Good Karma Pet Rescue bio picture

  • Welcome to Good Karma Pet Rescue!

    Good Karma Pet Rescue is a network of foster homes in South Florida dedicated to providing dogs and cats in need with the love and care they need and deserve. We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

    GK was started in early 2011 by Stacey Tollackson Chen, who decided that she could best provide for her foster animals by starting a rescue that aims for high quality care rather than high volume. We intend to stay as small as we need to be to ensure that every one of our foster animals is treated with the same care and respect we show our own furry family.

    GK is based in Fort Lauderdale and is supported by wonderful, dedicated foster parents throughout the South Florida area. If you are interested in helping to save lives through volunteering, fostering, or adopting, please get in touch with us!

05-14-2012

The Home Depot Garden Center kittens!

We got an email a few weeks ago from someone who was taking care of some kitties at a Home Depot garden center in Deerfield Beach. Although the feral mama was doing alright there, of course no one wanted to see five kittens growing up on the street if they could be rescued. Here is one of the pictures we received of the kittens in a flower pot.

We made room, and one night two lovely ladies named Bridgitte and Karen worked to trap the kittens for us.

Here are the kittens just a day off the street. Now in mid-May they are about 7 weeks old and we are looking for forever homes for them. South Florida folks can apply at http://adoptacat.goodkarmapetrescue.org.

We are also looking for sponsors for each of these kittens. If you would like to sponsor one of the kittens to help out with supplies and vet care, we ask for just a $25 donation. The kitten will then be “your” special kitten, and you will get a photo of the kitten with a thank-you card in the mail. Please click here to sponsor a kitten, and let us know in the comments which kitten you want to sponsor! http://www.facebook.com/GKPetRescue/app_4949752878.

Here is Jacinta, a gorgeous Russian blue mix who is the most outgoing of the bunch.

Here is Jasmine! She’s a super cute grey & white kitten.:)

This is Dahlia, a sweet black kitten who is the tiny girl of the litter.

This is Lenox, who looks just like Jacinta.

And here is the last little guy, named Clove. He’s a black & white kitten and one most upset with me for confusing him with this whole shelter & food thing.:D

Thankfully our friends at Lady Luck Animal Rescue helped to get the mama fixed just a couple of days after the kittens were trapped, so now she’s going to be much better off — no more babies for her, and she can use all her time & efforts to keep herself healthy instead of worrying about kittens.  Follow us on Facebook to watch their happy endings find them! http://www.facebook.com/GKPetRescue:)

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01-28-2012

Saved from the streets of Miami – Marty & King

One of our lovely volunteers, Katie, called to say she had seen two cute little dogs on the street and at least one of them seemed to be in very bad shape. Of course we said yes we’d help if she could get them, so before and after going to work as an attorney she would go by their neighborhood wit treats. She said there was a little white one and then a darker one. The darker one loved her off the bat but the white one was very scared and would stand back and bark. She did not want to take one without the other since they only had one another, so she patiently went by every couple of days to try to make friends. One day some people from the neighborhood saw her and came and told her the dogs’ owner had gone to rehab and just left the dogs to live on the street. It would appear the white one was finding food or being fed, but the dark one was not so lucky. Thankfully it was around this time that the white one started to come around to Katie so that day she was able to nab them.

Here is the darker one, who is now known as King:

He was missing a lot of fur and was emaciated. The vet said he should weigh at least 30 lbs and he weighed 18. :/ King was anemic, dehydrated, had swollen intestines… He was in such sorry shape that the vet said the skin was the least of his concerns.

Here is the white one (he was grey!), now known as Marty:

As hesitant as Marty was to make friends with Katie, once she had the leash on him and got him into the car he turned out to be a lovebug. This is an hour of so after Marty got off the street:

Here is King.. Sorry for the bad pic! But it shows that he has a little spaniel face. We’re thinking he’s a cocker and is going to be a gorgeous boy when he fills out and gets fur!:)

They spent their first night in Katie’s bathroom and seemed so happy to be warm and indoors.. This is when it was in the 50s at night… not as bad as some places in the country, but poor King had no fur.. poor guy was probably freezing. They both had lots of ticks and fleas too.:(

King stayed with Katie since he is going to need a longer time to be ready to be adopted. Every picture she sends, he’s wearing something cozy to keep him warm until his fur grows in- it’s so cute. Katie said that even after the fur comes in, she’ll keep putting little sweaters and shirts on him since he really seems to like it. He runs right over and puts his head up when he sees she has something for him to wear!:)

After a few baths, Marty went on to another foster home where he settled right in with the crew of cats & dogs. Look how cute and WHITE he is!:)

Here is Marty when he went to get neutered at Stray Aid (http://www.strayaid.org) which we could not recommend more. The folks at Stray Aid immediately started calling him Brian (Family Guy anyone?) and could not have loved him more. Diane, here in the photo, Stray Aid’s founder, actually offered to foster him until he finds his forever home, so that’s where he is now.:)Marty tested positive for two tick-borne diseases but is getting the care he needs and could not be happier. Marty/Brian is described as the sweetest little dog.. loves his people, loves his dogs.. Who could believe that just weeks ago he was fending for himself on the street?

King is recovering with Katie’s help and the excellent care of Dr. Hynes at DPC Veterinary in Hollywood. He has put on almost 6 lbs already and his condition is starting to improve. Katie describes King as the easiest, best dog. He is so content to be inside, snuggling on comfortable beds and furniture. He never has accidents and never creates mischief when she’s gone… He is just a content little guy and so sweet. He goes back to see the vet next week and we’re hoping for a good update so we can start looking for a forever home for him. Katie would keep him if he were not such a perfect dog.. yes, you read that right! She said he’s just such a sweet, easy dog that he’ll get scooped up in no time.. she will reserve her dog space for the harder dogs… for the dogs that come off the street with anemia and no fur… yes, she’s a selfless girl!

Another of King… ooh, he’s going to be one handsome dog!

We will get updated pix of King soon and hoping to share good news about Marty/Brian soon too. Please keep King in mind for anyone looking for a sweet little dog- and cat-friendly dog who will be forever grateful for the good life he has come into.

And if this story touched you, please consider becoming a foster home.. For Good Karma or a rescue closer to your home. The only way these happy endings come about is with the help of caring folks like Katie who open their home and hearts to these unfortunate dogs and cats. Katie has something to be very proud of… without her going to the trouble it took to befriend, capture, and help these dogs, they would still be suffering on the street or worse. Live long & foster!:)

UPDATE 2/6:

King is looking so much better! The fur has a ways to go and we are still trying to pin down why King won’t gain more weight (he’s gained about 5 lbs) but he is looking and feeling so much better. His foster mom can’t say enough good things about him. He seems very, very grateful to be in a warm, loving environment and is laid-back and sweet.:)

Marty, now Brian, has been adopted! His foster mom decided she could not part with him and now he’s part of her family. See how well he fits right in?

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10-12-2011

Matty cat!

Got an email in mid-September looking for placement for a kitten found on the streets. This was the description: “He is super friendly.  He follows my brother around.  At first he walked like a drunk, but he’s walking better now.  I imagine it’s just from being malnourished.  My brother is working in an office building, and the kitten follows him, and when he sits at his desk, the kitten sits on his feet.  He’s super alert too.  My brother, Brian, wants to wash the poor little thing’s face, but he’s allergic, so he’s trying not to handle him too much.  The little thing has latched onto him though, allergic or not.”

We had a foster home with a spot open, so we said why not? The foster mom called right away saying something was definitely wrong with him so she brought him to me the next morning to take to the vet. When I met him I was quite sad. The poor guy couldn’t walk.. when he tried he would flop around a lot on his wrists. He was skinny. Stinky. But OH SO SWEET. Purr, purrrr, purrrrrrrr.

The vet said the kitten likely had vestibular disease and was most likely blind as well. Vestibular disease in adults is something they often recover from in a few weeks. In kittens, it is often caused by a virus contracted while in the womb and the chance of recovery is not good. His bladder was full enough that he didn’t appear to be urinating on his own. She said euthanasia is not a bad option. When I asked if I could take him home, she said that recovery was unlikely but that, “Miracles do happen, if you have the patience and time to help him.”

Matty at the vet:

I figured that he had made it as far as he did (3 mos or so old even though he was grossly underweight), and I did in fact have some time and patience on my hands, so why not take him home and see how he does? After all, the poor guy was super sweet and seemed happy enough judging by the purring. They taught me how to express the kitten’s bladder and he came home. I got the impression he was probably doing worse when he came to me than he had been earlier because at first he wasn’t really eating or going potty or able to walk at all even though I had been told he walked when he was first found. He mostly just flopped around. It was really sad. Some days he would eat, other days I fed him with a syringe and did fluids for a few days too. Watching him eat when he started eating on his own was almost more sad – he just flung his face in the food and then jerked back with a mouthful, getting it all over him and everywhere around him. Every day I had to feel bad when I helped him go pee because he really didn’t want to. :/

Then one day he went pee on his potty pad, so I gave him a low-lipped litterbox and.. he used it! He pooped in it too.

I would take him out to the driveway to practice his walking:

After a bunch of flopping, how amazing is it to see him running around like that? This was a very happy day.:)

So then he moved to a big bathroom where he continued to do well. And he is so darn cute. He may not be able to see, but he can hear – when you walk in and say his name he comes running for you, and oh my does he have a cute little run!

Tonight he went to a foster home that is keeping him at least for the weekend. She is the one that first met him and was so happy to see how much weight he’s put on and how much better he’s doing.:)She is going to be giving him lots of love and attention this weekend, so we couldn’t be happier for Matty who will be soaking it all up! Thank you for being a great foster mom, Cory.:)

Matty outside his new foster home exploring:

Showing off mad walking skilz:

He doesn’t “get” all toys but he does like toys that sound and feel interesting. Even a fern is a fun toy for Matty when you tickle his nose with it:

So, little Matty has come a long way. He is still quite clumsy, especially on slippery floors. He makes a mess when he eats, scattering the food. When he hops out of the litterbox, sometimes litter falls out with him. He can’t see, so he isn’t keen on big dogs sniffing him too much or too roughly. But man, this Matty kitty is one of the sweetest I have ever met. He purrs like an engine when you hold him. He likes to snuggle with people in bed. When you enter the room and he hears your steps or your voice, he runs towards you because he loves you. My husband, who originally said Matty should be euthanized when he saw how helpess he was, is now very glad that we chose to give him a chance — because he deserves it.

Now all Matty needs to complete this miracle is a forever home. Matty is “special needs” but not very much so. You have to have patience to show him the ropes at your house. If you have other pets you have to have the patience to introduce them slowly so Matty knows to not be afraid of the other animal he can smell and hear. You have to not mind spills by the food dish. Matty could probably use some help cleaning himself up after he eats wet food — a washcloth will do wonders. But that’s about it. Someone who can put up with these minor “special needs” is going to be rewarded by getting to share life with one of the sweetest little kitties out there.

Please share Matty with everyone so we can find him a forever home.:)

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09-30-2011

Snow White’s Seven Dwarfs

We got an email the other day from a guy whose cat, Snow White, had a litter of kittens. He was not equipped to take care of seven extra cats, and we had a foster home open, so we took them in. Mama Snow White is staying with her owner and we are paying to have her spayed. As cute as her babies are, we don’t want any cat having more of them!

I went over to the foster home tonight to meet them and give them their first vaccines, and I couldn’t help but stay to play for a while. So cute, these guys. I narrowed down the LOTS of pictures I took and here are the cutest…

There are 2 white boys, 2 white girls, 1 tabby boy, 1 tabby girl, and 1 orange boy. They all have Disney names: Nala, Simba, Wendy, Timon, Goofy, Ariel, & Meeko:)

Simba:

This one is Goofy, maybe you can tell why:

After these two I can’t tell any of the rest apart!

Super-duper overwhelming kitten cuteness!

I loved the background lamp:)

These cuties are all up for adoption in about two weeks!:)

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09-01-2011

Katie girl

So I had been suckered (by myself!) into taking some cutie dogs from South Carolina. The how had yet to be figured out, but I was committed. Then I got an email that this dog was at the same shelter the dogs I was taking had come from. They only hold them for about four days there, then the dogs are killed. :/ This is the email I saw:

My heart snapped in two when I read her story, so I put her up on Facebook just in case someone in South Florida saw her and was able to help. And what do you know, a potential foster and a potential adopter stepped forward, as did another rescue that specializes in chihuahuas so she had a backup plan.

I flew yesterday to South Carolina and rented a car to drive the three dogs home. The other dogs are there own story, but here is Katie’s.

Katie came into the shelter on August 24, in labor. She gave birth to one puppy, who was dead. Five days later she would be killed unless someone came forward for her. So we did. A rescue in South Carolina had a temporary foster mom, Deana, pick her up for us, and then I picked her up yesterday from Deana at her office. I guess after reading her story and seeing her sad picture, I thought she’d be a frail little girl and have to be carried. But nope! She pranced along side Deana right down the steps to come see me. She was very scared of me at first and wouldn’t let me pet her, but when Deana handed her over to me she took to me right away.

Deana was great to her and gave her a bath and something to take care of her fleas. Here she is post-bath:

I had been told she had a hot spot by the people who saw her, but I was not prepared for what she in fact looked like.

She rode on my lap (on a towel) to the pet store where we bought her a new carrier and pad to get comfy for the ride. While I was driving I kept looking at her and just feeling horrible that someone would let her get in such a condition. Pregnant, giving birth at a shelter, her puppy dead from what I’m sure was horrible care while she was pregnant, THIS.

Yet despite the neglect she has suffered, Katie loves people. She cried when I put her in her crate; she wanted to be on my lap. She is so sweet it breaks your heart. Here she is looking up lovingly at Deana.

I got home with her early this morning and by this afternoon she was at the vet. Our vet is very tender-hearted when it comes to the animals and I could tell that her condition bothered him. He would not even guess at her age because of her condition. Over 5 years, but that’s as much as he could commit to in her neglected state.

It turns out the skin condition is just flea dermatitis – something like I’ve never seen. The vet said she must have had a horrible case of fleas, and for a very long time. She just scratched and scratched until her skin looked like this and got infected.

She is anemic from parasites. She has whipworms. She is severely emaciated. One eye is larger than the other, probably from a birth defect. She recently gave birth and her body is still recovering from that. We did bloodwork and the results should be back within the next couple of days. Hoping and praying that she is not heartworm positive on top of everything else.

She was shivering on her towel on the floor of the vet’s office (cold or fear, I don’t know) so I put her on my  lap and she snuggled right in for a nap:

Katie is now in her temporary foster home, and will go to another on Sunday where her foster mom has committed to “fattening her up” with lots of good food.  She’s on anti-parasitic drugs and antibiotics while we wait for the results of her bloodwork. The vet wants her to be spayed as soon as she is strong enough for the surgery, so we are working on that and hoping she is well enough in a few weeks for surgery.

We are hoping Katie is a match with the lady who came forward wanting to adopt her, but if not we will keep her in a good foster home until she finds a wonderful home where she will never suffer from fleas, parasites, and hunger again. We hope to share happy-Katie pictures very soon.

Obviously Katie’s care has been expensive — well over $300 so far, not including transport — and we are not done yet with her care, nor has she been spayed. If you would like to contribute to Katie’s care, please visit her Chip-In page:  http://goodkarmapetrescue.chipin.com/katie-the-sad-sad-chihuahua-in-south-carolina. You can also mail donations to: PO Box 480273, Fort Lauderdale, 33348.

Please keep Katie in your thoughts!

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