Sadie never had much of a chance at a good life. Through the rains of the winter and the heat of the Central Valley summer, she lived with her flock, faithfully protecting them from coyotes, loose dogs and other predators. When her coat became matted and uncomfortable, no one bothered to groom her. Once in a while, someone would take a pair of shears and hack off the hair, and she was apparently regularly fed, but other than that, she got no attention.
Lack of grooming, and exposure to dry grasses, foxtails and burrs, made her susceptible to ear infections. Since she was never taken to a vet after she was spayed, no one noticed or treated them and the infections spread. When she developed a bladder infection, no one noticed. When the infection spread to her kidneys, no one cared.
Eventually the pain became severe enough that Sadie broke her owner’s cardinal rule: stay with the sheep. She sought out the humans that worked with the sheep, hoping one would notice her pain and help her. After chasing her back to the sheep repeatedly, her owner finally took action. He loaded her in the truck and took her to the animal control pound. He complained that a dog that wanted to be around humans instead of sheep was useless to him and told the staff to “do something with her.” As he was leaving, he turned and said, “It’s a good thing you were open, ‘cause if you weren't I'd have had to take her back and shoot her!”
The shelter staff called GPRNC, and a rescue rep drove several hours to pick up Sadie. (She didn’t have a name when turned in; it was given her by the Rescue rep.) An exam by Rescue’s vet discovered the ear and bladder infections and she was immediately placed on antibiotics. Sadie was taken to a foster home where there were humans who actually wanted to pet and comfort her. For the first time in her life, Sadie knew a friendly human touch.
Sadly, the medical treatment had come too late and Sadie gradually began to fade away. When her kidneys failed, she was taken to the vet hospital where tremendous care and effort was put into saving her life. Even in the hospital, there were loving humans to cuddle her, and tell her she was finally loved. When it became obvious that her pain was too great to bear, the veterinarian sat on the floor with Sadie, held her head in her lap and gently released her from her short, painful life.
Sadie is gone, but Rescue has a large vet bill to pay (despite a generous discount from the hospital.) In Sadie’s memory, won’t you help us meet that bill, and provide for the next unwanted Pyr that comes in? Perhaps that one will be fortunate to meet us sooner.
Great Pyrenees Rescue of Northern California
P O Box 574
Georgetown, CA 95634
