Adopted Dog Update: Monty

We recently got an update from Monty's mom ... we LOVE hearing from adopters. If you have an update to share please email us at editor@pethavenmn.org.

"In about February of 2005 my family and I adopted a Boxer from PetHaven.  He was about 7 months old and named Monty.  I just wanted to let you know that he was diagnosed with bone cancer today.  We are very sad. It's strange because it was discovered as a lump in his neck, not connected to the bone or in the bones that we know of.  He had the lump removed about 2 weeks ago and had the stitches taken out today.  Ever since the surgery he's been much happier and has been eating, drinking and doing everything normal.


He's been a GREAT dog to us over the last 5 plus years and we are hoping that he hangs around for awhile.  I am the President of Minnesota Boxer Rescue and I know we like to keep in touch with our adoptive families and know how our "babies" are doing as life goes on. Thought you might want to know about Monty.  I'm attaching a picture of him.  He's just the greatest darn dog!


 .... And I spoke with our vet regarding his diagnosis and if his cancer has not spread to the lungs or his jaw, the vet thinks it is slow growing and we may be able to keep ahead of the game by removing the lump if it keeps coming back.  He's a very happy boy since the surgery and runs and jumps and barks at my husband to play with him.  So at least for now he appears to be getting better.  Monty has grown up to be such an amazing boy.  Like I told Sue, he was a HANDFUL when we got him!  He chewed the carpet on our stairs and was a real bugger to house train...ruined our entire living room carpet.  But once we got him trained, he has been perfect.  We have not kenneled him since he was 2 and he is great."

Photo Fundraiser through 5/31!

Photographers Guild in St. Paul is once again having a photo fundraiser for Pet Haven through the end of May.

A minimum $40 donation to Pet Haven will get you the following:

- A free photo sitting session
- A free 8 x 10
- More bonding time with your furry friend
- The chance to make a huge difference for homeless dogs and cats!

For more info, click here.

Cider (cute boy on left!) had the chance to go in for a photo shoot with his mom ... here's what she had to say:

"This was the second year we've taken advantage of this event. Two years ago we were told our dear sweet Molly probably wouldn't live another few months. We realized we didn't have any good pictures of her and then saw the Pet Haven/Photographer's Guild offer and took them up on it. Molly was not a very photogenic dog but the Photographer's Guild took some great pictures and we got one that is most definitely MOLLY.

So this year, my husband is away with the military. I saw the offer and decided to surprise him with pictures of Cider and myself. What more could he want, right?

Cider was a stinker. He didn't like the flash and almost refused to look at the photographer! We used all his favorite words, walk, treat, car, frosty paw! He figured out pretty quickly he wasn't getting any of it!

The photographer took an hour with us and told me that Cider wasn't going to win! We were going to get a good picture of him! We did. In fact we got so many good pictures of him it was very hard to pick!

The folks at Photographer's guild are professional, patient and willing to do what it takes to get the shot!

We'll definitely do it again!"

Thanks Cider and Andrea for supporting Pet Haven and homeless dogs and cats!! And Cider, you are definitely one very photogenic boy!! :)

Adopted Dog Update: Cocoa

We don't get too many puppies in at Pet Haven, but when we do, they sure are a crowd pleaser. This was no different for Cocoa, the four month old terrier mix. He received lots of attention at our adoption events, but it takes a special family to bring a puppy in training into their home. Puppies can be unpredictable, energetic, accident prone, and sometimes all we can do is guess at their adult weight and temperment since we don't know what type of breed(s) they have for parents.

We're so happy that spunky little Cocoa found a great forever home with two human siblings. Here's an update from Jill & Dan, Cocoa's new parents:

"I thought I’d send a little update on Cocoa – he is sooooo cute! He is adapting quite well and we are quite smitten with him! He has been having a blast playing with the neighbor dogs, even a big golden lab! He definitely isn’t afraid of any of them and tires them out, ha! We have a long, 30 foot tie out that he goes outside on, and he loves to just sit and watch the neighborhood activities."

Sounds like Cocoa has a long, happy life ahead of him. Congrats to Cocoa and his new family!

In Honor of Sweet Lacy Mae

On Friday, 4/30/2010 sweet Lacy (who was adopted from Pet Haven 3/2009) crossed over the bridge. Her paw print will be forever etched in the hearts of so many ... the following was written by her mom Jackie:

"In early March of 2009 I went to the Minnetonka Petco to purchase food and treats for our hamster “Jack”, as I was walking through the store I noticed a crowd of people with all kinds of beautiful dogs I wasn’t sure what was going on so I decided to take a look. I found out it was an adoption event being held by Pet Haven and all of the dogs were looking for good homes.

My husband and I were just getting ready to close on our first house and with moving I knew it wouldn’t probable be a good time to get a dog but I decided that I needed to take a look anyway. That is when a volunteer pointed me into the direction of a dog laying quietly on the floor next to her foster mom Claudia. I sat down next to Lacy and from the second I looked into her sweet eyes I knew I was in trouble. I sat with Claudia and Lacy for what it seemed like forever and Claudia told me her story of how she had came to Pet haven, she was adopted once before but returned because the other family pet did not take well to Lacy. It broke my heart, I decided to take a walk with Lacy and Claudia around the store Lacy was a good girl she would smell the treats but never took any and when you would stop she would push herself up against you.

I left that day knowing what I had to do so I went home and immediately told my husband about her and went online and found her on Pet Haven’s website and filled out an application. The next day I received a call from another volunteer and we talked for almost an hour about Lacy and I explained to her that I needed my husband to meet her and that we were just getting ready to move and if she was still available in the next two weeks we would come and see her again. I called the volunteer and would check to see how she was doing and if she was still available.

On March 29^th 2009 about a week after we had moved we went and met Lacy again, my husband and son fell in love with her as quickly as I did and we took her home that day!

She made herself at home almost instantly and found her favorite spot on the couch and a few days after that she found her favorite spot on the bed.

Over the next few weeks and months she became more trusting and more loving than ever, when we first got her she hesitated to get into the car and after a few weeks and some short car rides she quickly realized that when she went with mom in the car she knew she would also come back home so she started to love going in the car and as soon as she would hear my keys she would be the first to the door and there were even time she would knock mom down the stairs to make sure she didn’t forget about Lacy.

Everyday going to work she would walk me to the door and everyday when I came home she was waiting at the top of the stairs with her butt and nubbin doing her little dance she always did when she was excited.

I went away overnight and my sister n law came to let Lacy out and spend some time with her and when she went to leave Lacy blocked her so she had to trick her giving her a milk bone. Lacy always made sure we didn’t forget about her, there is no way I ever could.

Lacy was very well behaved when it was time to make dinner she knew she wasn’t allowed in the kitchen so she laid by the door and patiently waited for a treat to be thrown her way she quickly learned the sound of her milk bone box as well. We took stock in Sam’s club milk bones so we always had enough treats.

My husband is a Firefighter and whenever his pager would go off or if any sirens went by the house Lacy would stand up on the couch and howel until they went by and would make sure she got the last word in, sometime all my husband had to do would say the word “emergency” and she would get all excited.

She always went with me to walk dad to truck to say good night when he would go work his overnight shifts at the station and then she would gladly keep his spot next to me warm until he came home in the morning and sometimes didn’t want to move when he would get home so she would snuggle in the middle of us.

In February of 2010 I noticed some hair loss on our sweet girls legs so I decided to take her into the vet expected them to tell me she had an allergy of some sort, it turned out she had Demodectic  mange they gave us some medication and sent us on our way. A few weeks into her treatments I noticed something funny with her skin and since I was having a “bad” feeling about the vet we decided to get a 2^nd opinion and took her to another vet. She did have the mange but she also ended up having an ear and bladder infection and a skin infection that received from the medication, we were devasted to find out that Lacy was very sick and had a very serious illness and would not have the quality of life that she had.

So on April 29^th we made the hardest decision ever to end our sweet girls suffering. On April 30^th at 9am we said goodbye to Lacy. It was the hardest moment in our lives.

Over the next few days I was overwhelmed by the love and support we received not only by friends and family but from the family of Pet Haven, it was because of them that our sweet girl was brought into our lives and will be forever grateful all the Pet Haven did before she came home to us and after she left us.

To our Sweet Lacy, we pray that you are dancing just as you did when you were here with us.

We love and Miss you and will thank god for the 13 months that we had with your sweet face.

God Bless!!"

The following is a tribute to sweet Lacy ....

Jackie would like a new family.

Jackie is a gorgeous 2 year old Rottweiler. It is not often we get purebred dogs into our rescue program. Jackie weighs in at 93lbs and is the perfect weight for his breed. He gets along with other dogs and loves people. He is very smart and eager to please. A fenced yard will make Jackie's life even more comfortable, so he can run fast and free and still stay safe. If Jackie sounds like the dog for your family please email dogs@pethavenmn.org. He is waiting to hear from you.

Scout's in search of a new home

This is Scout, a lovable, eager to please lab mix that was recently returned to Pet Haven when things didn't work out in his last home.

This energetic boy would love for you to take him on daily walks or runs. This is a good thing, because at 42 lbs, Scout needs to lose a few pounds to get down to a healthy weight. I personally think that's just more of him to love, but the trainer says it's time for this boy to "dechunkafy" and get down to his target weight of 30 lbs.

Though Scout loves people and bonds quite well with his owners, he would be best in a home without small children (under 10 years) or other dogs. Scout tends to startle easily with unpredictable movement, which could lead him to get anxious and defensive. Other than that, he seems to be the perfect companion. See what Scout's foster mom has to say about him:

"In our 4 days with Scout he has been nothing but nice to us and is full of energy. He is 6 but still loves to play. He enjoys tugging on his rope toy and fetching his ball. He also has taken an interest in rawhides as well. He loves to go on walks and he likes to run too which has been good for him (and us) for losing weight. He is a huge snuggler and loves to follow Nick and I around when we are home. He also likes to sleep in bed with us at night versus the nice bed we made for him on the floor. He is trained to sit, shake, and lay down and loves to do his tricks for treats. And he has been very affectionate by giving us kisses to show his appreciation. He has been trustworthy while we are at work and doesn’t need to be crated or gated off. So far, he has been a pleasure to have around and an all-around good dog. "

Are you in search of your very own Scout??

You can learn more about Scout here. If interested in Scout or any of Pet Haven's adoptable pets, please contact dogs@pethavenmn.org.

Avalon School Drives Home the Need for Supplies for Homeless Dogs and Cats

Pet Haven would like to thank Avalon School in St. Paul for selecting Pet Haven as a recipient organization during their service week. Every year the kids at Avalon School decide on a service opportunity or area of focus for their annual week of service. This is the second year in a row that the students decided to help animals in need, and the second year that Pet Haven was included as part of their service work. Both this year and in 2009, the students held a supply drive for Pet Haven, requesting food, toys, and bedding materials. As you can see in the photo, they did a great job, and their efforts are very appreciated! This year they also participated in service events with a number of other animal rescue organizations, including with other members of Minnesota Partnership for Animal Welfare (www.MnPAW.org).

Thanks again to the students at Avalon for helping out!