Veterinary Care for Nevada County Animals

Save a life!  Join us in helping provide medical care for sick or injured animals at the Nevada County Animal Shelter, thus making them adoptable and helping them find new homes.  We also support other disadvantaged animals in our community who might otherwise be euthanized or sent to the shelter.

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SAVE $$$ on SPAYING/
NEUTERING

Nevada County pet owners can get a certificate to reduce the cost of spaying and neutering their pets.  Save $60 for a female dog, $40 for a male dog, $30 for a female cat, and $15 for a male cat.

Certificates are available at the Nevada County Animal Shelter and are good at any vet.

Please be a responsible pet owner and save animals' lives by spaying or neutering your pet.

 

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Good News!

Tuesday, January 26, the Nevada County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to start negotiating with Sammie's Friends to operate the county Animal Shelter.

Read all about it in the Union

Adopt a new best friend through Sammie's Friends and Petfinder

FUNDS ARE URGENTLY NEEDED!  PLEASE HELP!

Sammie's Friends desperately needs your donations.  There are more animals than ever with serious problems that need help, and we are having a hard time finding the money that is needed.

On the Road with Chuck:
Read One Dog's Happy Tail


Just in time for Valentine's Day...
Fall in love with this pair of sweethearts!


Meet the boys - Oliver (white dog) and Bogie (brown dog).  Oliver is 2 years old and Bogie is 4 years old.  These two love to chase the ball and any other thing that flies through the air (i.e. frisbees), and each other.  They came to the shelter together, but can be adopted separately.  If you have some space with a good fenced yard, you might like to have them both.  They were brought to the shelter because they were chasing livestock, so life on the farm is not for them

Oliver and Bogie are getting a little stir-crazy at the shelter and need to get adopted.  Surely there is someone out there who would like one or both of these great dogs.

Check them out at the Nevada County Animal Shelter, 14647 McCourtney Road, Grass Valley.  Hours are 1 to 4, Monday through Saturday.  If you have questions, you can call Ruth at 530-470-2707 or Cheryl at 530-272-8833.

Watch a You Tube video of Bogie and Oliver playing together at the shelter.

Feel the love!  Happy Valentine's Day from Oliver, Bogie, and all of us at Sammie's Friends.

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~ In Memoriam ~

Destiny,
    Hobbit,
             and Wilma



Destiny, the beloved dog of Cheryl and Curt of Sammie's Friends, passed over the Rainbow Bridge on October 15, 2009 at the age of 14.  Destiny became a beloved member of our family 10 years ago when her family in Oakland divorced and left her behind.

Destiny was a sassy, spunky, spicy girl and loved her runs out in Empire Mines.  She will be loved forever and ever.  Destiny leaves behind her family, Teddy and Monnie, the canines; Billy, the feline; Cheryl and Curt, her people, and her very special Aunt Vici.

Hobbit, the dearly beloved horse of Kris Van Roos, passed over the Rainbow Bridge on July 30, 2009 at the age of 24.  She died suddenly of an aneurysm.  Kris had the pleasure and delight of her companionship for 19 years, and has lost a very dear friend.  The Van Roos family misses Hobbit very much.  Kris says, "Her memory will live forever with our family.  There will never be another horse in my life like Hobbit.  She has taught me so much."

Cheryl and Curt of Sammie's Friends will hold all of them in our prayers.  Our condolences to Kris and her family for their loss of this extraordinary friend.

Wilma, the beloved cat of Cheryl and Curt of Sammie's Friends, passed over the Rainbow Bridge on August 7, 2009.  Wilma was adopted from the Nevada County Animal Shelter six years ago.  She appeared to be old and sick at the time, but with a little veterinary care she became a well and extraordinary cat.

Wilma was our delightful family member for six years.  She walked every morning on her leash with her pit bull friend, Teddy, also from the shelter.  She often accompanied Cheryl to service clubs, schools, and events, and was always the life of the party, making a point to meet everyone.  We miss her.  We love her.  She will be in our hearts and prayers forever.  Wilma leaves behind her family, Billy, the feline; Teddy, Destiny and Monnie, the canines; and Cheryl and Curt, her people.

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Animals Who Need Our Help

This precious little puppy, Sierra, only about 9 weeks old, had a door closed on her leg and her leg was broken.  This little creature is about the cutest thing Sammie's Friends has ever seen.  How could we not help this darling little girl?  She had on a little silver collar with big rhinestones, and makes the cutest little noises.

Dr. Strolle at Best Friends fixed her leg in spite of the storm and the electricity going off as the surgery was just about completed.  Sierra will recuperate with her family for about a month, and then she will be good as new.  It was a blessing to get to know someone this precious.


 

 

This poor kitty, Camo, was brought to the vet not eating or drinking, and her owners thought she had gotten into some poison.  She was hiding in the closet.

It turns out she had a broken jaw.  No wonder she couldn't eat or drink and was hiding!  The good doctors at Grass Valley Vet fixed her jaw, and Camo is on the mend.




 

My name is Max.  I was so matted up, I couldn't even go to the bathroom through my hair.  What a disaster!  The nice folks at River Dogs shaved me down, and now I am much happier.  I have to wear a sweater through the rest of the winter, cuz I have no hair and I'm gonna freeze without a sweater.  Thanks, Sammie's Friends, for helping me out.



Pig is a little Yorkie who came to me with a broken jaw.  Her family had not cared for her well.  They let her out to go to the bathroom and when she returned the next morning, she had a severely broken jaw.  Thanks to Dr. Nolet at Pine Creek, who worked late into the night, little Pig got her jaw fixed and was spayed.  Hopefully she will be better cared for in the future.  Glad we could help Pig.


These two animals represent the sad part of what we do.  This poor sheltie was picked up by Animal Control and brought to the shelter in such bad condition that her organs were failing her.  Sammie's Friends paid for her to receive medical care, but ultimately it was determined that she would not be able to be saved and so, sadly, she was euthanized.  Had she had even reasonable care from her owner, she would not have gotten into this deplorable condition.  She was only four years old.

This poor kitty was picked up by Animal Control after being hit by a car.  Sammie's Friends paid for her to receive medical care.  At first it was thought that she might recover use of her hindquarters.  Traditional veterinary medicine was used, as well as acupuncture.  She was unable to go to the bathroom on her own or to use her back end, and after trying for several days, she was also sadly euthanized.  I wish someone had cared for their kitty better.

These two animals deserved better than this.  Sadly, these two were euthanized without even a name to claim as their own.  These cases make Sammie very sad.



 

 

Maxie is a 10-year-old pitbull mix who had an enormous tumor on her chest.  The tumor was about the size of a canteloupe.  It was so large the dog could no longer walk properly.  Poor Maxie.  The tumor should have been removed at least three years ago, but better late than never.  It turned out to be a glob of fat.  Maxie will be fine.


 

Porch had one of the worst abscesses I have ever seen.  It was big and huge and hard and the poor kitty could hardly swallow.  He also had some infection.  Porch had surgery and is good to go.


 

 

Tippy is an 11-year-old sheltie mix, weighing about 60 pounds.  Tippy had a large growth under her right front leg.  It needed to be removed.  Tippy is doing much better now.


Lady is a dog who was found by a man while she was running back and forth in the road, nearly getting hit about five times.  Her ears were so badly infected that Dr. Avery couldn't even get a look in them with his otoscope.  First he had to give her medication to try to take the inflammation down a little, and then wait about a week to anesthetize her and clean out her ears.

Lady is currently having her ears regularly medicated.  We hope she will be O.K.  She had no identification on her.  Come on, people, put an ID on your dog so it can be returned should it become lost.



Poor Bruiser was on the lam with his lady friend and got pretty badly beaten up by another dog.  He looked like he'd been in a barroom brawl.  It turns out that his wounds were fairly superficial, and he is going to be all right.  We think his lady friend was in heat and another fella thought she was pretty cute.  Did you know most dog fights take place between unaltered animals?  Another reason to spay and neuter.


My name is Chopper.  I'm a 2-year-old purebred Pitbull.  I'm a good boy.  I have lived with other dogs, large and small, and got along with them.  I lived with two children, ages 4 and 9, and cuddled with them and loved them.

My guardian is devastated, as am I, that I had to come and stay at the shelter.  Times are tough, and due to a move, there was no place for me.  I want to cry whenever I think about my family.  I'm trying to "suck it up" and be happy in spite of my bad luck.

To make matters worse, I'm deaf.  Ugh!  I do pretty well with hand signals.  I get a little testy when other animals try to eat my food, so it's best to feed me separately.  How hard could it be to feed me separately?  Not very.

I've now been neutered, got my shots, and been treated for heartworms.  Sammie's Friends and Scooter's Pals split the bill for me.  I'm good to go now.  Please come get me.  I am at the Grass Valley Animal Shelter, 530-477-4630.  You can also call Cheryl Wicks at Sammie's Friends if you have questions (530-272-8833).  She's my agent and my pal.


Mama Kitty, Mollie, came to the shelter with three kittens.  They all went to a foster home.  At 8 weeks the kittens were big enough to be spayed/neutered and returned to the shelter.  MaMa was sick and couldn't be spayed until she was better.  Dr. Dekker at Grass Valley Vet removed one foot of her intestines as they were leaking, and the waste of course was toxic and poisoning her.  She would have been dead in about another day without help from Sammie's Friends.

The condition that the kitty had is called intussusception.  Intussusception is the sliding or telescoping of the intestine within itself.  It occurs primarily in the small intestine but may occasionally occur in the large intestine.  When the intestine slides within itself, the blood supply to that section is greatly reduced, and the tissue begins to swell and then die.  The entire process can occur rapidly, which makes early detection and treatment essential.

Mama Kitty, Mollie, lost a lot of weight and was so skinny.  She is currently in a foster home fattening up.  She is doing great and will soon be back at the Nevada County Animal Shelter and up for adoption.  Everyone who meets  her says she is a very sweet kitty and will make a wonderful pet for someone.


 

Bambina had a fractured femur from an accident and desperately needed help right away.  Dr. Van Geem at Mother Lode fixed her up, and even decorated her leg for Halloween!  Pretty cool, eh?


This poor little black kitty came to the veterinarian with a broken jaw and broken tail.  He had been hit by a motorcycle and is around 8 to 10 weeks old.  He had his jaw fixed and his tail amputated, and in no time was up and around and has now been adopted.  Without Sammie's Friends he would have been euthanized.  We are grateful to the person who found him along the roadside and brought him to the vet.


Rafiki is a Nevada County Animal Control kitty.  Rafiki is a very young manx kitty who was found in poor condition with maggots on his rear end.  He was cleaned up, and it was discovered that he was having a hard time pooping on his own.  (This is not that unusual for a manx.)

He is now on a special diet, Metamucil and antibiotics that hopefully will resolve this problem.  Rafiki has learned to rub up against the wall with his bottom to stimulate himself so that he poops.  Pretty smart for a nine-week-old kitten.  Hopefully, this can get resolved so that Rafiki can be adopted.




Nutter Butter is a chihuahua who was hit by a car, because her owner did not have her on a leash.  She was the second chihuahua in the same day hit by a car.  Nutter Butter had a broken hip and a hernia, and needs to be spayed.  Dr. Van Geem at Mother Lode performed his magic on her, and she is now recovering nicely.  Sammie's Friends is definitely interested in donations to help pay for this surgery.



 

ChiChi is a Nevada County Animal Control doggie.  He is a little chihuahua who had really bad teeth and needed to have them cared for in order to be adopted.  ChiChi is now in his new home and doing fine.  Donations are welcome to help pay for this bill.




UPDATE ON THE THREE HORSES RESCUED BY SAMMIE'S FRIENDS

Earlier this year, Sammie's Friends rescued three horses who were nearly starved to death.  All were in terrible condition.  One of them, Arial, has been adopted.  The other two horses are also doing very well, and will be available for adoption.

Mariah is now completely at normal weight.  She is in good shape, has seen a vet and had a dental.  She is extremely beautiful.  Mariah is undergoing some training and will make a great horse for someone.  Mariah is a mustang rounded up by the BLM when she was one year old.  She is now nine.  She received sporadic training and was rideable by an experienced horse person.  We are now filling in the holes in her training, and believe her skill will soon match her beauty.

If you're interested in Mariah, please call Sammie's Friends at 530-272-8833.


Queenie is now a completely normal weight and very beautiful.  She was so close to starving to death when we rescued her in February that she could hardly get into the trailer.  She struts her stuff now.  Queenie is an older horse and would be best as a pasture pal for someone.  She has been seen by a vet and has had a dental.  She is in good shape.

If you are interested in adopting Queenie, please call Sammie's Friends at 530-272-8833.


Kayla had close to 200 foxtails embedded in her body from going to the river.  She had them between her toes, in her armpits, ears, eyes, vagina, and anywhere else a foxtail could burrow in.  A foxtail is like a barbed wire; once it has burrowed into the skin, it cannot easily be removed.  In Kayla's case, she had to be anesthetized so that the veterinarian could remove them.

Fortunately, Sammie's Friends was there to help, as the owner did not have funds to help the dog and was desperate.  The dog was in an immense amount of pain.  Although foxtail removal wouldn't normally be that expensive, once an anesthetic is required, the cost goes up by hundreds of dollars.  Please help Kayla by making a donation.



This poor kitty, appropriately named Foxy, was found and brought to the shelter.  He had over 225 foxtails embedded in his body.  As well, he was pooping and puking worms from both ends.  It took the veterinarian and staff an entire afternoon to help this poor kitty.  Is this the most disgusting, sad story you could ever imagine?  Fortunately, one of the kind shelter volunteers has taken him home while he recovers.


Every penny of your donation to Sammie's Friends goes directly to help Nevada County Animals.  Please help by donating online through PayPal, or by mailing a check to the address below.

Sammie's Friends
a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation
128 High Street
Grass Valley, CA 95945
(530) 272-8833
info@sammiesfriends.org