June 2013 Clinic

The Red Lake Rosie's Rescue / MN SNAP clinic in June will be long-remembered for the appalling number of ticks on the animals. Volunteers were kept busy removing hundreds of them. Many puppies and dogs had them down in their ear canals, which were challenging to remove.

Tick removal

We had some extra time to pull ticks, since a bridge was closed in Redby, which closed off access to the clinic for almost half the reservation. Nevertheless, MN SNAP altered 64 animals, and 31 previously altered animals were vaccinated, wormed, and given flea/tick preventative.

 The most heart-wrenching intake was Big Boy, a dog well-known to Karen. He was brought in with his foot missing, about four inches of exposed leg bone, and a massive infection in his upper leg. Apparently caught in a leg hold trap, Big Boy had been missing for three weeks. We were all shocked that this dog could chew or break his foot out of the trap and make it home. He was dehydrated, emaciated, and very weak.

Big Boy (more on his story soon!)

Big Boy had come in about a year earlier with a deeply embedded wire around his neck (see previous post). He spent many weeks at the shelter healing from surgery and infection, and Karen grew to love him.

After all of his suffering, Big Boy was fortunate to catch a plane ride to the Cities the same day. His leg was amputated, and he is doing well. There could be no dog more deserving of the love and care that he is receiving than Big Boy.

Two dogs were adopted by volunteers. Kim and Aurelia adopted a juvenile, Willie, now Denali. They had previously adopted another RLRR dog, McKinley.

Dr. Marie and her daughter, Natalie, took Delilah home, a sweet adult girl with demodectic mange. They have a RLRR cat from a previous clinic.

We always visit the Red Lake dump when going to and from the warehouse to see if there are any animals that have been left there. Lauren successfully trapped a cat who will go to a better life. We generally leave the bears at the dump, though, as they seem to have plenty of food.

Thanks go to Claudia and Tera for feeding everyone again; Dawn, Denise, Shelly, Mary, Jenny, and Carma, who came from the northern hinterlands to help groom and care for the animals; Kim, Aurelia, Amy, Colin, Jean, Deb, Lauren, Colleen, Carol, Nancy H., and Nancy O, and Dr Marie and Natalie . Also, thanks go to our local helpers, Jolene, Phyllis, Vivian, and Alonzo.