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Arrival Story: The known chapters of Joey's life start in early 2000, when the chubby 5-6 year old Beagle came to our humane society as a stray. When no owner claimed him, Joey was put up for adoption. With a happy-go-lucky attitude and playful spirit, he quickly became a favorite among the staff and volunteers. Not too long later Joey was adopted by a wonderful family. After his adoption, however, Joey tested positive for heartworm. The family was heartbroken and, unable to afford treatment, they terminated the adoption. We were left with the difficult decision of what to do with him. When it was decided that Joey was just too good a dog to euthanize because of a treatable condition, the staff decided to launch a campaign to raise the money for Joey's heartworm treatment. Thus, the Joey Fund was born. Joey made public appearances at shelter events, and posters for the Joey Fund went up at the shelter and at local businesses. In a matter of months the target amount was met, then exceeded. A staff member took Joey home to care for him during his treatment and eight weeks later, after some complications, Joey was heartworm free and as good as new. Shortly after that, Joey was adopted. The Joey Fund was continued and the money donated was used to help pay for the treatment of a number of heartworm positive dogs adopted from the humane society over the next few years. These dogs otherwise might not have made it out of the shelter alive. A happy end to a wonderful story... or so we thought...
Bio: Six years later, in the summer of 2006, a coworker notified me that a person had brought their old, sick dog in to be euthanized. The owner essentially said the dog was sick again, hadn't eaten in 5 days, and they were tired of spending money on vet care for him. A few minutes later, the coworker returned carrying a sickly-looking Beagle, too weak to even walk on his own. I recognized him immediately. It was Joey. I was heartbroken at the horrible condition he was in, and that very afternoon I rushed him to the veterinarian. She and the other clinic staff, who had treated his heartworm, were amazed to be looking at what was left of the dog they had taken such good care of so many years before. Joey was diagnosed with an enlarged liver and a raging infection (possibly due to a large tumor), as well as severe dehydration. That night I took him home to attempt to nurse him back to health. After two weeks of fluids, tons of antibiotics, difficult forced feedings, and lots of TLC, Joey was almost completely recovered. He continued to have liver complications, but he took it all in stride. I decided that it was fate that had brought us together again, so I officially adopted Joey. He fit in perfectly with the rest of my crew, and I was extremely entertained by his antics and by the "woooo"ing (he never did bark) that I remembered so well. He ran and played with the other dogs, and was visited by the former staff member who had fostered him during his treatment. Life went swimmingly for about six months. Then one night Joey didn't come running for dinner as usual. I found him in another room lying perfectly still, panting heavily. I knew immediately that something was seriously wrong. I contacted the vet and made an emergency trip to the clinic. She confirmed that Joey's condition was grave. He had internal bleeding in his abdominal cavity, and the doctor guessed it was probably a tumor (what we had feared when he was seen 6 months before) that had ruptured. The only way to find out for sure was exploratory surgery, which he might not even survive at age 13, and even then there was no guarantee that whatever was wrong was going to be treatable. I thought back to the weeks of misery we had endured during his last fight for life, and I made the extremely difficult decision that Joey had been through enough. At 1:30 am on November 18, 2006, surrounded by those who loved him, Joey crossed over the Rainbow Bridge... And so ends the story of a chubby Beagle who touched the hearts of so many people and helped save the lives of many other shelter dogs. We love you, Joey.
The Groups I'm In: Justice For Saxony!, Ban Stupid People, Beagle Buddies, Second Chance Beagles
I've Been On Dogster Since:
See Henry's page: http://www.dogster.com/dogs/792104
Henry was pulled from a pound in northeastern Ohio, where his time was running out quickly. He is the first dog in the rescue program at Joey's Home. At his firt vet check-up, Henry tested positive for heartworm.
DONATIONS NEEDED!:
Since Henry's bloodwork looked good, we're planning to proceed with heartworm treatment. When that has been successfully completed, we'll have him neutered and have the cysts removed from his eyelid at the same time. Our vet is giving us a good price for heartworm treatment, and we're trying to raise as much in donations to help pay for it as we can.
Our goal is $150.
IF YOU CAN HELP WITH A DONATION, please send a check or money order made payable to The Cross Vet Clinic. Please mail them to
Joey's Home Senior Dog Rescue
3015 Dimmick Ave.
Terre Haute, IN 47802.
ANY AMOUNT WILL HELP, even just a few dollars! If we happen to raise more than $150, the money will stay in the Joey's Home account at the vet to help assist with costs for our next senior rescue dog.
Joey's Home Senior Dog Rescue is a small, independent rescue dedicated to the rescue and placement of senior dogs. All efforts are made to adopt our seniors into loving, responsible homes if possible, or to effect a transfer to another rescue organization. If our dogs are unable to be placed, they will live out the rest of their retirement in a foster home, receiving any hospice care required. We believe no senior should end his/her life alone in an animal shelter or pound.
We are a very small outfit right now. As it stands at this moment, we have only one foster home (me) and one dog in the program (Henry). Funds are limited, and needs are endless. There are hundreds of senior dogs out there desperately in need of medical care and a safe place to call home.
Joey’s Home is in need of monetary donations to help with the cost of veterinary care, as well as foster home for our seniors to be safe in. If you are interested in either, please contact me (Andrea) at joeys.home@yahoo.com. Thank you!!!
I have been interested in the possibility of starting a senior dog rescue/sanctuary for nearly a decade. My experiences with Joey (who touched my heart like no other dog has) have really solidified my desire to do more to help other senior dogs whose owners are no longer able to, or no longer want to, care for them. It’s bad enough that so many perfectly healthy young and adult dogs and cats are euthanized in shelters and pounds across the nation, but the thought of all those oldsters out there ending up in shelters just kills me.
For most of them, their only fault is aging. We all know what aging is like: the sight and hearing tend to go, lumps and bumps appear, the old bladder isn’t what it used to be; organs aren’t functioning quite up to par, one day it’s not as easy to get up the stairs… This is the time in their lives that our dogs and cats need us more than ever, not to be dumped in a shelter and forgotten about, scared, confused, and alone.
Seniors make such wonderful companions, too, and most that end up in shelters never again get the opportunity to prove themselves to a family. Well, I’ve had enough! I recently decided that now is the time to do whatever I can to assist them, and I’m doing it in honor of my Joey. Ladies and Gentlemen, Joey’s Home Senior Dog Rescue is born!
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