Last year around this time, I found out that my grandmother had non-hodgkin's lymphoma.  She's in remission now, thankfully.  A year later, on my birthday, just a few days ago, I found out that they found a mass in my grandfather's lungs.  He had went to the doctor several times over the last few months for pain and constantly feeling ill, like he had the flu, chills, and fever.  We all have watched him loose weight and he's aged years in a matter of months.  The doctor said he had high blood pressure and bursitis.  The day after Christmas he went to the emergency room.  Now this might not be a big deal to most people but my grandpa doesn't even go to the doctor unless the pain is unbearable, he has to be really sick to go to the emergency room.  They then waited over five hours until they were even taken into an emergency room.  Thankfully, they took my grandfather seriously when he said he was sick.  They did a blood work up and took x-rays.  That's when they found a 3 inch mass in his lungs.  Now no one has said for sure it's cancer but really what else could it be.  Our family has been through so much.  We don't deserve to go through anymore.  My grandparents definitely don't deserve this.  They're good people and they've had more than their fair share.  Yes, I'm thinking it's not fair.  Hell, in my head I'm screaming that it's not fair.  I love my grandparents more than anything.  I don't want to watch him give up.  I don't want to watch him die.  I don't want to go to his funeral.  And I definitely don't want to pretend everything is ok anymore. 

Ellie's home

My little senegal is home.  Her name is Elaina, or Ellie.  She's fairly sweet.  It's hard to tell how sweet she is until she settles in.  Right now she's too nervous to be able to see the true her.  The picture above isn't her but it is a senegal parrot.  Just to give you an idea of what she looks like.  And believe or not, she's not much bigger than a cockatiel. 

We got in 3 ferrets at work.  They're all very cute.  I would never own a ferret because I think they stink but there's a lot of people out there that absolutely love them.  To each his own.  We got in a lab puppy and it was adopted out before the ink was even dry on his incoming papers.  We also took in 2 horses from a lady that saves them and then gives them to adoption agency's to find them a good home.  Horses usually don't stay with us long before they've found a home.  There's two new adorable kittens.  I would definitely bring these two home if I didn't have seven of my own.  They're just too cute.  I hope they find a home together. 

Happy Holidays!!

Well, I've been a little busy lately.  Not with work though.  On the 28th I will be going to pick up my Senegal parrot in Michigan!!!  I can't wait!  She's going to be so spoiled.  My birthday is on the 27th so it's kind of like a birthday present to myself!  Yippy!

I've been sending out my xmas presents and buying the last minute presents as well.  The holidays are always a busy time.  We've been baking goodies to take over to friends houses.  Sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookies, fudge and peanut butter balls.  Our house has smelled quite nicely this last week.  Tomorrow is going to be really busy.  It's Christmas Eve so of course, everyone wants us over.  I have things to do with my mom in the morning, shopping.  Then I have to run to my dad's to exchange gifts with him.  Run back home and have our xmas dinner.  I think we're trying to start a new tradition.  We never really had a tradition to begin with.  We're going to have dinner, ham, potatoes and rolls.  Then I am going to make my family famous milkshakes and we're all going to sit down and watch Rudolf and Frosty the snowman.  We'll see how long it takes before we're all fighting and slamming doors.  Knowing my family, it won't take us long. 

We did the gift exchange at the shelter.  We got in 3 new guinea pigs and tomorrow we're getting a little goat.  Sometime soon we'll be going to pick up a couple of horses as well.  We adopted out a mini horse and a goat last week.  It was sad knowing the horse was going.  He was everyone's little sweetheart. 

I found an ad in the paper for turkey's for sale.  I'd really like to buy two and keep them here at my home but no one likes that idea.  I really just want MY turkey back but that's not going to happen.  I'm determined to someday owning a couple of male turkeys.  They're such nice sweet boys.  I just wish people could see that here.  I miss my turk turk. 

Merry Christmas everyone and Happy Holidays. 

Been a While

Yes, I know, it's been a while since I last typed.  It's been a long and very sad week for us at the rescue.  My favorite turkey died.  It broke my heart.  I never thought I'd love a turkey but this one was my little protector and just a sweet little boy.  He went before his time but not without all the love we could give him.

My very good friend and one of the owner's of the rescue had to go to the hospital.  She was having severe chest pains.  She had an angioplasty and they found a 90% blockage.  They said if she hadn't come into the hospital, she would probably have had a massive heart attack and died.  We were all very worried and upset while she was away.  The day she went into the hospital I babysat our little baby goat, Jonah.  He stayed the night at my house and played with my animals the next day.  He was able to go home that day though, where he knew everything and was comfortable and happy.  Unfortunately, the night before my friend had her angioplasty, Jonah passed away.  He fell and broke his neck, it was just one of those accidents.  It was a very sad day.  He was a sweet and wonderful little goat.  He was ornery as hell at times but you just had to laugh at him.  Our little Jonah will always be missed but he'll be waiting for us all over the bridge.  I love you Jonah, sleep well.

What is Sleep??

Well, I have insomnia, many people are unaware of that but I do and because of that, I've decided to boycott sleep for the next 24 hours.  I'm going to work on no sleep and I'll spend the day with the animals.  I don't see the point in going to sleep and wasting my entire day sleeping.  I haven't been able to fall asleep before 10am in weeks and haven't been waking up before 6am in the same amount of time.  Maybe I'll have stories for you all later about the animals.  At the very least, you can hear about my day, which I'm sure after the first few hours without sleep will turn out to be a very long day.

Watch You Claws

I had the kitten out today that I'm fostering.  She was running around playing by herself, happy as a clam... for a while anyways.  Eventually she started to get bored and climbed up on the recliner behind my head and I figured she wanted to be petted.  Well, I was wrong, VERY wrong.  Within minutes she started chewing on my fingers and then suddenly, she attacked.  And I almost ended up in the hospital from a very tiny little kitten.  She clawed down my face and her nail caught on my lower eyelid... on the inside.  I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw there was no major damage in the mirror!  That kitten has some very short nails now. 

I WILL BE RETURNING TO WORK!!!!  FINALLY!!!!  I am so sick of this sitting around and waiting to feel better!  I can get back to actually having a life.  It's funny, when you're sick that long, you can become everyone's tv guide, because you've be stuck on the couch watching anything and everything that catches your eye.  I'm sure I'll have some cute baby goat stories after Monday for everyone. 

Animal Cruelty Article

This is the article on animal cruelty that I was speaking of earlier.  My greatest thanks goes out to the South Bend Tribune and Stan Maddux for writing and printing this article and hopefully they won't sue me for reprinting it in hopes of getting the word out on animal cruelty and the need to stricter laws in the state of Indiana and all states.  I had to split the article into two parts due to AOL's lack of space for each journal entry.

MICHIGAN CITY -- At times, Don McSpadden's stomach turned from a putrid odor drifting from his neighbor's property.But he never imagined that the smell was from dozens of rotting animal carcasses, some reduced to skeletons."I always thought she had a lot of animals over there. We didn't know about the dead ones," said McSpadden, a resident of Springfield Township.On Sunday, 49 dead cats along with several dead birds and rabbits were removed by LaPorte County authorities from a garage in the 3700 block of West County Road 625 North near Michigan City.All of the carcasses, in various stages of decomposition, were in tiny cages stacked high on top of each other throughout the detached garage also filled with urine, feces, maggots and flies, said LaPorte County Animal Control Director Jane Bernard.Just a few feet away was a ranch-style modular home that contained 29 live animals, mostly beagles, along with a few dead rats.Although well-fed, the surviving animals were living inside cages or locked in rooms with floors soaked in waste, Bernard said.The urine and feces left many of the animals with burns and other skin conditions, Bernard said."There was not a clean spot without stepping into urine or stool. That's the worst I've ever seen," Bernard said.The property owner, Kathy Shotsberger, 45, is now charged with neglect of a vertebrate animal.Her home in a former agricultural area that's now heavily residential was also condemned by the LaPorte County Health Department because of the unsanitary conditions, police said.An elderly woman reportedly lived with Shotsberger, but she has not been charged at this time.

Animal Cruelty Article

Police were first called to the property Friday afternoon by a neighbor who heard yelling from inside the home while looking for a missing dog.Officers detected a foul odor and feces on the front porch and said they heard barking and howling from inside the dwelling. Police left, though, when nobody answered the door.The next day, police were called back by the same person, who feared the missing pet might have wandered onto the property.About 24 hours later, the gruesome discovery was made when Shotsberger was served with a search warrant, said police.The odor was so powerful that authorities inside the home breathed through masks attached to oxygen tanks strapped to their backs.McSpadden, 71, said the smell, more noticeable on hot days, existed for a couple of years.According to McSpadden, he and his neighbors just suspected the smell was from waste not being cleaned up because they couldn't imagine anyone living among dead animals."It just boggles my mind," he said.According to police, Shotsberger described herself as an animal lover.Her only explanation was having a problem that became so out of control "she didn't know how to handle the situation," police said.Bernard said some of the cages belonged to animal control authorities in Jasper County, who gave her dogs and cats under the belief she was finding them new homes. Instead, though, Bernard said it appears she merely stockpiled many of the animals without providing food or water."She was just bringing them into the garage and basically letting them die," Bernard said.Shotsberger is charged in LaPorte Superior Court 4 with seven counts of Class B misdemeanor neglect of a vertebrate animal. Each count is punishable by up to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine, LaPorte County Prosecutor Rob Beckman said.

Whew!

Well, I spent yesterday throwing up allll day long, so I spent the night on the couch so DH could get some sleep and I could be close to the bathroom.  Today, I'm feeling better, just a little dizzy and congested.  I can't wait till this is all over.

We have gotten in 3 donations in the last couple of days!  Woohoo!  That's quite a few for us in such a short time.  Might have a couple of small and furries adopted out soon.  Poor little Jonah, the new little boy goat, none of the mommy goats want him.  He's a house goat for now until he can eat on his own and survive outside.  I really don't think he minds all that much though.  He gets to stay inside where it's warm and he gets spoiled rotten, who would mind that?!  I can't wait for Home For The Holidays!!!!  We'll be able to get our name out there a little bit more than usual!!  My little Bubby is still hanging in there I hear.  He's not perfect and probably not feeling real great but he's still fighting.  I know, most people think, 'Turkey? Supper?'  I think on the other hand that Turkey's are very smart, loyal and extremely sweet animals.  Own a turkey as a pet and you might understand a little bit more.  My foster kitties are very upset with me, they've had no time outside of their cages this past week and no pettings or anything because I've been sick.  Looks like I'm gonna end up giving everyone a big ole treat soon. 

There was a thing on the news tonight about a lady who had done what they called animal neglect.  She took 49 cats from a shelter, under the impression that she would adopt them out to good homes and she just let them starve to death in her garage.  Keep in mind, it wasn't OUR shelter, we would've checked up on our animals personally but this shelter says they were shorthanded and couldn't check up on them.  She also had some beagles and I believe some of them had to be euthanized.  In Indiana for animal cruelty you basically get slapped on the wrist, if it were up to me I'd let HER starve to death and see how she felt about doing it to all 49 of those cats.  Ok, Ok, I'm done now, gotta send the article I was just talking about to my aunt who is also an animal rescuer.

Sick sick sick

Ok, I promise I'm not going to say I think I'm getting over it this time!  I now have a sinus infection!!!  Ugh, will it ever end?  I have a huge adoption event coming up next weekend that I cannot be sick for!  It seems like ever since I've started this journal I haven't had much to tell because I haven't been able to make to the rescue!  AND my humidifier just broke!  For once I actually need the stupid thing and it won't produce any steam, and yes I cleaned it out.

Not much in the way of news right now.  We have a new volunteer.  Sounds nice but we'll see if she actually lasts.  A lot of people want to volunteer but they don't realize how stressful it really is until they start and then they just quit after one day.  Which I guess I can understand, volunteering isn't for everyone but there's other ways of volunteering than actually having to be there and see the animals come and go.  Oh well, I just need to realize that not everyone is like me and was made for animal rescue.  We have actually started turning people down when they ask us if we have room for their pets.  I thought it might never happen but we've gotten just THAT full.  It's crazy how many homeless small and furry's we have right now.  How hard is it to take care of a rabbit or guinea pig???  Some of the small and furry's we got in came to us because the people REALLY wanted the best for their animal but most come to us because the people see a little animal in the pet store and think awww that's so cute I'm gonna take it home but then they decide that taking care of it is too much work.  If it were up to me, all pet stores wouldn't be allowed to sell pets, only food, toys and the things that pets use.  There's enough homeless animals out there right now, we don't need to create more.  And that's my rantings for the day.