Boo is a petite white American Staffordshire Terrier and lived in a high kill shelter in Nebraska for months without any interest in adoption. She had a little hop to her step with ataxia and was being held as evidence in an abuse/trauma case. Once she was cleared to leave they didn’t have anywhere for her to go and they had reached out to us for help. It took us months to find a foster for her so we could not bring her out of the shelter until we had that secured. Her breed is often one that we all face challenges with when it comes to placement unfortunately. Once we had a foster set up we knew we could rely on we were able to bring her to Arizona by transport chain and she settled in well. 

We started with our typical veterinary work up and then got the green light to head to neurology. This is where we did her MRI and simultaneously ran her DNA test to check for any genetic diseases or conditions she may be predisposed to. Having this done

helped us to be able to set expectations for her adopters so they know why she has an ataxic gate and if this is something that appears to be degenerative or not. The DNA test is something we try to do along side Neurological work ups to help gain a deeper insight to most of our cases. This is also how we confirmed her breed. Her condition turned out to be a static condition which helped put everyone’s mind at ease. That is always a risk we take with neurological workups, finding degenerative diagnosis which then creates concern for adopters. 

She has been adopted by a local family who has another dog as well. In fact, they saw her on our website before she had her neurological workup and this grant helped give us the funding to get her neurology visit done so we could move this adoption along in a timely manner. Now the two dogs spend their days together and really love each others company. She has been taken on many adventures, eats delicious food, goes shopping with her mom and sleeps in a nice comfortable bed in a SAFE home. We were able to transfer her out of the high kill shelter to a foster here with our organization and into a dream of a home with her new family. She brings them as much joy as they bring her. It truly does feel like she was meant to be theirs. Everything with Boo has been perfectly timed and we are truly grateful for these happy endings.

Manuela was caged outside in direct sunlight for four months, risking heatstroke in Florida’s extreme heat and was also subjected to the family cat’s bites. She had multiple bite wounds from the cat, a severe infection under her chin and was smelling rotten eggs. Our vet treated her and three months later Manuela found a loving and forever home.

Jack came to us after we were contacted by Animal Care & Control asking if we could take a baby bunny with a broken leg. They informed us that they would put him down if we didn't take him, as they have no ability to deal with injured rabbits. According to the ACC officer, the bunny’s previous owner purchased him from Craigslist. Unfortunately, this person did not know anything about rabbits, and ended up breaking his leg by mishandling him. Our vet treated him and after three months Jack went to his forever home with three other bunnies to play with.

Jellybean is a White Bellied Caique in foster care with us that was previously thought to have a heart issue. We began to have some doubts about this, and grant funds from the Marion and Richard Graham Foundation made it financially possible for us to obtain radiographs to determine if this was true, or still true. These radiographs showed no heart issue, so we were able to take Jellybean off the medication he was on. He is happy, energetic, eats lots of great food, and has lots of toys and enrichment in his current foster home. He has been through several foster homes before, but we think it is highly likely that he has finally found his forever home with his current family.

Lydia Deetz came to Hearts & Bones in July after being rescued from Dallas Animal Services and transported to New York. Lydia was a young pug that was found in Dallas as a stray. She came to us with many issues including kennel cough and a common condition that pugs have which is pigmentation of the corneas. Unfortunately, after recovering from kennel cough she developed pneumonia. Thanks to the Marion and Richard Graham Foundation we were able to get her treated with subcutaneous fluids and medication. 

A few days later Lydia was back to her normal happy self and ready for adoption. Lydia Deetz found her forever home in August and moved to a quiet town in NJ with a family with lots of experience in her breed and their needs. Her adopter says: “I just want to say thank you. I’ve been looking for a pug since

my other two passed this winter. Many rescues put tons of hurdles but not Hearts & Bones. I am so glad to be able to find this little girl who needed us. She’s a wonderful little dog and we love her too. She does love to play tug, run around the backyard and follow me. What could be better!”

Two stories were shared last quarter but I'd like to add a third. His name is Razzle. Razzle came to us with an unidentified bacteria infection. Just a few weeks ago, we were finally able to get some results. Razzle will have reoccurring bouts of joint inflammation and pain. We have been managing these bouts successfully. We have been ring for his broken ankle as well. Weekly, we took him to the vet to have his cast changed. They love him at the office! We are so excited to say that just last week, his cast was removed. The vet was leaning towards amputation at first, but we persuaded her to try this route first! It worked! His ankle is not good enough to return the the wild in combination of his bacteria issue, but he will live. Avery happy and important life as an education ambassador with us!

Tyla is a senior Yorkshire Terrier estimated to be 10 years old who was found in South Salem, NY wandering around the parking lot of a local shopping center. She was found by a good Samaritan who took her to a local vet where she stayed unclaimed for days. Wagging Tails Rescue, Inc. saw her posted on Facebook and after multiple days with no owners stepping forward, Wagging Tails took her in.

Tyla was found with a mammary mass as she is a senior dog who was never spayed. Vet's removed the tumor and spayed Tyla to prevent any future problems. While under anesthesia, Tyla also received necessary dental work and the vet removed 11 teeth. These teeth were cracked and decayed, severely impacting Tyla's quality of life.

Today, Tyla has been adopted and is enjoying the rest of her senior years with her forever family. Thanks to the grant award from The Marion and Richard Graham Foundation, Wagging Tails Rescue, Inc. was able to get Tyla the necessary care she needed and was able to find her forever home.

During our January clinic in Upper Fruitland, our team was in the parking lot of the Walter Collins Chapter House, distributing free pet food to clients in need from the trailer YOU made possible, when a woman pulled up in her car, clearly distressed. She explained that her dog, Rose, had been brutally attacked by a pack of dogs and asked if we could help. Our team immediately sprang into action. Rose had suffered extensive injuries, her body covered in wounds and lacerations. We quickly took Rose into our care, and our veterinary team performed a two-hour surgery to repair her injuries, stitch up her wounds, and place drainage tubes to help with healing. Thankfully, Rose arrived on Friday, giving our veterinary team the weekend to monitor her progress and provide additional treatment. By Sunday, she was ready to return home to her grateful family.