Sammie's Friends

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Animals Helped by Sammie's Friends
in 2009

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. You can call Cheryl Wicks at Sammie's Friends if you have questions (530-471-5041). 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 530-471-5041.

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 530-471-5041.

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.

Riley was a beautiful draft horse born to a Premarin mare. She was a scraggly filly when she came to Grass Valley as a baby. She was raised with gentle kindness and became an outstanding horse. This precious horse had an abscess that became infected. The veterinarians from both Loomis and Davis were stumped by what caused her condition. It was so severe, and had gone into the joint and bone, and Riley was in a lot of pain. Ultimately, she was euthanized.

Her owners were devastated and so very upset. She was their pride and joy, and they took such good care of her. The owners were left with a $10,000 bill to pay. Sammie's Friends has helped some, but that is an awfully big bill. If anyone would like to donate to help Riley, please send a check to Sammie's Friends, 14647 McCourtney Road, Grass Valley, CA 95949, or donate through Paypal. Our thoughts are with Riley and her human and horse family. So very sad. UPDATE: Generous donors helped pay off this family's vet bill. Thank you from all of us.

The Sad Saga of 10 Starving Horses

Sammie's Friends, working with Animal Control and Rocking Horse Ranch, was able to help in the rescue of 10 starving horses. Eight of them were Gypsy Vanners and two of them were Percherons. These horses had not had enough to eat and were literally starving to death. Their hooves were in desperate need of trimming. They had lice and they had worms.

Rocking Horse Ranch took them in until they could be stabilized. Sammie's Friends paid for vet care and a farrier, and Animal Control saw to it that the horses were seized and now placed in proper homes. This was a good example of several organizations working together to help the animals to a good conclusion.

The sad part to the story is that one of the horses, McKie, was too far gone and had to be euthanized. We all had a broken heart over that.

Click here for pictures and more information about the starving horses. UPDATE: The surviving horses are all doing great in their new homes!

Poor little Kekoe was a 9-week-old Queensland Heeler mix with parvo. He nearly died, but has recovered. Parvo is a very bad disease that attacks puppies. If you own a puppy, he should not be out walking around until he has had all 3 DHPP shots. Puppies do not have full immunity until they have had all 3 shots. The parvo virus is picked up from the ground when another dog has had the virus on its feet and passed it along.

Please please please do not take your dogs out walking until they are properly vaccinated.

Kekoe has a great new home.

Angel was hit by a car. Her leg was so badly mangled that it could not be repaired, so it had to be amputated. She is doing well with her three legs and getting around just fine. Please keep your doggies and kitties out of harm's way.

Corky was a 4-month-old pug-chihuahua mix who had parvo. He was very sick, and puppies without veterinary care will die from this dreadful disease. We have seen way too many puppies with parvo this year. Your puppy needs to receive vaccinations shortly after being weaned, and every 3 weeks after that until the pup is 4 months old. The shots are relatively inexpensive and treatment for parvo is very expensive. Please vaccinate your puppy.

This little kitty was found hanging by a mangled leg in a bush by a nice man. The poor kitty had been screaming for so long that she had lost her voice. Her leg was so mangled and infected that it had to be amputated.

She turned out to be such a cool kitty that the vet, Dr. Avery of For the Love of Pets, found a home for the kitty with his mom. Ultimately there was no charge to Sammie's Friends, and everyone was happy with the outcome. Thanks to everyone who helped the kitty.

Spike the Border Collie was picked up as a stray with a dislocated hip. This was one of the rare times that the vet was able to get the hip back in place without surgery. This of course meant a much smaller vet bill. This is always good news for Sammie's Friends.

While Spike was at For the Love of Pets, a wonderful lady saw him and went straight to the shelter and adopted him. This is a good news story all around. Yeah!

Fred was a very young cattle dog who stuck his nose through the fence where a Rottweiller lived. (The Rottie was on his own property, so it was not the fault of the Rott's owner.) Fred nearly got his nose bitten off. Truly, had any more time been wasted, the tissue on his nose would have become necrotic (dead), and Fred would have died. Dr. Tim Van Geem at Mother Lode once again performed his magic, and Fred is O.K. Fred belonged to a woman living in a domestic violence shelter with two small children and with no money. Fred is O.K. and currently staying in a kennel.

This is the kind of heartbreaking stuff Sammie's Friends deals with all day every day. People need to realize that having a pet is a responsibility, and that one must have resources to adopt a pet. We do this for the animals because they cannot help the circumstances of their lives and have no one to help them, so we step in. Of course, it is really all of you with big hearts who donate that step in, because we couldn't do this without your help.

Iris Rose is a precious little Doxie Mix and only one year old. She was hit by a truck and very seriously injured. She had a broken leg and ankle and fractured pelvis. She was sent to Loomis, where they were going to call in a specialist to fix her broken body. This was going to cost around $3,500. The owner lives on disability and has very low funds. $3,500 is more than Sammie's Friends could pay.

Thank God for Dr. Tim Van Geem at Mother Lode and his talents. He was able to repair Iris Rose's broken body for about 1/4 of what it would have cost. Sammie's Friends was glad to help.

Poor little Trixie was not even one year old yet and had to have a femoral head ostectomy on her hind leg. She had aseptic necrosis of the femoral head and could not use her leg. Thanks to the dedication of Dr. Strolle, Trixie had her surgery and is back with her family doing just great.

What a case dear Sophia was! I say was because her very odd problem got solved. Sophia had a big bulging eye that looked pretty bad. She was no longer eating and had gotten dehydrated.

It turns out that she had very bad teeth, and behind one of those teeth was a big abscess which was causing the eye to bulge. Sophia had a tooth pulled and the rest cleaned up. She was given fluids for hydration and some antibiotics, and she was good to go. Isn't this gross?

Umberto was a young kitten who was brought to the shelter with an abscess on his head. He also appeared to have a slight neurological condition. He was treated by a veterinarian and should be O.K. What a rough start for a poor little kitten.

This sweet little pup was brought to the Grass Valley Animal Shelter by a Good Samaritan who found him wandering around a shopping center. Within a few days he became ill with vomiting and diarrhea, and was wobbling and not eating and getting dehydrated. Fortunately GVAS called Sammie's Friends, and he was sent to For the Love of Pets. It turns out the pup has salmon poisoning. What the heck is that, you say????

Salmon Poisoning Disease is a potentially fatal condition seen in dogs that eat certain types of raw fish. Salmon (salmonid fish) and other anadromous fish (fish that swim upstream to breed) can be infected with a parasite called Nanophyetus salmincola. Overall, the parasite is relatively harmless. The danger occurs when the parasite itself is infected with a rickettsial organism called Neorickettsia helminthoeca. It's this microorganism that causes salmon poisoning. If untreated, death usually occurs within 14 days of eating the infected fish. Ninety percent of dogs showing symptoms die if they are not treated.

Thankfully, salmon poisoning is treatable if it's caught in time. Salmon poisoning can be diagnosed with a fecal sample. Given the severity of the condition, treatment is relatively simple. The veterinarian will prescribe an antibiotic and a "wormer." The antibiotic kills the rickettsial organisms that cause the illness, and the wormer kills the parasite. If the dog is dehydrated, intravenous fluids are given. Once treatment has been started, most dogs show dramatic improvement within 2 days. Don't give raw fish to your dog, ever!

Poor Hershey was a dog who lived with a sometimes homeless woman, and was abused by the woman's son. Hershey was difficult to adopt because she was afraid of many things, and would snap at people when she was afraid or didn't like something.

Hershey was sent to Smiling Dog Farm Sanctuary in Texas. She may eventually be adopted from there as she gets more socialized, or she may live out her life at the sanctuary. The important thing is that without the help of Sammie's Friends, Hershey would have been a dead dog.

Bailey was sent to the Canine Communication Center in Los Angeles for behavioral rehabilitation. Brandon Fouche, a very talented dog behaviorist, was able to work with her and help her regain her ability to be with other dogs, and then placed her in a home. Sammie's Friends was glad to help. This dog was going to be euthanized at the Nevada County Animal Shelter, and now she's living the good life.

Angel is the most precious little chihuahua mix you'd ever want to meet. She is quite young. Her teenage owner got her at an auction in Auburn, and within two days she was sick with parvo. Parvovirus is a viral disease of dogs, mostly affecting puppies. The intestinal lining has the biggest concentration of rapidly dividing cells in a puppy's body. The virus attacks and kills these cells, causing diarrhea (often bloody), depression and suppression of white blood cells. Without treatment, the puppy will nearly always die. A simple vaccination and keeping your puppy off the ground until fully immunized (3 shots required) prevents this awful and expensive-to-treat condition.

Thanks to Dr. Avery at For the Love of Pets, Angel pulled through and is doing quite well. She is soon to be spayed.

Dion is a very big kitty who came to the shelter with a very badly infected eye. After several different kinds of antibiotics, his eye was still not well. It was discovered that he had a worm in his eye, and is now being treated with gentamicin. These worms come from gnats around the eyes. The worms are removed by pulling them out and then putting the cat on antibiotics. Hopefully this time his eye will heal.

Update: After a stay in the Nevada County Animal Shelter, Dion has been adopted!

Milo was picked up by Animal Control after being hit by a car. Milo's pelvis was broken (more than one break), and that presented other complications of swelling and edema. He is required to be absolutely stationary for six weeks, and must be picked up even to go outside for potty breaks. Fortunately, we were able to find a great foster mom to care for him during this difficult time. She reports he's a real love and is gaining weight. He was very emaciated when we first got him.

Milo will need a femoral head ostectomy when his pelvis has healed. He will also be neutered when he has recovered, and will make an excellent pet for someone.

Update: Milo has been adopted.

Quinton is a kitty who came to the shelter sick with an upper respiratory infection and an eye that was shriveled up and non-functional. The eye was oozing and infected. Quinton has had his eye removed and is recovering from his URI and his infected eye. He is in a foster home and doing well.

Update: Quinton has been adopted.

Max was nearly killed by another dog. He was so ripped up, you could hardly tell he was alive. Dr. Dekker performed a miracle and put Max back together again. He had so many stitches in him that he looked like a patchwork quilt. In spite of his trials and tribulations, Max is a happy, friendly little dog and grateful to be alive.

Update: Max has been adopted.

This little guy (also named Max) had a lump on his hindquarters and was doing a lot of licking and chewing. He was put on some antibiotics and his condition improved. Max was one of the few that had a not-very-serious problem, therefore not costing a great deal to remedy.

This poor doggie has been through a lot. Fortunately, he is owned by a very nice man who has been with him through thick and thin. About nine months ago, Tonga was shot and a pellet lodged in his spinal cord. He was given surgery by Dr. Kortz in Sacramento, and his owner paid around $4,000 for that surgery. Tonga's owner continues to have to catheterize him to urinate, as he has never regained that function.

Tonga has fairly good use of one back leg, but was never able to regain the function of the right hind leg. He dragged the leg until it was very infected and had edema, and the only alternative was to amputate the leg. Fortunately, Dr. Strolle of Best Friends was able to perform this surgery at a discount to Sammie's Friends. The owner had spent all the money he had to help his dog. We are glad Sammie's Friends was here to help.

This four-month-old puppy was tied up in her back yard. Another dog attacked her while she was tied up and nearly killed her. She is recovering thanks to the kind folks at Best Friends.

It is illegal to tie your dog up for more than three hours in a row. It is also incredibly dangerous, because your dog cannot get away if it is attacked. Please don't have your dog end up like this poor dear little puppy did.

Sadly, this one isn't a "Happy Tail." Kitty was a cat who belonged to an old man who wasn't taking very good care of him. Thanks to a neighbor, he got to a vet. Sammie's Friends helped this kitty, but he had such progressed kidney failure that he didn't make it. This one was sad, because the family had the money but wouldn't spend it on the cat and neglected him. Had he been helped sooner, he would have made it. The nice neighbor was in tears, as were all of us. Bless you, Kitty. We love you.

Luna is a three-year-old Great Dane. She and her sister were left behind by their owner. A kind person was willing to take them in.

Luna needed to be spayed and had a hard time with that. Her recovery has been slow, but she will be fine.

Spunky is a spunky little rabbit who was purchased as a friend for another bunny. Lo and behold, he and the other bunny turned out to be opposite-sex bunnies, and before you know it, there were six new bunnies. Sammie's Friends paid to have Spunky neutered before there were even more bunnies. Mama Bunny will be spayed as soon as the babies are weaned. No more bunnies for this family. Bunnies multiply very rapidly, so without neutering and spaying, an impending nightmare was in the making. Sammie came to the rescue. Yeah!

Nicki had somehow severely injured her right lower eyelid, and it was swollen, infected, and oozing. It did not respond to topical treatment, and surgery had to be performed. Nicki belongs to an older person on Social Security. Sammie's Friends was able to help Nicki, and she is doing well.

This precious kitty came to the shelter with a broken leg. Dr. Strolle at Best Friends put Allistair back together again. He then went to a foster home for awhile and now he is doing pretty well, just waiting to have his pins pulled out.

This cat possibly has the best personality of any cat I've ever met. Anyone who meets him falls so in love. He's funny, he's loving, he's engaging. In the old days before Sammie's Friends, this cat would have been immediately euthanized because there would have been no money to fix his leg. That would have been a great loss to us all.

When I meet a guy like Allistair, I am reminded of why Sammie's Friends was begun in the first place - to save these precious, precious lives.

Lupin is a service dog for a person who is permanently disabled with a traumatic brain injury and a seizure disorder. With the help of Lupin her owner has a close-to-normal life. Lupin is also an important member of the family. She is invaluable. As luck would have it, Lupin has severe skin allergies requiring special food and several medications daily.

This is a real financial strain on the family. Sometimes it's a choice between feeding the children or medicating the dog. Any donations that anyone can make would be so appreciated. No donation is too small or too big.

Abby is a lovely 5-year-old Labrador Retriever who was left (along with several other dogs) to try to make it on her own when her owner died. Eventually a kind-hearted neighbor was able to catch the dogs and bring them to the shelter. Abby had not been well cared for and has several medical conditions that are now being treated. She is hypothyroid (low thyroid) and has a very bad skin condition that is being treated. She also has a heart problem.

Dear Abby is now in a foster home where she is being well cared for. Hopefully, her medical conditions, due to long-term neglect, will be resolved and she will make a very nice doggie for someone.

Postscript: Poor Abby had to be euthanized in August, 2009. She was simply not able to overcome all of the medical problems caused by being neglected for so long.

This poor kitty, Snowy, has lived behind the Mine Shaft Bar in Nevada City for a long time. The employees have been feeding her and keeping her alive. One of the employees asked Sammie's Friends to help poor Snowy, who had ear mites, worms, and tumors on her stomach. Snowy needs a permanent home and to get out of living the street life.

Pee Wee had severe pancreatitis, as well as bad teeth. She came to the vet vomiting and with high liver enzymes. The good vet tried to help Pee Wee, but sadly Pee Wee didn't make it. Her condition was too far advanced. Pets need regular vet care, not just when there is a crisis. Maybe Pee Wee would still be with us had she had proper vet care throughout her life.

One day a lady called me and told me her son had run over their kitten with an ATV. I later found out the son was 4 years old. (What on earth is a 4-year-old doing driving a vehicle?) Nevertheless, the family had no money and the kitty was badly injured. Pine Creek tried mightily to save his life. He was on a feeding tube and other medications and hospitalized, but ultimately little Simba did not make it.

Please, people, take better care of your pets.

Colie is a year-old Rott/Lab mix. He has a growth the size of a marble under his left eye. It is a tumor of some sort, and has been sent for a biopsy. We are worried about Colie.

Pumpkin wandered onto someone's property as a stray dog and then had puppies. The woman whose property she was on called Animal Control and said Pumpkin kept moving the puppies and she had something hanging out her back end. Animal Control picked her up and took her to Brighton Greens Veterinary Hospital. The dog had a prolapsed uterus. When she gave birth, the uterus came out with the puppies.

This would have turned to gangrene quickly, and she would have died and left four 2-day-old pups with no mom. Fortunately she had emergency surgery, and by the next day was just fine. Thank you, Dr. Endrelund and Dr. Dekker. Pumpkin and her pups are now in a foster home and are being cared for by a senior at Nevada Union High School who will write her senior project based on this experience.

UPDATE: Pumpkin and all of her pups were adopted! Pumpkin recovered nicely from her surgery.

Timber is a retired Guide Dog now living with his family in Grass Valley. He worked with a blind man in the Bay Area for four years until his chronic ear infections forced him into early retirement. He had a very drastic surgery that removed the ear canals and ear drums on both sides of his head, leaving him with a partial hearing loss. Unfortunately, this surgery was not the end of Timber's troubles.

Timber has been plagued with unexplained infections in and around the site of the surgery that was done two and a half years ago. His veterinarians have decided that they need an MRI to help diagnose Timber before performing any further surgeries.

Timber is an amazing dog. He is warm, loving and a very important part of his family.

UPDATE: Thankfully, Timber had his needed surgery paid for by Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Sophie and her brother Sam have been together their entire life. They are 10 years old and their owner could no longer keep them. Poor Sophie had some medical problems. Sophie had a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her hind leg, and she also had glaucoma in her eye and needed to have her eye removed. When the ACL is torn, the joint becomes unstable and the femur and tibia can move back and forth across each other. The ACL is most commonly torn when the dog twists on his hind leg. The twisting motion puts too much tension on the ligament and it tears. This often occurs if the dog slips on a slippery surface, makes a sudden turn while running, or is hit by a car. Obesity can also contribute to this problem.

Glaucoma is increased pressure within the eye. Cells inside the eye produce a clear fluid that maintains the shape of the eye and nourishes the tissues inside the eye. The balance of fluid production and drainage is responsible for maintaining normal pressure within the eye. In glaucoma, the drain becomes clogged but the eye keeps producing fluid. Therefore, the pressure in the eye increases. The increased pressure in the eye actually can cause the eye to stretch and enlarge, in addition to blinding the eye. It is very painful for the dog and must be attended to.

Sophie doesn't think it's fair that she had the two medical problems and Sam didn't share the agony with her. "Them's the breaks." Sophie has now had both surgeries and is doing well in her recovery.

UPDATE ON SOPHIE: Sophie recently had to have more surgery, this time to remove a tumor. Luckily, she is recovering from that and doing fine. This gal is a real trooper!

UPDATE, PART II: Sam and Sophie happily have been adopted. Sophie has recovered from her surgeries.

Poor Questor. He is a 4-year-old cattle dog, and an example of what happens when you don't give your dog heartworm prevention. He came to the veterinarian in such poor condition that he would not have lived much longer without help. His abdominal cavity was filled with liquid, and his heart has a murmur. He has lost so much weight he looks emaciated with a distended belly. Questor also has badly infected ears and eyes, and needs care for them, too.

Dr. Dekker at Grass Valley Veterinary Hospital is working hard to get Questor back to good health. Sammie's Friends would be happy to accept donations on Questor's behalf. Thank you to anyone who can help this poor dog. We at Sammie's Friends love helping the animals, and sometimes it's heartbreaking as well.

UPDATE: Questor had such advanced heartworm that he didn't make it. This is what can happen when you do not provide heartworm prevention for your dog, and then don't provide treatment until it has affected all of the bodily organs.

Michael is a dog who needed help because he had a broken leg. The veterinarian was able to put his leg back together by wrapping it and changing the wraps frequently, and taking x-rays every couple weeks to make sure it was healing correctly.

Michael is doing just great, and the leg has healed. Sammie's Friends was able to help with this less-expensive procedure. We always try to get the animals the best care at the lowest price.

This little tyke was brought to a veterinarian with an eye so severely injured that it could not be saved. Sammie's Friends along with Loomis Basin Veterinary Clinic paid for the eye surgery. The little guy was adopted and is recovering nicely.

Cisco the pit bull and Apollo the weenie dog are both 17 years old. They were adopted on the same day by the same person, and they have been glued at the hip ever since. Apollo's owner called Sammie's Friends last year for help. Apollo had lost weight from 22 pounds down to 11 pounds and was nearly dead. It turns out he had a pancreatic enzyme deficiency, so he was not absorbing his food and was starving to death. He now takes pancreazyme and has gained his weight back and is doing well. He must take this enzyme for the rest of his life.

The owner feels that when one of these boys dies, the other will go, too, as they have been together forever and love each other dearly. Cisco, the pit bull, had developed a cough and it turns out he has developed heartworm. He is currently being treated with an antibiotic and Heartgard. He is too old to undergo further heartworm treatment. The Heartgard will stop the worm build-up, and the worms will gradually die off. However, since he is already close to 18 years old, most likely the worms will outlive him.

With the help of Linda Fossum, DVM and Sammie's Friends, these two old guys are living out their lives in comfort.

This is Muggs. He is pure pleasure - he's such a little cutie pie. Muggs weighs 69 pounds and should weigh about 29 pounds. He was tested and there were no thyroid or glandular problems, so the conclusion was that he was sneaking food everywhere.

Muggs is now under the supervision of a very fine veterinarian, and he has lost 4 pounds so far. Yeah! He is eating a lo-cal, lo-fat diet and getting several walks a day. With the help of Sammie's Friends and the veterinarian, Muggs will get into decent shape and his obesity will no longer be a threat to his life.

Sally is a precious little kitty who came to the shelter with such bad teeth that she could hardly eat. She also had an upper respiratory infection. She had a number of extractions and her teeth cleaned, and she immediately perked up and feels so much better. She is also on antibiotics for her URI. She is a very cute kitty and will make someone a great pet.

Poor Nugget was taken to Grass Valley Vet, where it was determined that he was in a ketoacidotic state. This is caused by longstanding undiagnosed diabetes. Due to a lack of insulin, glucose cannot be used by the body cells as an energy source. Instead, fat is broken down to provide energy. When fat is used as an energy source, acids known as ketones are produced. Ketones circulating in the blood cause signs of DKA - anorexia, nausea and lethargy. This is a very serious condition, often causing death. The local vet said Nugget needed to be in 24-hour treatment, and it appeared the dog might not make it. Nugget was sent to Loomis Basin, where he received the care he needed.

Nugget is a really nice Yellow Lab and has been a good friend to his family, and deserves a chance to live. Nugget is home and doing well. He is receiving insulin twice a day, and as long as he receives his insulin and eats properly he should be around for quite awhile. This was quite an expensive undertaking, but we think Nugget is worth it. Several people have donated already after reading about Nugget in the paper and hearing about him on the radio.

Curly and Moe are shelter kitties. Curly, the kitty on the left, has been very ill with a malfunctioning liver. He was so depressed that the shelter brought over his brother Moe to be with him.That seemed to help his spirits, and he is doing somewhat better. He is brighter and more alert, and his skin is way less yellow than it was.

Update on Curly and Moe: A very nice woman paid a large portion of Curly's bill. He was very ill, and we weren't sure he was going to make it. With the great care from Pine Creek Veterinary Clinic and a very nice donation from Tracy, these two are now happily living in San Diego. They were flown there by Bob Hecocks on his private airplane. Not bad for a cat from the Nevada County Animal Shelter. We wish both Curly and Moe the best in San Diego.

This precious Daisy Dawg had to have his (yes, Daisy Dawg is a he) leg amputated. He struggled for a year with a very hard, swollen leg. It turned out it was a benign growth, but no amount of treatment seemed to alleviate the problems. Eventually poor Daisy could not use his leg at all. His owners were hesitant to have his leg removed, as he is a very big dog and they were afraid he wouldn't adjust.

In no time, he was using the doggie door and running and doing everything he did before. He is doing better all the time. Dr. Tim Van Geem at Mother Lode performed a very nice surgery.

This poor dog, Corkie, was bitten by a California brown spider. These spiders are highly toxic and destroy the tissue. This spider causes the tissue to become necrotic (dead) and it must be debrided (removed), and the dog needs hospitalization and anesthesia and IV fluids. So far the bill is $1304.00. It will be more as the dog still needs more necrotic tissue debrided and some skin grafting. The bill ultimately will be about $2,000. The veterinarian, Mike Reget, DVM, at Loomis Basin Veterinary Clinic, says the prognosis is good. Without treatment this would result in certain death. Donations will be gratefully accepted.

Raz is a kitty who had bad teeth, abscesses and infection, and a coughing and gagging reflex. The owner thought it was the bad teeth that was making him do that. Raz got his teeth fixed up. Guess what? Stuck in the back of his throat was a long and old blade of grass, causing the gagging. Mr. Raz is quite a character and the folks at Mother Lode Veterinary Clinic quite enjoyed having him as a patient. Mr. Raz is doin' good now.

Eddie is a beautiful purebred German Shepherd. He belonged to a person who lost her home and couldn't care for him or her other dogs. To make matters worse, Eddie was believed to have a very severe heart condition and skin problems. Eddie went to UC Davis for an echocardiogram, where it was learned that he does have a moderately severe heart condition, but could live for a long time as he is.

Through a lot of effort, Eddie was placed in the home of a wonderful family, and an extra blessing is that he lives with a dog trainer. Eddie has a 4-year-old human companion and a hairless kitty to play with. Eddie lucked out.

Back to Happy Endings

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

Sammie's Friends
a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation
14647 McCourtney Road
Grass Valley, CA 95949
(530) 471-5041
info@sammiesfriends.org