Christmas Miracle At Lighthouse

We had a real Christmas miracle today here at Lighthouse!!!!!

Two of our chickens were "Turkens." Turkens are chickens who have no feathers on their neck.
"Tom," was the rooster and "Prissy" was the hen." 

About two weeks after we got them Tom disappeared. We found feathers from Tom at the fence and knew that he had been killed by a coyote or raccoon or something. We were heart broken. 
Poor Prissy searched  and searched for him.

A few days later she laid an egg and started sitting on it. It was only one egg, and we were pretty sure it was not fertile since Tom had been gone for days.....but she continued to take care of her egg so we just let her be.

This morning.... Bud found a chick, dead, in the nest and one crushed egg shell.

We could not find Prissy and thought maybe she had "flown the coop" after her chick was born dead.

About thirty minutes later Bud heard "cheeping" that sounded like a baby chick. He ran out front and found a baby chick in our pond! 

Our one eyed cat, Lucy, 

 Click on the pictures to enlarge them. 

was heading for the pond, attracted by the sound, and Prissy came out fighting!! She charged Lucy and ran her back.

Bud grabbed the chick out of the pond before it drowned and called me out to see it. 

Now there was only one egg in Prissys' nest. And there was one dead chick. We could not figure out where the chick came from so we brought him inside to try to dry him off and figure out what was going on.

I took a couple of pics of this wet little guy under the Christmas tree and then we took the chick up so our two year old grandson, Joe, could see it.

Joe was fascinated and remembers seeing me release rescued birds. Anytime he sees a bird he will hold his palm up and point to it with his other hand....thinking the bird should come to his hand.

He even gave the little chick a kiss.

He was a little nervous at first.... 

....but we finally were able to convince him that he could hold it in his hand. 

He was thrilled!!

Then we took the chick back downstairs and set him/her on the ground where he started "cheep cheep cheeping." 
 Another hen started toward us and we figured maybe it was her chick.  But then Prissy came up the hill toward the sound of the cheeping and the chick ran straight to her!!

They turned and went back over the hill and Prissy started scratching around in the leaves showing her chick how to search for food.  

After doing some research tonight guess what we found out!!!! The chick was a TWIN!!!!!!!!!!! It is VERY RARE!!!!! 

Like I said...there was only one egg in the nest. Bud found the crushed shell this morning and a dead chick. There was only ONE shell. 
It is possible for two chicks to come from a double yolked egg. So that is the ONLY explanation. Most of the time neither chick survives. There is not usually enough room in the egg for either of them to create enough momentum to crack the shell. So this little guy is a REAL rare kid. 

We are calling him "Elvis," since Elvis had a twin that died at birth too.
Our little Christmas miracle!!!

Have a great Christmas and watch for those miracles!!!! They happen every day!!!

WE WON!!!!!!!! $2,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WHOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YOU DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mom is cryin'. Dad is cryin', and us perros are all jumpin' around spreadin' loose fur everywhere!!!!!

WE WON 1st PLACE!!!! $1,000.00!!!
And we won the weekly prize for the most votes!!!
That's another $1,000.00!!!!!!

$2,000.00!!!!

YOU FOLKS ARE AMAZING!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!! And please tell all your friends we say THANKS!!!!

We're including a video of some of the kids you'e helped with your votes in 2010!!

Mom says there is no way we can tell you all how much this means to us!!! It is the best Christmas present we could EVER have!!!! It will help with EVERYTHING here at the shelter!!!
God bless ALL of you!!!!

Tailwags and tears of joy!!!!
BudBud, Paco, Maricita, Juliette, Joy, Andre, Milana, Mieko, Sassy, Bunny, Lluvia, Lisa, Delilah, Krystal, Storm, Laika, Bingo, Poas, Spanky, Larry, Blade, Jingle, Riki, Frances and Bruce

Goings on at Lighthouse

Hola Y'all!!!

It's been a while since I posted!! I've been pretty busy takin' care of Mom and all the other furkids.

The photos above are of the new kid here!! She was a mess when she arrived and she turned out to be a SCHNAUZER!!! Who would'a guessed??? Her name is Lacy and she is a real sweetheart!!

Mom lost her voice about a month ago. The doctor says her right vocal cord is paralyzed!! Nobody knows why. She's doin' exercises and stuff and trying to make it work again. And the doctor gave her a steroid spay to use. She is finally able to talk a little better but she still can't yell or sing!!! The doctor says if it doesn't correct itself they might have to do a surgery.

Paco is doin' GREAT!! He is a happy, healthy furkid except he has a weak back end. His back legs don't work exactly right. It doesn't seem to hurt him or slow him down though and he runs and plays with the other furkids!!! Mom's gonna get him ex-rayed to try to find out what the problem is.
Here's a video of some of us out in the yard playing!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZHsgs4gk-s

Don't forget to vote for us in the shelter challenge!!! Just go to www.animalrescuesite.com. Click on the vertical tab on the right "Shelter Challenge" type in lighthouse and click Costa Rica for country. Search and when our name comes up VOTE FOR US!! Then be sure to wait for the confirmation question to confirm your vote.

TAILWAGS!!!!
BudBud

More Problems For Paco

Poor Paco. Although he is gaining strength and gaining much needed weight, he is, due to his very compromised immune system, still an easy target for any illness that comes along. He just broke out with Demodectic mange. You can see how raw and tender his little face is. It's on his legs and feet too but not as raw. We still are trying to get his fungus cleared up. You can see those spots on his rump.
He is SUCH a sweetie and so loving. Please continue to say prayers and send healing thoughts.

Paco night 4

Paco is doing VERY well. He is gaining weight and seems to be happy. He is a total love sponge. He lays his head on my leg to "hug" me.
He has a fungus. You can see the bare spots on his rump. He is getting medicated baths twice week.
Thanks for all the prayers and positive thoughts.

Pacos' Video first day at Lighthouse

This is Pacos first day at Lighthouse and he seems to be feeling a little better. He sure does love to eat!!!!! And who can blame him!!! He came very close to being starved to death!!!
He runs to me with his tali wagging now and,when I took him outside for a short walk in the fresh air, he wanted to get back to his clinic room. He is happy in his open crate with his fluffy bed inside and has been doing a pretty good job using the newspaper to potty on.
He hasd toys to play with and his favorite is a soft rubber kong-like toy that you can stuff treats into and they have to struggle to get them out.
Join me, mrbudbud, on Facebook for more updates!!!

Meet Paco

I just met Paco today.......He is about 7 or 8 months old. Paco was a street puppy. He had never had a family who cared. He had never met a kind human. He was thrown away and left to fend for himself in a strange place.

Probably born to a mama dog whose owners would never ever think to have her spayed, the puppies came along and, when they were old enough to take away from the mama dog, they were thrown away like yesterdays garbage with never a thought as to how much they might suffer.

After weeks of trying to survive on garbage and whatever he could find on the streets, Paco ended up wandering into a school yard. He had not eaten for several days and he was very weak and sick. He curled up in a sheltered spot under the porch of the school, to escape the rain, and he fell asleep.

When he woke up he was startled to see the face of a little girl very near his! She was crooning to him and reaching out for him with her small hand.

He was naturally afraid of humans. He certainly had no reason to trust one!!! He had never known anything from them but cruelty.
But this one little human girl seemed to be different. She seemed to actually want to touch him! She called to him and kept reaching for him.

Even though he was afraid, he was just too weak to run anymore. He allowed her to touch him, then pet him, then pick him up. Was it possible that there were actually "good" humans in the world? This was something he had really never considered and he was amazed. He had never even imagined a humans hands could be so gentle and feel so good!!! The little girl seemed so sweet and kind as she stroked his head and neck. She crooned songs to him as she carried him back to her home after school was over.

When they arrived at the little girls house he could hear her mother scolding her for bringing home another mouth to feed. The tone the mother used was very familiar to Paco. It was the same tone he always heard coming from the humans who were shooing him away, throwing rocks at him or kicking at him if he happened to be in their path. It was a tone filled with hate and ignorance....and Paco was once more afraid.
He had good reason to be afraid. The mother was not only ignorant and hateful, she was also evil.

He lived with the little girl for the next two days. She was very gentle and kind to him and he was so happy to have someone to love him at last! She shared her food with him and made a soft bed for him from old blankets on the back porch. He felt loved at last.

When the little girl left to go back to school on Monday the mother called a worker to come to her home.
“Kill this animal and dispose of it before my daughter returns from school.” she ordered. The worker picked up a hammer and, before little Paco could run away, he slammed the hammer into Pacos' head!

Paco started screaming! The pain was terrible! WHY? Why would this man do such a thing? Paco had done nothing to him and was not even in this mans way! The man has just walked up to him with a hammer and hit him very hard in his head! All he could do was scream! His head was too hurt to even be able to think!

The neighbors heard the screams and came running out of their homes. The worker, fearing he might be in trouble, ran away, leaving Paco screaming in pain. The mother never even bothered to come outside.

The neighbors called some people they knew who help animals. Those people called the police.
They came to the mothers house. The police told the mother she could be in serious trouble. The rescue people took Paco to a veterinarian and asked her if she could help him.

The vet was not sure how badly Paco was hurt or if he was strong enough to be helped. He was so weak and malnourished he might not survive.. She said she would have to examine him, have ex-rays done, test him, and observe him closely before she could say whether he could be helped.

When she looked at his gums they were not pink. They were not gray. They were white. Even after he came out of shock his gums were still white. He was extremely anemic and so very weak from the malnutrition. Now he had a head injury too.

The people who help animals made a call to Lighthouse. The vet care, tests, meds and all were going to cost money. They are a spay/neuter group and did not have money to help this dog or a place where he could go while he recuperates. They asked if Lighthouse would take the dog in and pay the bills. Otherwise they might just have to put Paco down for lack of money and because they don‘t foster dogs.

Lighthouse agreed to take on the expenses and to take Paco into Lighthouse when he is released from the vet..

The vet tested him for erhlichia and for heart worms and found that he did not have either of those horrible illnesses! That was a VERY lucky break for little Paco.

When they ex-rayed his head they found that his skull had been fractured but the fracture was not touching the brain. That was another blessing for little Paco.

When I went to see him today he was actually wagging his tail a tiny bit and seemed almost glad to see me.

He is, as I type this, having a blood transfusion. I will be going back down to see him tonight.

More on his story as we go along.

Please, please say prayers for him.

Hugs and prayers,
Kitten

You only have to vote ONE TIME!!!

Hola Y'all!!!!

A friend wanted us to enter this contest!!!

There's a new movie coming out about a dog named Smitty!! If we get the most votes in this contest they will have a poster in the movie, inside a shelter, with our name and logo on it!!!

You just click on the "Click & Vote" below, type in a valid email address, and then search for Lighthouse and VOTE!!!!!
You only have to vote one time!!! Please get all your friends to vote too!!

"Bingos' Saga" Video

Bingos' Saga (The End)

Bingo hopes that EVERYONE has learned a lesson....including MOM!!!!
All's well that ends well.

Bingos' Saga (Episode 32)

As if Milana didn't already have enough toys of her own, she is still a little disappointed.

Hingos' Saga (Episode 31)

Poor Andre. He's still worried about not getting any cornbread!!!

Bingos' Saga (Episode 30)

OK..Bingo's been found and he's hoping all the bullies have learned their lesson.

Bingos' Saga (Episode 29)

Well things are finally calming down around here. Bingo's been found and is safe and sound. Of course us long haired perros had nothing to do with his disappearance. It was those short haired perros that did it!!

Bingos' Saga (Episode 28)

As expected....now that Bingo's been found EVERYBODY wants to take credit for finding him!!!

Bingos' Saga (Episode 26)

Even the other dogs are beginning to feel a little sorry for the bully dogs.
All their bullying did was cause them a lot of problems. Things just
ain't working out for them!!! Sure hope they can find Bingo SOON!!!!

Bingos' Saga (Episode 25)

Bingos' saga continues, things have become a little more complicated
for the bullies. There's a BIGGER bully on the scene! Miss Lisa, the
terrier, who has been quite unconcerned until now, is beginning to
think maybe she should start searching a little harder for our missing
...Bingo.

Bingos' Saga (Episode 24)

Oops!!! Looks like Bingo's called for back-up!!!! THIS should teach those bully dogs that there's always a BIGGER bully!!!!

Bingos' Saga (Episode 23)

Bingo's decided to let them keep looking. He figures there might be a lesson in it for the bully dogs.

Bingos' Saga (Episode 22)

Things are heating up in the search for Bingo. All us other furkids stopped speakin' to the bully dogs and I think maybe they realize they have lost some friends by being mean. Let's hope they've learned a lesson!!
Now if we can just find Bingo!!!