Della's Extreme Makeover

Karen will be sharing a series of stories about dogs from Red Lake. They are all female and were nursing litters while starving, they all had mange of various degrees, and they are all fully recovered and are looking for the right placement.

I am going to start with Della.

DELLA ON ARRIVALDella arrived with her litter of 7 pups in a cage in the truck of a car. The trunk did not close but was tied shut. They had journeyed for 67 miles from Ponemah and arrived as it was getting dusk.

The people explained that the male dog, which was the father of the pups had been shot because he had mange.

Della and her pups were very scared but when offered food- they all went wild. We tried to put food out and Della ate greedily and the puppies tried to rush the bowl. We took the puppies out and put them in their own kennel. We administered ivermectin orally for mange and internal parasites. We set them up with food and water which was gone in less than l minute.

DELLA'S PUPSDella's 6 mangy pups all survived. They went on the ARVSS Rescue in Wisconsin and foster care with Matt and Susie. We are very thankful for their great care of these babies.

For many days Della hid in her igloo in the kennel, coming out only to eat. Eventually we got her to walk reluctantly on a leash. She was very mistrustful of humans, it seemed.

DELLA NOWAs time went on, and with weekly ivermectin, good food and water, she began to heal. Finally- we let her out to run around in the am and pm.
She was spayed, and received her vaccinations. Her mange is all gone and her hair is regrown and very soft. She tested negative for Heartworm and we are very thankful for that.

She still has some mistrust of humans, but with more one-to-one contact I think she will develop a bond. She is no longer depressed and even loves to play. She gets along well with all the dogs at the shelter.

We are looking for the right foster placement for Della. She is a short haired dog, and really is not meant to be outdoors in the cold Minnesota winter. She weighs about 45# and has a medium build.

DELLA HAPPY AND PLAYINGDo you have room in your home and heart for dear Della?

Thank you so much Karen and RLRR