[PyrNet-L] Re: [RE: Rescue,Chat, Pyr Picnic

[ROBERT STABILE <robertstabile@usa.net>]

With respect to your suggestions, let me tell you of my first active
experience of Pyranees rescue.
Two weekends ago, I was called to help find an isolation hospital situation
for a Pyr with kennel cough who had been saved from euthanasia at the 11th
hour.  I was called because most of the other rescue people closer to the
dog (in Fresno) had dogs & kennel cough is highly contagious.  After a
couple of hours of calling, I foound a pet hospital an hour from my home
that agreed to take him, at a not very cheap daily rate.  Debi Carpadus had
authorized me to commit to $100, so I decided I would underwrite an
additional $100 to make sure this dog got medication & shelter.  The rest of
the day I spent waiting for communication as to who & where, so I could not
fetch the dog until the next day.  I bought dog food, dishes, a leash &
choke collar. The next day, I drove nearly 4 hours in high heat, half with
the windows closed, due to passing thru the tire fire area.  I picked up the
dear boy, who smelled to high heaven, and headed home, learning the hard way
that not all Pyrs lay quiescent in the back seat on trips, like my dear
departed guy.  I got him to my 8-cat house, walked him around the
neighborhood, fed him & settled him in the kitchen for the night, (to the
disgust of the subset of cats who normally sleep there.) After over 4 hours
in a car with an odiferous dog, I had heavy duty bathing of self & clothes
to do.
The next morning I took the morning off from work to deliver him to the vet
& isolation at the vet hospital, then drove the hour back to rewash myself &
vacuum the house & car.  I work near the animal hospital, but work long
hours, so I only got over to the hospital to ake the dog out for a walk once
before terrific other rescue people from Sacramento came to move him to a
cheaper place near his future foster home.  I ended up underwriting the
total near $200 expenses as a voluntary donation to Pyr rescue.

Now let me tell you of the reaction of my friend who owns 2 Tibetan Mastiffs
and was having a big housewarming last Sunday.  She called & emailed me to
let someone else get the dog - kennel cough is such a dread disease the dog
may die anyway.  She uninvited me to the party, for fear I would infect her
dogs, though I had not only vacuumed but steam cleaned my rugs & car
upholstery, (which I did solely because Pyrs drool & shed.  The house rugs
were steam cleaned, not for the dog, who spent the night in the rug-free
kitchen, but because 8 indoor cats shed just as well, and one had done some
territorial marking. )  She wanted me to soak my shoes in a bleach solution
and sprinkle a bleach solution over all my property, to make sure I killed
all the airborn virus.  (I had spoken to a mutual friend who is a vet and
she told me the germs would be dead in 3 days with no host, so no worry.)  I
refused, because I was not about to poison the 3 feral cats I feed there
daily, who sometimes eat grass for digestive reasons, to say nothing of the
abundant butterflies.
Then she advised me that if I were to continue doing rescue, I should put
down a concrete slab in my yard & fence it, the better to control
infections.

I live in a medium-sized city with a partially fenced yard and the
aforementioned 8 indoor cats.  When I had a Pyr, 20 years ago in New
England. he lived in my house & was walked in the neighborhood.  My plan was
to serve Rescue as a last resort, to put up a Pyr for a night or two in a
life-or-death-if-we-don't act fast situation, offering the same facilities.
Since I now work 10-12 hour days an hour's commute from home & travel on
business, I cannot have a dog until I retire.  My friend has made me feel
like an irresponsible spreader of plague for doing what I thought was a
harmless good.  (From what I read on the net about kennel cough, it is
similar to flu in humans - lots of kinds, 2-3 weeks duration, varying
severity symptoms - the dog I fetched had essentially no symptoms & the vet
felt he might be coming out of kennel cough or just had some mild
bronchitis.)

So I am now ambivalent about rescue activities, (although I will never
regret having saved the life of this totally lovable dog.)  I don't begrudge
the time, the drive, the money, the cleaning or the inconvenience at all,
but I don't want a concrete slab in my yard & actually like walking a Pyr
along the street & talking to people (especially other dog-walkers.)  Maybe
I am too irresponsible  - my dog had minimal vet care, biannual flea dips,
lots of brushing & lived on table scraps & kibble.  He lived like a dog
(though I loved him as my first-born son & my son considered him his older
brother.) Maybe I should just stick to helping out at Rescue booths...

Tricia Erickson


You are not irresponsible at all. Actually it is very comendable what you did
for that big boy you did a combination of everything you could for him. Don't
belittle yourself by saying you should just stick to the rescue booths.
Someone has to do it. That is no less important than the person who goes to
pick the dog up. If nobody worked the booths what would happen there? 
Anything that someone contributes to rescue is great, One is no more or less
important than the other. One is no more comendable than the next. 

Does someone do rescue for recognition? Or to help the Big Boys in need? I
hope for the later. I would question anyone who wanted to foster just so they
could say "HEY LOOK AT ME!!!! I am such a wonderful person because I helped
this poor unfortunate animal." There are people out there like that. But hey
if they want to donate $100 or $200 dollars so they can say hey look at me
thats fine too. Take the money and say thanks help the next dog in line. The
REAL heros are the rescue's themselves.

 There is no task or need that can go undone. From dialing the phone trying to
get a hold of potential homes. Or if you visit the local dog pound once a week
to see if there is a Pyr in need. Anything you contribute to rescue is great
and all of it is needed. Blankets, food, 5 dollars, 5 minutes, what ever. It
all gets used so nobody could tell you you didn't give enough or do enough. As
for the lady who uninvited you to her party because she was worried about her
dogs. Maybe she should have spent the 5 dollars to vaccinate her dogs from
kennel cough. 

Robb, Lea, Alex, Pietro, Guilty "The Bully", Bo "The Mutt",  Zeke "The Great
Pyr" & Scetch "The African Grey"

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