- e-Vet ALERT: Possible Spring Pet Injuries
- We have lost two special animals this past month
- e-Vet ALERT: Valentine dangers to your pet – roses, lilies, raisins, chocolate and more.
- $5 provides a box of Valentine’s cookies for a dog, or a box of heart-shaped treats for a cat
- e-Vet ALERT: Beware Ibuprofen in Dogs
Posts Tagged ‘animal super sanctuary’
D.E.L.T.A. Rescue Vet Advises on Keeping Dogs and Cats Safe in Rattlesnake Season
Rattlesnake season is here, and the veterinarian of the 501(c)(3) non-profit D.E.L.T.A. Rescue, the world’s largest no-kill, care-for-life sanctuary, is offering critical advice on rattlesnake bite prevention — and what to do in the event a pet tangles with a rattlesnake.
“As the temperature warms and days get longer, accidental encounters with rattlesnakes increase in the Southwest,” explained D.E.L.T.A. Rescue veterinarian Gaylord Brown, D.V.M., who in his former private practice saw countless rattlesnake bites. “Dogs, due to their inquisitive nature, are more at risk of being bitten. However, people may not know that cats are also at risk.”
Typically, a dog will blunder into a rattlesnake, causing the snake to strike in self-defense. As a result, most rattlesnake bites in dogs occur on the nose. Cats, being naturally more cautious and prone to striking at a threat with their claws, are more likely to be bitten on the front paw or leg.
The prospect of a beloved pet getting in a dust-up with a rattler can be terrifying. The good news: People can protect cats and dogs from being bitten in the first place. According to Dr. Brown, who answers questions on the “Ask the Vet” section of DeltaRescue.org, avoidance is the best way to prevent a rattlesnake bite.
Dr. Brown cautions people to keep their dogs close when hiking, stay on well-marked trails and to make their presence known. If the snakes are closer to home, Dr. Brown advises homeowners to consider installing snake wire on the bottom two or three feet of fence around their yards — as D.E.L.T.A. Rescue does at its sanctuary — and to be particularly watchful at dusk and dawn, when rattlesnakes are most active.
But what if an encounter between a pet and a rattlesnake is unavoidable? Signs of a rattlesnake bite, says Dr. Brown, include acute swelling, pain, and dark, bloody drainage from the fang sites. A bite to the pet’s face will almost always cause excessive drooling; with any rattlesnake bite, the pet will likely be depressed and begin panting. Once bitten by a rattlesnake, a pet must be kept quiet and still. Dr. Brown discourages tourniquets and says lancing or suction at the fang marks should only be done with mechanical suction devices by those trained in the technique.
“A person whose pet shows signs of having been bitten by a rattlesnake should seek medical attention with a veterinarian immediately,” said Dr. Brown. “With treatment, survival rates are high, and most veterinarians in endemic snake areas have antivenin.”
Those with further questions about snake bites or any other questions about veterinary health can register for free and post their questions directly to Dr. Brown at http://www.deltarescue.org/ask-the-vet.
Contact Information
D.E.L.T.A. Rescue
P.O. Box 9
Glendale, CA 91209
Phone: 800-606-1544
Special Dog Shows D.E.L.T.A. Rescue Workers the Meaning of Perseverance
She rarely stops moving. Full of energy, she adores everyone around her and is always up for an adventure.
The only clue that her life has not always been so easy is her missing leg. Her name is Anna, and she has quickly become an inspiration to her caretakers at D.E.L.T.A. Rescue, the world’s largest no-kill, care-for-life sanctuary — and the only rescue organization focused on saving pets abandoned in the wilderness.
Photos of Anna:
Though the winsome brown dog can’t actually tell anyone what she’s been through in her life, D.E.L.T.A. Rescue veterinarians have pieced together enough of Anna’s history to understand just how remarkable she is. When rescuers found Anna in the desert, she was dragging a badly injured leg. But she was friendly, making it easy for them to bring her back to one of the two fully staffed veterinary hospitals at the D.E.L.T.A. Rescue sanctuary outside Los Angeles.
“Anna must have been someone’s pet for a while, because she’s too friendly and trusting to have been born in the desert,” said D.E.L.T.A. Rescue founder and animal welfare activist Leo Grillo. “She also has been a mother. We don’t know whether she had her puppies in the desert after being abandoned, or in her former home, which nonetheless took her for a drive and tossed her away.”
Anna already had one strike against her when she arrived in the desert: She was born with vision in only one eye. The wounds on Anna’s leg indicate she probably became caught in an illegal coyote leg-hold trap before eventually chewing off her own foot to escape. Her ordeal must have been horrifying, yet the day after her surgery at D.E.L.T.A. Rescue, Anna enthusiastically pulled her veterinary nurse into the facility’s grassy yard for some play time.
“Anna is showing us we can take hits and carry on our work here at D.E.L.T.A. Rescue with passion, in spite of a drop in donations in 2010,” Grillo explained. “She hasn’t let anything get her down. This special dog is inspiring me to work even harder to ensure our work here at D.E.L.T.A. Rescue continues, no matter what curve balls the economy is throwing us.”
For the rest of her life, Anna will remain at the 115-acre D.E.L.T.A. Rescue SuperSanctuary, where staff dedicate their time to providing loving care to Anna and 1,500 abandoned cats and dogs just like her. Once a cast-off, Anna now gives her caretakers the energy and stamina to keep going when things get tough.
To learn more about Anna and the work the 501(c)3 D.E.L.T.A. Rescue has been doing to help animals for over three decades, visit the nonprofit organization’s Web site at http://www.deltarescue.org. Those interested in supporting D.E.L.T.A. Rescue’s ongoing mission can donate directly from the Web site, over the phone or via postal mail.
Dogs and Cats Abandoned to Wilderness Face Uncertain Futures as Donations to D.E.L.T.A. Rescue Dip
Los Angeles, CA — At a time when millions of Americans are drastically tightening their belts to survive the economic downturn, pleas for charitable donations are increasingly going unanswered. But for one group of lost souls, even the smallest donations can mean the difference between life and death. D.E.L.T.A. Rescue (Dedication and Everlasting Love to Animals)
They’re the animals domesticated dogs and cats, primarily that have been abandoned to the wilderness, left to their own devices in harsh conditions and unable to fend for themselves. And there’s only one organization in the nation dedicated to finding those abandoned pets and nursing them back to health: D.E.L.T.A. Rescue a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded by actor and animal activist Leo Grillo.
The animals’ stories are heartbreaking. Coquetta, a small black-and-white dog, gave birth in the desert hundreds of miles from southern California, only to watch her entire litter die from exposure. Soon after, she was hit by a car and left for dead, her hip and leg shattered. D.E.L.T.A. Rescue found her and brought her to its 115-acre Super Sanctuary, the largest no-kill, care-for-life sanctuary in the world. There, D.E.L.T.A. veterinarians performed emergency surgery in one of the sanctuary’s two hospitals, and the staff provided the care and love Coquetta seemed never to have known. Today Coquetta is almost fully healed and, in spite of her trials, loves to be around people.
ABOVE PICTURE – BEFORE SURGERY
For every Coquetta, however, there are countless other animals struggling to survive in deserts and forests in which they were never meant to live. Grillo and his organization have been rescuing and caring for such animals since he founded D.E.L.T.A. Rescue in 1979, and in the time since, D.E.L.T.A. Rescue has become a first-responder to disasters and massive rescue situations all over the country. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Grillo’s organization partnered with Feed The Children to get truckloads of dog and cat food to the animals left behind by families fleeing the hurricane. Disaster response teams have also called on D.E.L.T.A. Rescue during Southern California’s devastating wildfires.
But with the nationwide proliferation of smaller animal rescue organizations, Americans are being bombarded with appeals for donations. For D.E.L.T.A. Rescue, that means fewer funds with which to rescue and care for dogs and cats found in the wild.
ABOVE PICTURE – AFTER Surgery at D.E.L.T.A. Rescue Super Sanctuary
“D.E.L.T.A. Rescue goes out to where animals are alone and suffering, with absolutely no one else to help them,” Grillo explained. “If D.E.L.T.A. Rescue doesn’t come for them, nobody will. That’s what makes our organization different from virtually every other animal rescue organization out there. It’s why our work — and the continued donations of concerned citizens — are so vitally necessary.”
To learn more about D.E.L.T.A. Rescue, or to make a tax-deductible donation to help the organization continue its work, visit http://www.deltarescue.org or write to D.E.L.T.A. Rescue, P.O. Box 9, Glendale, CA, 91209.
