German Wirehaired Pointer Wall Calendar GWP Rescue, Inc

German Wirehaired Pointer Wall Calendar GWP Rescue, Inc

Our Calendar is out for 2013! Take a look!

Oct. is adopt a shelter Dog month at OneTrueMedia.com

Shelter dogs make wonderful Pets! ADOPT a shelter dog!

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The Dog Net News Daily

The Dog Net News Daily

My Video 10/10/12 at OneTrueMedia.com

Baldwin meets Gertie

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Sam is finally home

Our SAM has finally gone home! Sam came over a year ago with compound fracture of the right front leg. She went through 4 ortho surgeries, months of leash and crate rest. She has had the good fortune to have gone home with Wildlife Artist Zettie Jones on her 460 acre farm. Zettie has trained Drahthaars and horses for many years. When their last DD passed on at age 15...they decided to rescue. We are so very grateful SAM has found the perfect home. Be a good girl SAM I AM...you taught me many lessons in patience.
 

GWP Rescue, Inc Sept. 28th, 2012 Dear Friends and Families, Please help us by voting daily on our video until Nov. 8th! We truly need your support! Please Vote for our Video-We will win $5000. to Benefit our Dogs! Hello Everyone, We have had an opportunity for a win-win contest! One of our former adopters made this video for the PetPlan Wag the vote contest. We are asking you a favor. Could you vote daily until November 8th to give us a chance to win? We are in third place, and really need your help. Simply click on the link, put in your email address and hit submit. It is that easy, and will help us so much. With the economy slow, donations down and grants offered less and less, this is a way that costs nothing...could we Please count on your support? Your email address will not be shared by this company. Our adopter has been out of work, and needed surgery. She will also win $5000. for making this darling video. So it is a win-win and we so appreciate her entering us as her chosen charity. Thank you so much...and Please Vote Daily until Nov. 8th... http://www.wagthevote.com/gallery.aspx?ID=70 German Wirehaired Pointer Rescue, Inc Olathe, Ks Mary Murray GWP Rescue, Inc

Deadly Diagnosis

Our last post detailed the struggle of Halle and LuLu...Riley passed on Tuesday, LuLu passed on Thursday, and Little Halle on Saturday. Our test came in from K-State with a deadly diagnosis of distemper. Mama had been struggling, and broke with distemper Sunday, July 22nd. While she has some resistance, she is still very ill. We are hoping you could share our chip in to help us continue to care for her. This situation has been the worst we have ever encountered in rescue.
Thanks to so many wonderful supporters, we have had checks coming in and have met our goal! Mama is now known as Peaches, and we are treating her at home with our vet doing in home visits....we are giving subQ fluids in her back daily, nutracal, batril, vaporizer, eye drops as her membranes all dried out....but she is making progress. Unless something neurological takes place, she is on the mend. She is weak, and have ordered an appetite stimulant to be in tomorrow. Feeding the nutracal, along with a liquid diet and fluids has kept her alive. We are also supplementing with iron. She is holding her own....we are so grateful to all of those that cared so much for her and the babies. A little dog that could thanks to so many...

little Lulu and Halle are both in the hospital. Little Riley their brother lost his fight and passed on Tuesday. We are hopeful for the girls to recover. Their bills will be huge, so we are working on this chip in, and an online Ebay Auction through our Mission Fish Charity Page. Please share or donate even 5.00, it all adds up. Please watch for updates on the puppies... Halle before she became sick.

Mama needs our help....

Please help us save Mama....she has come in with a severe upper respiratory infection as did her babies. They are just 8 weeks old, and all treated last week. Just when we thought we were out of the woods, she came down with a fever of 106.7 degrees, and was admitted to the hospital. She has a deadly diagnosis of closed pyometra, and we are asking your help. If you could give any amount, it all adds up and so appreciated. Her babies are on the mend, but miss her. Please share her chip in....thank you! All donations are tax deductible, as we are a recognized 501c3 certified through the IRS.

- Terrierman's Daily Dose -

- Terrierman's Daily Dose -

time to let the AKC know how you feel.  This will be Sept. 2012.

Gustave-Loving 3 year old needs a home-gwprescue.com

 

Gus needs a home for a Gentle Giant!

Gus is a three year old GWP that is just awesome! Lookin' for a wonderful dog to share your life with? I am here!n GwpRescue.com

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Terms of Endearment

One of the most impacting movies I ever saw was "Terms of Endearment" staring Shirley Maclaine and Debra Winger. It is the story of a Mother losing her daughter to terminal cancer. I saw it at the movies way back when, and little did I know how very true the events depicted in the movie actually were. The last two hospitalizations I had a couple of the "terms" moments. The scene where Shirley Maclaine is at the hospital, an inch of gray from her roots, and looking like hell are pretty common for those of us caregivers. When pain medication was needed, I too looked like this and leaned in the window on the cancer ward nurses station..."We have been waiting twenty minutes..." I said...I didn't scream, I am saving that for future hospitalizations.

I am human, and did screw up yesterday. We had requested stronger pain meds, and anxiety drugs which our doctor agreed were necessary at this time. I missed the call from the doctor, called back and the receptionist told me they had called them in. I went to the pharmacy this morning, and it was explained to me the drugs are strong narcotics and must be hand carried. Came home to a near hysterical patient, and the doctor's office was closed. Got ahold of the on call physician, that in turn got ahold of the adjacent on call clinic next door, gave permission for them to go next door, get into his file and retrieve them. Oh what a relief that was, as the doctors said he could not go a day without them...

I threw on my favorite capri pants, as it is so sunny and warm today, my new flip flops a friend...actually more like a sister sent to me, and my favorite pale green shirt. Yes, I looked like Shirley once again, with gray stemming from the roots...but felt a bit better, thinking I was stylin', new and favorite stuff does that for ya. Got to the clinic looked down, and noticed I hadn't shaved my legs all winter. Oh well...it is what it is. I would have made Aurora Greenwood proud.

I took a month off work to get everything in order...contacted an attorney to look over everything to be sure nothing would go into probate. Took care of all the filings and so on, glad I did that. Shopped around for funeral homes, and looked at urns. He will come home with me, at least for awhile...his only request is to be one shelf "higher" than our dogs that have passed...which are in Urns also.

Speaking of urns, don't get one from the funeral home...unless you want to spend $800.-$2000.00 for a $50.-$400.00 urn. He doesn't want a service, being the Irishman he is wants a full blown Irish wake...a party. Now that will be interesting...He probably will want Holly there too. Which is fine and I know it is what he would want, haven't asked him but know he regards her as one of the family.

Holly is his wire...she has been with us eight years, came in high heartworm positive, pregnant, among other things. He has cared for her since the day we brought her home. Their daily outings for eight years have ceased, and she is not coping well. I am doing what I can to mimic their outings, but it is not the same.

Back to the urns...I have met hundreds of wire friends the past 12 years. The support of the wire community has been as passionate as the dogs themselves. Their loyalty always unwavering, a rock on which to stand and lean on. If I were to have earned anything through the mission of rescuing these dogs, it will have been for the incredible gifts of love and friendship. So with that said, the most amazing gift of all...a dear friend and of course wire owner called me yesterday. Her husband makes urns out of rare native woods. Her father a craftsman, taught him years ago as his business sold to funeral homes. So we talked about it, and her husband will be making the box which will hold his ashes. There are no words in my vocabulary to express what I felt after that call. Just the deep concern and caring, and she said they would be "honored" to be able to do this for me. I am honored, and so very grateful. How special a gift, more than a gift...again, there are no words.

Losing someone you love is hard, it takes you to the deepest, darkest recesses of your soul; places a person may have never thought existed. The love and loyalty of those around you support, and their unwavering sincerity one sometimes may feel unworthy of such kindness. But whether I am worthy or not, I am so grateful they are there.

Thoughts

One of our followers sent me an email saying she wished she had written about her loss of a loved one to cancer. This really wasn't by choice, but more necessity. Keeping ones sanity to some means bearing all.

While in college, I became obsessed with psychology classes. I took classes not even required for my major, due to the fact I just couldn't get enough info on the human psyche. One particular class detailed the stages of death. That of the patient and the family members detailed into thoughts, feelings and emotion. I kept that textbook oddly enough, something inside me guided me in that particular decision and the book is on my nightstand. We have made it through the anger and denial, now we are on the road to acceptance.

Aggressive cancer is like a runaway train. Careening out of control down a steep slope, it veers to the left, and swings to the right. There are ups and downs, and one prepares themselves for the inevitable....then everything shoots up a steep hill again. The patient goes through so much fear, and while they seem in my circumstance to be able to let it go for a bit, not wanting to get legal paperwork signed as it signals the end is approaching is tragic actually.

I cannot say how I would handle being the patient...that is only evident if I would be in that situation. I am a coward, and do not like the unknown...I am impatient, and selfish when it comes to control over my own life and decisions. I don't think I would allow a disease to make those decisions for me. Then my faith becomes the voice of reason, and lets me know that the spoiled child inside should never go to that dark place. That each and every moment is carefully orchestrated to provide closure to those left behind. Then I feel ashamed for even entertaining such thoughts. This is what happens when there is too much silence, and grasping at the psyche of the loved one losing the battle. One thinks a bit too much.

I am not the steel magnolia I thought I was....how could I have been so wrong about myself? For today, it is what it is. Time to come out of isolation maybe. Walking is good...the dogs need a walk. Our daily walks and outings have come to a halt as of late, and they look out the bay window with longing. So thank you furkids for perching those muzzles on the window seat. I get the message...thank you for that. Nothing will happen for that hour, and all will be waiting when we come back in through the door.

Raw Grief

When reading my last post a few times over, it may appear even to myself that it is one of anger. I purged those emotions as a way of cleaning out the toxins of my being. I then realized it was not anger at all, but sheer grief. Grief within those of passion tends to be more vocal, especially for those of us that talked in church, or class. Those Nuns were always beside themselves. It became a sport for me, one I enjoyed immensely.

Oddly, the dogs all have been rallying. There is never a time I am sitting here on my laptop that I don't have at least two curled up against me. The elder dog is more reserved, she is now moving into my pack and letting her Dad move on. She is missing her daily outings in the truck, ears flapping in the wind. Her Dad always took her with him everywhere. But in her infinite wisdom, she is coping in a way I only wish I could. They have a courage and understanding of life that we simply at our core do not get.....but wish I could tap into some of that courage.

Emotion is a good thing, God gave us emotion as a gift. Robbing our expression of emotion is taking away part of what makes us human. To not acknowledge the stages of grief will slow healing and the ability to move on. Moving on one day at a time has been my coping mechanism, and it has worked quite well up until a major change of events has signaled the last stretch of the race. We will lose this war, but we have won some major battles. We have stopped and smelled the roses. There has been a lot of laughter....

Dogs will express their emotions, they do not feel guilt for doing so. They do, and move on to the next. They don't look over their shoulder and say, "wow, wish I wouldn't have done that...." They make their voices heard, their opinions....and move on. They also are very intuitive to their owner's emotions. We smell different, give off different energy, and they take care of their humans. They do not worry about tomorrow, or how things will play out in the end. They do a job, provide a service as their place in a pack/family allows. They work together to do what they were put here to do.

We are very blessed to have them in our lives...they keep us grounded, and give us a purpose. The bond with our pets is incredible, and I know I would be lost without it. They give a human permission to be human. So I will go back to being human, and they will curl up with their head in my lap, providing comfort.

The End of a Journey

First let me make perfectly clear...there is NO CURE for stage 4 non-small cell lung cancer.

I had touched lightly on my husband's cancer in regards to the relationship with his faithful companion Holly and her loyal dedication...now as we believe the journey is ending, she is sending signals of what is to come.

We can learn so much from dogs, how they process grief, how they move on with their lives, and watching them for signals on moving on has been a new lesson for me. Holly has been trying to tell me something. Her detachment now and once never ending vigil by her master's side is decreasing.

In September, 2011...we were post eight rounds of chemotherapy. The massive tumor was shirking and very small. In November, the tumor had become nearly nonexistent...although lymph nodes were still hot on the CAT scan. Doctors were elated, this was a triumph and a possible road to remission. Infact, one of the oncologists said it was remission, and my husband happily went back to work on a short schedule. His men, as he called them were so happy to have him back after seven months as he is a good leader and taught them so much with his advanced skills in metal fabrication. He was doing so well, and was about ready to go back to his eight hour schedule....we thought the worst was behind us. Then one evening he came home with a severe headache. His potassium levels had been very high just a few days before, and he was administered a binder. As those levels can cause the heart to stop, and no explanation could be provided.
We entered the hospital the next morning, the pain was excruciating. While we went through all sorts of tests, no one could come up with any explanation. We were referred to a neurologist at KU Medical center, the tests showed a stroke in the eye that had caused the pain and loss of eyesight. I feel strongly in my uneducated opinion, it was caused by the series of chemo drugs, or combination.

Chemotherapy is the only chance of possible survival or remission. A slim sector (the miracles) of patients do experience remission of two to five years from these drugs. But what we did not ask, as we were desperate for that miracle, were the effects of such drugs. I am not so sure the cancer itself would have been much worse. The neuropathy caused by the drug cisplat in the hands and feet is so very painful. The pain the patient goes through while being poisoned with chemo is something to consider if you are smart enough to "ask" the right questions.

One thing I do want to be sure to share, is to listen to your body. If you become extremely fatigued, or have anything unusual going on...don't dismiss it, and get to your doctor. If your doctor does not listen to your concerns, get another doctor.

While he did have two hospitalizations one in November, and then again in December for bronchitis at which time another CAT scan was done, and tumor in check...at our appointment just one month later, the tumor was back and growing. We were shocked, looking forward to another clean "cancer under control" report, and thinking work which is all he wanted in the entire world would be approved and he would be released again for a short schedule.

The point I am trying to make sadly, is although they say attitude is everything when fighting cancer....and it is for the patient, do your research. Read statistics at Cancer.net, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, and other sites. I am talking about specific cancers, and stages. Non small cell lung cancer kills more people than breast, pancreatic, liver, bone, brain and stomach cancer combined. This I found out on my own via web research.It would have been nice to have known this initially...but I did not "ask" the right questions.

Do I feel angry that oncology used words such as "cure", which is pure fiction? Yes, I am angry...our primary physician raised an eyebrow when I relayed the "good news" in November when I had our child in for his flu shot. Am I angry that when I tried to pin them down to anything other than "think happy thoughts?" You're damn straight I am angry. To tell patients the truth, is that too much to ask? At least tell their spouse when they pull them aside and look them in the eye for answers. I told them I am tough, but don't play emotional mind games with me when I can do a little research to find the truth. I have to know the truth. In November or December, I do remember becoming insistent with oncology, and our oncologist incharge knelt down, looked me in the eye and said, "you want statistics, but we don't know God's plan...." No we don't know God's plan, but God has given you loads of patients to provide statistics, and I feel it is your mission to provide these up front.

Now in being fair, I am told by a retired oncologist friend that on that day in November, indeed the cancer was generalized, had reduced in size to the point it was hardly detectable. The lymph nodes were hot in the CAT scan, glowing....but this would be normal. we did have remission for three months. Until the chemo had worn off.

For that I am grateful....but to keep hoping, being told the first two years are the hardest, makes one believe there will be two years. And then on a routine followup, we get the "well, the cancer is growing rapidly, we can put you through four more weeks of chemo but will be mostly treating side effects.....or you may go into hospice." "We can also check with other cancer centers to refer you..." "You have choices to make" It reminds me of the drug commercials, side effects are anorexia, lethargy, general pain and suffering....but the upside is you will receive possibly three months. Which is worse?

What happened to the cure word? So you are saying after all of this treatment and cheer leading that's it? Then Damn it! Say "that's it!" Advise patients on what to do. What would you do if it were you is my new question....and I feel it is your obligation to give me a straight "answer." I have boxed up my pom-poms, and advise you to do so too....but looks like you already have.