Nellie

Nellie Beagle was rescued by BREW, Beagle Rescue, Education & Welfare. I wanted to understand and learn more about how Nellie came to be adopted and what was the process. So, I asked Nellie’s mum some questions.

When you decided to adopt, did you specifically want a beagle or was it more of an accidental acquaintance?

How did we wind up with Beagles? Well, our neighbour had a beagle called Zoe. She walked by our house every day. Zoe was such a sweet dog, always happy to give a lick or a hug.  When we decided to get a dog, my husband Rich said ‘Why don’t we get a beagle?’ Once we decided on the breed, I started doing my research which took around 6 months. I noticed that there were a number of organisations out there who rescued and rehomed beagles. We decided that we would pursue an adoption through BREW – Beagle Rescue, Education and Welfare. We filled out the application, had the home visit and were approved for adoption. The lady that undertook the home visit check actually brought two male beagles with her, they were called Magoo & Finnegan. Whilst looking at the available pups, I noticed Nellie and fell in love. She was just so petite and beautiful and we had to have her. We were approved to adopt her and we travelled to pick her up a few weeks later. Nellie was only in a foster home for a few weeks and I believe that she was used for hunting prior to us having her. She wasn’t potty trained and she wasn’t interested in being with us for the first 6 months.  The things she did like were eating, going for walks and her bed.  Her bed was a favourite from the very first day.  The first 6 months were tough – she was pooping and peeing in the house and hiding the remainder of the time. We tried to crate train her and she would do the most amazing things with the crate – turn it upside down, on its side, move it across the room – just nuts. When that didn’t work, we tried gating her and she ate the gate. We came home one day to find shreds of wood all over the place from her gnawing away, trying to escape. This required a vet visit to make sure she didn’t have any splinters in her mouth. 

Did you ever feel in the first 6 months that it may be a little too much to take on?

I remember telling my husband, Rich, at one point that if she peed in the house one more time I was done. Actually I think after that time she stopped peeing in the house. She also dug up a brand new rug – we put it down, left for a little while, then returned and she had made a giant hole in the rug. It was almost like a cartoon. We are not sure how one little dog ruined a 8 x 10 rug in 3 hours but she did. She was very trying at times but we knew that she was learning how to be a dog and how to live with us. This spurred us on, made us more determined to succeed and give her a life worth living. After 6 months she eventually settled in and became the perfect dog.

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Why the sudden change after 6 months?

Perfect took about 6 months. There were many good things about Nellie from day 1. She liked to sleep and liked her bed so she was never up early or in the middle of the night. She always liked supper and was a good eater. She was always mild mannered and sweet to both humans and pups. She loved to go for a walk. She was a tracker, barking constantly when she smelled a rabbit. She loved her dog walker and couldn’t wait to see her each day. I think it took a village of people to get her to perfect.

Was Nellie called Nellie when you adopted her?

Yes Nellie was Nellie and as it is a cute name we decided to keep it and not subject her to having to learn another name. She was healthy, happy and friends with all of the dogs in the neighbourhood. She also made friends with all of the humans too. Everyone knew and loved Nellie.

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So, was the adoption process easy and how did Nellie arrive at your house via BREW and a foster home?

Yes she was fostered in Ohio. She went from pound to a Brew foster home to us so had quite some upheaval. The process was easy but there were of course some requirements such as initial application, home visit, approval, etc. All hurdles we needed to cross.

Thanks. So it was fairly straightforward. Please continue.

Her grandparents also loved her – one grandma made chicken especially for her and the other made sure she had Christmas presents and brought treats on every visit. Nellie loved going to the dog sitters house and conspiring with her beagles (the dog sitter never had beagles until she met Nellie and she wound up having 4 and being a life long friend). The dog sitter has 5 fenced acres. Nellie would run in the front door, pick up the pack and run out the back door in a matter of a minute. We would try to say good bye and tell her that we would miss her but she was long gone. When we picked her up, her nose was always raw from all of the good sniffs she found. 

After 5 years, we moved to a house that had a fenced yard.  We thought it might be nice to give Nellie a friend, so we adopted Lucy, a senior beagle from BREW.  Nellie was great with Lucy. She welcomed her with open paws. There were no issues at all. Lucy lived with us for about 2 years before she went OTRB.

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Do you think there was a “pack’ mentality between Nellie & Lucy? Maybe luck that they were two gentle like minded beagles?

Maybe luck & pack.. I think so. I also think that Nellie was such a loving dog that she would welcome anyone.

What did you know of Lucy? Can you tell us a little more about her?

We don’t know much, again she was a pound dog we adopted through BREW. She was very sick when we first adopted her, she almost died as she had pancreatitis. She was only with her foster mom for a short time. She was at least 10 when we adopted her. We wanted someone around Nellie’s age at that time. I think Nellie was 8 or 9 when we adopted Lucy.

Thank you. So, Biscuit, Remington & Dawson are the next ones on the radar.

After Lucy passed, we thought it would be a good idea to adopt another senior beagle. We drove to Chicago to pick up Biscuit and put her in the backseat with Nellie and came home. Again, there were no issues. The two of them were like 2 peas in a pod from day one. There was no fighting, just beagle love. Biscuit had been in rescue for almost a year while she worked through heartworm treatment. She was such a happy and pretty pup. A few months after we adopted Biscuit, we learned of a terrible situation where 2 beagles were living outside, not being fed, not receiving vet care and were in danger with the cold weather coming. A friend was able to get the owner to surrender the pups. Our friend asked for our help because she travelled for her job and was not able to take the dogs to care for them. We told her that we would help until we could figure out what to do. Again my husband, Rich, met Remington and Dawson at the vet the first day they arrived. They had been living in their own filth and both were malnourished and sick. I should say that neither had names at this point and they were named at the vet’s office. Dawson had ear infections, intestinal parasites and nasal parasites.  Remington had the same plus a skin issue and heartworm. We got the medication and veterinary care that they needed and then moved them to crates in our laundry room for 90 days. We could not have them with the girls as they could pass on the parasites and infections. After 3 months, we were able to get Dawson neutered and get all of his infections cleared up. Remington went through heartworm treatment and when that was successfully completed, he was neutered. Neither dog was housebroken or had any manners at all. We needed to teach them everything about being a dog.  This was a very difficult time for us. We weren’t prepared to have 4 dogs, 2 of them very sick, but we figured it out. After working through all of the issues with Remy and Dawson, there was no way that we could give them up, so we wound up with 4 dogs.

Did you know of the situation with Remington & Dawson before they arrived at the vets?

We believe the boys were owned by a man who passed away. The dogs were given to his son and we understand that he did not  take care of them. At least this is what we were told at the time. We don’t know if they were sick prior to the dad passing away or not. I have pictures of where they were living which was essentially a fenced in area with a chicken coop type place and weeds everywhere. We are not sure why this situation happened, only that a friend of a friend became aware of the situation and asked the owner to surrender the pups and miraculously he did. The odd thing is that he actually had another dog, I guess his dog, that was well taken care of and living with him.

What did the vet say when your friends had the boys surrendered and then picked up by you?

One friend had the owner surrender them and the other friend picked up the dogs and drove them to the vet. Rich met them at the vet. The vet knew that they were going to be in bad shape but we are not sure the vet knew how bad of shape they were in. The boys were living in their own faeces and Rich said they were really stinky. The vet said she has seen similar cases of neglect in the past and that we probably saved Remington’s life. Clearly much longer in the insanitary conditions and he would have died. Dawson would have too but he was not as sick as Remington. After the vet check the boys went to the dog wash and our friend went through 2 bottles of shampoo trying to get them clean. After the boys initial visit to our friend’s vet, we made an appointment and took them to our vet about a week later just to have them checked out and to get additional medications and make sure that nothing was missed in their initial vet visit. Getting them healthy – especially Remy – was a journey. It took Remington 6 months before he was through heartworm treatment and clear of all issues.

It is heartbreaking to hear stories like this, however it is heartwarming that the boys were saved and are happy. Can I ask about Nellie going OTRB (Over The Rainbow Bridge)?

Life at our house with 4 dogs was going well for a number of months until we took Nellie for her annual physical. They did a urine test and discovered that she had TCC or Transitional Cell Carcinoma.  The outlook was very bleak as most dogs lose their battle within 6 months. TCC is cancer of the urethra and is common in older spayed beagles. Usually what happens is that the urethra gets blocked and the dog cannot urinate, so they need to be put down. We were very fortunate as the foremost vet researcher for TCC was at Purdue University, close to our home. Nellie started treatment there, first in a clinical trial, and then traditional chemo. She continued her fight for almost 3 years. She was going for chemo monthly and taking daily medications.  She eventually decided that she had enough and stopped eating one day.  We took her a few days later to the vet and she went OTRB. It was truly one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. We sent tissue samples to Purdue so they could potentially help another pup and/or stop the disease completely. 

We were overwhelmed by the outpouring of love from the Twitterpack at her passing.  She truly was one in a million.

Again, thank you. It is truly heartbreaking when things like this occur. Can you say, is TCC hereditary, is it common?

We are not sure if it is hereditary but it is very common in older spayed female beagles and also in Schnauzers, I think.

Since Nellie’s passing, Biscuit’s health has continued to decline. We think she is at least 14. She has congestive heart failure and is on a number of medications.  The medications cause issues with the kidneys and we are now dealing with kidney and liver issues with her. She is going to the vet twice a week for fluids to help her kidneys. Remington (9) and Dawson (8) continue to be happy pups.  

Thank you for letting us know so much information about all the dogs you have rescued and loved. Giving a dog a chance of a good life is wonderful and we are truly grateful to you, and of course Rich.

Midwest BREW can be found here. https://gotbeagles.org/