Happy Whiskers Animal Assistance, Inc.

Phoebe is doing really well. She's got her regular appetite back and her tail's starting to wag again. She had 4 mammary tumors removed, that's the equivalent of 4 mastectomies. Plus she had to be spayed to prevent the growth of additional mammary tumors. Add to that the removal of 22 teeth, 11 teeth were already missing, which leaves her with a total of 9 teeth in her mouth. Without teeth to hold it in, her tongue now has a mind of its own. She's still figuring out how to control it. The plus side of COVID-19 telecommuting is that I get to be here with Phoebe for her recovery. No "cone of shame" except at night when I can't watch her. 😉

18+ hours later and we're finally home! She made it through surgery with flying colors and they were able to do the mammary tumor removals, spay and dental. Poor Phoebe only has 9 teeth left! 😲 Her little belly is all stitched up and she's pretty miserable right now. I syringe fed her about 5 ccs of canned dog food mixed with water tonight to keep her blood sugar up and she drank a lot of water on her own. I made her a snuggly nest next to my side of the bed so I can check on her tonight. I'm exhausted, but still worried about her. She's not out of the woods yet, but she really perked up when we got home, so I feel a little better.

Today's the big day! We are up extra early to drive Phoebe to Richmond, VA for her surgery. The goal will be mammary tumor removals, dental and spay, but that all depends on how she does under anesthesia. At a minimum, we hope they are able to remove the tumors and spay her. That's the most urgent issue. Please send her all the love and positive energy that you can today. Jess and I will be spending the day in our car in an effort to avoid COVID-19. 5pm can't come soon enough!

Phoebe had her chest x-ray this afternoon and it was CLEAR!! No sign of metastasis from her mammary tumors to her lungs. We're moving forward with the next step to get the tumors removed.

Quick update:
Phoebe's blood work all came back normal! Woohoo!! The cytology of her mammary mass was inconclusive. The next step is to get her back in for x-rays to see if there's any sign of metastasis to her lungs. If the x-rays are clear then we'll proceed with the cardiac ultrasound to see if she can go under anesthesia.
In other news, after just 3 days on Clindamycin for her rotten teeth, her mouth smells SO much better! I'd imagine that it feels better too!
https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/112574644767835624/charity/145539

I want to start by thanking everyone who has donated toward Phoebe's care so far. We've raised right around $500 so far.
Phoebe went to the Vet last night. The news isn't great. She's Lyme positive, so we're treating her for that. She's also on a course of antibiotics for her rotten teeth. Blood was drawn and sent off, so we'll have a better picture of her overall health in a few days. Her largest mammary tumor was aspirated and sent off for cytology. The fluid looked like pure blood and the vet feels it's most likely going to come back as malignant. I had already assumed they were malignant, so that wasn't a shock. The hard part for me came when we discovered that she has a significant heart murmur. This means that she may not be able to undergo anesthesia for her dental cleaning and mammary mass removal. That's all we did last night, and it was $500. If her blood work comes back normal there are two things left to do to confirm her candidacy for surgery. The first is a chest x-ray to see if the cancer has spread to her lungs. If her x-rays are clear then we would proceed with an ultrasound of her heart to officially determine whether or not she's able to be anesthetized for surgery. The next stage (x-rays and ultrasound) will cost an additional $800.00, and that's with a 20% discount. (Everything below the yellow line on the pic of the attached treatment plan.) If her x-rays show metastasis then we'll be forced to scrap any surgical procedures and treat her as a hospice patient until she lets us know that she's done fighting. Right now she's eating everything in sight and still active, so I really hope we can get her the surgery that she desperately needs to stay as healthy as possible for as long as possible. If you're able to donate anything towards Phoebe's veterinary care, please use this link:
https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/112574644767835624/charity/145539
We truly appreciate all of your support!

This is Phoebe. Some construction workers found her wandering around their construction site off of Rt. 340 in Jefferson County, WV a couple weeks ago. One of them shared his lunch with her and then they called animal control to pick her up because no one had come looking for her. Phoebe spent two weeks at animal control but still no one came to claim her. Phoebe is old. Her teeth are rotten and she has two masses that are most likely mammary tumors. She's most likely not spayed yet and she's also really thin. Our first step will be a vet check-up and blood work to make sure she's healthy enough for the dental and surgical procedures that she'll need. Based on past experience, I estimate that her vet care will cost us no less than $1,000. Phoebe will be a forever resident here at Happy Whiskers for whatever time she has left. She's got a spunky personality, so hopefully she'll stick around for awhile once we get her medical needs taken care of. Please share this post and donate if you can. Here's a link to donate via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/112574644767835624/charity/145539
All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

We just got an awesome update from one of our former adopters! Daisy came to us with her son from someone who had gotten them to breed. He was keeping them in an outside kennel, in the winter, without adequate shelter. Thankfully they had each other to keep warm because Dachshunds are not suited for living in the cold. Animal Control convinced the owner to surrender the dogs based on their living conditions. They complied, and both dogs were adopted into loving homes. (When we took them in, we named them Oscar and Maya, lol.) Maya, now named Daisy has been spoiled rotten ever since.
Happy Birthday Daisy!!! 🎂❤️💋

12 hours and a ton of pet food hauled and delivered today. Your donations paid for the truck rental and gas! ❤️

I want to extend a big Thank You to everyone who has donated this year. I just received a check in the mail from FB donations and I was amazed at the generosity. I didn't even realize we had people donating via FB. We're still out there advocating for the homeless pets in Jefferson County. This weekend we're hauling a truck load of pet food donations to distribute to local shelters and rescues. We've also been giving any surplus to the Jefferson Community Ministries, so that they can distribute it to local needy pet owners. Winter is all about keeping pets well fed and warm. Thanks again for your continued support and have a wonderful holiday season! ❤️

Huskies are routinely found running loose and picked up by animal control. They are escape artists! Please do your research before deciding to get one. They require an experienced and dedicated owner.

Husky Abandonment Is Turning into a Serious Problem Huskies are popular pets, but they're not the best dogs for inexperienced owners. Many are being abandoned because their owners change their minds.

We've registered to participate in Cat's Pride "Litter For Good" program. If you use this brand of cat litter, please check out the video below to see how you can nominate our cats for donations. We currently have 25 cats in our care and litter is a constant need. As always, thanks for your support.

Katherine Heigl and Dan Jaffee Travel America to Change Litter for Good™ It may be a bit bumpy, there may be a long road ahead, but these two have work to do. And it's important work. Join Katherine Heigl and Dan Jaffee as they vi...

Man wanted in connection to Burglary and Theft of puppies. - Washington County Sheriff's Office MEDIA RELEASE: The Washington County Sheriff’s Office has obtained charges against a Hagerstown man for burglary and theft. On September 12, 2017, at approximately 5:14 PM, the Sheriff’s Office responded.... Read More

This guy was just surrendered to Animal Control. His owners reported that he's constipated and hasn't pooped in two days. They cannot afford vet care for him, so they gave him to AC so that he could get the vet care that he needs. The owners bathed him when the found out that animal control was coming to get him, which is why he's wet in the photos. It doesn't look like he's been groomed in awhile. Apparently this dog was acquired 3 months ago via Facebook. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to help us get this little guy the care that he needs. He's 9 years old and it doesn't look like he's had an easy life. You can donate via Paypal at: www.happywhiskers.org.

WVC 19 - 20 A- 2 (b) Dogs and cats over six months of age entering the State of West Virginia must have been vaccinated for rabies as set forth in subsection (a) of this section prior to entry.

Rabies Alert

Save the Date for Jefferson County Animal Control's Low Cost Rabies Clinic on 5/6/17.

Mark your calendar for the next AWS RABIES CLINIC.
1 yr Rabies Vaccine given.
3 yr Rabies Vaccine given with proof of past vaccination.
Cash or check
Dr Doering administering veterinarian
CALL FOR MORE DETAILS 304-725-0589

Animal Control in Jefferson County is FULL of Pits and Pit-type mixes. That's a fact that, sadly, never changes. Please take advantage of this awesome opportunity to do the right thing and make sure your Pit isn't making more unwanted dogs!!

Uniting 2 Save Animals, the nonprofit organization devoted to providing free or low cost spay and neuter to the WV, VA, PA & MD area communities along with Lonely Hearts Animal Rescue are proud to announce the Spay/Neuter Month to be held the entire month of February, 2017 . Any and all pitbulls may receive FREE spay/neuter, no questions asked and regardless of family income (Rabies vaccination not included). All other breeds may receive low/no cost spay/neuter based upon income.
The Buckeystown Veterinary Clinic is the first clinic to sign up to participate.

For Pit Bull spay/neuters ONLY you may call:
The Buckeystown Veterinary Clinic
820 Buckeystown Pike, Buckeystown, MD 21717
Phone: (301) 698-9930 directly to schedule.

Please share.....it will save lives

We received two PayPal donations today! What a great way to end the year! Thank you to everyone who has supported us this past year. We've received monetary donations as well as donations of blankets, towels, treats, etc. We use everything and truly appreciate your generosity! 🐶❤🐱

Please help spread the word about these cats. They will be fully vetted at NO cost to the adopter. These cats have all come from a hoarding situation where they were not given litter boxes to use. This means that they are not suited for indoor living. In order to spare their lives, they will need homes in an outdoor/barn setting. Due to their previous living situation, they are also not well socialized with people but do well with other cats.

Support us when you shop on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. at smile.amazon.com/ch/26-1673142 and Amazon donates to Happy Whiskers Animal Assistance.

Support Happy Whiskers Animal Assistance by shopping at AmazonSmile. When you shop at AmazonSmile, Amazon will donate to Happy Whiskers Animal Assistance. Support us every time you shop.

It is with a very heavy heart that we announce the passing of a Happy Whiskers alum. Chloe was adopted into a wonderful, loving, family many years ago. She was always a happy, spunky, girl. Chloe's family reported that she died in her sleep last night after suffering from chronic respiratory issues that their Vet could not resolve. She was approx. 9 years old. Chloe leaves behind her human mom and siblings as well as dog, cat, turtle and guinea pig friends. Our thoughts are with her family during this very difficult time. R.I.P. sweet Chloe.

A little PSA for the 4th.