Northwest Samoyed Rescue

Until recently we thought we understood bloat and would recognize it if we ever saw it in person. We were wrong. In early January Erin went to Enumclaw to pick up a dog found as a stray. She brought him to us, and she and Kathy spent several hours grooming. He had a bath that evening and seemed to be doing well. The next morning when we checked on him he was dead. Our vet told us it was bloat, which we hadn’t recognized.

Bloat happens when the stomach dilates and twists into an abnormal position. Technically it’s Gastric Dilation and Volvulus, generally abbreviated GDV. If the stomach inflates it’s called dilation; when it distends and twists it’s called volvulus. It’s a life-threatening condition for your dog. Bloat does not resolve itself without immediate care, and if you don’t get your dog to a vet quickly he will die. Even with treatment there is a mortality rate of 10%-60%.

As the stomach twists, it closes off both ends. There is no way for air to escape and the pressure stops blood flow until the tissue dies.

What causes GDV? The answer is complex and has many factors. It happens primarily in large, deep chested breeds, but Dachshunds and Pekingese are also subject to it. Some causes are:

• · Feeding only one meal a day
• · Having a family history of bloat
• · Eating rapidly
• · Being thin or underweight
• · Moistening dry foods (if citric acid is listed as an ingredient)
• · Feeding a dry diet with animal fat in the first four ingredients
• · Fearful or anxious temperament
• · Male dogs and dogs older than 7 have an increased risk

Although a study many years ago claimed that elevating food bowls decreased bloat, the study author later disclaimed that result saying there was a flaw in the way the study was done.

What do you do at home? First, listen to the heartbeat on the left side just behind the elbow (with a stethoscope if possible). A regular heartbeat is often irregular and nothing to worry about. The pulse should be between 60 and 80 in a large dog. The easiest way to check the pulse is in the femoral artery just inside your dog’s rear leg; it feels like a cord.

PHASE 1 BLOAT

Pacing, restlessness, panting, and salivating. Unproductive efforts to vomit. Abdomen begins to enlarge. Call your vet and tell him you are on the way with a bloat case. Leave immediately.

PHASE 2 BLOAT

Whining, very restless, heavy salivating. Unproductive efforts to vomit every 2-3 minutes. Dark red gums. Heart rate 80-100 beats/minute. Abdomen swollen, emits hollow sound when thumped. Apply first aid if dog is more than 10 minutes from vet, then transport immediately.

PHASE 3 BLOAT

Gums are white or blue. Dog can’t stand or has a shaky spread-legged stance. Abdomen very enlarged. Heart rate over 100 beats/minute. Death is imminent. Apply first aid immediately, preferably on the way to the vet.

A bloat first aid kit should contain:

• · Instructions for use
• · Stethoscope
• · Rolls of tape (3 rolls, 1 in. x 10 yd)
• · Stomach tube (2) (different diameters). 5 ft. length beveled at one end, with two holes drilled in tube 2 & 3 inches up from the beveled end. Pre-measured and marked for each dog in household
• · KY jelly
• · Gas absorbent (Digel, GasEase, etc)

Instructions for using this kit are available many places on the internet, but you should talk to your vet and use his/her instructions. If you want a copy of the instructions before you visit your vet, contact rescue@nwsams.com.

After your dog survives bloat, give serious consideration to a surgical procedure called Gastropexy. It’s commonly referred to as stomach stapling, and the recurrence of bloat is reduced from 75% to less than 5%.

Most of us know someone with a Samoyed who has bloated. This is a serious issue in our breed, and being ready for it may save a life.

Last month we heard about a Samoyed in Ocean Shores. She had been found as a stray and nobody looked for her. Unfortunately, it happens all too often. When we touched base with the shelter they told us she was matted and they were planning to shave her. We talked it over, and Kathy said she would go to the shelter and spend the afternoon grooming her to prevent that from happening.

Along with all the grooming tools, Kathy took our microchip scanner just in case. They already told us she didn’t have a chip, but experience tells us not to trust shelters. This time we were glad we checked because she had a newer style chip their old scanner couldn’t read. Kathy called with the chip number and I started making phone calls. The microchip company gave us the name of the breeder, who died a couple years ago. Because she had been in Arizona I called Bobbie, hoping she could find the name of the breeder’s daughter. She checked in with people who might know, and her friend Susan thought the dog might have been co-owned by Sakura, right here in western Washington. A quick call confirmed it was one of her dogs, and her name is Christina. She had been trying to locate the owner who had moved at least once and changed her phone number. She called Kathy directly, and Kathy paid the shelter fees and brought her home. The next day Sakura and Tasha were here to reimburse rescue and retrieve Christina. All’s well that ends well, except for the part where Sakura had to pay the highest shelter fee we’ve ever seen and spent several more days grooming Christina.

We always tell people to be sure their dogs are microchipped in case something like this happens. Now that the last two dogs we rescued had chips the shelter missed, we need to amend that. Be sure chips are the older style, not ISO, because small shelters don’t always have modern scanners. Eventually they will, but that hasn’t happened yet despite chip company promises. More importantly, collars with tags are the best identification possible.

You should also know that if you had your dog chipped by Banfield in the past few years you may not be as safe as you think. They were the first organization to use ISO chips and there have been some real horror stories. If you want to know the difference between chips, head to Wikipedia where there is an excellent article discussing the types of chips. To be absolutely safe, take your dog to the closest shelter and ask them to check the chip.

The girl we got from the Foxburrow puppy mill bust has a new home. We had email from Dorinda of Utah Samoyed Rescue asking about an application she received from someone in Portland, and Melissa visited their home. Dorinda didn’t have any dogs available but this home looked just right for Fanci; she moved in and her new name is Pip. She has some issues because of her past; she is a fearful dog who will need a lot of TLC to show her the world isn’t as bad as she thinks. It’s going to take a great amount of patience. Melissa went back for a follow-up visit to help with training.

On the day of this newsletter’s deadline we heard of a dog in southwest Montana at a Humane Society. We contacted a group that provides transportation for rescue & shelter dogs and they are in the process of working something out. We expect it will cost quite a bit with the cost of gas these days, but we’re fortunate to have so many great supporters and donors. That means another Montana dog will find a good home.

Picnic invitations have been sent by email, so if you haven’t received yours please contact Ron as soon as possible. We expect a great turnout this year and we always have a ton of fun.

Tundra, who came to us by way of the PAWS shelter in Snohomish County, was with us for a little over a month. That’s longer than usual lately; because she was mostly deaf we weren’t in a hurry to find her a new home. As it turned out she has a perfect new home. Her mom knew some sign language already because of her job, and is working with Tundra to find the best way to train her. The bit of hearing she has may be enough for clicker training, and that will be a great advantage. She has already established herself firmly as a part of the family, and she has an Eskie for a sister and they get along great.

In February there was a news story about the seizure of 35 dog from a breeder in Canby. It was Foxburrow Kennels, run by Diane and Rick Cheadle. They pleaded guilty to animal neglect charges on April 8 and were sentenced to jail, probation, community service, and for five years they cannot own any dogs. At the time of the seizure they had only one Samoyed, left over from the time they were breeding Sammies. The Oregon Humane Society kept the Samoyed while nursing her back to health, then put her in a foster home. Finally they called Melissa, who had been in touch regularly with OHS, and let her know the dog was ready for rescue. Her name is Fanci, and she is getting along very well at the Hopper Bed and Breakfast. Fanci should be a great addition to any home.

It seems like just the other day, but that one year old dog we adopted from Cheryl is already eleven. Charlie has had a weak ACL for some time, but a couple weeks ago it ruptured and last week he had surgery. The reason we mention this is because of a new type of ACL repair called “tightrope surgery.” Back in 2003 when we had Tasha’s surgery the cast was on for two weeks and we had to leash walk her for almost three months. With the new surgery the cast/bandage came off 24 hours after surgery and therapy began immediately. In seven days he was bearing half his weight on the leg. He will still be leash walked for a couple months, but that time will be easier for him. This is a common injury in Samoyeds, and if anyone else faces it please give Ron a call if you want more information.

Last month it was all about Kyoshi, Tasha, Nakita, and Shivers. This month it’s about Fanci, Tolkeetna, Sierra, Puma, Tundra, Kenai, Sitka, and eight dogs in Canada. Whew!

In the middle of February we heard of a puppy mill raid described in the newspaper this way: “Last night the Oregon Humane Society’s Humane Investigators served a search warrant and removed 33 animals from a breeding facility in Canby … 19 golden retrievers, 12 Coton de Tulears, one Samoyed, and a duck …” We have known about this breeder for many years, and have taken many of their dogs into rescue. Finally the Oregon Humane Society stepped in to help. When seized, the dogs were as much as 50% underweight and living in terrible conditions.

Not long ago the breeder, Foxburrow Kennels in Canby, switched from Samoyeds to Coton de Tulears, which sell for double the price. They still had one Samoyed, and her health is still suffering. Her name is Fanci, and Melissa is keeping in close contact with OHS. Fanci is out of the shelter and in a foster home now, and if she becomes available we will take her and find a good home.

On April 8, 2011, Diane and Rick Cheadle pleaded guilty to animal neglect charges. They were sentenced to a day in jail, community service, probation, and for five years they are barred from owning any domestic animals.

Back in early 2010 we were asked to take two dogs in Montana. Their owner was missing and the person keeping them wanted to find them a new home. Sandy investigated and found out she actually knew the dogs. They were still co-owned by their breeder, so we were able to get a release. Ultimately Sandy kept them with her. This year we were contacted by a man who was out of work, lost his home, and his wife left him. That was his story, anyway. His two dogs were being kept by a friend who was about to move. Once again we called Sandy, and she knew him. He was the same owner that had the dogs in 2010. She asked him to sign a release, and the dogs went to her house.

Ultimately Sandy decided to keep last year’s female and send the female from this year (Sierra) along with this year’s male (Tolkeetna) and last year’s male (Puma). She drove them to Coeur d’Alene where she met Kathy, who brought the dogs to us. For the first time, because of the number of dogs, we were forced to use kennels we built in our barn. We would rather have dogs in the house, but that’s why we built them. Fortunately Sierra was quickly adopted and went to Kathi in Seattle, a previous adopter who will give her an excellent home.

Next was Tolkeetna, who was adopted by Sue in Des Moines. Sue adopted Biscotti years ago, and he recently passed away. Sue also adopted Sadie, one of Katie’s puppies four years ago, so we knew what perfect home Tolkeetna would have. Sue brought Sadie and her old girl Gracie to meet Tolkeetna, then came back a few days later to take him home. In the meantime the two boys were neutered.

Puma was with us several weeks until he was met by a great guy named John who lives on Vancouver Island. It was a two-day trip for John, who met Puma one afternoon, stayed in a motel overnight, and came back for him the next morning. Reports on all three of the Montana dogs have been excellent. All have settled in and are happily integrated into their packs.

Then along came Tundra, who appeared as a stray in the Everett shelter. As soon as we saw her listing we called and made arrangements to get her the moment she was available. Erin drove north and got her for us, meeting Kathy in Lakewood to drive Tundra back to our home. As we always do we checked for a microchip, and we found she had one. The shelter had completely missed it! That allowed us to trace back and find she is about five years old, but the home phone listed was disconnected and the work number was a dead end.

At this point we want to remind you to always be sure to update the chip manufacturer if you move or change phones. If a shelter gets your dog and can’t find you, the dog goes to an adopter or is euthanized. Fortunately in the case of dogs we have placed, we get the call and look up the adopter ourselves. But even that does no good if we can’t find you.

We learned over the first few days with us that Tundra is about 95% deaf. That’s unusual in a Samoyed. We need to find a very special home for her where people have the understanding needed to train a very active young deaf dog.

Five years back we adopted a dog to people in Everett, and that dog passed on. They loved the breed so much they bought two puppies, Kenai and Sitka. Now their lives have changed and they are in the position of finding homes for their dogs. Both are from breeders; one immediately wanted the dog back to resell, while the other said she would allow us to place him if we had a good home, and if not she would take him back. This is a breeder we consider a good friend, and we’re pleased we are trusted to do that. At the deadline of this report, the owner contacted us to say she is trying to work out a way to keep at least one dog. To be continued…

By way of Canadian rescue we heard of six dogs north of Calgary, Alberta. A Sammy breeder has been diagnosed with cancer and her husband is only willing to keep three dogs; the remainder are going to rescue. Three of those will be shipped back to a breeder in Colorado. One other is a female ready for adoption and the other two are males that rescue will keep for a short time to assess. In the meantime there are two males in Saskatoon, father and son, who need homes. The new Western Canada Samoyed Club is getting a baptism by fire. We offered to help if they need it, and we’re in frequent contact with them.

OK, it can slow down anytime now.

The next time I say it’s been slow in rescue, would someone please tell me to knock on wood? We just had the busiest month in history and it shows no signs of slowing down soon.

First was Kyoshi, a five year old male who lived with a woman in the Everett area. We have heard many stories over the years, but it’s not often someone truly surrenders a dog because they are thinking only of him. We have no doubt his owner wanted to keep him, but she was working two jobs and she knew he needed to be with people to be happy. Her name sounded familiar so we looked back through records and found emails from her. The first was an application and another was a message that she had put a deposit on a puppy. That told us the breeder, and of course we sent a quick email to her. Within five minutes the phone rang to let us know she would take care of her dog. We suggested that we had some great homes already checked and ready to go, and after some discussion she agreed to let us do the placement. Erin and Tom drove to get Kyoshi and brought him to us to foster. Two days later a couple from Portland came to visit and he left with them. They had recently lost one of their Samoyeds and it was exactly the right time for them. Kyoshi is getting along wonderfully with them, happy with all the attention he gets in his new life.

Next came Tasha, a four and a half year old female from a military home. Once again, Erin and Tom made the contact for us and made sure her owner knew about a group that fosters dogs during deployments. His wife had recently divorced him and he wanted to make a clean break from everything, including his dog, so they brought her to us. We could probably have passed her off as a one year old because of her energy level. She is affectionate, loved everybody and all the other dogs, and we decided she should go to a special home with Dennis and Terry. They adopted Jade almost ten years ago, one of the first dogs we fostered when we began with rescue. Jade is still doing well but was lonely after the passing of Sonoma. Tasha is fitting in very well.

Sometimes things are meant to happen, as in the case of Nakita. She was listed in Red Bluff, California, and only the day before we had been talking with people in Auburn who said they would drive to Montana or California if that’s what they needed to do to find another mix like the dog they recently lost. When Nakita popped up we wrote to them. It turned out they have friends in Red Bluff who could go check her out, and quickly they scheduled a drive south. On the way home they called to let us know they could stop by, and we were able to meet Nakita. She is going to need a firm hand, but they seem to know what they’re in for and willing to do the training.

Around the first of the year we heard the story of Shivers, a Samoyed on hold in the Great Falls, Montana shelter. He was being held as evidence in a case where he was accused of biting someone. After investigating they doubted it had happened the way his owner claimed, and since his owner was in jail on another charge a local attorney took on Shivers’ case. We heard about all this when the attorney wrote to another rescue and they forwarded the message to us. We placed a dog a few years back to a woman in SW Montana, and she had let us know she would like us to find another dog for her; when we heard about Shivers we asked if she would consider him. She said yes, so we wrote to the attorney to introduce rescue and give our adopter a reference. Recently the attorney went to court and was able to save Shivers, and he subsequently drove 200 miles to drive Shivers to a new home with our adopter in Stevensville. He is doing well and shows no signs of aggression at all. It’s heartwarming to know that an attorney would take on the case of a Samoyed and save his life.

You may have heard of a seizure of 35 dogs from a breeder in Canby. She was breeding Golden Retrievers and Coton d’Tulears, having switched recently from Samoyeds because the Cotons sell for more money. There was one Samoyed in the seizure and Melissa is staying in contact with the Oregon Humane Society, where the dogs are being held. We will attempt to get the Samoyed as soon as they allow her to be released.

As this is being written we have three Samoyeds about to come from Kalispell, Montana. Two are males about six years old and one is a female who is slightly older. We have quite a number of applicants still waiting we we’re hoping for fairly quick placements of all three.

What’s the most important thing in rescue? Volunteers. We couldn’t do the job without all those people who drop what they are doing to go look at a dog in a shelter, or provide a ride to get a dog from a bad place to a safe place. We thank all of you daily for the things you do to get dogs into good homes.

Surprisingly, there’s another thing that’s important in getting the job done and that’s paperwork. The bane of our life is also critical in getting the job done. E-mails are saved and indexed, applications are printed and filed, and each dog has both an electronic and paper folder with records. Everyone who has ever had a disk crash can understand the need for paper backup. For every hour we work directly with a dog we spend many, many hours with the computer.

Sometimes the records pay off. This month we were contacted by a woman who said she had a five year old male who needed a new home. She lives alone and is having to work two jobs, and her dog was beginning to rebel in his loneliness, chewing on things in his boredom. She realized he needed more human contact and reluctantly asked us to help. Her name sounded familiar, so a search through e-mails showed a series of communications beginning with an application to us in late 2005. Following that we learned that she had put a deposit on a breeder’s puppy, and she told us who it was. That means we could call the breeder right away and have been working with her since. With luck we will transfer the dog from his current home into rescue, and because we have several applicants who have had home visits and are approved, his stay with us should be brief. By the time you read this we hope he has moved on to his forever home.

We also heard from someone else asking for help with their son’s dog. He was moving to an apartment and couldn’t leave his dog there all day, so we said we would help. Then their son’s friends heard what he was doing and convinced him to keep his dog. They said they would help, and his boss said he could bring his dog to work. We still have all the information in case it falls through, but we’re hopeful things will work out.

The best part of doing rescue so long is all the happy dogs and happy people we’ve met. The other side of the coin is that the first dogs we placed are getting old. It seems every month brings news of another Sammy over the rainbow bridge, but we have to keep in mind what great lives they had. This month we heard of a dog we didn’t place, but he was the brother of Eddie, one of our rescues. Sam lived in Troutdale with Jennifer, Rick, and Taylor. When he came to the rescue picnic the first time we could hardly believe that he looked so much like our girl Katie. He had the same sweet temperament, too. Here’s a picture of Sam and Eddie.

Kathy Thomas first told us of a second-hand report there was a Samoyed in the Kent shelter. A friend of hers went to check for a lost dog (since found) and saw him, so she wanted to be sure we knew. He had been picked up New Year’s Eve in Enumclaw, and was a senior male. Erin went in right away to make contact and found he was available for adoption on the 5th if his family didn’t come and claim him.

Erin took the day off to help, and at noon she picked him up. It’s traditional that we ask the first person who transports a rescue dog to give him a name, and she chose Baxter. It seemed to fit him. She brought him directly to us because he was a mess and needed grooming. Erin and Kathy worked on him for a couple hours before he went to the vet for a quick appointment. They drew blood and decided to wait a day for x-rays. He had a noticeable problem walking that appeared to be neurological.

That evening Kathy bathed him and he continued to be sweet the whole time. He walked around the house and seemed very comfortable being with us. Some dogs immediately attach to us, and Baxter was one of them.

At bedtime he was still exploring and had developed a little cough, not serious enough for us to think anything of it. He still seemed to like being petted and talked to, so we gave him a big pillow and went off to bed. In the morning we discovered he had passed during the night. We were heartbroken.

We took him to the vet and asked for a necropsy because it was important to us to know what happened. The result was almost immediate: he died of bloat. He hadn’t eaten more than a small handful of food, so bloat was off the radar for us. The dogs we’ve heard of who bloated showed more definite signs, and of course since we didn’t know the dog we didn’t see the signs like we would have with one of our own dogs. The necropsy showed complete torsion (the stomach twisted 180 degrees) so even having a tube on hand wouldn’t have helped. The time of death was not long after bedtime, so it’s unlikely we could have made it to an ER even if we recognized what was happening.

Over the years the SCWS Newsletter has carried several articles or stories of bloat, but still we didn’t catch this one. We feel terrible about losing a dog in our care, and if we can use story this to save another dog then Baxter’s legacy will be positive.

PLEASE, PLEASE take some time to educate yourself about bloat. It happens too often in our breed and we need to keep it in mind any time a dog isn’t acting normally. The newsletter of July, 2003 featured an article about bloat along with a first-person column by Darlene about the bloat of one of her dogs. Rather than copying the full text here, we put it back online so you can read it again:
http://www.samoyedclubwa.org/newsletter_2003-07.htm

Our vet told us two stories; the first was a client who stopped by to make an appointment because his dog wasn’t behaving normally. They recognized the symptoms and told him to get the dog to the ER immediately. He did and surgery successfully saved her. The second story was from another vet whose dog bloated. He was two blocks from his own clinic, but his dog died on the way. Every case is different but all are emergencies.

Here is something you can do TODAY. Find out the location and phone number of the closest emergency vet. Put that number in your cell phone. Make sure you know how to get there in a hurry when every minute counts.