Status: ADOPTED!!!

Location: Florence, SC

JULY 2005

Hope, the Hopester, is getting along very good. She is is losing some of the extra weight that has been holding her back. She has mastered the back yard, If I am home she can go outside. If it wasn't so hot outside right now she would probably be in the middle of it soaking up sunshine, one of her favorite activities.
Concerning her vision, we took her to a vet in Charleston who specilizes in vision problems in dogs. Hope is totaly blind in the eye that sustained the injury While she was with her previous owner. Her other eye is in the later stages of a progressive inherited problem and she will continue to loose her sight. She can still see movement in bright light but that will gradually get worse to the point where she sees nothing. It does not bother her right now. She has memorized the house, inside and out by the way the floor and ground feels so there is little bumping into anything.
Her ears are good I keep as much hair trimmed away from them as I can. Trimming and brushing are a part of the daily routeene. The teeth are in ok shape and show no signs of infection or irritation. One of her favorite things is to drink warm water from the bath tub faucet. Brushing her back end, I initially noticed that she had many small and large scars in the hair and these would get matted up around them with blood or lymph fluid. These have all cleared up and have healed nicely, although there are spots I have to be very gentle when brushing. I think this is from the gunshot.
As far as if she is still avalable for adoption I think she has found the home for her right here.
Thank you for so much J Lewis

From Hope
I want to thank everyone who has helped me become the sweetheart I am now. To the people at the shelter who looked past the worn down, tired, scared, dirty old girl, made the greatist step on her recovery by sparing me, I have an extra special wet and sloppy kiss. Pam and the nice people in NC who brought me through the toughist part so I can feel better and enjoy life I would like to sit in your laps and smother you with kisses the only way a Big Girl Springer can. To all the wonderfull people with Springer Rescue thank each and every one of you for what you have done for me and the others you help every day.
Thank you so much,
HOPE

UPDATE 2/26/05: Hope was pulled from the vet office. She has long since been cleaned up from this state!  She needs further step-by-step vet care to take care of her needs.!

Update 3/4/05:
From Pam Civile who has helped get Hope to safety and vet care:

" We had a very successful day with Hope's surgery yesterday. I was lucky enough to get in on the action late afternoon. I have a great vet who let me and my small amount of experience into the surgery unit yesterday. Hope had her spay, a tummy tuck, 5 mammary tumors removed, a very strange tumor from her neck removed, a deep ear cleansing and some work done on her injured eye. All the tumors have gone to pathology and we should know the results the first of the week...hopefully.

Hope's eye was a challenge because we had to decide whether to keep the eye ball or remove it. Once in the eye it was decided to keep the eye ball. Dr. Tysor removed the third lid and some damaged and infected tissue. The eye ball looks good, but we will see how it reacts to the clean environment. Dr. Tysor said it appears that Hope willed her eye ball back into the socket out of the way because it was painful. I hope that makes sense...her explanation was much better then mine. Should the eye not be salvageable, removal will be easy and an uneventful procedure. She has been up and around today and appears to be happy. By the way she weighed in at 77 lbs prior to surgery. WOOWOO 1.8 lb weight loss in 5 days. Ed at the kennel said she was getting 2.5 cups of low fat food per day.

Hope will spend the weekend in the vet's care at home. Thank you all for your emails and calls concerning Hope. She deserves a good life and ESRA is giving her that opportunity.

Thanks, Pam"

UPDATE 3/27/05
From Hope's extended foster family:
"Where do I start with the Hope update...her life is now full of choices, she loves being in the yard exploring with Dixie and Shep, her foster siblings. Her favorite spot is next to the boat in the sun..maybe she is waiting for a boat ride, with the wind blowing her hair. She loves to ride in the car and they do alot of visiting. She is quite a charming girl, winning everyone's heart..especially J's dad, who now is thinking of fostering or adopting...he is smitten with her. But her biggest choice has been inside and where she likes to settle...she has a huge dog bed (a gift from her Portie Water spaniel friend ) and J [Hope's foster dad] reports she pulls it between her legs to different rooms , and all around the rooms, will rest awhile, lounge and move it again...guess she has interior decorating genes..!!! but most importantly she has been welcomed by Dixie and Shep and they stick by her when they venture outside without J. He watches them and is awed by their understanding of her vision problem. J is not at all concerned about Hope and her adapting, after all she has two seeing eye dogs!

Hope has an appointment with an Opthalmology Veterinarian on April 4, here in Charleston, I just wanted her to be seen to give her every chance to save the sight in her left eye as well as check the right eye...J took her to his vet and he was pleased with all her incisions and the healing process."

Beth Griffin, ESRA volunteer and J's mom.

Laverne and Shirley

Status: Laverne passed away on Weds July 6th after some sudden new heart problems and seizures.

Location: Moyock, NC

These two dogs came in as strays to the SPCA in Elizabeth City, NC. They caught the attention of the staff there who really went out of their way to seek help for them and give them as much time as possible. After a lack of interest in adopters at the shelter, ESRA pulled the two dogs together into safe foster care. 

UPDATE 8/05: Shirley is finally eating almost all meals again ... She missed some the week that Laverne passed Outside she is as silly as ever. SHE LOVES to be outside on sunny days ... the hotter the better ... I take her in after an half hour or so at 92 degrees!!! She looks at me with most sad copied springer look ... for corgi mix she knows how to make you feel bad ... I spend the whole trip inside explaining to her heat stroke is not a good thing, and her black thick coat and hot sun should not be mix for too LONG. I promise to take her back out when sunsets I PROMISE ... talking about making you feel guilty.

She is very into being petted, talked to ... loves to be told she is a "GOOD GIRL" ... her tail and eyes just light up when I use my silly high pitch good girl coo-ing ... She is the best scrap catcher in kitchen. Today when I was making chicken pot pie ... the chicken can I was draining over sink... lid slipped and a few pieces started to floor, she caught it before they hit the floor ...WOW! THEN she whined the rest of time the chicken pot pie was in oven and would not leave it ... go figure, she was not into her dry chicken and rice food that night :)

I wish she had more courage to walk passed my other dogs cages ... I wish she did not refuse to go outside when it rains ... hates a bath and screams like I am KILLING her. She still thinks if she goes on car rides or goes out front, she is going to find where I hid Laverne ... So, I let her look ... how do you explain to her life just ain't fair sometimes .. Her soulmate will be awaiting her ... and to enjoy the rest of her life as Laverne would want it ... So, a few extra pats of love and treats I guess will have to do ....

Her love affair was Laverne and not all springers. She so far hates all my dogs. She is definitely people oriented, people soft, and love bug but does not like to bothered by pesky other dogs that want to play with her ... I would love to know where Laverne and her met and how long they were together before I met this incredible odd couple. But, I think that what makes fostering so much fun .... discovering the mysteries of the dog you have opportunity to know and bond to ... when their small world has turn a shoulder on them ... and groups like ESRA can step into their lives and try to make things better ...

I have taken many pictures in the last week of her ... she manages to turn and blur pictures, give a big picture of her tail side, and eyes like deers in head lights, and manages to submissive pee twice with flash ... She definitely has not had any good picture taken sessions in her past. so, I am still looking for a dry day that a friend can help me take better pictures ...

She still loves her blanket in cage ... and if I would let her she would take it outside with her .. she adapts to new blanket when I have to wash her favorite ... but their is light in her eye when I give it back to her ... it is a "about time look". She seems to have no clue why I am so mean and randomly take her favorite things away ... and then for no reason I give them back. She definitely has some stupid human looks ....

She however has decided chairs and the family room couch are okay to watch the world from ... She still thinks that their must be a way to catch those darn cats in their cat condo ... so from her couch she watches, so carefully. I do not have the heart to tell her my cats are used dogs that like to chase and proceed to stay away in their condo or on their high climbing tree. She must dream of catching them cause she moves her feet in her sleep like she is on the GREAT CHASE adventure.

--Mary Baker