Babe goes in for his final touches on March 19. He needs some dental work. The cost of his dental surgery is being donated by Buster, another Labrador and his family. They came to meet Babe and wanted to help him have fresh breath and a new smile! Lodestar Labs/Luvin’ Labs thank Buster’s mom, Connie, and dad, Lester, for their generous donation!!

Babe did go to adoption for the first time last week and he was ever the gentlemen. He was friendly with all and well mannered. But poor boy, no one gave him a second glance, although his eyes hopefully watched everyone who passed and his tail gave each and every one a friendly wag. Keep your fingers crossed that he finds a special home. Such a big heart deserves a loving home of his own where they will spoil him rotten with love.

Babe is acting like a puppy and bouncing around full of life and fun.  I swear he almost has a rascally expression on his face these days.  He is feeling good and is ready to go to adoptions.  He still needs tooth work for his big toothy grin and that is upcoming.  He is the perfect weight and ready to go home any time.  He has developed such a zest for everything that I had to reteach him how to be polite when taking a treat.  He actually surprised me by jumping about two feet in the air to grab a treat I was considering for someone else.  I counted my fingers after that one!  But one correction and he is being much more polite.  I told him it’s not always all about him and he just gave me a big slurpy kiss.

Babe is scheduled for his second heartworm treatment Monday the 8^th of  February.  He will check in,  stay overnight and I will pick him up the next evening.  He is now svelte and gorgeous!  No longer coughing and he is feeling really good and playful.  Loving those tennis balls and taking them to bed with him.  Will be a might harder to keep him down for the count this time around!!  : ))

Babe continues to do well.  I’ve discovered that he knows how to point like a Pointer but he has excellent style when something on the counter or table captures the interest of his nose.  That nose freezes everything all the way down his back to the tip of his tail in a rigid point.  Then he sits down and stays very, very still not moving one hair.  His nose and head remain fixed about an inch from the source of his admiration.  His eyes take on a fixed, intense look of concentration.  He looks like he is trying to levitate the source of his interest.  So far nothing has levitated, but you never know!

Babe loves his soft beds and like a true Labrador Retriever he carries a ball around with him much of the time.  He is the quintessential house dog.  He likes to trot along side when we feed the horses but he is eager to be inside all the rest of the time.  When I leave for work, he and a couple of other of the best- behaved dogs remain inside the house with doggie door access to the back area.  He’s very good and never bothers anything, so he is still maintaining his Good Boy image. 

Babe is due for his second and third shots early in February.  He’s lost a little weight and his coat is gradually improving as well.  So all goes according to plan.

Babe now has a victory patch on his back where he was shaved to receive his very deep tissue (mega-painful) injection for the initial kill-off of the heartworms. His heart is enlarged from the worms and they are also in his lungs. His victory patch is an indication that he is on the way to recovery. For two days he was very sore in those muscles where the injection occurred and he was tired. The first 72 hours is critical and he has had no problems.

The possibility always exists that a worm die-off will cause an embolism or clot if his blood courses through his veins because he is too active. But if he attempts to have fun I just speak to him quietly and he calms right down. He’s a very good patient.

Babe is undergoing his first treatment today.

Babe is here and doing well. Pick-up Christmas eve was easy. Picked him up about 11:00 and he spent most all day until about 5:00 in the car (not counting walks). He was every bit a gentleman. He’s a very, very nicely behaved boy. He is Lab in personality but there is something else in there somewhere, I’m sure. He’s eager to please, obedient and, thank heavens, calm. He is definitely coughing badly from the heartworm. He is also wider than he is long! Needs to lose a few pounds. He does look a little like Babe Ruth so maybe the name fits him. He doesn’t seem to respond to it though so don’t know if kennel gave him his name or not. Anyway, he is a good boy. I think keeping him quiet for his treatment shouldn’t be too much of a struggle. If treatment goes OK and he survives it, we will put him in rescue with EnchantMutts so he can go to our adoption clinics in the spring.

How do you get over a broken promise of love? How does a dog get over the feeling of abandonment? How do you replace his sorrowful eyes with those filled with joy?

It is the same, sad story of many shelter dogs who mature and need more care, time or love than the humans want to, or are able to, provide for them. A family pet of many years who relished his own fluffy bed, running outdoors, getting pets and giving kisses goes from that to a concrete enclosure 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Babe is a male, senior Chocolate Labrador mix who impressed shelter workers and volunteers with his sweet and gentle ways. Babe aced all of the temperament tests with flying colors even during a time of great emotional stress.

Sigh. But there is one test he did not pass. Babe’s heartworm exam came back positive. Having heartworm as an older adult canine means a lot of pain, a lot of treatments, and a lot of recovery time, and a lot of confinement. Now, not only does Babe have to get over a broken heart he has to get over a deadly disease.

Babe’s “fan club” at the shelter started outreach efforts on his behalf. He needed help with funding the costly treatments and a quiet place to recuperate and be nurtured.

Lodestar Dog Ranch answered the call for financial help for Babe’s expensive treatment. An angel-human with many years of dog rescue experience decided that she would help too. She spent her Christmas Eve unwrapping her “gift” of this unknown, needy, sick and very grateful dog. EnchantMutts, Inc. will be promoting and assisting with Babe’s eventual adoption into a forever home.

Babe’s treatments will last at least 6-8 weeks plus a long recovery time. We know that heartworm infected dogs showing no signs or mild signs have a high success rate with treatment. But dogs with evidence of more severe heartworm disease can be successfully treated, but the possibility of complications and mortality is greater¹. Please keep Babe in your thoughts and prayers!

Please help LODESTAR Dog Ranch backfill the funds used from Cooper’s Fund to help beautiful Babe.  Heartworm treatment is expensive.  If you would like to donate, please send a check to:

LODESTAR DOG RANCH
Attn: Cooper’s Fund
17 Anno Court
Tijeras, NM  87059

¹www.heartwormsociety.org