KS Danes

Rocky Mountain Great Dane Rescue, Inc.

Faith

This is the story of a very special Dane named Faith. Her life, prior to coming into rescue, was one of heart-wrenching neglect and abuse.

Her rescue story, and that of the rest of her family, began when a very nice Animal Control Officer named Gina in Kansas was asked to respond to an address by police officers. It seemed the owners of two adult great danes were going to jail and they needed the dogs removed. Gina removed the parents, Rock and Roll, but was unaware of dogs inside the property. She was not allowed to enter the property and, when asked if there were anymore dogs residing in the home, she was told no.

Gina then received a call from a caring neighbor the following day saying there was a litter of puppies inside the house. She once again responded immediately and saw the puppies inside when she looked through the window. She saw one in severe distress. She climbed through he window to retrieve the one that needed immediate veterinarian attention.

While Gina was standing in the room, the male puppies whimpered and ran away. She picked up the injured one and lovingly held her close to her chest and told her that everything was going to be okay. The male pups came out of hiding and began crying and jumping up on her legs as if to say "What about us?". She gave each one some love and promised to come back for them.

Gina left with the injured puppy and drove straight to the vet. While driving, she had the little one on her lap where she continued to whimper and try to lick Gina's hand. She told her to hang in there and have faith that God was going to take care of her. She started calling her Faith at that moment.

Gina kept her promise to Faith's brothers and returned with a warrant to remove them and get them to a vet as well. She contacted the local shelter and told them of the situation and asked if they had a rescue group they could call and luckily they called Rocky Mountain Great Dane Rescue.

Gina was there that very happy day when RMGDRI came to get all of the Danes to bring them into rescue. She had to handle the parents, Rock and Roll, because the shelter thought they were mean, but she knew they were just scared and traumatized after all they had been through. She helped us load all the dogs into the car and sent them off with tears in her eyes to Colorado to begin their new life!

These photos are of Faith on 4-15-04, the day she and the rest of her family got to our vet. Faith has a broken Jaw and as you can see, she is severely under-nourished. She went straight to surgery to fix her broken Jaw and her brothers and mom and dad went to get checked out as well.

4-15-04: The males all have the staph infection. Elvis, Simon and Carter. Carter, the only one not named under their parents Rock and Roll theme, but after the vet in KS who did such a wonderful job with them, has a type 3 heart murmur on top of the infection.

Faith - our little girl is on her way into surgery - we will know more later

Rock and Roll (Mom and Dad) will be spayed and neutered tomorrow - they fortunately are in good condition. Poor Rock is starved for attention.

Carter and Faith and all of us here thank Dr. Carter and the devoted vet tech's in KS who have helped them to start to bounce back from the trauma. The tech's held and loved them them both, promising them that they would never experience any more pain and neglect. Elvis and Simon still were a little unsure about what it meant to be around good people.

We will have Photos of the others as soon as they become available.

Update 4-16-04

Faith is doing wonderful. She is up and eating and will be coming home tonight. Her little face is swollen real bad right now.

The boys (Elvis, Simon and Carter) are great. They have to be on antibiotics for 2 weeks for the infections. They are loving all the attention and I think will stop being scared of humans real quick.

Rock and Roll (mom and dad) are currently at the vet getting spayed and neutered. They are heart worm NEG!!! Whoooohoooooo this is always a concern for the dogs that come in.

Update 4-19-04

Faith is doing well. She is eating and starting to play. Elvis and Simon are meeting new homes soon. We are going to find out more from the vet about Carter, who has the Grade 3 heart murmur and find out whether he will be able to carry out a normal life.

Momma - Roll

Daddy - Rock

As you are looking at it it goes Carter, Simon and Elvis

Faith after her surgery.

Faith after her surgery. These were taken Sunday 4-18-04 three days after surgery. Her little face is still all swollen and shaved. She is gaining weight and wanting to play. She will be rechecked by the ortho surgeon today (4-20-04).

Update 4-21-04

Faith was seen by the Ortho surgeon yesterday and he is concerned she has an infection. He was able to look in her mouth slightly and see that it appears the sutures didn't hold. She will be going back under today for a better look and X-rays to see if the bones are healing. Please say a little prayer for her. One thing that is Good News. She is up to 22.5lbs now.

Update 4-22-04
Faith went to the vet for an evaluation yesterday. She was put under and x-rays were done. The plate is in a good location and holding, but on the inside the bone is still loose. Dr. Morgan tried to wire it, but there is too much bone missing. He had to remove a dead tooth. Dr. Morgan put a feeding tube in and a tape muzzle that is supporting her face and keeping her mouth shut. She was not very happy when she woke up. She is currently being tube fed ever 2 hrs, 24 hrs per day. Bless her foster mom and all those vet tech's.

Update 4-23-04

Faith had to have a second surgery. Since the wound had been open for a long time before care was given it got infected. The vets went in on 4-21-04 and discovered the soft tissue in the mouth was not holding the sutures. One of her teeth had died and they removed that. The vet tried wiring but there is not enough bone to hold the wire. His only choice was to clean it really well, suture up the wound, and tape her mouth shut. She has a feeding tube in place and will require 24 hour monitoring. Dr. Morgan expects a full recovery if we can keep her jaw stable long enough to heal. That's why she has to have her mouth taped shut.
Thank you to all that have sent support.

For some good news, Elvis went to his new home where he will be well loved and cared for for the rest of his life.

Update 4-26-04

Faith went in today for a re-check. Her mouth is healing. It is still open slightly and will need flushing every few days. Dr. Morgan removed a small piece of bone that was protruding. It was loose anyway. It appears that her jaw was a lot more stable which is very good news. She will remain on the feeding tube for now. She goes back in Wed for another check up. She is home and mad cause she can't have any food just yet. She is still gaining weight and feeling like the dane puppy she should be feeling like.

Update 4-30-04

Faith went to the vet on Friday 4-30-04 and now weighs 24 lbs. They flushed out her mouth and still got a bone chip. The infection is much better and it is starting to heal properly. She is still being tube fed and being quite the trouper in spite of her situation.

Update 5-4-04
Faith went in to see the vet yesterday. She still has some infection, but seems to be better. She will go in Wed and Fri for flushing. Dr. Morgan wants to x-ray her next week to see how the bones are healing. If all looks good, then she can get the feeding tube out and the muzzle off. She is up to 24.5 lbs.

Update 5-10-04

Faith still has a small pocket of infection. Dr. Morgan is going to x-ray her jaw this Wed. He said if the bone is healed then he will remove the plate. He thinks the plate might be harboring the infection at this point. She is 28lbs now.

Update 5-12-04

Carter no longer has any signs of a heart murmur. Thanks to the wonderful nutrition provided by Eagle Pack dog food, he is healthy again and BIG!!! Carter is up to 43.5lbs

Simon also is very healthy. He is still the shy one but learning that the world is not so bad. Simon is up to a healthy 40.5lbs. Both should be meeting homes soon.

Update 5-17-04
Faith was re-checked today. Dr. Morgan is hoping another 2 weeks and she will be free from tape and e-collars. She still has a small pocket of infection, but it is shrinking every day. Today she ran right into the clinic and straight to the dental room and tried to get on the table. After all she has been through, her attitude about the vet is great. She loves to run and play with anything she can pick up with her little
front teeth. Carter went to his forever home yesterday. Beth and Dave drove all the way from Craig to pick out a puppy. They had a very hard time deciding between Carter and Simon. I think Carter selected them.

Update 5-21-04

Faith went in again today for evaluation. Dr. Morgan feels hopeful that we are at the end of this challenge. He is re-doing x-rays next week and cross our paws everything can be taken off of her. She is feeling great. She is up to 31 lbs. She is a typical little Dane puppy.

Update 6-2-04

Faith is only going in twice per week for her evaluations now. Here are some photos of her during her visit. She is still being fed by a tube, but we all hope it comes out soon! She is up to 35 lbs and just wait till she gets to eat like a real dane!

Rock (Faith's Daddy) went to his forever home this past weekend.

Here I am again.......

Maybe, if I hide behind my ears, they won't know I'm here.....

Getting her mouth flushed. Waking up, and What happened!

Update 6-9-04
Faith got back from the vet 6-04-04 and she is FREE, well sort of. She does not have the feeding tube anymore or the tape muzzle. She does have to wear a basket muzzle for the next month to prevent "puppy" behavior like chewing and the main one, "tug of war". Dr. Morgan took dental x-rays and her adult teeth appear to be completely intact and fine. The bone is almost completely healed. She does have one small weak spot, but he feels that it will continue to fill in in the next week or so. That's why no playing rough for her. He said NO puppy stuff for the next month. I think that will be harder than the feeding tube and all the previous
stuff. Thanks to all for the continuous support through this ordeal. Keep you paws crossed that she continues to heal and moves forward instead of backwards. She can make public appearances now for brief periods. She made a surprise appearance at the People's Fair this past weekend and she will be at Paws in the Park on Saturday June 12.

On another Happy Note - Roll, Faith's mom went to her forever home this past weekend.

Update 6-21-04

Faith continues to improve. We hope to have some more recent photos of her to post soon.

Simon, Faith's brother went to his forever home this past weekend.

Update 7-21-04
After coming home, Faith's foster mom noticed that her drain hole on the side of her face seemed larger. Faith went in today to see Dr. Morgan. It is infected again, UGH!!! He is squeezing her in Friday for surgery.
She will be spayed and have her jaw x-rayed (possibly with contrast). Unfortunately, she will not be able to attend the picnic. He want to do this ASAP. He said we have to find out why that bone won't continue
healing. Also, the teeth problems that we suspected are real now. Since her adult teeth came in she is having problems with them lining up correctly. He is checking with the local dentist to see what our options
are.

Update 7-26-04

The infection was caused by a bone chip which was removed. More info as it becomes available.

Update 8-26-04
Hi, its me, Faith. I have spent the summer growing and playing with my foster brothers and sisters. I sure am happy that my jaw is healed finally. The last surgery in July fixed it. My foster mom says I am Huge. All I know is that since I am Huge, I have to sleep in a crate now instead of between my foster parents. I am a good girl though. I go right in my crate and don't make a sound all night. I love food. Anything they offer. Dr. Morgan says I will need one more surgery. My lower canine tooth is hitting the top of my mouth. Dr. Morgan says he
will try to save my tooth by shaving it down, but I may lose it. The surgery will be coming up in the next month or so. The rescue still needs donations to help pay for it. Thank you to everyone that has sent money and prayers to help me get better.

Update 10-19-04
Faith will be having her last surgery tomorrow (Oct 20). Dr. Morgan will be filing down her two lower canines. These are the two teeth hitting her upper pallet. Hopefully this will fix the problem and she will not
have to have them removed.

Update 12-14-04

Faith is in her forever home with Marcus and Julie. She has 2 sweet little girls to play with as well as other danes and a dalmation. We are all very happy to see Faith find such a wonderful home. She will never have to suffer again!

Thanks to everyone who donated to help us save this sweet dane!

Update 2-1-05

Here is Faith with Dr. Morgan. They both enjoyed wearing their hats. Faith thought she needed help getting a drink from the sink. Dr. Morgan was happy to help her out. She provided pizza and a cake to say Thank You to everyone at East Springs for working so hard to save her life. She also went to Petco to buy a new collar. She had a great 1st birthday.

This page last modified on Feb 14, 2005

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