Rainbow Bridge

Dedicated to Our Beloved Loved Ones 

Who Have Gone Before Us. 

Fang     Rest in Peace 2/2016

We were so sad to learn of the passing of Fang, who was adopted some years back. Thankfully he enjoyed a full life and was very loved. Our heartfelt sympathies to his mom Cheryl and dad Vinny. Rest in peace good boy♡♡♡♡

Emma &Torre    Rest in Peace

We will miss you. xxxxoooooo  Donna J.

Greta was the “lickiest” dog ever.  I remember from the very first time I met her she greeted me with that beaming smile of hers and showered me with licks  everywhere!  She always had that warm sparkle in her eyes when she looked at  you; her tail was always wagging.  Often, she would offer you a persistent  “paw shake” until you returned the gesture. She embodied love and a gentleness that endeared her to all who had the pleasure of meeting her,  young and old alike.  She never let on about the baggage and horrors of her past that came with her when we took her home to live with us.  Just  recently, I found out that she had been shot with a Beebe gun years ago and still had the pellets inside of her as a reminder of the cruelty she must  have endured.  Except for the stress we could see when a storm was brewing,  she was always mellow and playful, and first in line for a treat!

Under the care of our incredible veterinarians, Drs. Roncskevitz  and Sullivan, and the entire staff at Station Plaza, she survived treatment  for Heartworm in the first weeks we had her nearly five years ago.  And  most recently, she came through with flying colors after the surgery to  remove her spleen.  It was then we discovered her cancer.

Greta was a  true friend, and both sister and mother to Dax.  Guiding him and correcting  him for misbehaving with a quick nip to his neck on our many walks.  He will  miss her terribly, perhaps most of all.

Well the walks with her are over now, no more paw shakes, no more smiles. And even though I hurt so much, I  know my heart is very full with all the gifts she gave me.  The love I feel  for her, the joy she brought, will be with me always.  And if I close my eyes and think of her, well yes, there it is, I can still see her  smile.

Rest in peace, my dearest “Greta Girl”, you earned your eternal rest.

Forever in my heart,

Your Mom, Elyse

THOR      October 13, 2012    Rest in Peace

Thor passed away suddenly today, he was only 3 years old.  Many of you may remember his story.  Shepherds Hope was called by a worker at one of the shelters on LI that three dogs were brought in and were going to be killed.  An older male and female and their baby.  The dogs were deemed dangerous by a neighbor, who never substantiated her claim but the dogs were going to be put down anyway. We
stepped up and were only able to save the baby and found him a wonderful home with Michael and Lynn.  Thor was one of the sweetest and most gentle dogs we have ever met.  He became the mayor of his neighborhood and was raised to celebrity status at the nursing home where he was a big hit with many of the ‘youngsters’ there. 

We want to express our deepest sympathy to Michael
and Lynn at this very difficult time.  We know that Thor has taken his journey over the Rainbow Bridge and is now with all our beloved animal companions and our wonderful human loved ones.  Thank you Thor for your goodness and your kindness.  We love  you and will miss you always…….

ZOEY   May 13, 2012   Rest in Peace

ZOEY: a life saved                        May 18, 2012                                   

     It was January 4, 2010, a particularly cold and windy Monday. I was headed home from Long   Beach with three friends in my car. We were headed toward the Loop Parkway on Lido Boulevard. My eye caught the sight of a German Shepherd on the beach side of the road. She was rail thin, her tail drawn tightly under her body, back legs shaking, body shivering and looking ready to cross the road to end her terrifying journey. It all happened so quickly my mind created a visual snapshot of that moment. I knew this dog had only minutes left before she would get hit by a car or collapse on the side of the road.  Not only was I unable to pull to the side of the road, there was no room in my car. I grabbed my cell phone and called 911. I asked my friends to do the same from their cell phones giving the dog’s location as accurately as possible. I was also concerned that drivers might swerve to avoid her and become involved in a serious accident. As I approached the Merrick   Road exit on the Meadowbrook Parkway I noticed two police cars side to side. I pulled onto the shoulder between the two cars and frantically tried to explain what I had seen and of the dog’s plight. They said they would call it in and I prayed she would be rescued. The police were good to their word as I found out later the Town of Hempstead picked her up.

I left early the next morning for Florida but my heart remained back in New York longing to know the outcome of this terrible situation.

I returned to New York January 10^th. While waiting for my luggage I contacted my friend Edie Van Derlofske whom I had called  before I left to tell her of the situation. Edie informed me that Willow, later named Zoey was in the Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter. For me it was a blessing as she was out of the brutal cold and off the streets. I also found out that she had been surviving on small amounts of catfood that was being put out for stray cats along the beach area. She would wait patiently for her turn among the many stray cats who were also struggling for survival.

An amazing woman, Merrie Gordon had gone to the Shelter to check on some feral kittens and recalled Edie telling her of the Shepherd. The Shelter had deemed her aggressive and unadoptable. I cannot understand who could have possibly perceived this incredibly gentle soul as being aggressive, She was terrified and confused. There seem to have been no consideration or humane evaluation of this poor dog. Merrie could not accept this determination and removed her from the Shelter. She brought her to the Sunrise Veterinary Clinic in Rockville Centre. Merrie felt she had a broken heart and broken spirit.

January of 2010 was a very cold winter with large accumulations of snow piled into mini mountains. I know this because I often went to walk Willow as I was concerned she needed nurturing, kindness and attention. She was so easy to walk but she was always seeking-looking around, alert to find something or someone. It broke my heart. There was an occasion when I fell on the ice and she just stopped and sat down next to me. On another occasion a dog came running to us after getting out of his yard. I feared a dog fight would ensue yet Willow just stopped, let the dog circle us and showed no aggression. Merrie also spent time with her and even took her to her home to observe her reactions in a home setting. She showed no aggression toward Merrie’s cats and seemed to be searching the home finally ending up in the bedroom where she stood up on hind legs to see who was in the bed. On another occasion Merrie brought her chicken breast which Willow stole from her pocket book. Willow began showing signs of gaining trust, now making eye contact and wagging her tail which was no longer bent under her body.

I asked a wonderful woman named Grace DeVita (from Second Chance Rescue) to check on Willow and she found her to be very loving. Marion Taylor who has passed away also made the trip to Sunrise Veterinary Clinic walked  and evaluated Willow on many occasions. Bob Souers from the Nassau S.P.C.A. also spent time evaluating Willow at the Shelter and determined her to be non-aggressive. In addition, a vet at the hospital evaluated Willow as well and stated she was non-aggressive, older and depressed.  Willow seemed  to be looking for someone. We all believe she was a well loved dog. Perhaps her owner died and the family let her go. We’ll never know.

Seven weeks passed and despite our efforts we could not locate a prospective adopter. Animal Lifeline supported our efforts and bill. I printed pictures of Willow with my phone number and put the pictures up wherever I could. She was an older dog but all the blood tests showed she was healthy and began to put on weight. And then, Donna J. from German Shepherd Rescue joined our effort and knew of a woman who had German Shepherds her entire life and was looking to adopt one. We had some reservations but took a leap of faith. A meeting was set up at Petco in Levittown where Grace Devita housed her rescue cats. Adele made the trip from Teaneck, New Jersey and the perfect match was made. Adele had made a comfortable area in her car and helped Willow up into the back seat. As they drove off to New Jersey I stood in the same spot of the parking lot with Edie and couldn’t get my feet to move. I think I was praying.

Adele was the most wonderful owner and immediately took Willow, now name Zoey to her vet Dr. Johnson in the city. She even had him call me to update me on Zoey’s health. Adele sent many e-mail, cards and photos throughout the two years and three months to update me on their love for one another. Adele and Zoey would drive to Florida to visit with Adele’s brother. When they moved to an adult community Adele started a dog walking group. Zoey was slowing down but still loved her walks and watching squirrels. I so looked forward to Adele’s correspondence. Adele and Zoey appeared in an article in their community’s newspaper.

On Mother’s Day, this past May 13, 2012 at 10:12 p.m. I received an e-mail from Adele informing me that Zoey had to be put to sleep due to the condition called bloat which came on suddenly that day. I cannot imagine what Adele is feeling. I wish I could put my arms around her to comfort her. My tears have flowed in great rivers thinking of how so many people came together to make this perfect union of a splendid woman and a marvelous animal. I know when Zoey came into Adele’s life she was still mourning the loss of her other beloved Shepherd, Jessie. I feel blessed to have been a part of this rescue/adoption.  I have no words to express the sorrow I feel for Adele and this great loss.

The moon and stars were aligned to save this wonderful dog and to give Adele Goodrich a loving companion.

IF…I hadn’t seen Zoey that day, if not for someone feeding cats on the beach, if I hadn’t told Edie, if she didn’t tell Merrie, if Merrie didn’t go to the Shelter to check on 20 kittens and ask about a Shepherd found on Lido Boulevard, if she didn’t take Zoey out of the shelter and take her to Sunrise Veterinary Clinic, if not for our connecting to Donna at German Shepherd Rescue and her knowing of Adele, if not for Animal Lifeline supporting our efforts financially, if not for all the people who evaluated the dog and deemed her gentle and sweet, none of this would have transpired. Zoey was an angel and so are all those who participated in the effort to make a difference in one dog’s life and the life of a kind and loving woman, Adele Goodrich.

Shelly Dicker

DANNY   April 16, 2012   Rest in Peace

Our deepest sympathies go out to Danny’s family; Melanie, Ray, Adrienne, Alex and Nick.  We will always love and remember you, our dear sweet boy.

Here is Danny’s Story….

A few times a year we have stories to tell that really are about the journey and the love of a family to help save a dog. Danny’s story started like so many of the calls we get. It came from Liz, a wonderful shelter employee that couldn’t let this dog die. He had come in as a stray and had a horrible wound on his front leg. He was sweet and afraid, could we help. If rescue didn’t come, then he would be put down and he was worth saving. So I arrived at the shelter and was walked to the back of the kennels. What I saw was something I was not pre-pared for. There was a heavy iron door that was so heavy it almost took two people to open. I was immediately hit with the smell of urine and dampness. It was so hot I almost couldn’t breath and it was so dark, I could hardly see. This was the place they kept dogs that were going to die. There were three kennels and the one to the left was where Danny was kept. I approached the kennel and way in the back in a ball, with his body shaking was Danny. It took some time to make my way to the back of the kennel and what I saw was just horrifying. His front leg had a wound that was part blood and part ooze. Liz tried as best she could to put a bandage on the wound. It was filthy and Danny had tried to take it off. I said his name softly and he looked at me. Even though he was scared he had these most beautiful brown eyes and, at that moment, I knew we had to save him.

This was not going to be easy to find a home or foster home to take Danny. There was a lot of work ahead. It was clear that he had a very bad physical wound on his leg, but you could tell that he had been pretty badly abused and not very trusting. We begged the shelter to get him to the vet for medical treat-ment and we made a commit-ment to take him as quickly as we could find space. We searched for weeks and found no one and the shelter was get-ting pushy for us to take him or they would euthanize him. I do believe at times that God does send angels. We got a call from Melanie and she wanted to adopt a dog that really needed to be rescued and she wanted Danny. We were so happy we were beside ourselves with joy. Melanie and her family came to meet Danny and they fell in love with him. They were not worried that they would not be able to help Danny make a full recovery. To say that it was an unbelievable amount of work to help heal Danny’s leg is an un-derstatement. And once the wound would start to get better Danny would lick it and re-open the wound. The bandages had to be kept on 24/7. He needed ex-ercise to help him focus on something other than his leg, but his leg was so painful he couldn’t walk on it very well. But that was just about Danny’s leg, his poor mind had been hurt and needed healing too. It be-came immediately apparent that he had been severely abused by a man. He was very afraid of any men and would cower and run into his crate when they approached. And even though Danny’s new dad and ‘brother’ would try to be calm and gentle, Danny was still afraid of them. Months passed and little by lit-tle Danny would come close enough to sniff and then maybe take a treat. Small steps and lots of patience were the key. Every day dad would make a sandwich for himself and there Danny would be tentatively a few feet away to share the meal.

And then one day, it happened. Dad came to take Danny for a walk and rather than the fearful shake of putting on the leash, Danny allowed Dad to do it without ceremony. The trust and bonding was very gradual but today Danny is very happy to have Dad and his brother pet and hug him. He can be in a room with men and not be fear-ful. We got some wonderful news a month back that Danny climbed Glen Onoko Falls in the Poconos. This is an incredibly steep and difficult mountainous trail, but Danny persevered and actually helped the family. Danny’s mom and dad noticed that as they were coming down the family was scattered about taking their time to be safe. Danny sens-ing the difficulty would go to the Mom and Dad who were at the back of the pack to make sure they were OK and then to the front to make sure the leaders weren’t getting them lost. Ray, Danny’s dad, commented that Danny’s instincts as a German shepherd were coming out and he was watching out for his pack.

Danny is truly coming into his own and has earned his keep. One day while out in the backyard, Danny started to bark constantly and was running back and forth. Danny, not being a dog that barks at nothing, alerted his sister Adrienne to come outside. What she found was that their new puppy had fallen into the pool and was in danger. Luckily, Danny was there to alert the family and the puppy was not harmed due to the fast alert of Danny.

Melanie and Ray have said many times that Danny has been a wonderful experience for them. The transforma-tion of this very sick and scared dog into the amazingly sweet and loving boy he has become has been heart warming. He has regained his love for life and enjoys his pack and each day brings him and his family a stronger love and bond than ever before. We do believe that the animals you work the most with, nurture, and help are the ones that leave the biggest paw print on your heart.

We at Shepherds Hope cannot thank everyone enough who helped Danny. From Liz, his fairy Godmother at the shelter who would not give up on him and let him die. To his loving family for giving the gift of love.

 

EZRA (formerly ZEPHYR)   March 25, 2012 Rest in Peace

 

It is with unspeakable grief and a heavy heart that we report the loss of our beloved Ezra on Sunday, March 25th.  He will be remembered by everyone who had the priviledge to meet him or help him.  He was very special to us all.  Our sympathies to Priscilla on the loss of her wonderful boy.

Grieve not, nor speak of me with tears,

but laugh and talk of me

as if I were beside you…

I loved you so–

’twas Heaven with you.

 3/17/2012  

Ezra settles into his new Home!!

UPDATE 2/11/2012:

Our boy had his surgery today, even though we are not close to having the funds. The vet felt it important not to wait because the injury could heal badly.

When I visited, he was still groggy after a 4 hour operation.  We are so lucky to have such a wonderful orthopedic vet that did a fantastic job.  The bone was completely shattered and the femur bone had a crack all the way down.  The vet said it was one of the worst messes he had ever seen.  We are going to call Zephyr the $10 Million Dollar Dog because he now has two titanium plates, wiresand over 22 titanium screws in him.  To add to this, his bones are so brittle, probably due to very poor nutrition.  The vet stressed that he will need quality dog food and supplements to help his bones heal properly.  They are anticipating at least 6 weeks of rehab for him and then very slow walks.

We want to thank all of Zephyrs sponsors for your kind support.