by kristin, Ready Vet Go
Friday, 10 October 2008 21:03
Yesterday one of our neighbors who live in the condos next door found an old blind and deaf dog shivering and cold in a parking lot in NE Portland. They picked her up and brought her to us for an evaluation and to see what they could do.
Granny Bee
She didn't have a collar or tags. We scanned her for a microchip with no luck but did find a tatoo on her belly and inside of her ear. She appeared to be well fed and had a nice haircoat but was blinded by cataracts and had a terrible mouth infection with rotten teeth. She appeared to be around 15 years old.
Aaron and Kate were at a loss on what to do with her. They have a dog of their own and weren't sure how they'd get along but they were really worried about her and wanted to help. We decided that she could stay with us while we started putting out Found Dog ads, contacting the veterinarians in the areas where she was found, registering her on the Dove Lewis website, contacting Boston Rescue and researching a tatoo database. Our neighbors agreed to put up posters in the area she was found and would drive her wherever she needed to go.
While Daniela set to work following leads and making proper notifications, we set her up a nice warm bed and got her some food. If she was staying with us we needed to call her something. Nurse Melissa's friend has a boston terrier named Killer Bee and so I decided Granny Bee would be the perfect name for our guest.
She ate and drank and, after exploring every inch of her large kennel, she settled down. We took turns offering her food, petting her and taking her out and we alternated between making up stories about what could have happened wondering how a geriatric blind and deaf dog ended up in a parking lot and trying to figure out what we were going to do with her. We couldn't send her to the shelter - she needed TLC. Could we find a rescue? What medical care should we give her and when should we start? Could we really find her family?
We started off today like any other friday setting up for our surgery day with some added duties of taking care of Granny Bee. She walked well on a leash and was completely potty trained. Simon (Nurse Katie's cat) donated his red hooded sweatshirt to Granny Bee to help keep her warm. We put it on her and she looked so happy. We decided she should hang out up front with Daniela while we worked on our patients and Daniela continued the search. Daniela found a picture of an older Boston on Craig's List but it was an adoption success story. No lost dogs posted.
The tatoo registry didn't have Granny Bee's tatoo registered. The veterinarians in the area didn't have any dogs meeting her description. Daniela followed every lead but nothing was panning out. In the afternoon Kate came by to check on Granny Bee. She had been so worried about her all night and while she and Daniela were talking a call came in...it was Granny Bee's family. We found out her name is really BooBoo and she had wandered out the door and made it 3 blocks down to the parking lot. The family was certain that BooBoo had been killed by a car and they were so happy when they saw our ad on Craig's list! They came down right away to get her. It turns out they were visiting from Canada and are leaving to go back tomorrow.
BooBoo (wearing Simon's donated Red Sweatshirt) and her mom
We couldn't believe it! Everyone was so happy. Including BooBoo! Even our clients that had come in that morning and heard her sad story were so delighted to hear that she was reunited with her family. When I think about BooBoo and all of the lives she touched and how she had everyone working together to help her, I remember why pets are so special - through our compassion for them we connect with others and that's what makes my job so great.
Source: http://www.mttaborvetcare.com/blog/post/2008/10/Granny-Bee-(BooBoo)-Reunited-with-Family-After-24-hour-Adventure.aspx
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