All of us from Homeward Bound California Shar Pei Rescue wish you a wonderful holiday season. We are thankful for all of the people that rescued a wonderful Pei from us and supported our efforts to care for and find homes for all the homeless and neglected Shar Pei.

A quick reminder to everyone: People food is not good for your pets!

We all feel generous and loving to our pets, but it is possible to love them to death. So, before you slide off into your turkey/football/beer coma, put the left overs away. This is a time of year when many pets end up at the vet's office because well-meaning people wanted to give them a treat. Pancreatitis, bloat and similar disorders are extremely painful and usually fatal.

If you suspect bloat in your pet, get to the Emergency Vet as fast as you can! If you have any anti-gas medications on hand (aka simethicone), try to get some into your pet on the way. I keep infant anti-gas drops (mmm banana-strawberry!) on hand, just in case.

And now we present....Griffey Claus!

We hope all of you are doing well going into this holiday season. We do have some bad news. Ranger died here in Redding at the rescue yesterday of Evans Syndrome. It seems that his own body was destroying his red blood cells and platelets. It was only two weeks ago that he was diagnosed with the disease when we realized that he was just a little “off” in his behavior and took him in to be evaluated. We had extensive blood work done and it was returned with the bad news. He was started on meds for the first week, and when he did not respond to those an oral chemo drug was added. Still he did not respond, but he is sleeping in the sunshine now with the rest of our “kids” who have gone on ahead of us. Ranger did not suffer and went on his own terms, but it is always hard to lose one of our friends. Although Ranger did not make it, we still have the vet bills for him-the tests and the meds-that must be paid. If you are able to help with Ranger’s final bills, it would be much appreciated. There are still lots of “kids” here who have ongoing needs and could also use the help.

We also took back two of our Pei who had been adopted almost two years ago. You may remember Lauren and Bogart who were placed together as we had wanted for them. Please don’t hold the fact that they were returned against them. As usual, it was the owners who failed the dogs and to provide a safe environment for them. We try very hard to make the “rescue” experience a positive one for all involved. The instructions and advice we give are for a reason, and every dog is different in terms of needs and wants. We do try to get to know our dogs so that when they leave us, we can give good sound advice in regards to the care of each individual dog. We like to believe that the new owners listen to us, but sometimes when they don’t, the poor dogs suffer. Now these two wonderful dogs find themselves again in a kennel environment instead of living in their own home. We will do our best to find them a “permanent” home this time that will provide them with what they need.

When anyone adopts a dog from us, that dog comes with a lot of resources to make the transition easier for everyone. We have people who have a great deal of knowledge in terms of the behavior and training of Pei. They are more than willing to share that knowledge with adopters if they are asked. We get very few dogs returned-most of our dogs are adopted into new homes and become part of the family. We do understand that sometimes there are circumstances that none of us could predict, and of course we will always take our “kids” back. Please remember that all of us come with some baggage, but most times it is just a short transition period before a new Pei fits right into the family. Please be willing to work through the usually minor adjustments that may need to be made in return for a lifetime of unconditional love. These “kids” are worth it and deserve it!

Anna and Rich