Merry Christmas Mumford!

Every dog we rescue from a shelter is at risk of being put to sleep. Some we rescue early when first available and not at a high risk, but every shelter is different. Some shelters build relationships with rescues, while other shelters are more difficult for rescues to work with putting the animals in their care at a greater risk. Some shelters California GSP Rescue works with give the dogs the medical attention they need, while other shelters use any medical condition the dog may have as a reason to put them to sleep.Mumford's story begins in a local shelter where he had been relinquished by his owner with another dog after the owner was cited for not properly caring for his dogs. One can only imagine how the dogs must have looked when animal control arrived. One of the dogs was put to sleep almost immediately because of health issues. Mumford, while underweight and thin, was examined by a Vet and made available for adoption but at eleven years of age, few, if any visitors inquired about him. He sat in his kennel quietly wagging his tail as visitors walked by pausing at a dog that wasn't a pitbull or chihuahua but quickly losing interest when they read his age on his kennel card.Volunteer Mary called the shelter to inquire about the dogs and was upset learning that one of the dogs had been put to sleep. Knowing that we regularly pull dogs from shelters with health issues, she felt as if California GSP Rescue would have gotten him any medical attention he needed and possibly a forever home. Mary quickly focused on  Mumford and learned there had been no one interested in adopting him. His review date was just a few days away and the shelter stated that if he didn't get adopted, he would be put to sleep. She stated someone would be there in a few days and would they put a hold on him until the volunteer arrived to evaluate him. The shelter agreed and put a hold on him extending his review date a few more days.The following Thursday Volunteer Kayla, just after getting off a plane returning home for Christmas, visited the shelter and Mumford. He didn't bark like the dogs in the nearby kennels and wagged his tail almost if he knew she had come to visit him. He still appeared thin and a few pounds underweight but was friendly and approached the kennel gate even though the bars were too close together that didn't allow him to be petted. Mumford looked at Kayla as if he knew his time was limited.Going inside to the counter to get additional information about Mumford, the shelter stated he had cancer and because of his poor health, he would be euthanized later in the day if not taken. "What type of cancer?" "We don't know but we had a vet check him out, the paperwork is in his file." A quick look at the paperwork showed there was no mention about cancer or anything to suggest he was terminally ill. In fact, the records stated he was "bright, alert, and responsive; good body condition" and his "lymph nodes all normal size." Nothing in the paperwork indicated he had any chronic health condition yet in just a few hours he would be put to sleep because of his health issues. Knowing that there was no other rescue or any adopters coming and California GSP Rescue was Mumford's last hope, a decision was quickly made. "We can take him". With just four days until Christmas, Mumford was safe. Merry Christmas, Mumford!In the few days he has been in the care of California GSP Rescue, Mumford is doing well. He's active and enjoys getting attention. We will continue to put a few pounds on him while he is being evaluated. He has an appointment to see Dr Kang in a few days for a more thorough examination. As an all volunteer non-profit organization, we greatly rely on individuals that support our efforts by regularly making donations. While Mumford's story isn't common, we regularly incur vet bills seeing the dogs get the medical attention needed. Please consider joining our Rescue Hero program and making a regular monthly donation that enables us to make decisions to rescue dogs with potential healthOn behalf of the volunteers at the California GSP Rescue, and our Founder, Jan, We thank you for your continued support allowing us to continue to give a dog a second chance for a wonderful life.