Things are looking up {we hope}!
We have several awesome adoption applications in & we need help with these home visits. No worries if you’ve never done a home visit before, we will be glad to walk you through the process.
Home visits needed are:
Richmond, VA (23220)
Richmond, VA (23233)
Philadelphia, PA (19143)
Email us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com if you can assist!
As most of you already know, 5 of our Precious Gems have already crossed over Rainbow Bridge. Jade, Coral, Ruby, Jasper & Peridot are still so loved & absolutely not forgotten.
The 3 Precious Gems who have made it – Micah, Sapphire & Amber – are tough, sweet, spunky babies.
Micah and Sapphire are totally back to normal – racing around their foster home, getting into trouble, and eating/drinking/pooping normally. Thank Heavens!
Miss Amber is still a bit puny, but we definitely feel as if she has been on the mend, too.
Amber went to the vet for a checkup today as she had developed some upper respiratory symptoms that she just couldn’t kick, even with the mega doses of antibiotics that she has been on through parvo treatment. Our primary concern was that she might have an upper respiratory infection and we did not want it to develop into pneumonia.
A check by the primary vet and an x-ray & EKG confirmed that Amber does not have pneumonia. Unfortunately, it appears that she has a dysrythmia called a heart block (this means that her heart skips a beat). This type of heart failure is often a side effect of parvo in young puppies (Jade & Ruby also had symptoms of heart failure before they passed). In Amber’s case, the top of the heart beats but the bottom (which is what does the blood pumping) does not work as well. This makes her heart really inefficient.
{Amber’s x-ray from today}
Unfortunately Amber’s case is not exactly cut-and-dry. We talked about the option of going ahead and having her humanely euthanized, but the truth is that she feels so much better that she has in the last few days. She is bright, happy, sitting up and walking on her own, wagging her little tail, eating, drinking and even pooping normally. There is a chance that despite our best efforts, we will still lose this little girl. But there is also a chance that she could live.
{results from Amber’s EKG today}
Amber might need heart meds for the rest of her life, but we feel certain that we can find an extra special home for this extra special girl if she can get past this. After speaking with the vet and her treating foster we made the decision to go ahead and give this baby girl a chance. She is starting on some heart meds today (vetmedin & benazepril) to help make hear heart more efficient, and is also on a stronger antibiotic.
We are close to our goal on the Precious Gem puppy’s ChipIn, and are so thankful to Saige and her vet for working with us to be able to treat this entire litter at a SIGNIFICANT discount. Actually, thankful doesn’t even begin to explain how we feel — humbled & overwhelmed with gratefulness is more like it.
If you’re interested in donating directly to Amber, Micah or Sapphire’s continued care – you can do so via their chipin here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/jade-and-corals-parvo-treatment
Donations can also be mailed in – just email us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com for our snail mail address.
& THANK YOU: to each of you who have prayed for, sent positive vibes for, donated to, or asked about these babies – thank you! We are so thankful to have been able to bring this litter into rescue and to love on them as much as possible before they came down with parvo. Even when sick, we feel thankful to have been able to provide the best possible care to each of them thanks to your donations. Again, thankful doesn’t even begin to describe how we feel. But thank you!
It’s officially the worst rescue week (or two weeks) that Bonnie Blue Rescue has ever have. So bad, in fact, that it’s hard to know where to start.
We love what we do – rescuing pups, fostering them, loving on them, putting families together – it’s the best.
But weeks like this really stop you in your tracks.
In the past week we have been hit with more emergency veterinary bills than ever before. All in one week. We are close to $10,000 in the hole overall; and this is before we factor in Fritz’s urgent care bills for the next few days AND Flash’s neurologist emergency care bills from tonight/tomorrow. We have no idea how we are going to make that amount up. Even on our best fundraising days, that is an incredible amount to have to raise.
It is likely that our rescue will never be able to bounce back from these devastating veterinary bills.
We hope to be able to pay off our substantial debts and bring more dogs into rescue again one day, but for now we have to focus on fundraising for the pups that we have already committed to and doing whatever we can to get them healthy.
We are shutting down intake at Bonnie Blue Rescue indefinitely.
We will not be pulling any additional dogs for rescue, taking in any owner surrenders, or assisting other rescues by taking on their dogs. We will, of course, stand by the dogs were currently have in rescue and continue to working on rehoming, fostering, and finding the best fit for each of the pups currently in rescue. Over the last two years, we have averaged rescuing 18-20 dogs per month. It is devastating to realize that that many pups per month will not make it out of the shelter while we work on fundraising for our emergency bills. Heartbroken doesn’t begin to explain how we feel.
If you are interested in chipping in, our most urgent needs are assistance with Flash & Fritz’s emergency vet care. Both boys are currently in round-the-clock care; Fritz with parvo and Flash with seizures that are not stopping.
Flash’s ChipIn: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/flashs-emergency-care
Fritz’s ChipIn: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/fritz-the-fuzzbutt
If you would like more information about each of our pups & what’s going on with them — please keep reading.
The most recent updates on each of these pups will be found on their individual ChipIn pages above or on our blog at http://bonniebluerescue.wordpress.com
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It might be easier to break it down by pup to explain just how crazy our week has been:
Zoe was transported to CT to her new rock star foster mom just last week. Though it had been almost a week since her spay surgery, her foster mom noticed that she was not healing well. A trip to the vet determined that she needed surgery the next day. Her internal sutures were infected and she needed to have them removed; infected tissue from her spay surgery had to be cut away. Even with our rescue discount, Zoe’s bill was $251.47. Zoe & Patches have a join ChipIn here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/zoe-and-patches
Patches has been living the good life in foster care. He even has an adoptive family who is so anxious to bring him home. This past weekend during his last weekend at home with his foster family, Patches got into a hive of yellow jackets. His face started swelling immediately and vomiting started right after. His foster family rushed him to the ER vet, but they had to run a CBC and Lyme panel before they could treat him as his lymph nodes were very swollen and his temp was very high. The swollen lymph nodes could just be from the shock of multiple stings, or could be a tick-borne disease. Unfortunately, we were told that that determination greatly affects the treatment plan so he had to wait for those results to come in. CBC looks normal, lyme panel looks normal & lymph swelling likely just due to multiple stings. Patches is finally on the mend and went home that night. Patches ER vet visit cost $339. Patches & Zoe have a joint ChipIn set up here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/zoe-and-patches
Flash is one of the Fuzzbutt pups. He was transported north to MD to meet his foster-to-adopt family this past weekend. They were so excited to bring this cute guy home that they drove an extra 4 hours just to pick him up a day early. Within 48 hours of his arrival, Flash was a very sick pup. Vomiting and diarrhea started first and just a general feeling of “yuck”. He was take to the foster-to-adopt family’s ER in MD to get checked out and was treated with antibiotics, subq fluids and anti-nausea meds. His parvo test was negative and his poop was too watery to get a clear fecal sample. He came home from the ER vet that night, but felt crummy enough the next day that he went back to the regular vet for another checkup. Flash spent the next night at the regular vet on IV fluids, antibiotics, etc. The regular vet determined that it was likely just a virus/bacterial infection that had to run its course. Flash went home the next day and was back to being a normal, playful puppy. One day later, Flash started having violent seizures complete with facial weakness and excessive drooling. Understandably, his family was very concerned. A call into their vet had Flash on the road to a neurologist that morning. Though countless tests have been run, the vets still have no idea what might be causing the seizures other than the initial virus/viral infection. Thankfully, the seizures had subsided considerably since Friday. Flash was sent back home on Sunday. We got a message from his foster-to-adopt dad a few hours ago – Flash’s seizures are back and they are almost continuous right now. He is currently at the emergency vet/neurologists office and they are working rapidly to stabilize Flash. His estimate for stabilization and overnight care is $508. Flash’s vet bills from the last week have been $409 to the ER vet, $951.81 to primary vet, and $2178.28 to the veterinary neurologist – totaling $4047.09. Flash has an individual ChipIn set up here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/flashs-emergency-care
Fritz is one of the Fuzzbutt puppies who was fostered in the same home as Flash. Fritz has been digging his time in foster care in CT, meeting lots of fun people and pups to play with. A couple of days ago, Fritz started feeling a little puny but after dewormer, metronidazole and a gentler food he perked right up! Fritz felt pretty sick again on Friday, so we got him into the vet for a general check up. Subq fluids and metronidazole worked wonders and he was back to 100% normal on Saturday. By Sunday he was much worse and was admitted to the ER vet. He stay there for two nights and then moved to another 24/7 vet clinic today. To date our bills for Fritz are $1600 for Sunday/Monday & an additional $1500-2000 per 24 hour period that he is there. Fritz has an individual ChipIn set up here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/fritz-the-fuzzbutt
We wish that this was the end of our “bad week”, but it’s not. 
One of our very special adopted pups, the Duke of Cadbury, passed away very unexpectedly over the weekend. His family is just devastated, and our hearts are broken with them. We are so thankful that he found his forever family and got to spend a few amazing months with them before crossing over Rainbow Bridge. Rest in peace, sweet Duke boy.
Sweet Tootsie from Louisiana came down unexpectedly with distemper this weekend, she was humanely euthanized over the weekend. We are crushed for her foster family and the adoptive family who will never get to meet this extra special girl, but we are so, so thankful that she got to spend three weeks in foster care learning all about being LOVED.
Several other BBR pups in Louisiana are showing upper respiratory symptoms. We are beyond hopeful that it’s something as simple as kennel cough, but are getting each of them in for distemper testing this week. We cannot take any risks.
We have said goodbye to Jade, Coral, Ruby, Jasper & Peridot, 5 of our Precious Gem puppies over the last week. Thankfully the other 3 pups from this litter seem to be really on the mend. They are walking around, playful and are starting to eat again. Yay!
Don’t get us wrong – good things are happening, too. We’ve made some amazing puppy placements over the last few weeks & we have even more pups heading to forever homes this weekend. We have shy pups who have come out of their shells this week, dogs finishing heartworm treatment and feeling great, and sick puppies who are finally starting to bounce back. We try to focus on the good as much as we can, but this bad week has really beaten us down.
I think I can speak for most everyone with Bonnie Blue Rescue when I say that we don’t want to end on this note. We love rescue – we love what we do. But financially, we cannot keep it up like this. Can you help us dig out from under this enormous emergency vet bill debt? Donations of any amount are always greatly appreciated. If you’d prefer mailing in a check to snail mail, just email us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com and we’ll send our mailing address your way.
And please, consider sharing our story, blog post or facebook post with family, friends & coworkers. You would be amazed to know how much of an impact crossposting really makes. Thank you in advance for your continued support and willingness to help us get the word out on our super sick pups.
05/30/12 – 3:00pm Update: Our Flash guy is still hanging in there, but is also still a very sick pup. With mega doses of pheno & diazepam, his seizures stabilized last night. Unfortunately they started again today. Thankfully, his temperature is coming down (it had reached a high of 105 yesterday). We are praying for his treating neurologist to use his best judgement and to guide Glen, Therese & BBR in making the best decisions possible for the continued treatment of this sweet boy.
05/29/12 – 10:45pm Update: Flash is back at the neurologist’s office overnight. He is not yet stable. Despite very high doses if IV phenobarbital and diazepam, Flash is still seizing. We are beyond hopeful that the vets can get his seizures under control soon. Flash’s estimate for stabilization and overnight care tonight is $508. Please, please stabilize Flash — we need your little body to start healing, buddy! Extra prayers & well-wishes are definitely needed
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Meet Flash.
Flash is one of the Fuzzbutt puppies. He and his littermates were rescued from a high kill shelter in rural Louisiana. He was fostered in the same home as Fritz. Both Flash & Fritz received 3 rounds of DHPP vaccines prior to transport. Flash was transported to his foster-to-adopt family the weekend before last. Prior to transport. Flash was a totally healthy, happy pup. He acted fine during transport, no loose stool or vomiting at all. Within 48 hours of arriving in his new home, Flash started getting sick with vomiting and diarrhea. From Monday, 5/21 until Sunday 5/27, Flash was tested for parvo 2 times; both came back negative. He was seen first by an ER vet, who administered subq fluids, antibiotics, anti-nausea meds and anti-diarrheal meds. He perked up for a day or so, but then felt crummy again.
Flash was taken back to the regular vet where he stayed for two days – he was given IV fluids, continued on antibiotics and anti-nausea/anti-diarrheal meds; his loose diagnosis was a bacterial infection, but nothing definitive. Flash started feeling much better and got to head home.
Towards the end of last week Flash started having excessive drooling, facial drooping and seizures. He was seen by a veterinary neurologist and had tons of blood work and an abdominal ultrasound done. He stayed there for three days to get his seizures mostly under control (he still was having minor seizures, but not major ones). We have ruled out parvo, distemper, and various other diseases but still lack a definitive diagnosis.
Thankfully, Flash has been at home with his family for the last two days – living the good life snuggling with his foster-to-adopt mom & dad.
We just got an update from Flash’s dad that he is having back-to-back seizures again.
His family is rushing him back to the vet now. We are hopeful that the new seizures are caused by the oral phenobarbital not being “in” is system enough yet (while the IV pheno is wearing off). But we honestly don’t know what is going on with this sweet boy.
We really hope the vets can figure it out this time.
Flash is a very sick pup who is in great need of prayers, well wishes, and good positive vibes.
He has a family who SO adores him & just wants their puppy to get better.
He has a whole rescue community behind him who has loved his fuzzy face since we first saw it — we want this puppy to get better, too.
Flash’s vet bills before today total $3539.09. I really wish we were kidding. We’re not.
Copies of Flash’s vet bills from the last week can be found below.
Neurologist bill: http://bit.ly/MWiixe
Primary veterinarian bill: http://bit.ly/LD2Qkp
Emergency vet bill: http://bit.ly/JThS4i
We do not yet have an estimate on Flash’s treatment today, but both the neurologist and regular vet are recommending that he go back to the neurologist’s office ASAP. He is on his way now with his family. We will post new estimate’s for today’s treatment once they are received.
Posting this fundraiser could not come at a worse possible time, but the reality of the situation is that things are stacking up against Bonnie Blue Rescue this week. We are overwhelmed financially, but we are committed to seeing our pups through no matter what.
Please help us stay afloat by considering even a small donation for Flash’s impressive vet bill. Every single donation matters, no matter the amount. Our rescue is sinking fast in vet bills, but we are desperate to make sure that each of our sick pups continues to receive the very best care possible.
Donations can be made online via Chipin here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/flashs-emergency-care
If you would prefer mailing in a donation please email us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com for the best mailing address.
And, as always, thank you, thank you, thank you for your continued support of Bonnie Blue Rescue and our special pups.
Fritz update: After 15 ish hours at the ER vet, Fritz is still feeling “dumpy” (the word our awesome vet Dr. Turner used to describe him). They have started a more aggressive form of antibiotic treatment, anti-nausea meds, anti-diarrheal meds and IV fluids and he is definitely much brighter today than last night. Fritz had a set of x-rays done today just to rule out any intestinal blockage or other issues — x-rays came back great, thank goodness. After another round of diarrhea, Dr. Turner opted to run another parvo snap test on Fritz. This one came back positive. SHIT! Fritz received 3 DHPP vaccines prior to transport and was quarantined for 4-5 weeks before transport — there is no way that he should have picked up parvovirus at this point. Yet, he’s tested positive.
After a long chat with the vet, we are both concerned that what we may be seeing is a new version of the parvovirus. That’s super scary. Fritz will definitely be spending at least one more night at the ER vet and then transferring back to our regular vet tomorrow once they reopen, assuming he is stable. We have updated Fritz’s ChipIn to reflect what we anticipate our new estimate to be. Any donation, no matter how small, would be a wonderful help to our rescue. Our ship is sinking with all of these sick pups.
Updated ChipIn here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/fritz-the-fuzzbutt
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Fritz is one of the Fuzzbutt puppies who came to rescue from Louisiana. He has been loving his time in foster care in CT, meeting lots of fun people and pups to play with. A couple of days ago, Fritz started feeling a little puny but after dewormer, metronidazole and a gentler food he perked right up!
Unfortunately, Fritz felt pretty sick again on Friday, so we got him into the vet for a general check up just to make sure that everything was a-okay. Subq fluids and metronidazole worked wonders and he was back to 100% normal on Saturday.
On Sunday, Fritz just wasn’t feeling like himself again. By Sunday evening he started feeling really puny again. Fritz’s foster mom definitely felt like a trip to the ER vet was in order. We’re so glad that he was able to get in this evening as he was starting to get dehydrated and is definitely lethargic. We have a very sick puppy on our hands, but we are so hopeful that this sweet guy will feel better soon.
Thankfully we have already ruled out parvo & distemper — we think he may just have a virus or viral infection that he cannot kick without a little help.
Our estimate for Fritz’s overnight care tonight alone is $1300 (low end estimate)-$1600 (high end estimate).
The other several thousand of dollars in emergency vet bills that we have received this week has put Bonnie Blue in a very tough spot financially. We have nothing left in our Bonnie Blue Rescue Emergency Fund or in general funds to pay Fritz’s bill. To be honest, we don’t know what to do except beg and plead for help. We are stretched beyond belief with this many sick pups — but Fritz is just as deserving as all of the other pups — he deserves a chance to receive the best vet care possible & to get well.
As much as we hate to continue asking for help, we also realize that we cannot handle this many emergencies in one week on our own.
We are begging our rescue friends, facebook friends, past adopters, fosters, and followers to consider even a small donation to help offset the cost of Fritz’s emergency vet visit tonight.
How to donate: Donations can be called in directly to the Shoreline Emergency Vet Clinic (open 24/7) at: 203.929.8600 (account under Bonnie Blue Rescue) or can be made online via ChipIn at: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/fritz-the-fuzzbutt
Check this out: Fritz’s estimate from the ER vet
Oh, Jade
You wiggled into our hearts the first time we met you and/or saw your photos.
Your scruffy face, sweet licks, and adorable gray/green eyes melted us.
We are heartbroken that we will not get to help you find your forever family on this side of heaven, sweet girl, but we are buoyed by the fact that you are now running free, healthy, and happy at Rainbow Bridge.
Rest in peace, sweet baby.
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The rest of our “Precious Gem” puppies are still fighting against parvo. Please consider making a small donation in memory of Jade to allow us to continue to provide them with the best possible care and treatment. We are doing everything we can to keep treatment costs low, but the bills are still adding up with 8 puppies exposed and being treated for parvo. Even the smallest donation makes a big difference to our small rescue.
ChipIn here: http://bonniebluerescue.chipin.com/jade-and-corals-parvo-treatment
Fritz is the lone fuzzbutt who is still looking for his forever family.
We just can’t believe that this amazing, gorgeous, sweet young dude hasn’t been scooped up yet!
Fritz is a 13-week old “fuzzbutt” mix.
His momma is a lab mix & his daddy is a giant question mark!
Our best guess is shepherd mix, based on the coloring of his littermates.
This little dude is happy & social. He is totally ready to find his forever family.
If you would like to adopt Fritz, please email us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com for a copy of our adoption application.
Fritz is currently being fostered in Derby, CT, but transport can be arranged anywhere in the continental US.
Jade, Coral, Micah, Jasper, Sapphire, Peridot, Amber & Ruby (our “Precious Gems”) were all rescued in the nick of time from a high-kill shelter in rural Alabama. These sweeties headed right to a rock-star foster momma named Ronda who promised us to spoil and love them to pieces. Unfortunately, after just a few hours with Ronda we noticed that some of the pups were feeling puny. Jade was not as playful as the other pups, but we figured she was just feeling off from her big trip to foster care and the change in scenery. The pups were dewormed and snuggled and tucked in for the night. On Sunday, Jade and Coral were both feeling “off”. They were separated from their littermates and given extra TLC. They went to the vet on Monday for a checkup and were diagnosed with coccidia, giardia & tracheitis (upper respiratory infection). All of the pups went home with meds. Jade & Coral were still not feeling better by this morning & then went back to the vet. A snap test showed that both were testing positive for parvo.
In these cases we greatly rely on our rescue friends & supporters to help continue treatment for pups in need.Meet our newest babies – our litter of precious gems.
Rescued from a high-kill shelter in rural Alabama, these babies were in desperate need of rescue when we learned about them. They are now safely tucked away in an Alabama foster home.
They are younger than we initially thought – probably closer to 5-6 weeks. We have no idea what they are mixed with – looking at the litter we can see catahoula/aussie, weim, lab, and even terrier & heeler. So — who knows! They are definitely an all-American mix!
* * *
{Amber}
* * *
{Coral}
* * *
{Jasper}
* * *
{Peridot}
* * *
{Micah}
* * *
{Jade}
* * *
{Ruby}
* * *
& last, but definitely not least … sweet Sapphire {photos coming soon!}
* * *
These little sweeties will be up for adoption in several weeks once they are totally healthy and have two rounds of puppy vaccines under their belts. If you are interested in going ahead and submitting an application to foster or adopt one of these little bits, email us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com.
We look forward to hearing from you!
It’s official — we absolutely have the best volunteers on the planet!
78 of them (& counting), in fact.
Yup, you read that right.
SEVENTY-EIGHT incredible volunteers to helped move Bonnie Blue Rescue pups safely to their forever and/or foster families this weekend.
With the help of these amazing transporters, volunteers, foster parents, overnighters, and sending rescuers, a grand total of TWENTY-TWO Bonnie Blue Rescue pups hit the road this weekend!
Wow-ee!
Cricket, Wall-E, Eva, Jake,
Sophie, Fig, Flash, Fergie
Friar Tuck, Fonzi, Felix,
AND Macie, Cajun, Christopher, Rose & Tilly all met their forever families this weekend.
Does it get better than that? We think not!
And sweet Fritz, Cecelia, Collins, Chloe, Zoe & Gracie all made it safely to Bonnie Blue Rescue foster families.
We hope their forever families will find them soon!
For everyone who drove, fostered, overnighted, crossposted, sent good vibes and prayers for this transport — thank you! We appreciate you more than you could possibly know.
To those interested in learning about how to be a transport driver contact us at bonniebluerescue@gmail.com — we’d love to tell you all about how our transport process works & we are always looking for new volunteers.
