The
National
Anatolian Shepherd Rescue Network (NASRN) learned of a litter of
five Anatolian Shepherd/Great
Pyrenees mix puppies in western Texas whose owner was unable to care
for them. The rescue coordinator located a willing foster home in
El Paso and went to work arranging transportation. It took a
while to set up the transport as the distance was not short. By
the time
NASRN took custody of the
puppies there were only four. The owner indicated that the other
pup had been promised to someone. We do not know how he has
fared. The four remaining puppies, all males, were transported to
El Paso. One of the puppies was already very sick and could not
stand up. The other three soon became ill as well. They had
all contracted parvo. The puppies needed many days of intensive
veterinary care, but they all seemed to recover. They were moved
to Granbury, Texas,
southwest of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, to gain weight and
strength. They all seemed to do well after their second long
ride, but one puppy, Polar Bear, soon started to show signs that he was
not well. His appetite decreased and he became lethargic.
His new foster mom was watching him closely and was ready to take him
back to the vet, but he passed away during the night sleeping next to
her. The vet believes that his heart had been damaged by the
parvo and he was unable to fully recover. I followed the story of
these puppies from the beginning through the
NASRN rescue coordinator, and although
I have not seen these dogs I feel attached to them. I take some
comfort in knowing that before his death Polar Bear found that many
people cared about him and treated him with love. I am also
pleased that two of his brothers are doing well. You can read
about them
here or on their
individual pages
here
and
here.
Unfortunately one of his brothers fell ill and did not make it.
You can read about him
here.
Polar Bear was the fuzziest of the
four boys. He loved attention and was a gentle dog.
He liked having his ears scratched. Polar Bear enjoyed singing
(howling) and resting on his
favorite blanket. He did not have much time here, and spent most
of it without the attention he needed. Before he had to leave he
found love and comfort, and that is what he took with him.
