Jasper

Jasper Adopted April 27, 2007

Jasper has joined his new "pack" family and his mission will be to provide everyone with hours of laughter, joy and pug play - pictured below, Stephanie (holding Jasper)and Joshua holding Jasper new sister Roxy.

Jasper needs a new home - April 1st

We are now reviewing applications for Jasper.
Like any puppy, Jasper is energetic and quite a handful. Since he spent the first 5 months of his life up in a barn, he needs help to be shown how to be a companion dog and to behave himself accordingly. He'll require a lot of attention and training, but he's very willing to learn and is definitely worth the effort.

Jasper's an extremely gentle and sweet-natured pug. He doesn't like to be held, but once he warms up to you, he'll cuddle up beside you and flop on his back for belly rubs and chin scratches. In very little time, Jasper has changed from a shy puppy to a happy and enthusiastic little guy. And having just one eye doesn't inhibit him at all!

Jasper has a vet appointment in two weeks to make sure he's fully healed and to receive his final shots. After that point, we'll be looking to place Jasper in his forever home. Ideally, his adopters will:

1) Have a young dog to keep him company and to teach him the ropes. (He panics when left alone, and having another dog would make the transition much smoother.)
2) Not be away from home most of the day, or work close by so that they can check on him. A dog walker might be a decent substitute for this.
3) Be willing to section off a "puppy safe" part of their home since he does not do well crated for long periods of time.
4) Be very patient and work with him on his marking and chewing issues. A training course might be a good idea since he still has a lot to learn.
5) Be willing to sign a contract agreeing to have him neutered and micro-chipped as soon as enough time has passed since his eye surgery.

"I'm almost read to begin a new life"

Foster Update, March 31st

The good news is that Jasper had the stitches taken out today and is now cone free. It won't be too much longer before he is ready for his forever home. We can already tell he will be much more of a "handful" now. He is certainly more active and "chewy" without the cone.

Jasper's new family will have to be ready for a lot of work. We have made some progress on the house training, but there is still a long way to go. Jasper will be a great dog for the right family; it will just take time and patience.

Thus far it looks like Jasper would be best in a home with another young dog or a person home most of the time. He does not like to be left alone. He is perfectly fine when left alone with our pug, but without her around he gets quite stressed out and panicky. The bad news is that Jasper has round worm. This is not a surprise given where he came from. Both Jasper and Gertie will be treated for worms early next week.

Jasper smiles through life and his cone

Foster Update, March 20th

At first Gertie seemed to think that Jasper was a new plaything brought home solely for her pleasure, but I think the novelty is starting to wear off. The play sessions are now less frequent. After short bursts of puppy exuberance, they’ll suddenly flop and take a long nap.

So far it seems Jasper would probably do best in a home with another young dog. He has quickly bonded with Matt and myself and cries if we leave the room. Being close to Gertie helps calm him down. Plus, his training would take a lot longer without another dog to look up to. The only time he’ll relieve himself outside is after he’s seen Gertie do so; otherwise, he just doesn’t get what we’re after. Since he lived in a barn for the first five months of his life, it’s no wonder he’s confused. However, Jasper is pretty clever and eager to please, so we have faith that he’ll soon make the connection.

We brought Jasper to Forest Hill yesterday. Dr. Klys said that his eye (or, rather, the place where his eye used to be) looks good. He confirmed that the problem was caused by a perforation and not something congenital. The little tyke already seems much stronger. He’s been quickly gobbling down his meals, so he’ll soon have some much-needed fat on his bones.

Overall, Jasper has made a lot of progress, both physically and socially, in just a short span of time.

Vet Update, March 17

Jasper's surgery went well and he is now home. The cost of the medical care was $1,650. He is on anti-biotics and pain medication. Jasper is already changing. He seems much happier and more active, chasing Gertie around with his scary cone head. He is likely pain free for the first time in months. Dr. Klys confirmed that Jasper had lost vision in the eye.

He will be going in next Friday for a check up.

Vet Update, March 16

"Matt took him to Forrest Hill Animal Clinic first thing this morning. As we suspected, his eye has ruptured and needs to be removed. Jasper’s having the surgery this morning, and he’ll have to stay at the clinic until tomorrow. Because Jasper is so underweight, they want to make sure he receives plenty of IV fluids and is closely monitored. Dr. Klys plans to dissect the eye afterward to determine whether the problem was congenital or caused by an untreated injury.

The good thing is that it apparently doesn’t take as long to heal from an eye removal as it does to heal from a corneal ulcer. Jasper will have the stitches and cone for just two weeks. It will take him longer than that to learn some basic commands become more comfortable around people, and gain some much-needed weight".

The result of Jasper's eye that was left untreated

Update, March 16

Born Sept. 29, 2006. He came with some documentation on his medical past.
Had first two sets of shots, but last set is WAY past due so we may have to start over again. Eye was injured Jan. 30/07. They think he poked it with the straw in the barn where he was living. Treated it initially with BNF(?) and Penicillin. Eye looks to be in bad shape as a result of being left untreated. Was going to be euthanized rather than continue to do anything about the eye. >Nice little boy--very playful. If the eye is painful, he shows no signs of it. Doesn't scratch at it or anything.

He is not house trained. He is a little shy of humans at first but gets comforatable when he realizes there is no threat. He and his foster pug sister Gertie immmediately started playing. Even though he had had a long day, he still had energy to romp and chase with her. He is seeing the vet at 9 am today.

Gertie and Jasper became fast friends the first night

Introduction, March 15

This pug puppy came from a puppymill in the Kawartha region. He was driven down from there this morning by a volunteer. He has an untreated eye ucler which we will be looked at immediately by the folks at Forest Hill Animal Clinic. He has just come into our care today so we will have an update on March 16 after the vet has examined him.