Winston Goes Home

Just a quick note to say that Winston, the senior beagle with a lot to say, has headed off to his new forever home. Here's to many long, loud, quality conversations with his human friends and two new beagle roommates!

August in June: Second installment

August is hanging in there, and got a chance yesterday to stretch his legs and explore his foster-home a bit. He is very curious, but tires out very easily, and started to go downhill last night. His appetite has slacked off, and this morning he could not keep his food down. This prompted us to take him back in to see Dr. Daly. The good news is that he has put on a little weight, and started eating a bit more this afternoon. The bad news is that, after taking x-rays, Dr. Daly discovered that Auggie has fluid in his lungs: pneumonia.

As a tropical species, August (like other Red Footed tortoises) is designed to handle hot, wet temperatures: 90* or even higher, with plenty of humidity. In the wild he would never encounter conditions like our chilly springs here in RI. By dumping an animal like August outside, an irresponsible owner is guaranteeing them illness...or worse. Lucky for Auggie, a concerned citizen took the time to get him the help he needs. Now it is our job to do what we can for him, and that's just what we plan to do. August will have a long, hard road ahead of him, but he is now in good hands. Please, consider sponsoring August; any amount that you give will go a long way to paying for the expensive treatments he will need to get healthy. It is unfortunate that it is so much more costly to treat a tortoise than it is to treat a dog or cat with a similar illness. However, if August can receive the care he needs, he will be able to settle in for a long, long healthy life - tortoises can live up to a hundred years, or even more!

August received more fluids tonight, as well as a dewormer treatment (we strongly suspect that parasites are the reason for his upset stomach), and is now basking comfortably under his spotlight. He does not enjoy his medications, but he does very much enjoy his bribes: fresh mango! For now, his new friend Bula is keeping careful watch over him and seems quite concerned with is progress:

Please check back to follow August's progress and to read other stories from around the RISPCA!

4 Dogs Named Marvin's Friends

Four dogs have been made Marvin's Friends, which removes the usual $85 adoption fee, making these dogs free to a good home. The dogs in question are:

Negrita: who was chosen because of her age (10 years) and because she's such a quiet, calm dog she hardly ever gets a second look.

Winston: who is also ten years old, though he doesn't have an especially hard time calling attention to himself (his patented beagle bark makes him hard to ignore).

Fenway: who has been in the shelter the longest of all the dogs currently in our care.

Honey: who is a very sweet girl, but suffers from anxiety and fear, which makes first

impressions very difficult for her.

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

The Marvin Fund was established in 2002 to help sick, injured and elderly animals get a second chance at health and happiness. It was named after Marvin the black lab, who himself was given a second chance and made the most of it. The Marvin Fund has helped over 1,300 animals since it was created.

Cafe Dogs 6-8-10

Today was a beautiful day for the Cafe Dogs program! Paul, a 1-2 year old neutered male American Staffordshire Terrier, went along with staff members Nick and Laurelin, and they couldn't have had a better time. Paul was a huge hit, attracting people from down the block, soliciting smiles from passing drivers, and even convincing a couple people to purchase treats for him from inside The Edge! As you can see, Paul is convinced he should be a lap dog ... and he probably should be, given his history. You can read more about Paul on his Petfinder profile. To meet other great dogs like Paul, join us any sunny Tuesday or Thursday this summer from 11:30am-1:30pm at The Edge cafe in Providence. Again, huge thanks to Susan and The Edge staff for helping make this program possible!

August in June

Here at the RISPCA, we take in any animal in need so long as we have the means to care for them, regardless of age, gender, health or even species. As the exotics caretaker here, I can attest to the numbers of homeless exotic animals that come through our doors; rabbits and ferrets, chinchillas and cockatoos, pythons and fish. In many of these cases the animal's specific care needs overwhelmed the caretaker, leading them to seek a new home for their pet. Exotic species are expensive, time-consuming and complicated to care for - but very easy to aquire. Many of the exotics that come to us suffer from poor husbandry or diet, the result of lack of proper information provided when the pet was first purchased. We do our best to rehabilitate these animals and find new, experienced homes for them. Some of these cases require extra care, needing medical care, a foster home and sometimes months of rehabilitation. This care can be expensive, so please consider sponsoring one of our exotic pets to help defray these costs. We plan to chronicle the progress of these animals here on our blog so that you can follow their stories first hand and see what we do to help these animals along to their new lives ... and hopefully you can learn a bit about these interesting and uncommon species along the way!

I would like now to introduce you to August, our newest exotic charge: a male Red Footed Tortoise. August was picked up by East Providence Animal Control on June 7th after being found near a pond. Initially suspected to be another report of a snapping turtle in someone's yard, Animal Control responded and searched the property. Just as they were calling off the search, August wandered out of some shrubs ... and proved to most definitely not be a snapping turtle. He also proved to be in poor health. They brought August to us at the RISPCA, and from there we promply took him to see Dr. Daly, the exotics vet at Riverside Animal Hospital. August, or Auggie, was placed on antibiotics, fluids and pain medication for evidence of a respiratory infection, dehydration and possible head trauma. His shell showed signs of pyramiding, possibly from poor husbandry. From the doctors, Auggie was taken into fostercare. I brought him home with me and set up a hospital tank in the only place we had room for it ... the bathroom! (As a tropical species, Auggie will benefit from the humidity.) He spent his first night getting bathed, medicated and settled in to his new diggs. He was very lethargic, and refused any food. After doing what we could for him, we sat back and crossed our fingers.

In the morning, August showed some signs of improvement. He was alert and more hydrated. After tempting him with a juicy piece of mango, we finally got him to start eating his food (a mix of dark leafy greens such as kale and collard greens, along with shredded carrot and tortoise pellets)! The resident cat was quite taken with his new signs of life, and enjoyed watching him eat. Please continue to check back for more information on Auggie as his health improves!

Adoptions 5/31 - /6/7

We are happy to have found forever homes for 9 of our adoptable animal friends last week. We wish Mitch, Peanut, Abbie, Seth, Beatrice, Capris, Sam, Bryce, George, and their new owners many happy years together!

Adoptions: 5/25 - 5/31

We are happy to announce that we found forever homes for 14 of our friends last week. We wish Pumpkin, Clyde, Bonnie, Rocky, Curly, Goliath, Davey, Zeus, Honey, Sorrella, Lady, Gabby, Chicken, Whiskey, and their new owners many happy years together!