Cindy Lou, Thank you for taking the time to post a comment!! Joey has been diagnosed with heartworms but, unfortunetly, there is no heartworm treatment available to cats. Fortunetly, on the other hand, cats are normally able to fight the heartworms off and he should be "back to normal" in another year or two. As for your assistance needed with vet bills, please check out United Animal Nations. They may be able to help you both financially as well as giving you other organizations that can help financially. Good luck and keep up the loving!
United Animal Nations

UPDATE: August 21, 2006 "Bella" has been offered a wonderful home with a young and growing family in Wisconsin. In Alabama on vacation, this family noticed Bella on our webpage and made a trip to visit her. They fell in love with her spunky attitude and were anxious to offer her a home. With the help of rescue groups in the new family's area, the home-check was completed and Bella was on her way!

YAH! Bambi's puppies arrived August 7th and all are doing GREAT!! 7 absolutely gorgeous little guys and gals joined our team and we are so happy to have such a happy tear-filled moment in our otherwise painful jobs. Bambi and her pups will be available for adoption the end of September.

In 5 years of working rescue, I'd have to say that this was the most difficult case we'd ever gone through.  Such a tearful experience for everyone involved.  This is Peanut's story.

It was an absolutely HOT and out of this world miserable day in late May when an off-duty Animal Control Officer knocked on my door; holding a small puppy in her arms.  She brought him in the house and set him down on the table so I could look at him.  She pulled her arms out from underneath him........

And he collapsed.

We filled a bowl with water and put it down by him.  He didn't even have the strength to lift his head let alone walk the 2 inches to the bowl and get a badly needed drink.  He just layed there, dry tongue hanging from his pure white mouth.

I put 5 cc's of water in a small dropper and slowly disbursed it in his mouth.  He welcomed the taste of fresh water.  Seconds later, he vomitted the water back up.  Even water to this poor baby was an alien substance to his body; a substance he hadn't received in so long that his body wasn't able to tolerate it.

From that point on it was every hour that I would put 2 cc's of room-temperature water directly into his mouth.  After 3 days he was hydrated enough to give him the strength to stand up and take what was probably his first bite of food since whelping.  Within two weeks, he had put on 11 pounds and was wrestling with his toys.

Shortly after regaining his strength and adding the weight, poor Peanut was diagnosed with "full body" Demodectic Mange, Ringworm and a Staph Infection.  He immediately went on antibiotics, ivomectin treatments, sulfur and iodine dips and various other body creams.  Within days of his first treatment, he became lethargic and listless.  His skin was dry and flakey and obviously very painful and caused missery beyond what words could describe.

A second trip to the Vet, and a second inital plan for treatment began.  Days later, he had a minor seizure and landed himself in a "24 hour" coma.

Running out of options, we again tried antibiotics, a fungal spray and a homeopathic remedy for the mange.  Though his body tolerated this form of treatment, his condition did not improve.

Walking to the truck, with his tail wagging behind him as he tried playfully attacking the Animal Control Officer's feet and wrestling with the leash, Peanut had no idea what layed ahead of him.

With tears in our eyes at what felt like a failed attempt to save a life, we watched Peanut slowly pass away as the injection filled his body and stopped his tiny little heart.

There was nothing more we could do to help Peanut.  Had his owners cared for him properly in the beginning, he could have had a long and happy life.  And though we know he had 2 of the most incredible and happiest months of his short life, it still didn't seem fair.

Your donations can help the next Peanut that desperately needs the love and care we can offer.

Such a tragic story of undoubtedly avoidable pain and agony.  Bella's story is so sad and heartbreaking.  Yet, it's just another condition we see all too often.

This is Bella, a 14 week old Boxer mix puppy.  She was found by an off-duty local police officer and delivered here to us as Adoption Palace.  The officer had anger and disapointment in his voice when he dropped her off late one evening only a week ago.  Shaking his head, repeating over and over again, "how absolutely disgusting" as we stood together watching her inhale a small bowl of food in a matter of seconds.

Every bone in poor Bella's body was all too visable.  The skin on her front and back legs seemed almost "sucked in" around the bones; what little muscle she had was clearly noticeable.  Her gums were almost pure white from dehydration.  She was so weak and malnurished, walking was a difficult action.

It has been just over one week now and Bella has put on 8 pounds.  She is very loving and extremely playful.  She is everything a puppy her age should be.  She has been cleared of any medical illness.  Her only problem was someone trying to starve her to death.

It's cases such as Bella's that your help is needed and greatly appreciated.  Please find it in your hearts to help save the next "Bella" that comes through our doors.

Please take a moment to view our other Aidpages. You'll learn more about some of our other rescues and how you can help save a life!

This is Bambi, the newest addition to Adoption Palace (Big) Dog Rescue.  Bambi was rescued on July 26th from our local Animal Shelter where she, and her unborn pups, were scheduled for destruction due to lack of space and finances.

Bambi is one of the most incredible dogs we have ever had!!!  Fullly housebroke, crate trained, leash trained, non-food aggressive, gets along well with other dogs, cats, kids and people.  She LOVES riding in the car, with her cute little head hanging out the window through the entire drive (even doing 60mph down the interstate).  She loves her toys, could play fetch and "hide and sniff" for hours.  She spends a lot of time in the pool splashing around.  Bambi is just an absolute joy to have around.

We expected her to have her pups over the last weekend of July but it seems she's holding out just a bit longer.  She and her pups will be ready for their new homes by the end of September or early October.

Bambi appears to be a possible Beagle and Shepard mix, with maybe just a slight gene or two of Chow or Spitz.  She's not a very large dog, topping off at 35 lbs.  She stands about calf-high to most adult people.

She's full of love and ready to find her best and forever friend!!! 

Please visit our website to find out all about us!  You can view that at www.adoptionpalacedogs.com

Early one morning in April, some neighborhood kids woke me very early screaming about a really sick dog tied to the bumper of my truck.  I went outside and found this skin and bones dog tied to my truck with the kind of chain you'd use to tow a car!!!  The chain was so heavy she couldn't even lift her head up.  We finally got the chain off from around her neck and she collapsed to the ground and couldn't stand back up.  I carried her in the house and layed her down on the floor in my bedroom and she, again, collapsed.

"Momma" is a Border Collie and German Shepard mix, probably around 3 to 4 years old.  She weighed 17 pounds!!!!  I worked really hard trying to gain some weight on her and after a few days she started wobbling around the house.  I took her to the vet to have her checked out and was told that she was very malnurished and very sick because of it.  His suggestion was to try to get some weight on her and get her "better" because in her condition now it was hard to say whether any blood test results would be accurate (he couldn't even test fecal matter for worms or parasites because she didn't have any matter in her!!!!).

So I brought her home and made her comfortable and she did eat, but not a whole lot.  Surprisingly though, within 2 weeks she had put on over 20 pounds!!!  Then, a couple days later, she had puppies.  Momma had 7 absolutely beautiful, sweet little puppies (5 girls and 2 boys). 

When the pups were 2 weeks old, Momma started getting really sick again and was down to 28 pounds so I took her back to the vet for the tests.  This time, he discovered that not only did she have hookworms, tape worms and a thyroid disorder--but she also had advanced heartworm.  The x-rays and other tests he did showed that she probably had these heartworms for at least 2 years, if not longer.  He suggested working hard to wheen the pups (who were only 17 days old at the time) and then have Momma put to sleep because she was obviously in so much pain.  So we took the medications for her diarhea, hook and tape worms and put her on some vitamins and a weight builder and brought her home.

The pups were all wheened successfully, received their vaccinations and are now, at 8 weeks old, in new homes.

Not quite three weeks ago, Momma started vomitting worms.  I took her back to the vet and indeed, it was time.  She needed to be put to sleep and put out of her missery.  So we went ahead and got her ready.  We all said our goodbyes and the doc injected her.  We waited for her to pass peacefully.

Twenty minutes later, she was wagging her tail and licking hands and pawing at the door to the office.  She was ready to go home.  Surprised and feeling horrible, the vet suggested we leave the room and he'd give her another injection.  Ten minutes later, he called me back.  There was Momma.....sitting on the floor, wagging her tail and happy to see me.  The vet assured me it was a good injection, that he had been using it the entire week with "success" and he didn't understand what the problem was.  We came to only one conclusion--Momma had a will to live.

She is still very sick, weighing only 28 pounds.  She is still very quiet.  She doesn't walk around very much.  Does not play but absolutely loves to be petted.  She's one of those dogs that will come to you and put her head under your hand so you pet her.  She's an absolute sweetheart and we love her to death!!!

Unfortunetly, heartworm treatment was estimated to me to be a minimum of $350, provided there are no complications with the "usual" medications given for treatment.  We have collected $50 already towards her treatment and I have applied for several grants to help pay the remaining costs.

Our best lead is a group out of California.  The problem though, is that they don't dispurse funds for treatment for animals that have not been spayed or neutered.  In Momma's condition, I cannot have her spayed at the time.  She must have a successful treatment before she can be healthy enough to be spayed.  If aprooved, this group will pay for her treatment after she receives it and after I have her spayed.

The vet, however, won't begin treatment until he receives atleast half the $350 up front and we still don't have these kinds of funds.  We are a private rescue group, running off of money from our own pockets and the few donations we receive for each adopted pet.  We have a website only because someone donated it to us and offers his time, free of charge, keeping it updated (and we are SOO greatful).

Please help us save Momma's life and all the lives of the future dogs that come to us!!!  You're help would be greatly appreciated!!!

UPDATE July 31 2006:  Adoption Palace Dogs has received a financial grant to help cover some of the cost of Momma Dog's heartworm treatment from www.uan.org (she has received a Lifeline grant).  Heartworm treatment for Momma will run upwards of $350 and we have only $200.  Momma received her first injection of Ivomectin on July 5th and is scheduled to receive her second and third injections August 7th and 8th.  Unfortunetly, the vet has decided until he receives the remaining balance for treatment, he is unable to continue with the medication.  She will need at least one more injection around August 23rd.  Please help us continue her treatment and help her become the happy and healthy dog she should be!  She is such a joyful and loving animal that it breaks our hearts to know we may not be able to save her.  Your donations will help Momma continue this life saving treatment and be on the road to a happy and full life!

This is Joey!  Joey has been with us for quite some time.  Unfortunetly, he has been unable to find the perfect and stable home that he needs.

Joey is approximately 1 1/2 years old and is a sliver tiger striped (tabby) cat.  He was found in the barn of a local farm and brought to us for assistance with an eye infection.  He was treated for an upper respiratory infection and recovered quickly.  He was adopted following his recovery into a beautiful farm home where he had free run of the barn, house and open fields!  It was a match made in heaven!

Unfortunetly, the family that adopted Joey went through some family emergencies including hospital stays and bankruptcy.  It was hard for the family to do but for the sake of keeping him cared for and healthy, they returned him to us right before Thanksgiving.

Joey started getting very ill in March of this year.  We took him to our vet who ran numerous tests on him only to find that, as far as test results showed, there was nothing wrong with him.  In only a matter of weeks, Joey had lost 8 lbs and his skin and coat condition continued to worsen.  But despite the obvioussness of his being ill, test results continue to come back negative for ailments.

Like many of our other cats and dogs, continued medical care and possible treatment are neccessary to ensure a happy and healthy life.  We have exhausted all available funds to Joey and he too could use your help!

Please open your hearts to this beautiful little boy and offer him what he otherwise may not receive.