Good evening Puppers ~

This is one of the hardest posts I’ve ever shared with you guys, which is why it’s taken me so long to write it. On November 3rd, my brother Yukon began his journey North of the Rainbow Bridge.

Yukon joined our pack in May of this year. He was a frail guy weighing in at 39 pounds. Clearly underweight, a trip to the vet and some bloodwork confirmed that he had high liver values. He was started on some medication that we hoped would bring the values down ~ maybe to within normal limits.

Even though I didn’t want to admit it ~ I really hoped that he would stay. He made us all smile with his goofiness. Looking back, I don’t think that he was ever supposed to be anywhere but with us. From day 1, he picked Scout as his favorite (btw – I don’t understand how I couldn’t be his favorite since everyone loves me). He would follow him around everywhere ~ if Scout looked out the window, Yukon was right next to him looking out the same window. If Scout went to lay on the dog beds, Yukon would be laying on the bed right next to him. If Scout wanted to go outside, Yukon was right behind him prancing in the yard.

After 3 months of his medication, the vets were amazed at the results ~ all of his values were within normal limits!!! We were happy for Yukon, but we were afraid that now he was going to have to start looking for a furever home. We didn’t want him to go anywhere cause we loved him so much. It seems that fate also had plans for Yukon…

On August 26th, Yukon was rushed to the vet. He couldn’t get up and he was very pale. When Mum came home, Yukon wasn’t with her. We couldn’t understand where he had gone. I overheard Mum talking on the phone. She said that Yukon had to have emergency surgery and a blood transfusion. Apparently, he had a tumor on his spleen that had ruptured and he was bleeding internally. They had to remove his spleen and he stayed at the vet for 2 whole days. Here’s a photo Mum took of him after his surgery…

The vet had said that she thought the tumor was hemangiosarcoma, which is an aggressive cancer. Sadly, the biopsy results confirmed it. His prognosis was not good ~ median survival rate was 2 – 3 months post-surgery. Mum and Dad had decided that Yukon was already with his family and they made it “official” by adopting him.

Yukon came home and he got all kinds of great food ~ chicken, steak, noodles, potatoes, rice, cottage cheese (ok – the cottage cheese is kinda gross) and plain yogurt. He gained 7 pounds after his surgery and he was eating really well ~ 3 times a day!

On the afternoon of November 3rd, Mum picked up Yukon’s leash to take him outside. He started prancing around like he always did. Mum hooked him up and we all went out in the yard. Mum was on the phone with Aunt Kathy talking about some pup that needed rescue, when Mum noticed that Yukon stumbled. I heard her say that something was wrong with Yukon. I turned just in time to see Yukon lay down in a pile of leaves. Mum hung up the phone and tried to get Yukon up. He just couldn’t get up. She tried to get us in the house, but we just needed to know what was going on with our brother. We could tell Mum was upset, so we just gave up and went into the house. With some help, Mum carried Yukon to the car and they drove to the vet as quickly as they could.

We tried to wait patiently, but couldn’t stop pacing. Finally Mum came home, but Yukon was not with her. Mum was crying and I realized that Yukon wasn’t coming home. The cancer had spread and Yukon’s body could no longer fight. He began his journey North of the Rainbow Bridge with Mum and Dad by his side.

That night, Scout curled up on Yukon’s bed and fell asleep.

We all miss him terribly and wish we would have had more time to spend with him. He was such a joy for our family and we hope he enjoyed his time with us as much as we did.

Yukon ~ you will always be in our hearts and we are grateful for the short time we got to spend with you.

~ Chloe

Good evening Puppers ~
When we were contacted about Max, we knew that we had to help this handsome pup. We had been contacted by a shelter ~ Max had been struck by a car and unfortunately, his owners never stepped forward to take him home. Without the means to provide the necessary surgery to repair his broken leg, the shelter turned to local rescues for assistance.

All of the rescues contacted worked together and luckily, MaPaw was able to make sure Max got the surgery he so desperately needed. A call was put out to our volunteers and so many stepped forward to play a role in his journey.

Here’s a photo of Max, taken by Janet, the morning she picked him up to take him to the orthopedic surgeon’s office.

Her concern about how she would get him to the car quickly disappeared when she saw this pup bounding toward her with a neon green cast on his leg! Clearly, his injuries could not dampen his spirits! He was a great passenger as he made his way to the surgeon’s office.

Janet checked him in and we all waited on pins and needles to know that he was out of surgery. Finally ~ the news we were all waiting to hear. Max was out of surgery and it was a success. Our broken pup has now become our bionic pup after the addition of a plate and some pins.

After his overnight stay, he was ready to journey into Pennsylvania to meet his temporary foster home. Deb picked Max up from the surgeon’s office and brought him to her house for a few hours. Here’s a photo of him settling into his crate (and yes ~ that’s a bag of frozen peas).

Hazel and Gary picked Max up to take him to his temporary foster home with Ann, Tom, Loki and Cody. He settled in for something good to eat…

Throughout his travels, he has been a model patient. He certainly has taken advantage of all of the attention and pets he gets while his leg is being iced…

Later this weekend, he will make his way to his foster home. His foster family will have the challenging task of keeping young Max quiet for the next 6 – 8 weeks while his injuries heal.

Max greets everyone he meets with Husky kisses and is making friends everywhere.

Thanks to all of our wonderful volunteers that stepped forward to help him! We are so glad that he’s here and we can’t wait to share updates with you as his recovery progresses!

Woo woo and welcome to you Max!

~ Chloe

Hello Puppers ~
I love ~ love ~ love happy tails. And it doesn’t get much better than this!

We first met Mischa at the Hike N Howl. Her Mum, a fellow rescuer, had to move unexpectedly and could not take Mischa with her. Determined that she wouldn’t take Mischa to a shelter, she chose to kennel her. She visited Mischa frequently, but knew that she would do much better with a family. We fell in love with her as soon as we met her. We knew Mischa was a special girl.

This 12 year old spunky gal also won the hearts of Chris and Ed. They already had an approved adoption application and had come to the Hike to meet Casino. After hearing Mischa’s story, they knew they wanted to open their home to her. Soon after the Hike, Mischa moved into her new home. She has settled in nicely and is so happy to be part of a family again.

Casino joined MaPaw earlier this month. He had been found as a stray and somehow he was overlooked, spending over a month in the shelter. When a MaPaw volunteer evaluated this handsome fella, he passed with flying colors. The Husky smile on his face when he joined his foster home was priceless and a great reminder of how important the foster homes are to these guys.

Once Mischa was settled, Chris and Ed thought that she would enjoy a sibeling. So they decided to adopt Casino as well!

Woo woo! We are so happy for both of these pups! Congrats to Mischa, Casino and their new family!!

We look forward to photos and updates!!

~ Chloe

Hello Puppers ~

Meet the newest redhead on the block ~ Triton!

Look at that handsome guy!

Triton was found as a stray and his family never came to the shelter to take him home. Can you believe it?

This guy charms everyone he meets and is making friends everywhere he goes.

Check out MaPaw’s site for updates as we get to know Triton!

~ Chloe

Many of you who read our blog have either been a foster home or an adopter of a rescue dog. As I write this, it’s hard for me to remember that 8 years ago I was a lonely pup sitting in a kennel of a shelter wondering what was going on….

Dear Foster Home/Adopter ~

When we first met, I may have been a little dirty, a little underweight or in need of a good brushing. I may have been shy or bouncing off the wall. The staff may have told you that I didn’t like other dogs. But you still gave me a pet and talked kindly to me. You took the time to look past my flaws and hung out with me for a little while. Sure you pulled on my ears and my tail, picked up my feet (which was kinda weird in case you were wondering) and fed me treats. I had no idea that I was being tested ~ I just enjoyed our time together so much…

You were looking for a companion ~ I was looking for my family.

When we walked out of that shelter together, it was like stepping into a new life. The grass seemed greener, the sun seemed brighter and the sky seemed clearer. I had no idea how close I had been to never seeing the outside again.

You laughed at the way I pranced around with my nose in the air. How were you supposed to know that I hadn’t smelled fresh air for over a week? I jumped into the back seat of your car and quickly laid down. You couldn’t understand how plush those car seats felt after sleeping on the concrete. As we drove along, the breeze tickled my ears and I couldn’t hide the smile on my face! Looking back, your radio may have been a little loud ~ but I didn’t mind cause it was still much quieter than 20 dogs barking at once.

When we pulled up to your house, I was excited and nervous at the same time. I couldn’t wait to get inside to investigate the barking I heard, yet I was worried that the barking dogs wouldn’t like me. Would I be welcomed into your house? Would I find my place in your pack?

As we walked to your door, you thought to yourself, “Please let everyone get along”.

You decided to introduce us one dog at a time starting with the one easiest to get along with. That first introduction went smoothly, as did the next one and the last one. Within an hour, I was chasing my new siblings around the yard. We only stopped when it was time to eat. I couldn’t eat my dinner fast enough, but then again, I hadn’t eaten anything since the night before. But how were you supposed to know that? After dinner, we played some more. I hadn’t run this much since my owner dropped me off on the side of the road. Boy was I tired!

When it was finally time for bed, I paced trying to find the perfect piece of floor to sleep on. That is, until you showed me that I had my very own fluffy bed to sleep on. I think I may have seen your eyes water a little when I circled three times, curled into a ball and tucked my nose under my tail to sleep. I let out a sigh of relief just before I fell asleep. I slept so soundly that night ~ it was so comfortable and quiet.

Sometimes when I’m laying in the sunshine in front of my favorite window, I catch you watching me. I wonder if you’re thinking the same thing I am ~ I’m so happy we met that day….

~ Chloe

It’s Calendar Time!!!

That’s right Puppers ~ you can pre-order your 2010 MaPaw Calendar now!

Pre-order now ~ calendars ship in mid-November.

Click here to check out who’s in this year’s calendar, learn the details and pre-order your calendar!

~ Chloe

Good evening Puppers ~

Do you guys remember Kye? He’s the handsome bi-eyed boy that was adopted from MaPaw in August. Shortly after he joined his new family, they decided that they wanted to adopt a sibeling to join Kye. Of course, they wanted to wait until Kye got settled and comfortable in his new home.

I mean, let’s face it ~ we Huskies are pretty darn cool and fun so it’s hard to only have 1 in the family…

Once Kye was comfortable with his new home and routine, his family started visiting MaPaw’s site looking for a new sibeling for Kye. When they saw Miss Nika, they knew they had to meet her. How can you resist someone this cute???

Shortly before Hike N Howl 2009, Nika’s foster Mum took her to meet Kye and his family. After a little while, these 2 pups started to play. By the end of the meeting, they both had big ol’ Husky smiles!

Just a little bit after, Kye and Nika brought their family to the Hike. They hiked to help us raise funds for other pups like them that need the rescue’s help.

Nika has certainly become comfortable in her new home. She spends her time chasing her new bro and sometimes letting him chase her…

Congrats to Kye, Nika and their family! We look forward to plenty of pics and updates!

~ Chloe

Young Shelby’s future seemed a little hazy. MaPaw had been contacted about her by her owners and foster space was quickly made available. However, Shelby somehow ended up at the local shelter and we weren’t sure exactly what was going to happen with her. Luckily after some “rescue magic”, this black and white beauty made her way to her foster home.

Shelby settled into her foster home quickly and was soon ready to start the search for her furever home. Well….

It didn’t take this little lady long to find her perfect match in Tom!

She has been in her furever home for a few weeks now and is loving life!

Congrats to Shelby and Tom!

~ Chloe

We are so happy to report that sweet Buster has found his furever home!

Although Buster’s family had already submitted the application to adopt him before the Hike, they decided to stop by and meet him in person at the Hike since they knew he would be there. When they got to meet him, they knew Buster would be the perfect fit for their home! They just couldn’t wait to introduce him to Mo and Minerva, their 2 German Shepherds.

On Monday, Buster made the trip to his furever home. Everyone got along so well ~ it was like Buster had always been there.

He just looks so darn happy!

Congrats to Buster!! We look forward to updates and photos!

~ Chloe

I know I promised that I would have a Happy Tail posted for every day of October since it’s Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog month. I haven’t had time to post in the last couple of days cause we were so busy getting ready for Hike N Howl 2009!

Hike N Howl was this Saturday (October 10th) at Tyler State Park in Newtown, PA. The day started off with some rain, but that didn’t stop our friends from coming out to the park to have lots of fun with us. We had a great time catching up with old friends and making plenty of new ones!

Hickory Nut Picnic Grove was busy with pups playing and showing off for each other. We hope that some of the available pups that joined us in the park will soon have Happy Tails of their own!

Check out the Hike site ~ we’ll be adding photos from this year soon.

I’ll share one Happy Tail with you although it’s not really a surprise for those that know RJ and his foster parents….

RJ came to MaPaw in August and his foster family quickly fell in love with him. They decided to make it official and adopt the little guy. This lucky little boy found his perfect furever home!

Congrats to RJ and his family!

Now that we have finally recuperated from all of the fun on Saturday, I’ll get back to posting a new Happy Tail each day of October.

~ Chloe