AARCS Update - Scotty's litter

There was a spay/neuter clinic at the SikSika Reserve east of Calgary, near the town of Gleichen. It was a very wet, cold spring and AARCS volunteers saw a mom and her litter. Mom had a condition called Cherry Eye, the lower tear gland protrudes, and she was particularly bad because it affected both eyes and the tear glands were badly infected. After much convincing, the owner surrendered mom and the pups. I got the call about her and AARCS asked if she could come stay in our dog run. She arrived with her litter the next day and we named her Scotty.

Scotty really enjoys laying in the sun. We took her to the vet 2 days after she arrived to have her eyes checked out. After 2 weeks on antibiotics for the infection, she had her surgery and her tear glands were put back in place.

When Scotty's litter first arrived, they were approximately 3 weeks old;

Tiny, eh? Not as tiny as 4 day old puppies, but these guys are still tiny. Scotty is 19lbs and the pups are 5 lbs at 8 weeks, so they are not going dip into the big dog end of the gene pool ever.

These are the pictures we took of these puppies last Friday. They had their spay/neuter surgeries last Thursday and are available for adoption. All the boys in the litter have MacI... names and the girls are all MacK... names. We thought we were quite clever with this naming scheme. It is really hard to tell this litter apart, so we thought it perfect that the names were so similar too. *giggle* I wonder if we will ever run out of names?!!!

MacIntosh;

MacIntosh has a sweet personality to match his sweet little face. He is a lower energy dog, but will still need a little walk every day. He loves to gaze into the eyes of those he loves and read their soul - he's a little romantic at heart!

McIntyre;

A couple of weeks ago, MacIntyre's eyes started to swell. The vet though that it was an infection so he went on antibiotic ointment. 3 days later, his muzzle was twice as big as it should be and his lymph nodes were massive. He looked like he had the worst case of Mumps ever!!! It was finally determined that he had puppy strangles, an auto-immune disorder in which he (basically) became allergic to himself. He's been on antibiotics and corticosteroids since then and we are just starting to wean him off the meds. MacIntyre has very little left of his natural immune system left so he hasn't had his vaccinations or his surgery. He'll be in foster care until he is completely better in a month or so.

The only signs of his illness are his weepy eyes and where the hair fell out from around his eyes and the wrinkly, hairless parts of muzzle. I suspect his eyes are sensitive to sunlight as that is a common side effect of the meds he is on.

McIvor;

MacIvor helped a grade 4 class of 27 children begin to understand 'Adopt, Don't Shop'. He was terrific and didn't startle or become frightened. He is a bold little buddy and is super friendly. He may get to be a little bigger than the rest of the litter as we suspect he has a different father since he is the only black pup in the litter and is already a little bigger.

MacKay;

MacKay is very happy little girl. She is bouncy like Tigger when she sees people and food. She will need regular exercise like any dog, but won't need extra to tire her out. She listens well and has her content, cuddly moments.

MacKenna;

MacKenna helped a grade 4 class of 27 children begin to understand 'Adopt, Don't Shop'. She was terrific and didn't startle or become frightened. MacKenna is a bold girl but is very friendly and loves people. She really doesn't like having her feet wet and will sit back on her haunches to lift her feet off the damp floor! She is going to be really fun to train to do tricks!

MacKenzie;

MacKenzie is a very laid back little sweetheart. She is very good with baths and is really just open for what ever comes her way. MacKenzie is the kind of girl that when you ask her what she wants to do, she says, "Whatever you want to do is fine with me!" She is a lower energy, content puppy.

MacKinnon;

MacKinnon is a little spitfire! She loves to play and will run until she can't anymore and flops on the grass for a wee nap. She likes to help with whatever is going on whether it is gardening or cleaning the floor or helping serve dinner. MacKinnon is a darling little loveable ball of fluff!

Now that the puppies are weaned, Scotty loves playing with them!

I really love the rescue part of my life! I'm thrilled that I am starting to be invited to teach dog education both on the reserves around my province and in the schools and (just) a daycare in my city. What an amazing way to combine my love for teaching and my passion for being a dog rescuer!