treatment (for Olivia) is more than enough!

Took Olivia to the vet today to see if she is ready to start the heartworm treatment.

She weighs 100 lbs even (that's a weight gain of 30 lbs within 17 days!), but her liver isn't doing good enough just yet to start the treatment, so we are going to wait another 2 weeks with that.

She did get all her vaccinations, including rabies, today.

Honey plus 1 was supposed to be adopted out today, however, change of plans: 2 pups were adopted out and these very nice and kind people offered to have Honey spayed as soon as she is ready!

So, all I have left here is Olivia to get spayed once her heart worm treatment is finished; lil Josie needs to be spayed in 2 weeks; then it's Honey's turn in about a month.

Tomorrow the remaining 3 puppies will get their first puppy shot; Josie will get her 3rd and last 8 in 1 shot, and Honey will get her first as well. She is the only one left that needs a rabies vaccination, so I will set that up for next week as well.

Looks like we are all set! Now it's up to me to do some serious obedience training with them! Honey is such a natural and Olivia is getting there too, but lil Josie is a pain! She is turning juvenile now, testing the limits!

Olivia, day 16. Day after tomorrow we have an appointment with the vet to see if Olivia is ready for her heartworm treatment next week! WHOOHOO!

Here she has some rice on her nose which I mix in her food, hehehe:

Olivia gained 20 lbs in her first week here. Now it is time to start working on those muscles:

Today I took Olivia to the vet to get her weighed. She gained 20 lbs!!!!!!!!!!

And he looks goood! I'm a bit concerned that the weight gain is too fast, but she is just blossoming!

See for yourself:

Her bed

Say what?

At the treadmill

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