Blue's owner forced him to breed at this young age and things went wrong. Really wrong. When the owner noticed Blue's "anatomy" protruding and "looking funny" they took him to a vet. The vet took one look and realized that he needed to be seen by a more specialized doctor, so they waited another day and found Sheehy Animal Hospital in Livonia.

Upon arrival, the owner told Dr. Sheehy that they couldn't afford to fix the dog and that they "didn't want him anymore because he looked funny". Dr. Sheehy examined Blue and confirmed that Blue's anatomy was necrotic, swollen and he was in alot of pain. Amputation of his anatomy was the only way to help Blue and being “put to sleep” was out of the question - but who would pay for the surgery? Manager, Tracy contacted Founder, Laura Zain and an agreement was made to give assistance to Blue and his medical needs.

After a four-hour long operation, a tremendous amount of blood loss, a blood transfusion and high doses of medication to keep him sleepy, Blue was in good hands. Staff Manager, Tracy spent most of the night sitting by his "cage-side" (and at times, IN the cage holding him) so that he would know he was FINALLY loved and cared for. Blue will live a 100% normal life with the exception of just urinating a "little different" for a male dog. 

Vienna, an 8-year old dachshund, had a noticeable lump on her front paw and her owners immediately took her to the vet. After spending almost a thousand dollars on different tests, the lump was still there and Vienna was diagnosed with cancer. The family was worried and money was becoming a factor.

A call was made to Tail Wagger's and the family was referred over to Caputo Animal Hospital so that Dr. Caputo could visit with Vienna and determine the course of action. After an x-ray determined that the cancer had not spread to her lungs or lymph nodes, Dr. Caputo recommended amputation of the entire leg so that the cancer (hopefully) wouldn't spread. There was a concern, however, about amputating the front leg of a dachshund because these dogs tend to carry their weight on the front of their bodies (instead of the back, like other dogs). It wasn't certain if Vienna would be able to actually walk after the amputation, but Dr. Caputo felt that it was “worth a try”.

Just days after the surgery, the family was amazed to see that Vienna began to “hobble along” on her own, just not as fast as before. She goes up and down steps without any problems and is not starting to run after her playmate, Oscar – the other dachshund in the home. Her mobility is amazing to anyone that sees her in action!

On a follow-up visit with Dr. Caputo, he was all smiles when he saw the progress Vienna had made AND chuckled when he saw the “doggy stroller” that Tail Wagger's USA had given to the family so that Vienna could be wheeled around when she got tired! The stroller was big enough for both Vienna and Oscar so that they could take their daily walks with their owner.

What do you do when you receive an e-mail from a neighbor (that you have never met) that is frantically searching for his dog that got out of his backyard three days prior? A dog that is afraid of the outdoors and does not like rain.  A dog that is fairly new to the neighborhood. This could not be ignored!

On Monday, May 10th an e-mail came to Laura Zain about a lost boxer named Semper. After contacting the owner with some helpful hints on where to possibly find his dog, arrangements were made for flyers to be dropped off at her home. During the call, Laura was being interrupted by numerous text messages coming into her phone and when she hung up and read them, saw that they were from a friend stating that SHE needed help because a lost boxer was standing on HER front lawn - right in Laura's neighborhood! Could it be Semper?

As Laura was speeding to see and rescue the dog, the owner was being called to come help. Suddenly, a boxer came running from around the corner, right in front of her car - SEMPER! Attempts to lure him into the car were unsuccessful and when his name was called, he took off running - faster than any greyhound could run! Faster than you can imagine.

The chase began, the owner arrived, and the concern was that Semper would dart into traffic. As we approached a park Semper took off thru the park, into the trees and vanished from our search! As we were searching the streets, more and more people joined in to help but nobody could find Semper. He vanished. We didn't give up - the search continued until almost 1:00 a.m. 

Tuesday, the rain came hard. Semper had to be terrified. The search began as early at 6:30 a.m. and continued throughout the day. Shelters were checked, flyers were posted and the owner stayed home from work to continue the search on foot. By Tuesday night, the rain hadn't stopped still no Semper. 

On Wednesday calls were made to every surrounding city in the area, school districts and police station. The game plan was to now post more flyers with the hope of someone seeing him again. That evening someone in the area that had spotted Semper and again, the search began. Semper was spotted running out of the subdivision and INTO Inkster Road - right down the middle of the road - heading towards I-96! The neighbor began to follow him, was joined by a few others and they were able to get him into a backyard on Inkster Road and quickly closed the gate. While the owner was being notified, they were able to hold his collar and keep him safe until his owner was reunited with him!

Semper had the most amazing journey, had a tremendous amount of people searching for him and those efforts paid off when he was able to put his (worn out) paws on his owners shoulders!

Our heartfelt thanks to all the people in that neighborhood that pitched in to help find Semper. The time and energy put fourth in this search proved to be worthwhile. The moral of the story.....NEVER give up, have FAITH and BELIEVE in people. 

Tail Wagger's received a call regarding a Opossum that had found its way into a neighborhood backyard but appeared to be very sick. After watching the Opossum for a few hours, it disappeared, never returned and left the baby behind.

The family carefully took the baby in, named him Whiskers – who appeared to be only days old – and began to care for him.   Laura Zain was able to get in touch with the Howell Nature Center for some advice and made arrangements for this baby to be transported out to Howell and then released back into nature when he was old enough.

Tail Wagger's wants to thank the family, the three little boys and especially the Howell Nature Center for stepping up to the plate and taking in and caring for this little baby Opossum.

Meet Max, a 4 year old American Bulldog/Pitt Bull mix.  Max is in a loving home and due to the tough economy, both his "people" have been out of work for quite some time. A tearful call was made to Tail Wagger's to surrender Max because additional family cut-backs were necessary and while the family didn't want to surrender Max, they unselfishly felt he would be better off with a family that could feed him on a daily basis. Because of your donations to our Pet Food Assistance program, we delivered bags of dog food, milk bones, rawhides and some toys to the family just before the holidays - giving them the BEST gift - KEEPING MAX!  To make the family even happier, Tail Wagger's made arrangements to have Max heartworm checked, updated on all his vaccinations and had him neutered!  Max will contintue to stay with his wonderful family and we assured them that Tail Wagger's is here to help at any time!

Meet Katie, a 9-year old Boston terrier that underwent cataract surgery at the Rochester Eye Institute in early December.  Katie only had one eye (from a previous injury) and when she started to hide under the kitchen table and cower in the corner, owners, Paul and Shirley knew Katie needed help.  Finding out that surgery was more than they could financially commit to, they contacted Tail Wagger's for assistance with the hopes of saving Katie's "only eye" and allowing her to see for her remaining years.  Because of YOUR SUPPORT Katie is now recovering at her home in Milford, has complete vision in her eye, no longer hides under the table and is "back to her old self".  Paul and Shirley are extremely thankful that an organization such as Tail Wagger's is assisting pet owners in the community.   

   Photo: Joni Byars Photography 2009

In early December, Founder Laura Zain placed money on account at their vet for blood level check-ups and then delivered ten bottles of insulin and syringes to Leutenient Columbo. This supply will last them over 6 months as should the money on account. 

On January 9, 2009, 11-year old Isack Cook was out walking his dog, Max when suddenly he was being pulled toward some trash cans at the neighbors curb.  To his surprise, a 5-week old puppy was laying there, lifeless, with injuries sustained to the right ear, stomach, and pads of the feet. The puppy had been burned by blow torch and apparently left for dead.  Isaak ran home and told his family about the puppy and they all returned to the site to get the puppy and rushed to seek medical attention.

Unsure on how much this would cost the family, mother Dawn Cook began to solicite donations from friends and family members and collected enough to begin treatment for the puppy.  Tail Wagger's learned of this horrific act of cruelty and when told that amputation of the ear was necessary, Founder Laura Zain arrived at Nichols Veterinary Hospital to pay the remainder of the invoice so that the necessary medical care could contine.

The Cook family fell in love with little Bonnie and after surgery, took her to their home where she recovered completly and started her new life with a loving, kind family.