PEPSI
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Please keep in mind that puppies this age require someone that's not away for more than 4 hours a day, lots of supervision, socialization, crate and leash training as well as exercise. She might also need to learn house manners; we just don't know yet. Right now, job one is to get her into a safe foster home. UPDATE 3/16: Pepsi is now safe in temporary foster care where she will be treated for the usual kennel cough. She will be in quarantine for a week because she is contagious. We'll soon know if she is housebroken and once over her shelter crud, will be introduced to a diverse pack of canines. Right now all we know is that she is a very active pup with a healthy curiosity, likely to keep her new family very busy. Please check back as we learn more about her. We are still seeking a foster-to-adopt home in the Phoenix area.
If you are interested in fostering Pepsi, please read about OUR FOSTER PROGRAM and submit a Foster Application (found on the Foster Program page).
UPDATE 3/18: Pepsi's first foster update follows. Since then it's become apparent that the upper respiratory infection is taking hold and our frisky little girl is not feeling so great. The "rock thing" her foster Mom mentioned refers to her habit of grabbing and swallowing small rocks. She is already learning not to on her walks, and now that she's indoors and will have plenty of good food and attention, we think that her rock diet will become a part of her past. For now, getting healthy and gaining weight takes priority. Hi Steff, She's an absolute gem and an amazingly easy keeper. After she arrived yesterday morning she got acquainted, played a bit, refused food and then went right into her crate and slept for six hours straight. I kept checking on her and at one point she was so still I ran my hands over her to make sure she was still in this world. She rolled over yawned at me and went back to sleep. When she is awake her energy level is good, she is alert and retrieving. She totally ball crazy. She is great on walks, except for the rock thing...she will pick up anything off the ground. She's a bony little thing, but adorable. No crying in the crate, no chewing anything (so far) that she is not supposed to chew, and she hasn't shredded her bed. One pee in the house (my fault on that, I couldn't get her outside fast enough), two BM and both were firm. I tried to check for worms, but it was dusk and I didn't get a good look. She sleeps through the night and she is vocal when people are around, but if she isn't talking to a person she's quiet. This has been the easiest 24+ hours I have ever had with a new dog. This is Pepsi's 1st day off to work with Mom; part of her ongoing socialization. As you can see, she's well behaved at the office (she visited two) and is very good at taking breaks. She will also have a complete blood panel run this week to make sure that all she has to deal with is her kennel cough and weight gain.
UPDATE 3/22: In rescue one develops a strong gut instinct. While Pepsi's foster reports have been glowing, we just didn't like her appetite and the fact that she was tiring easily. She had a full work-up at the vet in Tucson today including a comprehensive exam, skin scraping, chest film, full blood panel, fecal check, dip and medication. Our suspicions were well founded; our little pup has pneumonia, a light case of Demodectic mange -- only in one spot due to her compromised immune system-- and belly full of small rocks, none of which precluded her from being very feisty on the X-ray table! We won't have the results of her Valley Fever, Tick Fever and organ function labs and enzyme levels until next week. So for now, her trips to Mom's office are on hold until her undeveloped immune system is stronger. She's on her way home with new medications, a new diet and a bright future. UPDATE 3/29: Pepsi has shown marked improvement; she has been eating like a little pony and growing like a weed. She is still very thin. Her activity level has substantially increased and will continue to increase as she feels better. She is scheduled for another vet visit to address another spot on her snout which could be more mange. The final lab report is back and all was negative for Tick and Valley Fever. Her rock eating behavior has all but disappeared save for those times when she's very excited. She is very responsive to light corrections. This pup has proven to be a very confident and dominant dog, one that will require a competent leader/handler willing to make up for lessons never learned. Experience is preferred. She has not been well socialized and as soon as she gets a clean bill of health, she will be extensively exposed to strange dogs and new places. Typical of an untrained youngster, she will jump on people..just a matter of learning manners. Pepsi will soon be teething heavily while she cuts her canines. This is generally a period of excessive chewing (it's painful) and requires ample supervision and appropriate chew items. She is relatively high in prey drive which will need to be directed and channeled into appropriate activity. No couch potatoes please. With the right direction and commitment, we think Pepsi will be an awesome gal.
UPDATE 4/4: We had planned to bring Pepsi up to Phoneix this weekend but her fecal check was positive for Giardia so we've decided to start her meds and possibly do another chest film and Demodex treatment before she travels. Meanwhile she's becoming a Pepsi full of fizz! UPDATE 4/9: Pepsi is responding well and very quickly to her treatment. She now has the normal energy level of a puppy her age and has started to gain weight. Her cough is gone. She will require additional treatments for her mange. Pepsi is a very smart gal and has learned how to coax folks at the office to play ball with her. She will push the ball with her nose from under the desk to snare someone walking by into rolling it back. She will go to the door to signal that she needs to go out. Her social skills with other dogs are lacking and now that she is no longer contagious will be learning how to properly meet new friends. As soon as her current course of medication is over she will have another treatment for her Demodex and head for Phoenix next week. Following a visit to our vet and another chest film, her training will begin in earnest. Watch for Pepsi's arrival! UPDATE 4/19: Pepsi paid one more visit to the vet, had another treatment for her Demodex, has gained 13 pounds and clear lungs; she was given a clean bill of health. She will, however, require additional visits for her mange. We will be wayching her weight and might do an additional blood test if we don't think she continues to gain as she should. She arrived in Phoenix this week like a little rocket...a bit out of control, very excited and ready to take on the world. Her new world included an intro to a big boy German Shepherd; her new roommate. We got what we expected: initially she was over the top, barking and lunging with no idea of how to meet new friends.......
UPDATE 4/27: PEPSI and her foster folks came out to Boot Camp for some much needed doggie (and people) socialization. As usual, she arrived as a little lightning bolt and was her pushy self meeting a new canine friend. She settled down nicely and zeroed in on a large group playing Frisbee...if it's movin, she's movin..this gal has lottsa prey drive. She is also fearless and will willingly investigate anything strange or new. On the other hand, she is extremely affectionate and attuned to people. Pepsi is still very thin so in about a week and a half she will have some more blood drawn for a test that will tell us if she is absorbing her food properly. We can't spay her until she gains more weight. The hair is returning to her muzzle, still some hair loss on her ear; she will have another treatment for Demodectic mange when she sees our vet.
She is a strong and confident pup; we have yet to see her tuck her tail. If challenged, she will stand her ground. This is a tough yet adorable character, not the right gal for the novice handler. Pepsi is a very high energy kid, easily distracted in a stimulating environment but very sensible. She will be fun to train.
UPDATE 5/7: Pepsi had an exam and blood draw today and was a pretty good girl with the vet. She squirmed quite a bit when temperature was taken and blood was drawn but settled nicely with some sweet talk; no aggression or dominance, just some expected resistance..she's come a long way. We should have the results of her blood test on Friday which will determine the next course of action. She's small for her age and still thin so she has started on Prozyme, a plant supplement to help her food absorption. The vet didn't think an additional treatment for her juvenile Demodex was necessary, instead, we will watch her progress for the next couple of weeks. All of the hair on her muzzle and ear has returned with only one bald spot left under her neck. Assuming there are no additional health issues, her spay will be scheduled when she passes the 40 pound mark. She's a very smart gal, learning new stuff quickly. And she has plenty of kisses to spare! UPDATE 5/9: As suspected, Pepsi's test results indicate that she is borderline EPI (Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency)...a '5' is the low end of normal and she is a 4.2. A result of 2.5 is the marker for a clinical diagnosis of EPI. Fortunately, she is gaining, not losing weight, albeit slowly, and has not had diarrhea or other classic symptoms of EPI; she IS producing enzymes but at a low level. Full blown EPI dogs do not thrive; they are usually emaciated and in considerable GI discomfort. It's obvious that Pepsi does not fall into this category. We are hopeful that the Prozyme she has already been started on will do the trick. It is readily available and not very expensive and we'll know in about four weeks if this is all she needs. Prozyme is a powder supplement, often used in healthy animals as well as humans. All that is required is sprinkling the powder on every meal. What if there is no change? Then we move to animal enzymes, which are much more expensive. We are, however, optimistic and we feel that all she will need is a little help with plant-based enzymes. Considering what this youngster has been through (two shelter stays under 12 weeks of age, at large and on her own on the streets twice) and what a poor start she's had, we're betting on this very resilient, ball-crazy puppy! Her vet bills are, however, mounting.
UPDATE 5/16: PEPSI HAS GAINED FIVE POUNDS IN ONE WEEK SINCE BEING ON PROZYME and her stools are firm and normal so we're hopeful that she will continue to thrive with this easy fix. Of course Pepsi wouldn't be Pepsi if she did not present a new challenge: leaping up for a ball last weekend she came down on the top of her foot and broke her toe! Keeping her quiet enough for it to heal will be no easy task. She also had some new mange spots so she's now on eight weeks of oral meds to take care of that. She required no sedation for her X-rays and as you can see, was more than ready to leave the vet's office.
Her current vet costs have hit the $1,000 mark and she's not even spayed yet. On the plus side, she's over 40lbs now so as soon as she is off her meds, that will be done and she will be good to go! UPDATE 5/24: Pepsi made yet another trip to the vet on Friday to have her cast changed; she's a pretty active gal and trashed the first one in less than a week! Her foot will be X-rayed again after the first week in June. She gained another two pounds and weighed in at 44lbs. UPDATE 6/7: Pepsi is now approaching seven months of age; we gave her a birthday of 11/11/07. Her cast is off and she has an appointment to have her toe X-rayed again on Tuesday, June 10th. We will also check her weight and mange progress which will determine when she will be spayed. Hopefully we're approaching the finish line..... UPDATE 6/10: Pepsi's toe X-ray was excellent...far better than we had expected. Her fracture has knitted beautifully and in correct position and that's after her cast had been off for five days. All of her bald spots have filled in nicely with new hair...there's one spot on her torso that is not bald but hair is thin. She will be finished with the medication for her mange the 2nd week of July at which time we will do another skin scraping and she will be spayed. She has gained another two pounds...46.7lbs today...slow but steady. We just might try another enzyme to see if it will make a difference, however, she will remain a very small gal for her breed. Her legs have grown some so at the lanky stage. Even her obedience has come along nicely and she no longer barks at strange dogs. At last...light at the end of the tunnel. UPDATE 6/24: Spay day is July 7th. Our "miniature GSD" currently weighs 48LBS; we're hoping she hits the 50lb mark in time for her surgery. Pepsi's foster family continues to be amazed at how fearless she can be. The first time she was introduced to a friend's swimming pool she simply dove off the side...how surprised she must have been to discover that she couldn't walk on water! Fortunately her folks are in the process of putting in their own pool so hopefully she will have ample opportunity to build some muscle. Now if only they can keep her out until she recovers from her spay ;-0) Adoption fee $395.00.
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Meet Pepsi, a female GSD pup around 16 weeks old and appears to be out of American lines. She's in a shelter that has run out of room and NEEDS IMMEDIATE FOSTER CARE IN PHOENIX.
