's Blog

My name is Jasper, I am 10 years old. I have been with my new family for 5 ½ years!

I love playing, being loved and running - having a pacemaker doesn't stop me having fun!

Jasper

He is doing very well. He has regular check ups with his vet and there are no concerns. We have a very strict food/insulin regime and so this allows his diabetes to be very well controlled. Every family member is now aware of how to care for Max and what to do in case of an emergency (hypo).

Max is pretty much blind now because of his diabetes but he is doing great around the house and in the garden...he is a bit anxious when out walking but we have a sizeable plot, so there is plenty of room for him to just run but within familiar settings. The vet said he can still see a little bit and only time will tell how long this will last but having poor vision is not stopping Max.He is very loveable and cuddly...he is great with our cat. 

What else can I say...he is just our Maksiu as we call him❤ 

I have attached few photos ... he is proudly presenting lockdown haircut. We are both in need of a haircut.

Thank you
Kasia

Jackson (AKA Jacko), is an 8 year old springer spaniel and is turning 9 tomorrow! We saw jacko on CAESSR's website and quickly arranged to meet him, when we did we knew straight away he would be an amazing addition to our family.

When we brought him home he was only 11kg and had pulled most of his fur out by scratching and biting at his skin - this was due to a skin condition Jackson has had since birth that had been left untreated for a while. He has had to have medication for this since we rescued him, and we finally found one that works perfectly for him. He got used to his medication and is okay with taking it as long as he gets his rich tea biscuit!

I have attached some images of Jackson about a month after we brought him home, and you can see he was still extremely underweight and unwell. Overtime he gained confidence and trust, (3rd pic onwards) and his crazy personality started to come out. He is now a sociable dog and loves other humans as well as dogs. Despite his past, he is a lovable affectionate dog and loves spending time with others.

We have had Jackson for 7 years this November thanks to CAESSR, and he gets more spoilt every year!

Kind regards,

the Heames Family

Marsh (now Marzy) is doing well. The vet has suggested we wait and see if the lump on his face grows or becomes a problem. The operation could be very difficult and it is a big one. He is not in pain and is eating as normal, so I agreed to wait.

Marzy is a cheeky chap with lots of doggy friends and is a really good boy. He loves kids and every day he makes me laugh. The lock down is hard on everyone and Marzy has felt it too. No grandchildren to torment and no cuddles from the humans he meets. So I get licked all over and my clothes slimed. I just feel very lucky to have him. The picture is lovely it's his "WHAT" face when I asked if he wanted to go outside.

Vicky and Marzy

Dolly has settled really well now she has had some training and knows that there are expectations she needs to respect. She loves going for walks, and especially those where she is allowed off lead and there might be fox poo to roll in. If no fox poo then bird poo is a good second best. Luckily she also really enjoys having baths.

Dolly has recently been to the groomers, and I am honestly very jealous as I could have done with a few hours of being pampered. She loves lockdown as it means she has us here at home with her, and that, in her opinion, is where we should be. She seems to go into a trance when she is being groomed, and it must be pretty wonderful considering the state she was in when she arrived with us.

We have builders around at the moment, and Dolly thinks this is a pretty good thing as where there are builders there are pies and biscuits. They have not been during lockdown but have now come back, so a pleasing situation all round.

Dolly has declared war on a couple of black and white cats who come into her garden. If she is in the house and sees them through the window she comes and dances in front of me so I open the door to let her out. Then she hurls off to sort them out. They usually escape over the shed roof which is very annoying for a dog who would love to fly after them but doesn't have wings.

Dolly has discovered she loves prawn crackers from the local Chinese takeaway, and has missed them so much during lock down that the other evening, having seen them on the kitchen unit (yes, they have reopened) she actually stole them! She will also gladly sell her soul in exchange for cheese. Crumbly Lancashire being her favourite. A good choice considering she came from there.

She is still very scared of black plastic bags and yard brushes, presumably because they bring back bad memories from before we had her. At least we are aware of it, and do our best not to have them around her. She always poos on concrete, never grass, and again this must be a left over thing from when she lived in a shed outside. She still loves puppies, and tolerates them very well. Other dogs are not appreciated as much. We would like to get another dog to be a companion for her, but it would have to be a young puppy as she would not accept anything else, and as we always welcome rescue dogs, it is not very likely. Never mind.

Sally

"Lulu is a food lover and only just about manages to sneak below 14kg (which is the top end for her size and breed). However, for the past lock down months, Lulu has had double the exercise with our son's new puppy Benji. Lulu has lost more that 1/2kg and has lost her rear end "saddle bags". Benji (the 8 months old puppy)is keeping Lulu on her toes.

Lulu is great company for our old three legged King Charles Spaniel, who at over 12 years old is literally on his last legs.Thankfully, Lulu has been keeping in good health generally, she's maybe a bit slow to get started in the mornings, but not for long. Thank you so much for the kind sponsors who are helping Lulu to stay in this happy, safe home."

Thanks as ever,

Meet the Flash himself - Barry Allen, and he truly does live up to his name! We saw his story on caessr just before lockdown began and that was it, we were completely besotted.

Barry is a 3 year old Cocker Spaniel with epilepsy but don't let that fool you, he's still as lively, loving and hungry as you'd expect a Cocker Spaniel to be! He's got the most lovely temperament, he's just so placid and loves nothing more than a good walk and a fuss!

Barry has bought us so much joy in the past couple of months, I can honestly say he's been the most rewarding thing we've ever done. I challenge anyone to find me a feeling better than being greeted at the door by a happy, excited spaniel when you get home from work!

Kind regards

Callie

We first became aware of Chewy (or Lenny as he then was) as a rescue sprocker who needed urgent adoption as he was struggling in kennels. As
soon as he came out of his pen we fell completely in love with him and since then he's continued to become an indispensable part of our family.

Poor Chewy had been kept shut in a farmer's shed for the first 6 years of his life so everything has been a new and exciting adventure. Over
the last few months he has learnt to swim, sit, play with toys and recall.

Sadly Chewy has a serious heart condition which means following initial surgery (his previous owner neglected to address this) he has a requirement for regular medication and check ups for the rest of his life. This doesn't impact on his day to day happiness however and you couldn't ask for a more loving, loyal or happy spaniel.

Having two sisters - one an 11 year old rescue staffy cross and the other an 19 month old CAESSR cocker has helped him to learn how to "dog". Its been a
joy to watch him fill out and grow from a skinny scared boy to the chunky happy-go-lucky bundle of sprocker he is now.

Thank you

Mark and Chewy

I am Marsh's new mummy. He is a lovely, gentle older dog of nine and a half years. I can't believe how lucky I am to have adopted him. Marsh is a very happy boy who loves everyone and is happy to play all day. Unfortunately he has a large lump on his jaw and needs some dental work. This is not holding him back though, he soldiers on in his own sweet way. I have had many rescued spaniels and they have all been precious to me. This boy deserves to have the best treatment possible.

Marsh has had his blood test, but his vet wants to do more tests before carrying out his surgery. Hopefully he will soon be able to have his lump removed.

Vicky and Marsh

LuLu came in to CAESSR from the Local dogs home she is about seven years old and had been used to breed with which resulted in her needing a double mamory as at Least one of the tumours was nasty. She has recovered well from her two major operations as you can see from the pictures. LuLu is a puppy at heart, she loves to ball play, have a tummy tickle and Likes a cuddle, LuLu loves to jump into the sunshine as she tries to catch reflections, her passion is swimming with ducks and helping with mowing the Lawn.

She has bonded well with her new older sister and shows her respect.

Thankyou from

Heather and Lulu

Well, it is almost a week since we brought home a weak, docile young lady: and now we have a bolshy teenager with lots of energy and the desire to run the household, I am pleased to say. She is almost healed underneath, so sees no reason to lie on her back and accept any nice treatment. Trying to trim her paws is no longer a lovely lethargic treatment, now it is a battle of wills between herself and me. It is wonderful to see her feeling able to have her say.

She is still out of her comfort zone if we go somewhere new, or if people come to the house, but is more willing to go and sniff them. She now has loads of energy, and sits by the front door begging to go out for a walk. We cant wait to take her somewhere fun, but I cant get her vaccinated until after Tuesday when she finishes the antibiotics. I will take her to the vets and see when she can be injected and spade, and if she needs any more treatment.

She does bite the inside of her back legs, and there are tufts of fur missing there. I will show the vet, but I think it is a nervous thing. When she is feeling bit out of control she paces around and around all the time. We are learning her body language quite well. She is an early riser, 4.30 or 5am being her preferred start to the day. Ravenous by l am when I feed her. We have bought her a new feeding bowl, with fat pillars in it, and she has realised that if she circles it she can still eat fast. Quick learner! However, it still takes her more than 30 seconds.

She loves chasing birds. She lets the plump pigeons settle in the garden and then chases them.... great fun! She loves to help with changing the beds...well, she calls it help. She gets under the sheet and then careers round to get it in knots. The word down is thoroughly ignored at all times.

Thank you Sally and Dolly

Hi everyone,

Well I've been at my forever home now 7 weeks now and it's just perfect. I started having seizures in January and now have to take regular medication but this didn't phase my new mum and dad I've had one seizure whilst being in my new home but it's all in hand. The vets are monitoring me regularly and I will need to take the tablets for life I have just had a blood test to make sure my dose is correct, there was even talk about reducing it a little bit!

Everyday is an adventure with lots of walks. Mum is really proud that I will walk off lead nicely and will always come back when called. What mum doesn't like though is my obsession with eating cow poo!! I'm learning though that if I don't resist temptation it means going back on my lead.

Two little people live in our house and they are so much fun. We run in the garden and in the open fields on our walks and they are always there for cuddles. If I'm lucky and mum doesn't see, I sneak into their bedroom at night and settle down on the little bed they made for me.

Mum is always putting pictures of us all on facebook to tell all her friends about our adventures. One of her friends said if dogs could buy lottery tickets then I had got the winning ticket. I think they are right and I know this makes mum happy and she only needs to look at my wagging tail to know that I'm one happy Chester

Thank you from

Sarah and Chester

Meet Dolly, our new sponsor dog. She has come to us via a vet, and little is known about her previous life but we think she is about 3 years of age. However, she is a beautiful chocolate brown working cocker, and it looks as though she has spent all her life so far being used for breeding. It is increasingly obvious that she has never been in a house before, so probably lived in a shed. She is in foster now, and is learning all about house living. She has discovered that there are other dogs living in the mirrors and glass, which she finds very disturbing. Strangely enough they look just like her! She has terrible mastitis which is being treated with special baths, cream and antibiotics,and her skin has been flaking off. The fur under her chin is missing possibly from rubbing against a rope. She has terrible cuts on her belly. She is very caring of the teddy she has been given, treating it like a puppy. She is in a high state of anxiety and is finding it hard to adjust to a normal life. Yet underneath there is a gentle lovely personality which will come to the forefront with love, attention and training. At the moment she is getting used to her name.

If you would like to help with Dolly's vet's fees we would be grateful. She is going to be a long time getting over her previous life, and the physical and physiological scars she has been left with. £5 a month will help in every way! if you would like to become one of Dolly's sponsors, please contact our sponsorship volunteer Danielle Wilkes <danielle_sarah@outlook.com>. Many thanks.

Max is doing really well now. We have very good routine that did make all the change.

His recent fructosamine level improved a lot and since he came to us we have managed to reduce his insulin dose from 14 units to 11 which is a sign of a good control. He gets fed twice a day and the portions are strictly measured. he is not allowed any treats apart from the occasional carrot. He did have few really bad hypos and there was a moment when I thought that's it as he was unresponsive on the floor but I just kept on rubbing some honey on his gums and all of the sudden he jumped up like nothing ever happened. It was after that first bad hypo when the vet decided to lower his dose by one unit...within few weeks situation
happened again ... but touch wood now on 11 units we are doing well.

I did sign up to a Facebook based forum for owners of dogs with diabetes and it has been great source of help. Currently we've still got some insulin left but we need to order needles regularly and he needs regular blood tests and vet check up's. The support we get from Caessr and the sponsors means Max can enjoy many more years.

Apart from diabetes he is a healthy boy. He loves to play and he loves to cuddle. Due to diabetes his eyesight is poor but it doesn't restrict him in any shape or form... he is just...being Max and he knows his ways around the house.

At this stage his vet is not convinced he will benefit from cataract surgery as he still has got some tunneled vision left and he ... seems to be quite comfortable with the way he is.

Thanks for all your support

Kasia, Sean and Max x

Hi all

Well I'm just fine and dandy!

Still on daily medication for my chronic arthritis but still very much Loving Life.

My eyesight is still poor but no worse and I sometimes have selective hearing (Mum thinks it's funny how I can hear the fridge door open but not her calling me when out walking)!

I've slowed down a Lot when out walking but being an ex-working dog if I see a rabbit or pheasant I do get a Little run on - just to prove I still can.

We went away for new year with friends and I Loved being in the caravan.

My Mums Mother-in-Law came for Xmas she adores me and me her. I follow her round everywhere.

I'm still the Leader of the pack with our springer group Mum can't believe I’ll be 14 this year x

As you can see when I leave for work I try to make the couch Bailey proof!!!! But he likes a challenge.

Recently his old medication of tablets has been fizzled out. so with the help of our vet and lots of blood tests Bailey is the first dog in our area to be placed on monthly injections with a small steroid tablet daily for his Addison's.

So the cost has gone from £20 monthly for the old tablets to roughly £80 a month for his new treatment. But on the plus side the injections seem to of helped his arthritis and no more limping after a good walk - which he still loves!

Thank you from Carl and Bailey x

Hi all, well i’ve had a few health issues over the last 6 months with my stomach and arthritis.

But a change of diet and daily medication seems to be helping.

We’ve just returned from a weekend away in mid Wales where i’ve loved visiting Lake Vyrnwy and the beautiful waterfall of Pistyll Rhaeadr.

But i’m still naughty and sneak on to the sofa!!!

Bailey

Hi all

All well here thank you. I’m still going strong !

I’ve had a benign tumour removed from my back foot and it’s healed lovely , the cone of shame was a pain and I caused Mum lots of bruises on her legs!

My Mum and Dad went on holiday in September so I went to Nanny’s for the week and was very spoilt!

The vets told Mum that i’m really healthy for my age and i’m not going anywhere for a while which is good to know!

I still very much enjoy my walks although I do tend to wander off a bit and Mum has lost me a couple of times! So, now I wear bells on my collar so she can hear me!

We are all looking forward to xmas with the family and we’re going away in the caravan over new year - that will be fab!

Hope everyone has a lovely Christmas.

Bracken

Hi All!

Well, its been a bit up and down recently. I got really sad earlier this year when my ‘sister’ Nell became really ill very quickly. She had to be walked in a dog pram but I was really good with her and walked at the side very well.

Unfortunately when she died I took a little bit of time to understand, but i’ve bounced back now.

I’ve suffered some bad health; not surprising for a boy who is 14! I had to go for an operation on my bottom to have a lump removed. The vet told my family then that I was losing all feeling towards my back end. Mum said she had noticed that I occasionally lost my footing and sometimes I have no idea I need to go for a “number 2” until the last minute! Sally, Charlie’s mum points out that “This can cause a quick flurry of activity, let me tell you!”

On a brighter note, I’ve been to the beach and had a lovely time. I went to Formby and managed quite a long walk. Although I wasn’t very impressed by the sea, but loved the fact that a school trip was on and all the children had left their bags on the beach unattended but open.... with their packed lunches in them! I particularly liked the ham sandwiches, but cheese sandwiches and crackers are very welcome too. I think I embarrassed my family but fortunately the children found it very funny!

I have developed a cough, which the Vet says is caused by his throat collapsing, its quite noisy and sounds horrendous. So, I am now on steroids for life, which relaxes my throat. They make me very hungry all the time. Recently I decided that a kitchen roll would be a good snack which meant another trip back to the vets as I was being sick. A day or two later I started pooing all the kitchen roll ....all beautifully intact and well folded..... and two days later I had passed it all, which saved me having another operation!

All spare kitchen rolls are now kept on the top shelf out of the way!

My Mum has been away for a week or so looking after her Mother - I was so pleased when she came home.

Sally says “He is a very loving dog, and most certainly part of the family. He has decided that the best place to lie is in the lounge doorway as he can keep an eye on everybody from there.... not easy for us to get in and out past him, but so be it!

Sorry for so many pooing stories, but it is a big part of our lives at the moment.”

Hope you all have a lovely Christmas

Three years after losing our much-loved Springer to cancer we came to a decision; if we were going to bring another dog in to our home it had to be from a rescue centre. Our previous dog, Chester, had given us so much, so it was time we gave something back.

We travelled a lot of miles and met a lot of dogs, but none really clicked with us. Then we saw the CAESSR poster. That’s how we met Jasper and John Powell from the charity.

Jasper hadn’t enjoyed the best start in life. No-one realised he had a heart condition.

Feeling ill every day made it hard for Jasper to fit in. He’d had at least three homes in his four years of life by the time we met him. Finally he got a proper diagnosis and was fitted with a pacemaker, but that’s not the end of his story.

He came to us a very scared dog. He didn’t know how to play, he cowered when stroked, and he was afraid of a lead. He was so skinny he slipped through the bars of our front gates.

The change today is huge. We have a dog with a waggy tail who loves to cuddle. Seaside holidays are a favourite and he definitely knows how to play. This second chance for Jasper and other Spaniels wouldn’t be possible without the help and support of the people at CAESSR and their ceaseless fund raising.

Jasper has last week had emergency surgery as his pacemaker battery was failing. John and the charity stepped up immediately to help us get this sorted. For this we are extremely thankful.

Chris & Louise;