Sweet Sheena (Oldies Club Sponsor Dog)

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8 February 2015 ~ We are very sad to have to update this page with the news that darling Sheena has passed away :-(. We are very glad we were able to take Sheena into Oldies Club care and ensure she received all the love and care she needed for the rest of her life. Our thoughts are with her wonderful forever foster Mum, who is missing her very much. Sleep well, beautiful Sheena.

Sheena is a beautiful 14 year old German Shepherd Dog (GSD) cross girl, who arrived in Oldies Club foster care in July 2014. Isn’t she a darling? Due to various health concerns, Sheena has become a sponsor dog – please scroll to the bottom of this post to find out how to sponsor Sheena or one of our other lovely oldies :-)

Sheena’s foster Mum says she seemed to settle straight away. Sheena was rather dirty on arrival and missing a lot of hair on her back end, but her foster Mum didn’t want to unnerve her on her first day. However when she turned the shower on the next morning and opened the shower door, she realised Sheena had come in behind her! Sheena stood under the shower and looked as if to say, ‘That feels lovely.’ So the dog shampoo was quickly grabbed and Sheena came out feeling much cleaner. The water that came away was filthy. Sheena must have been feeling wonderful after her shower.

After two nights, Sheena decided her foster Mum wasn’t going anywhere and so laid down on her nice comfy bed next to her foster Mum’s bed. She has slept there ever since, unless she is poorly when she will get onto the main bed as if to say she’s not feeling well.

Sheena’s leg unfortunately became swollen on her third day in foster care and she was struggling to walk. She had an appointment with the vet, who was worried about her skin and her leg. Sadly it turned out to be a large tumour requiring a long operation. She was such a good girl after the op and the vet was hopeful, but not certain, that the problem had been dealt with. Sheena recovered well and was ready for her usual walks after about 7 to 10 days.

Sheena is a gentle soul who loves children. In fact she loves people full stop and gladly greets everyone while out walking. She loves to roll on the floor when she gets up in the morning and last thing at night, before going to bed. She loves to lie in the sunshine on a nice day and would stay there all day, popping in and out to make sure she’s not missing out on something or someone! She loves to snuggle up to her foster Mum, who says she keeps her nice and warm.

Thankfully Sheena’s leg healed wonderfully and her hair started to grown back with the help of the medication she was being given. She then had problems with one of her eyes, which the vet feels is the beginning of Pannus, a problem in GSDs. Her eyes have a glaze over them, but her sight isn’t troubling her at all. She was given steroids for a while, but they made no difference.

On top of these health worries, poor Sheena then started being sick, having a really bad tummy and not wanting to eat, which was totally out of character for  her. She had to visit the vet again – she is so good and they all love her there and come out to greet her. She had lost a considerable amount of weight in a week and the vet was worried she had pancreatitis, which is not nice. She really was a poorly girl :-( She was admitted and spent a day at the vets on fluids, where they took bloods and did scans.

There was good news, her pancreas was good and all looked okay, but she still had a really bad tummy and was diagnosed with severe gastroenteritis. Sheena’s diet had to be changed and she is now on a special food which has so far done her the world of good.

Sheena, not being spoilt in the slightest!

Sheena had not shown any interest in toys until recently, when she started to pick up a couple of the toys her foster Mum had bought for her when she arrived. She doesn’t do much with them, but she does pick them up and carry them to where she is relaxing, wherever in the house that might be. One day she even brought a toy to a child was visiting.

According to her foster Mum, Sheena is a happy soul who is in her twilight years and is just happy to eat, go for short walks and snuggle where she is warm. She has been the perfect guest, even when poorly. She greets everyone with a tail wag and likes to stop for a fuss while out on walks. She recently met a couple of little dogs while out on a walk and was quite happy with a little sniff now and again and to walk along next to them.

Now that Sheena is a sponsor dog, she will remain in her wonderful foster home for the rest of her life, with Oldies Club continuing to cover all of her vet bills. If you would love to offer a home to an oldie but your circumstances aren’t suitable, perhaps you would be kind enough to sponsor Sheena or one of the other special oldies we are caring for in our sponsor dog scheme.
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