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Articles from September 2022

Tonka

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Tonka has clearly been a family dog, he is trained and well behaved. But he’s been on his own for a long time and is in rough shape. But he’s at PMFC now and we’ll take good care of him.

Last updated: Nov 3, 2022

History

Tonka was picked up for vagrancy by City of Newport Animal Control on Sept 24th. He is emaciated, fur is badly matted, has ear infections, skin issues, and heart worms. He’s a gentle, sweet boy and has been trained. But he’s been roughing it for a while. No tags, no microchip, no response to Found Dog notices. His future didn’t look good. But A Pathway to Hope stepped in and PMFC will foster him for them while they arrange a local (to them) foster. He needs specialty care that would be better done close to Pathway.

Base Info:

  • Arrival date: Sept 28, 2022
  • Breed: Golden Retriever/Husky mix
  • Sex: Male
  • Age: Mature
  • Birth date: 09/24/2015
  • Weight: 46.8 pounds on Sept 24 (should be 70 pounds)
    ………….. 48.6 pounds on Sept 29 (different scale)
    ………….. 46.8 pounds on Oct 14
    ………….. 52.8 pounds on Oct 19 (YAY!)
    ………….. 53.6 Pounds on Nov.1
  • Spayed/Neutered: Not Yet
  • General Health: Poor
  • Temperament: Calm and gentle – but the sick ones often are. Likes to sing and dance, has a great voice.
  • SAFER Test performed: Yes – Passed easily
  • Departure date: November 4th, 2022 headed to A Pathway to Hope

Relational Behavior

  • Relates well to other dogs: Mostly. Responds in kind when approached with aggression. Being an intact male he can get “forward” with the ladies.
  • Can eat food/treats near other dogs: No. Having been starved he resource-guards.
  • Preferred style of play: Indoors he likes squeaky plush toys. Treats them gently. Outdoors he doesn’t play yet. He explores.
  • Is affectionate: Yes. Loves being petted, especially belly rubs.
  • Is good with:
    . Men: Yes
    . Women: Yes
    . Children: Probably
    . Cats: NO.
  • Jumps up on people: No
  • Mouths: If he thinks you have food in your hand. Give treats in an open hand, not held in your fingers.
  • Walks well on a leash: Yes
  • OTHER: Loves to go for car rides. Loads up easily and is calm and attentive while riding. He’s always up for another adventure!

Commands

  • Comes when called: Yes.
  • Sits on command: Yes
  • Speak: Yes
  • Down / Off: Not Applicable
  • Shake / Paw: Not yet
  • Kennels on command: Yes

Matted Fur

This poor boy has fur that is one solid mat all over his body. The fur on his belly is urine soaked and is burning his skin. Mats around his hind legs prevent them from moving normally. Our veterinarian ordered him shaven so we can start again on a decent coat of fur and so she can better examine his skin and treat any issues.

I took him to Kathy’s Grooming Parlor for the shave. She said he was a really good boy, no trouble at all.

Without all that fur, he reminds everyone of an Alpaca!

Ear Crud

Tonka’s ears are cruddy an inflamed. They are painful to him as well, he does a lot of head-tilting because of this. Dr. Sandra started him on DermVet ointment while he was still at Newport Animal Control, and I and continuing that here. Dr Sandra advised that I should NOT attempt to clean his ears until the inflammation is gone, that might irritate it further, just administer the ointment and work it down into the canals. His right ear clicks.

Intestinal Sloughing

Just as Tonka was finally starting to gain weight, the Doxycycline he started taking caused the lining of his intestine to slough off and be ejected along with water-like diarrhea. We made an emergency trip to the vet to find this out. We stopped the Doxy, put him on Pro-Pectaline, Sucralifate, Metronidazole, and FortiFlora. To reduce strain on his gut and encourage healing we also changed his diet to Purina Pro Veterinary EN canned food.

In the past three days we have seen significant improvement in his BM’s, control of his bowels, and heightened appetite.

Travel Plans

Today, November 3rd, Tonka went back to Cedarwood for a follow-up exam. He has made enough progress that Dr Sandra can sign off on him as being “healthy” and issue the Health Certificate he needs to travel across state lines. Tonka will be heading for New Jersey tomorrow evening. A Pathway to Hope has a cardiologist lined up for him as soon as he gets settled in up there.

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