by Wendy Hunter

God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers. ~Jewish proverb

Well, here we are, my dears, already crossing the unbearable border of July into the unforgiving wasteland of August. The sun shoots down sweltering bolts of flaming fingers, wrapping themselves around you and holding tight like a crazed hand from Hell. Not enough sunscreen can be slathered on, no big hats are floppy enough, and that gigantic glass of iced tea cannot be cold enough. Your pool is like a tepid bathtub, your black leather car seat is brutal, and you’ve taken out a loan in anticipation of your upcoming A/C bill. What the heck? Is that a real number? Let’s take out a few zeros, peeps. I find this whole time of year very confusing, as sweat is streaming down my back and into my shorts, while Costco has already decorated their pre-lit Christmas trees. Serenity now! There are several pregnant women in my building, and a couple of them look like they’re about ready to pop at any given moment. I swear, all it would take is one push pin at the right angle, and yowza! You got yourself a tiny little rugrat. I can’t imagine being expectant at all, much less in the summer. Talk about cranky; “Ted, where’s my pickle pizza? Ted! My Rocky Road has melted. Ted…don’t even think about touching that Milky Way”…

I admire the female sex. The life makers. It must be amazing to have a body that can carry an entire creature inside. ~Garth Stein

And speaking of pregnancies, we certainly have no end to the puppies this time of year at Animal Rescue of Fresno. Who doesn’t love puppies? In a perfect world, every pregnancy, either human or animal, is a glorious welcome to the world. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always work.This is especially true for dogs, as many pregnancies are a total surprise and not welcome. If a female dog is not spayed and escapes her backyard, she risks becoming pregnant by any un-neutered males wandering around. This happens a lot. You might not think your dog would escape, but inevitably, it can happen. Fourth of July fireworks, police sirens, fire engines, or any other loud noise can scare the bejeezus out of dogs. You may have never seen your beagle dig a hole under that wobbly wooden fence, but if he is scared enough, he will head straight to the streets. It doesn’t really cost very much, that spay/neuter thing, and there are many places in the valley offering specials. Just open up your handy, dandy Google search, and pop in “low cost spay/neuter”; you’ll thank yourself later. Seriously, we don’t want you to be that person. You know, that “oh, my Peanut NEVER gets out” person. Because Peanut just might get spooked by that loud KABOOM, the next time your neighbor works on his Hemi V8 engine. Remember, Peanut doesn’t carry Trojans…

Everyone thinks they have the best Boxer, and none of them are wrong. ~Anonymous

At ARF, we have had our share of pregnant mommy dogs. We have also had our fair share of Boxer dogs, basically because our owner loves that particular breed and showed them for many years. I wrote about 2 different Boxers back in 2016, Bebe and Missy and their sad state when they arrived at ARF. Bebe was a senior euthanasia rescue, who was so skinny, she rated a 1+ on the Purina body condition scale. Talk about bottom of the barrel. And then we had Missy, one of the saddest dogs in the poorest condition I have ever seen. She was found wandering by a good Samaritan out in Orange Cove and was basically starving to death. Missy had such soulful eyes; you almost didn’t notice the horrible scars she had. And then there was Sterling, a pure white boxer who just happened to be a tripod. Sterling loved to play and chase balls, and basically used up as much energy as possible on a daily basis. You might have felt sorry to see a 3-legged dog, but he had no qualms about it. Man, that dog could run circles around anyone, canine or human. Think it ever slowed him down? Pulleeezzzz….

Give Womanhood and Childhood both their Due;
The Lioness and Cubs are Lions, too.
~Arthur Guiterman

Our latest Boxer is Greta, another disturbing tale of how a simple spay procedure could have made life a whole lot easier for this poor girl. Greta came to us from another local shelter, completely starved and with all her ribs showing. But that’s not even the worst part; she was pregnant and three days away from giving birth. Feel free to digest that appalling piece of information. There are so many questions that go through my head when seeing such a deplorable situation. I’m sure you’re thinking what I’m thinking; what the heck? All these questions ping-ponging inside my head, like where did she come from? Was she found wandering? Did someone just dump her off? What kind of monster abandons a dog who is about to give birth? She must feel so unloved, so unwanted, and so ready to give up. Greta ended up having eight puppies, but only three survived due to neglect and the lack of gestational care. If Greta had received the proper food and vet care she desperately needed during her pregnancy, the outcome could have been quite different. There is always the unthinkable idea that Greta came from a backyard breeder, who doesn’t give a damn about his animals, and only sees dollar signs. Dogs are bred and bred until they are of no more use, then discarded like a bag of garbage. Here’s my scenario: “C’mon you lazy mutt, get in the car. Now, this looks like a good spot, sorry there’s no shade. Here’s some food and water, and we thank you for your service. Forgive our haste, but we’re holding auditions later on for younger, prettier versions of yourself, with healthier puppy-bearing hips. Also, we’re cowards and afraid of getting caught…”

I suspect that nearly all women either are angels, or would be so if well treated. ~Charles Searle

For anyone with half a brain, it’s pretty common knowledge that all pregnant women need to start prenatal care as soon as possible. That means eating well, keeping doctor appointments, and giving up the White Claws. I know Burly Jean, but if you want a healthy Jed Jr., these are the sacrifices. Now go put out that Pall Mall. Dogs are typically pregnant for about 62 days, give or take a couple of days. Dogs should not be overfed during this time, as it can lead to obesity. However, underfeeding during pregnancy can result in embryo loss, abnormal fetal development, spontaneous abortion or stillbirth, small litter size, and low birthweight puppies that fail to thrive. What we’re looking for is a healthy weight in mommy, so the pups have a good chance of surviving. It is also extremely important for all puppies to have their vaccinations like bordetella, rabies, distemper, and the pariah of them all, parvo. Ugh, parvo sucks and brings nothing but heartache and grief. Listen to what your vet says regarding nutritional care for a mommy dog, and for her pups when they arrive. It can save a lot of heartache and sleepless nights…

Linger not in your sorrows. You do not belong there. ~Dodinsky

As for Miss Greta, I hear she’s doing well, despite all the trauma. I haven’t been to ARF for a while, due to family matters, but I did manage to meet her a couple of times. She wasn’t too fond of me, but I’m a stranger to her, and a lot of the ARF dogs do not like baseball hats. Guilty, as charged. I hear Greta loves all of the resident ARF cats, who make their wage catching rats in the garage. Greta is very sweet and doesn’t seem afraid of humans. Perhaps she’s willing to give us knuckleheads a chance. I’m sure Greta did some mourning over her lost pups, because I know the ARF staff had a rough time with it. If you’ve got a Barbie and Ken match that are trying to have puppies, we wish you the best of luck. Just be mindful of proper nutrition, vet visits, shots, and exercise. If your dog hasn’t been spayed/neutered, PLEASE get them fixed. That will be one less litter of puppies being surrendered, dumped, or, worse, on our streets. We may not be able to completely alleviate this problem, but dammit, we can give it the old college try. Go team!

Women really do rule the world. They just haven’t figured it out yet. When they do, and they will, we’re all in big big trouble. ~Doctor Leon

Animal Rescue of Fresno
4545 E Dakota Ave.
Fresno, CA 93726
Website: arf-fresno.com

Check out more animal rescue stories in our Pet Perspective section and check back every month for another animal rescue adventure from ARF. Advertise in KRL and 10% of your advertising fees can go to a local animal rescue. We also have a pet Facebook group for KRL and we would love to have you join!

Wendy Hunter has been volunteering with ARF since 2014. She grew up in Fresno and has been an Office Assistant with Fresno County for 7 years. She has been writing all of her life, though never professionally, and currently writes personalized poetry for birthdays, weddings, pet remembrances, etc.