About St. Nicholas...
January 5, 2009 - We haven't pupdated you on Nicky for a
while! He's doing wonderfully! His eyes are looking so much better and he's loving and living life to the fullest!
Nick's foster mom thinks he really is ready to find his forever home. The truth is, Nick has been cared for by a very
extraordinary woman and her husband. In addition to helping us with the odd beagle, Catherine runs Sheba's Haven which
is essentially a rescue haven for dogs with terminal illness or severe chronic health problems. When Nick first arrived, we
all felt he fell under that category. It's taken a long while to sort out his issues and we've now come to the conclusion
that he will always have this auto-immune issue but, thankfully, it is not life-threatening and he can lead a normal happy
life regardless. He'll need to stay on certain medications to keep it in check, mind you, but it sure doesn't stop
him from being your typical beagle! Nicholas is HUGE on personality and absolutely insists on living with a CUDDLER! Are you
big on cuddles AND beagles?!!! Send us your adoption application TODAY!
PUPDATE as of April 15,
2008:
Sorry for the delay on pupdates, everyone! We've been busier than a beagle at a cookie convention!
Poor Nicky has had his share of ups and downs, I'm afraid. Although we've pinpointed his health problem
to be an auto-immune disease, we've not been able to find a solution for him. Nick has been on a number of different treatments
and nothing is working. He also went to see a specialist at the beginning of this month who prescribed something new but still
no light at the end of the tunnel yet. But be assured he's not in any pain. The problem lies with his runny, red eyes
and dry, cracked little beagle nose. A mere nuisance to him, but of course we want him all better before we consider finding
him a permanent home. So please pray for our St. Nicholas as we try different potions to make him all shiny and new again!
A
Happy New Year for Nicholas! The article below will appear in the Jan. 15, 2008 issue of BEACH METRO NEWS for my column, "PET
OF THE MONTH". When it comes to New Year’s Resolutions, I like to keep it simple. Every year, I resolve to
Never Grow Up!
Growing up can lead to believing that some things aren’t possible. So, I keep in touch with
my inner kid AND my trusted role models – Peter Pan, Jimminy Cricket, the ants that move rubber tree plants, and of
course, Santa Claus. But, this past Christmas, Santa looked a little different…
It all started on December
12th when I received a sad message. A beagle had followed a path in the snow to a rural animal shelter. With no collar, there
was no way of knowing his name much less anything else about him. Mr. No Name wasn’t in good shape either. His nose
was so cracked and raw that he snorted with every breath he took and his eyes were suffering from severe infection. It was
hard to guess his age but the staff could tell he wasn’t a puppy anymore, even though he had this adorable puppy-like
way of crawling into your lap and gazing longingly into your eyes.
When no one came to claim him, his caregivers
were heartbroken. They knew nobody would want to adopt such a sad-looking sack. Still, there was something very jolly about
Mr. No Name. Despite his troubles, he sparkled! Here’s where it helps to be young at heart…Believe it or not,
but I’m convinced it was magical fairy dust that made him glow like Tinkerbell - from his sore little nose to his optimistic
tail!
Whether it was fairy dust, Puppy Love Potion Number 9 or just plain old beautiful beagledom, it’s what
prompted his caregivers to send an urgent email to yours truly at BIG ON BEAGLES (“BOB”) Rescue, crossing their
paws for a miracle! They made sure to attach a picture of Mr. No Name and, of course, the spell was cast!
It didn’t
matter that our foster homes were filled to the roof with woof, or that Christmas was only a tailwag away. When you’re
young at heart, nothing is impossible! Especially when you’re not the only one refusing to grow up! Catherine, one of
our foster moms, somehow found room to hang one more stocking on her mantle. Mr. No Name would have a home in time for Christmas!
But that wasn’t the end of our worries. The condition of our mystery beagle’s eyes and nose was cause
for serious concern. So our first stop after sweeping him off his paws at the shelter was the Beaches Animal Hospital.
Every
patient needs a name and that name popped in my head faster than you can say “Merry Christmas”! At that moment,
our fairy dust beagle became known as St. Nicholas!
We all wished upon a star that day for a dream to come true
for Nicholas. And wouldn’t you know…it did! After a few days of charming all the girls at the hospital, jolly
St. Nick received the results from a multitude of tests. The news was better than anyone could have imagined! Nicholas has
an auto-immune disorder that, although neglected until now, is treatable with a daily dose of dogfood-covered pills! No matter
how old I get, I’m never going to stop believing in Santa Claus...How about you?
St. Nicholas is a 6-8 year
old, neutered beagle spreading the Christmas spirit into the New Year at BIG ON BEAGLES (BOB) Rescue,
www.bigonbeagles.petfinder.com . Fairy tails can come true…won’t you let our fairy dust beagle make a believer out of you?
This
article is dedicated to Brandy ~ a beagle just as magical who will stay forever young in our hearts.
December 20, 2007: A Christmas Wish Made True for Nicholas!
This is Nicholas - well, we named him Nicholas
in the last 24 hours.
An urgent message arrived for us yesterday. About a beagle, of course. About this beagle
- now Nicholas - in the care of a rural pound outside of Toronto. Found as a stray. Another beagle without a past. Another
mystery we'll never solve. No matter. What really matters is his future. He almost didn't have one - if it wasn't
for the caring staff at this shelter who decided to call us before giving up entirely. We're really glad they did.
We
didn't have a foster home available but when you're surrounded by angels, miracles tend to happen. The angels I'm
referring to are those wonderful people who open their homes and hearts to our homeless howlers. Our foster parents. Brandy's
foster mom in particular. Even with a full house and so close to Christmas, she didn't hesitate to say "YES"
to Nicholas.
And so, a very special Christmas Wish has come true!
We just wanted to share this little
miracle with all of you. We also ask that you keep Nicholas in your prayers. As of yet, we don't know how extensive his
health problems may be. Clearly, his eyes are severely infected. His teeth are also in bad shape. But he's such a good
little patient - crawling into his caregiver's lap when it's time for his eye drops.
The shelter staff
think he's senior but he may just look older than he actually is, because of his poor health. One never knows with these
sad little mystery beagles.
But we do know one thing. We know there's hope for him now. Thanks to the angels
among us.
From all of us to all of you, we wish you the very best for the season - filled with love and wonderful
little miracles like this!
