Maverick’s Story (Continued)

The impound manager was begging me to find a place for Maverick to go. He had been there since being picked up as a stray at the end of October, and had stayed there an extra two weeks waiting for the breeder to pick him up. In order to get Maverick out of the impound, the vet bill for his rabies vaccination and heartworm test had to be paid. In order to be boarded, he also had to have his other vaccinations and be bathed, de-wormed, and treated with Frontline Plus. I also had him microchipped before he left the impound. A man named Brett from the ACD-L offered to pay Maverick’s expenses. The breeder had offered to send a check for just the rabies vaccination and heartworm test. She wouldn’t call with a credit card number and we didn’t know if or when a check would arrive. So Brett paid Maverick’s expenses to spring him and get him on his way.

 

Tennessee Valley Cattle Dog Rescue offered to take Maverick in, if we could get him there. They had a lot of experience successfully and inexpensively treating heartworm. My friend Eileen started working on travel plans. Josie tried to work out a ground transport to Tennessee, but the weather wasn’t cooperating. By Tuesday, December 9th, I had worked out a temporary place here in Minnesota for Maverick to go. He could stay at my friend Becky’s place while we worked out a transport plan, but he had to go elsewhere before Christmas since my own dogs would be boarded at Becky’s over the holidays. I wanted to get him settled where he could get treated for the heartworm as soon as possible.

 

On December 9th, I picked Maverick up on my way home from work and delivered him to Becky’s place. He was doing well and was happy to come with me. Many goodbyes were said as he left the impound/vet clinic. He had made a few friends there.

 

The plan was to continue working on a transport plan to get Maverick to rescue in Tennessee. A woman named Karen who had heard about Maverick’s situation bought and donated a harness and travel kennel for the trip. It was too cold to plan on a commercial flight and I had never flown a dog before. The weather hadn’t been consistent enough to plan on filling a ground transport, but Eileen started working on a plan for a volunteer private flight transport from Minnesota to Tennessee. In the mean time, Maverick started having gastro-intestinal problems at Becky’s. With the change in environment and food, he started having diarrhea and vomiting. To help his system settle down, Becky got the same food that he’d been eating at the impound, even though we thought it was low quality. But by the end of the week, he had lost about 5 pounds and was very dehydrated. On Saturday morning, Becky and I had to take him to the vet for medication and subcutaneous fluids. The vet determined that he was just having G-I problems and didn’t find anything more. She sent medication and special food back with us. We could tell that the fluids were helping Maverick and he was feeling better already. I missed a book signing that day, but was glad to see that Maverick was doing better. Brett continued to pay Maverick’s bills, for which I was very grateful.

 

Since Maverick had trouble adjusting to the new environment, Eileen thought it would be best if he didn’t have to travel all the way to Tennessee. She continued trying to find a private flight for him, but also began looking for a Minnesota rescue and foster home. After much back and forth, she found a foster home in the same St. Paul metro area and a Minnesota rescue group to take him in. The rescue group has a 100% success rate for treating dogs with heartworm. Becky worked all that week to get Maverick back on solid food and get rid of his G-I issues. He sometimes didn’t want to eat unless Becky sat with him and fed him by hand. By the end of the week, he was doing better. On December 19th, she took him back to the vet, who was happy with his progress. On December 21st, Maverick went to his new foster home (with no other pets), where he bonded well with his new foster mom, Amy. She lost her elderly dog recently and has time to care for Maverick at home over the holidays. On December 30th, she’ll take him to the vet for his heartworm treatment. We have high hopes that he’ll do well. Once he’s successfully treated for heartworm and then neutered, he’ll be available for adoption to a great new home. The AuCaDo Rescue Fund paid his boarding bill and the 8 State Kate Fund paid for his food. What a fantastic team effort!

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