Courage is a big ham... he really has a super personality. He is by far the most outgoing of the 3 and what a goofball. He is really funny, like intentionallly funny,,, just to make you smile. He loves to play.. Strength is defintely brave and outgoing and very friendly as well, she is a lover... Hope is still scared and much more introverted, but I have no doubth that given the wonderful rescue she is lucky enough to be in, she will come out of her shell.
Give Courage a scratch for me and tell him I am proud of his behavior....
Carolyn
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Monday, March 12, 2007
A long Journey...
We are looking for foster homes for three sweet pointer/setter mixes: Hope, Strength & Courage. After being lovingly nursed back to health at the Chillicothe, MO Animal Shelter, these three darlings are now making their way to Illinois Birddog Rescue as their time is running out at the shelter.
Carolyn from the shelter writes:
"They are doing so well now, so beautiful.... Hope is still battling with mange, and keeping her hair though. She may always have to be on Ivermec. Strength and Courage are gorgeous and had no lasting effects from the mange they came in with. I will get you some updated pics of them when I am over there this afternoon. Hope was looking great for a while, then she started loosing hair again."
Won't you consider opening your heart and home to any of these three pups. They've been through so much! Read their story below---and please help out by offering to foster or sending donations for their continued treatment. It's always greatly appreciated!
Carolyn from the shelter writes:
"They are doing so well now, so beautiful.... Hope is still battling with mange, and keeping her hair though. She may always have to be on Ivermec. Strength and Courage are gorgeous and had no lasting effects from the mange they came in with. I will get you some updated pics of them when I am over there this afternoon. Hope was looking great for a while, then she started loosing hair again."
Won't you consider opening your heart and home to any of these three pups. They've been through so much! Read their story below---and please help out by offering to foster or sending donations for their continued treatment. It's always greatly appreciated!
Their Story as it took place at the shelter...
November 21, 2007:
PLEASE READ THIS STORY
Hi everyone, I wanted to put together and email to ask for your help again. I want to introduce to you 3 new residents (English Setters) of Livingston County Humane Society in 
The shelter had received calls about 3 dogs who had been dumped and were very thin, we had made several trips out to where the reports came from but were not able to ever spot the dogs so we asked the callers to get them and bring them in if they saw them again.
The following morning Thursday November 16th there were 3 dogs huddled together in our holding cage outside the shelter fence. When the dogs were taken out one by one, no one could believe their eyes. 
So off one went so that we could get them started on treatment for mange. Then, she noticed that the little boy had a horrible injury to one of his hind legs, so off he went. I met them over at the vet and saw the sweetest little dog ever. He was patiently sitting on the exam table allowing whomever to do whatever was needed to him. The vet's daughter was cleaning his ears which he actually seemed to appreciate, he has so much black gunk in his ears I don't know how he could hear. Anyway, after examination, the vet determined that a very extensive and costly surgery will be needed to repair his leg, it is an older break and it is on the growth plate. 
We headed on back to the shelter where I met the other 2 and immediately I knew their names...Hope, Strength and Courage. This is a family who has stuck together in the face of death, abuse and neglect.
Their little souls never gave up and now they need our help. Hope is the worst one in terms of the raw skin from mange, she is just one big open sore yet she will still wag her tail and return the love she is given. Strength has lived through hell literally. Her hind leg is missing and it doesn't look like it was done professionally. It looks like it has been hacked off, her tail is missing too. I don't know if someone did this to her or if she was caught in something, but either way, I can't believe she survived, she is covered with mange as well and her little nubby tail wags when you love on her. 
Courage is the little male. He has a severely broken hind leg that will require extensive surgery, his mange isn't as bad, but bad nonetheless. 
All are very emaciated and have lots of hair loss. They all have severe eye infections as well. The vet estimates them at about 8 months old. In the next week or 2 we will also be HW testing them. These guys have come to far and they deserve a chance. I told her that I knew that everyone would come through to donate so we could afford what they need. They have not been tested yet, but will be over the next week or 2.
I will keep anyone posted on their recovery who is interested, just let me know.
Please pass this along and crosspost to anyone who might be able to help.
Warmest Regards,
Carolyn, Hope, Strength and Courage.
November 22, 2007
Update: Hope, Strength & Courage
Hi All, Carolyn here, I spent some time today with Hope, Strength and Courage, and they asked me to give you guys an update. First of all they wanted to say they think it's real cool that they have a website...they say they never had a website before. And they also wrote this letter for me to post for all to see....
To all of our guardian angels out there:
The nice people here at the shelter have been taking really good care of us. We have a whole room all to ourselves and we have what they call blankies and everything. It's warm and soft here and they keep bringing us big bowls of good stuff to eat. They come in and touch us all the time and it doesn't even hurt. We never knew that human touch could be so gentle and feel so good.
Hi everyone, this is Hope. that's what they call me now...I really like it, they say I am beautiful and they treat me so well, I am so tired, it has been a long journey and it feels so good to be able to rest now. My brother is a nut they say...he keeps running around and draggin those blankie things all over our room. My whole body hurts, but they are giving me something they call medicine and they say my itching will stop and the sores will go away soon. I really like it here, people bring us all kinds of good things to eat and we always have fresh water.... Ugh...here come Courage, he wants to write now.
Hi, Courage here, I love love love this place, we get lots to eat and they always give me things to drag and shake. That lady they call Carolyn she says I'm a goober...whatever that is... I was twisting around at her so much and kept falling over on my back so she would rub my tummy...she give good tummy rubs. She says I'm a twisty britches.... I think she's funny. I went to the doctor and he says he is going to do all he can to fix my leg, I'm so glad, cause it really hurts and I can't step down on it. People here are so nice, that Lesley lady is very protective, she wants to make sure we get well so we can go to someplace called home. I like the sound of that. Well, Strength says she wants to type now, so I guess I have to let her, beside, I've got blankie dragging to do...
Hi, this is Strength. I wanted to say thank you to all of the humans who are helping us. We have been through so much and it's nice to let someone else take care of us now. I know I look sad with all I have been through but I want everyone to know that I feel so safe and loved now. That lady Carolyn says it looks like I have played mom and taken care of Hope and Courage and she's right. It feels so good to know that we don't have to worry anymore and we don't have to be scared or hungry and alone anymore. I love these people so much, I can't contain myself. When they come in to see us, I have to stand up and since my tail is missing, I have to wag my whole back end. Anyway........
Carolyn and Miss Lesley told us all about how people from all over, even other countries have sent us their love, prayers and money so that we can get well and go to this place called home. We also want to send out a special thank you to Aunt Carolyn's bestest friend Susan for working so hard to get our story out. We want to send all of you a big wet smooch and many many wags. We have spent our whole lives being kicked around and unwanted and now we know that we are loved and we send our love back to all of you.
Big Sloppy Pup Kisses,
Hope, Strength & Courage
Well, Carolyn again, that is what they sent for me to post. And from my view point, they are doing great. They are loving the attention and are eating like little piggies. They are all on antibiotics and Ivemec for mange. They are eating well and receiving STAT supplements courtesy of My Very Dear Friend Susan. They will be going to Dr. Fischbach on Friday to have more tests done and get another check up. We need to get them stronger and healthier and then Courage will have his surgery to repair his leg. I will do my best to update often and continue to update with pics. I took these this afternoon.
Oh and with what we have received through paypal and the commitments we have received of checks being sent we think we have reached our goal. I will get that update done in the next day or 2 since I am the cook this Thanksgiving...hehehe watch for smoke....
Much Love and Warmest Regards,
Again, thank you to all of you for your kind words, prayers and of course the money to care for them. My heart was full of sadness and anger when I met these 3 beautiful souls and now my faith in humanity is restored and my heart is full of gratitude to each and every one of you.
Warmest Regards,
Carolyn
November 28, 2006Big day at the doctors office!!!
Hi everyone, it's Hope, Strength and Courage again. We wanted to send out another update to all of our guardian angels. The nice lady Brenda, from the shelter, took us to see Dr. Fischbach today. He spent all day with us... we were treated like kings and queens. 
First he took care of me, Strength, He put me up on this table, it was kinda cold on my hiney, then he started listening and looking and he even did some poking....ugh.. Anyway, he was so gentle and after each thing he did, he patted me on my head and told me I was a good girl. It's so nice to hear things like that. He drew some blood, it kinda hurt, but I could just tell he was there to help me, so I didn't even cry.
He cleaned my ears all out and gave me medicine for them, he says I have mites and a yeast infection in there...not sure what that means but they said he would get me fixed up. He checked my hiney and said I didn't' have any worms, that's good, cause I don't like worms. He also did a skin scraping and he says I have Demodex like Hope, but that's okay because Miss Lesley already started us all on medicine for that. He also did this heartworm test and he said I was positive, I thought that was good, you know positive, but then I found out it isn't. He says that we need to wait a couple of weeks to treat me for it because I'm not strong enough yet...huh go figure...even my name is Strength, but I know he knows best. 
He put me on Doxycycline, he says it will help me when it comes time to get my heartworm treatment. My liver enzymes and my protein were high but he says that is a result of the heartworms. He even did a lymes/erlichia test and it was negative. He also did an ultrasound to see if I was going to have babies again, it tickled alot... but good news..no babies. He took a look at my right eye too, it's very cloudy and it bothers me some. He says I have an ulcer there and that there is some corneal damage so he gave me medicine to help the irritation and help me make tears to make it feel better, I can only see a little with my eye but I can sure see enough to know that we have lots of people who love us now. We got to play and snuggle with Brenda and Carolyn. They are so nice, they just keep petting us and talking nice to us...and that Carolyn, what a hoot, she keep kissing all of us, she's a funny one.. Strength weighed in today at 41 pounds, she has probably gained 8-10 pounds since her arrival.
I went next, this is Hope. Doc says my demodex is already started to look a little bit better. He did all that listening and looking and some poking on me too. He was very nice to me and petted me a bunch, I like that in a doctor..... He checked my hiney too and no worms for me either....yeah!!!! I have mites and a yeast infection in my ears but he gave us medicine for that. My lymes/erlichia was negative too and even my heartworm test was negative. They say I am very tiny and underweight. I weighed in today at 28.1 pounds and I have probably gained 8-10 pounds already. I was very quiet. I didn't cry at all. They put this thing called a leash on me today, I'm not sure about that crazy thing...they say all the dogs are wearing them, but hmmmm.....I don't know yet. I had a really good day though, I got to lounge outside in the sun and snuggle with my brother.
I went last, Courage here. That doctor guy and his wife are so nice...they kept petting me and telling me I was a good boy. He looked, listened and felt all over me. He check me for worms and Nope...I don't have any....yeah!!! I have ear mites, but that doesn't seem like a big deal, he gave me these drops for my ears, that feels funny. He said my blood work was all good to and my heartworm test was negative, I guess that's a really really good thing. They weighed me today too and I weigh 36.9 pounds which is up about 8-9 pounds from when we found our way to all these nice people. He says I have demodex too and I am already on medicine that Miss Lesley has been giving me. 
He took a picture with this thing of my leg, it really hurts, I don't even like to put it down, then he showed us all the picture....looked funny to me, but he told Brenda and Carolyn all about it. My leg is broken at the growth plate and the bone is turned, but he says he can fix me right up. He says he's going to put pins in my leg, I don't know if I want pins in my leg, but he is kind and I know he will help me get through it. He says there is only a very slim chance that I will lose my leg, I like that idea. He says I'm not strong enough yet but that He wants us all to come back and visit next Friday, then if I am strong enough he is going to fix my leg for me. I really liked him.
Well guys, thats about it except that Dr. Fischbach did start them all on Metronidazole to treat Coccidia and Giardia, he is going to reevaluate everyone next Friday and see where we stand. He hopes to be able to do what he figures will be atleast a 3 hour surgery on Courage then to repair his little leg. 
The trio had an excellent day and were nothing but perfect angels all day long. It really does seem that they know we are just there to help them so they go along with whatever we need them to do. Courage and Strength are doing well walking on the leash, Hope isn't sure yet, but she is already starting to learn. I am putting new pics up for all to see. 
Thank you again...all of you for donating and spreading the word. Between the latest paypal donations and the checks who were committed to, some of which arrived today we are where we need to be. These dogs will have every advantage thanks to all of you compassionate people who cared enough to open our email and send your positive thoughts, prayers and donations our way to save them. 
Oh and we think there is a very good possibility that Strength is actually the mother. We estimate her at about 1.5 -2 years old and Hope and Courage at 9-10 months so it looks like it was a baby having babies.... They are the sweetest dogs ever...
Warmest Regards,
Carolyn, Hope, Strength & Courage
Getting Stronger Every Day
Hi Everyone, this is Hope, Strength and Courage again. We wanted to let everyone know that we are doing very very well. We all all getting stronger and we are so happy. 
We love to play with everyone here and we can't stop our tails from wagging when someone comes into the room. Miss Lesley gives us all lots of medicine, she laughs and says it's a full time job just passing out meds. She put all of our drops and pills in an upper cage in the bank of crates that is sitting in our room, she accidently left the door open when she left to go to the kitchen and when she came back a couple minutes later, we all had our envelops with our medicine out carrying them around...so Miss Lesley says she can't leave the cage door open anymore...hehehe 
We are eating very well and putting on weight. And Hope is feeling better now too. Miss Lesley puts udder balm on her so that her skin isn't so dry it cracks. We wanted to send everyone a big pooch smooch from all 3 of us to say thank you for sending money to help us.
Hi All, it's Carolyn, my daughter-in-law to be and I managed to drag me over to the shelter today and we snapped some pics for you guys. They look a thousand times better now and are doing very well. They greeted us at their door with tail wags and love. Even little hope is up moving and playing. We went and bought them some toys and chew bones and Hope was the first to decide this might be a good thing. Their Kuranda beds should be here first of the week too. Anyway, again, I cannot express to you all my gratitude for all the support.
November 30, 2007
Hope Strength and Courage are doing very well, They love their new toys and are getting stronger and stronger. They are off to Dr. Fischbach's tomorrow for check up's and to see where we stand with the surgery and heartworm treatment. Lesley called today and the HSUS called her and they are seeing about putting up a $2500 reward for info leading to the arrest of the individual/individuals who did this to these sweet babies... I will keep you posted to see if that pans out.
Hugs,
December 1, 2007
The pins need for surgery on Courage should be here next week, he is doing great, still a little twisty britches, I am anxious to see how much more weight he has gained to. 
Hope had a short visit with doc, he was called out on an emergency but he gave her the award for most improved skin..hehehe, she looks so much better already, still has a long long road ahead, but wow...she looks so much better. 
I stopped by the shelter late last night to peek in on them and snapped a couple of pics for you guys. Oh, and 2 of the 3 soft toys are now earless....guess they immediately figured out that it;s really fun to tear up your new toys...hehehe
Much Love,
Carolyn, Hope, Strength & Courage AKA Twisty Britches
December 2, 2007
Strength Starts her Treatment
Hi everyone, Sorry I didn't get an updated posted yesterday, been very hectic and I am still trying to catch up from being down with my back the last week. Hope, Strength and Courage are doing great...and they were so busy with new toys they didn't get a chance to write to you all, so they asked me to update.
I got out the busy bones and nada, even broke out the jerky treats and nothing.... I don't think these guys had ever been given a treat or toy...well to my extreme surprise, miss shy....Hope ventured across the room and investigated all these trinkets I had put down for them. Upon close inspection of all items, she decided on the busy bone, picked it up and headed back to the others with it. Strength and Courage still thought "Nahhhh...I'm not buying into this... " 
So I left the room, their door has a window in it, so I waited outside for about a min, then peek through their door and all of them were up and checking things out, eating treats, picking up their chosen items, then Courage went nuts, he was shaking and tearing and pulling and throwing his little bobo type toy...it was so cute. 
Oh, and before I left, I also put their new name tags on. They read as follows: Hope- Together We Survived, Strength- Together We Love and Courage- Together We Overcame. I left them with their toys and treats so they could play.
December 5, 2007:
Everything is going well
Hi everyone, just wanted to give you all a quick update, this is Strength, I got my first heartworm treatment and it made me feel kinda sick for a couple of days but now I feel great. They brought us a bunch of toys and even some nice new feeders so we can eat as much as we want anytime we want. I feel good, I'm continuing to put on weight and my coat is filling back in. This one real nice lady who sent money to help us is sending us our on special blankies and she is even having custom made coats sent to us.... We've never had coats before. What a wonderful Christmas this will be.
Courage here... I'm doing good. I love to play with our new toys and I love to get into things when Miss Lesley isn't looking...heheheh, that’s fun... I had a spot come up on my back so I went to see Doc, he scraped it and it was just Demodex....and that's okay cause I am getting medicine for that already. I got to go all by myself this time so I was the center of attention...
Hi, it's Hope, I'm doing great too... Miss Lesley keeps me slathered in Udder Balm so it feels nice when she rubs it on me, it makes my skin not hurt anymore. I get to go be weighed next week to see if I have gained more weight. they said I am coming out of my shell, I was the first one to take one of our new chew bones.... I love to see the people now, I even wag my tail. It's really nice here... We get lots of blankies to lay on and for Courage to pull around...he's a stinker....he is always unmaking our beds...
Oh and I wanted to tell everyone that these 3 sweet babies are all paper trained. They do not go potty at all except on their papers in the corner....they are such good babies. Courage will be having his surgery end of next week. The pins and parts are on order and will be here by then. I will get more pics for everyone tomorrow and I will also be putting a list of their angels together. Just first names and city/state if I know it... Just want to show everyone how many wonderful people came forward to help them. It was overwhelming.
Much Love,
Carolyn, Hope, Strength & Courage
December 11, 2007:Hi everyone, sorry that it has taken me almost a week to update. I have lots of pics for you guys, not much news though. They are all doing well. And Courage leg surgery is scheduled for Thursday. I am leaving out of town tomorrow morning Dec. 12 and won't be back until Dec 19th, my hubby and I are taking a vacation...first one ever...yeah!!! so... not sure if I can get my teenagers to update you guys in between times or not, but don't worry, I will update as soon as I return.
They are so sweet. They are learning to play, even know what toys are now. Lesley spends a lot of time with them...they aren't so easy to give meds to now either...hehehe, she says they have wised up on that so it's like a game to get them to take it. The Kuranda beds arrived on Friday and they now have their own beds...but they all like to get on one which is fine... Also, a very sweet and wonderful angel of theirs from
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