Adopted Dog Update: Gunnar

Gunnar arrived into Pet Haven's foster program from a shelter in rural Iowa. With his health issues he was not a good candidate for being placed up for adoption at the shelter. Little did Gunnar know that his fosters who were only going to keep him temporarily, would fall for him so quickly .... his first foster home turned out to be his forever home! Way to win 'em over Gunnar!

"Gunnar and Moose (rat terrier) are great friends and do everything together. We're so happy to have such a loving, sweet, happy yellow lab in our family. His heart problem doesn't often cause him much difficulty, though when it's hot and humid, he doesn't really have too much stamina. But then, neither do I! When we first got Gunnar, he weighed about 80 pounds, obviously too much weight for his frame. He's now weighs about 67 pounds, and our vet thinks that's the perfect size for him. He needs to keep his weight down because of his heart murmur, but also because of his knees. He just had surgery to repair a torn cruciate ligament in his right knee, and if one knee goes, the other one may go, too. He's recovering very well,and the only problem is keeping him from doing too much. He doesn't understand that he's not supposed to run after the squirrels and rabbits right now!

Gunnar is a great foster brother to the Pet Haven dogs that we've had staying with us. He's very calm, doesn't let too much rattle him. As long as he gets fed, and gets some love from his humans, he's happy."

Lacy: Making new friends

Lacy's foster has been out of town for a few days, so Lacy hung out with another foster family. I couldn't resist sharing this photo of Lacy chilling out with the resident dogs, including Gunnar - a Pet Haven alum! Check out the link for Gunnar's before photos. He looks so much happier now!

Nestle & Gunnar: Adopted!

Don't you think that Nestle looked very much at home at his foster family's cabin this weekend? Well, his foster family agrees! Nestle is being adopted by Jenny and the rest of her pack. From Jenny's email "He is such a great dog and we have already grown very attached to him."

Gunnar is another middle-aged lab who came from the same shelter as Nestle and arrived in Pet Haven care on the same day. He was profiled on the blog a couple weeks back. He was deemed unadoptable at the shelter because of a heart murmur. Gunnar also charmed the socks off of his foster family and they are adopting him.

Nestle and Gunnar's stories are a heartwarming example of what dog rescue is all about.
Congratulations, boys!

Gunnar: Gunning for your heart, of course!

Gunnar is a 7 year old yellow lab who came to Pet Haven through animal control. During examination by the vet staff at the shelter they detected a heart murmur. Unfortunately, this meant that Gunnar was unadoptable through the shelter. Fortunately, Pet Haven was able to step in and save this sweetheart's life. Gunnar was brought into foster care and is currently undergoing some diagnostic tests so that we fully understand the extent of his heart murmur.

What we know at this point is that Gunnar is happy and in good health right now. It will be important to keep Gunnar at a healthy weight so that his heart does not expend extra energy hauling around weight that Gunnar does not need anyway. He will never be a jogging partner, but regular exercise will be important for Gunnar. The heart, like any other muscle, needs to be kept well-conditioned for optimal health and this will be especially important for Gunnar.

Pet Haven is very fortunate that we are able to say "yes" to helping dogs like Gunnar with some extra medical needs on a regular basis. We are able to do this because of the generosity of our donors who provide us with the funds necessary to pay for extraordinary care such as Gunnar's diagnostic work. If you are interested in making a donation to help Gunnar and other dogs like him, please visit our donation page. If you would like to adopt Gunnar, please email dogs@pethavenmn.org.