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Tail Wagger’s is committed to helping people help animals. It is our ultimate goal to be
able to support dedicated pet owners who are in need of assistance along with providing necessary funding for those
animals in emergency situations.
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Real Stories
Tail Wagger’s prides itself on spending YOUR DONATIONS directly on animals in need and we want
to introduce you to some of the alumni animals that have benefitted directly from the programs that we provide.
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Blue is a 10 month old American Bull Dog/Pitt Bull mix whose owner surrendered him because of
financial concerns and “the way he looked”.....
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Steve had a rough start in life. Removed from his home when he was only 7 days
old, his leg and tail were broke (in four places) after being swung by his tail
and thrown into a wall (causing the tail to look like a lightening bolt). Needing to
be bottle fed every two hours, Laura Zain took Steve everywhere - stealing the hearts of anyone
that met him and heard his story. Upon gaining strength, Steve was taken to East Detroit Animal Hospital where it was confirmed
that the broken leg was fused and unable to be surgically fixed. Dr. Patricia
Bigwood indicated that Steve would adjust to using just three legs and amputation was only
necessary IF the broken leg became a burden OR Steve was in pain because of
it. To date, Steve will continue to be monitored by Dr. Bigwood and is growing at a
normal rate. He shares his home with a 5-year old tabby cat, Tabitha, and
is happy and content. In the spring, Steve will get neutered and at that time, his
leg will be x-rayed again to see if there is any way to straighten it, allowing him
better mobility.
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Tail Wagger's received a call in February, 2009 from a landlord in Plymouth. There was
a 5-year cat inside an apartment that was left without an owner. She had been alone for five
days because her owner had committed suicide. When family members could not reach their loved
one for more than a week, they notified the landlord and asked for her to check on their family
member. When the landlord entered the apartment, she found the cat, laying on top of her
owner, continuously licking her face to wake her up. Something that would never happen.
The landlord noticed a note that was left, in lipstick, on the bathroom mirror "Please take care of
Tabatha, I love her". On the kitchen table was all of Tabatha's adoption paperwork and five
bowls of food and five bowls of water. Laura Zain came to get Tabatha and immediately knew
this would be a sensitive situation for the feline. Tabatha spent the next several months
with Laura and was nutured back to a normal lifestyle and had gained her trust in people.
Still sensitive to sudden moves, noise or other animals, Tabatha needed to be placed in a single
family home where it was quiet and without kids - as she does not like to have her feet leave the
ground! Today, Tabatha is in a very loving home, adjusting very well and recently was given a
playmate....another Tail Wagger's rescue - Steve (photo story above). Tabatha is now learning
to play, comes out more often, is still leary of people and not everyone is able to pet her.
She still has some issues (as a direct effect from the trauma) to resolve but is gaining ground
every day. Tabatha is one of the most heartbreaking stories of all time but will live out her
life being loved by so many. |
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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!
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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.
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Photo: Joni Byars
Photography 2009
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Lieutenent Columbo was in need of medical assistance when he was diagnosed with
diabetes. His owner was having difficulty purchasing his insulin – which was given twice a day –
and paying for his follow-up appointments and blood work on an every other week basis. The owner
found out about Tail Wagger’s in the newspaper and decided to give us a call.
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.
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| Niles and his owner had fallen on tough times and their request was
simple….they needed pet food. Tail Wagger’s has a “hassle free” policy – you need it, you get it!
When people fall upon hard times, the last thing they need or want is someone asking them income
questions or requesting copies of tax returns. Niles had gone a few days with very little food and
when Founder Laura Zain delivered bags of dog food and a box of Milk Bones to his home, Niles was
very happy! |
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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.
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