Maxi!
Dear Maxi Fan
Club: It is with great joy that we share Maxi's fairyTAIL happy new beginning with all of you! On a picture perfect blue sky
Tuesday, July 14, 2009, we took a trip out to visit Maxi at his foster home on the lake in Burlington. He's all better now,
thanks to YOU! Your incredible support made it possible for us to cover the costs of his two TPLO surgeries to his hind legs.
You should see him now! He floats like a butterfly around his phenomenal 3/4 acre backyard overlooking the lake! You know
what else is phenomenal? Maxi's foster parents! Until we had the funding collected, they covered his second surgery, together
with post-op therapy at a local rehab facility for dogs! They kinda like Maxi. In fact, they kinda LOVE Maxi. Our little visit
to Maxi's foster home on July 14th was an extra special one. It was his ADOPTION DAY! His foster parents are now his perma-parents!
Congratulations to Bob & Karen! IT'S A BOY! And congratulations to his doggy siblings, Jewel & Barney (also former
BOB beagles)! You've gained a brother!!! How do we feel? We're OVER THE MOON!!!
Maxi
wasn't quite ready to attend our April Howlers meetup on Saturday, April 4th at Pawsway but he should be ready and able to
attend the next one!
Massive thanks goes out to his dedicated foster family, Karen & Bob and
their beagle babies, Jewel & Barney, for the incredible care they're providing Max following his two surgeries. They've
gone above and beyond the call of duty for dear Max. He's the kind of dog you'd want to go above and beyond for, of course,
but it still brings tears to our eyes. They insisted on taking him to water therapy rehab to help him even further post-op
and the results have been dramatic!!!
Our thanks also goes out to everyone who made a donation
to contribute to the expense of Maxi's surgeries. We're still working on paying off this big debt. If you haven't made a donation,
but would like to help, we'd be forever grateful to you. Maxi has his own on-line giving page which you can access through
the link provided on our Home Page. Every dollar makes a difference so please consider adding a dollar or two for Max.
2nd
Post Surgery Pupdate, December 30, 2008:
Maxi went in for his 2nd cruciate ligament surgery on
December 29th and now the necessary surgeries are behind him! By spring, he'll be a brand new beagle boy and will finally
be able to run and frolick through the tulips like in his dreams! Our brave little PATIENT patient sends his love and thanks
for your support while nestled on his recuperating blankie but it won't be long before that blankie is transformed into a
superdog cape!!! Don't you know, Maxi dreams BIG and so do we!!!
Post-Surgery Pupdate, October 3,
2008! This special note from Maxi's wonderful foster mommy is for all of you out there! Thank you for your support
and well wishes for our Maxwell Smart! He thanks you most of all!!!
To All of Maxi's Friends:
Can you believe it’s exactly 4 weeks since Maxie’s knee surgery!? We’re happy to report he’s
improving every day! He’s such a sweet boy. He’s been an absolute delight to have with the pack (Barney &
Jewel).
The medical team is thrilled with his can-do spirit (weight bearing from day 1)!! The objective now is
to keep strengthening the leg muscles through slow walks and water therapy (begun week 3). In time, the knee should function
normally or near-normal (8-16 weeks).
To spare Max a long drive into Toronto for hydrotherapy, the doctor condoned
shore walking (no swimming), as long as the footing was solid. Beachway Park in Burlington, a long, sandy stretch fit the
bill perfectly. It has a tidal pool we call the ‘therapy pool.’
We should mention it really is a ‘no
dogs’ beach for anyone who might be interested. It is bylaw controlled although there are lots of people and dogs on
the beach. We go early, clean-up and, of course, Max is on leash.
Max has also going for a daily slow walk with
Barney & Jewel which he loves. At first, he was allowed half a block. Now he’s up to three before we turn around.
Apparently, more is better doesn’t work here. The key is slow and controlled. So the biggest challenge is keeping Max
contained.
You can tell he’s feeling better and wants to run with the pack. But he’s got to wait while
the bones heal (8 weeks).
We’re also happy to report he’s down to 45 pounds! The pack has been instrumental
here! When your food is served—even yucky lo-calorie stuff—you better eat it or somebody else will!!
Bye
for now, K&B (Maxi's Foster Parents)
URGENT UPDATE AS OF JULY 26, 2008:
Max has been a part of the BOB Family for a while. He's what you'd call a Long-termer. That's because when Maxi
arrived, he was horribly overweight. We knew it would take at least a year to get enough weight off to neuter him. We were
fortunate to find a foster family prepared for the challenge.
The trouble is, it's been well over a year and Maxi
still hasn't lost the pounds. Extensive testing ruled out any medical condition. But as time went on, Maxi started limping
more than usual. At first, the limping was attributed to the weight exerting pressure on his back end. Now we know it's something
else. Something we can fix...but not without your help.
Maxi requires cruciate ligament surgery for one of his
hind legs. The other is looking okay, for now. But if we don't get the surgery done soon, we risk the other leg giving out
too. There are a few options on surgery - with the cost ranging from $1,000 to $3,500. Such an expense will wipe us out so
we're embarking on a special on-line fundraiser for Max as of now. (Please see link below to make an on-line donation towards
Maxi's surgery).
There's something just as important to us that we need from you. We need to entrust someone
with Maxi's post-op care. Regardless of the surgery chosen, Maxi will need strict cage rest for 6-8 weeks. Unfortunately,
our foster family is not able to fulfil this need with recent family emergencies of their own. So we're sending our plea out
to all of you in our search for a temporary foster home for Max.
Here's exactly what we're looking for: A quiet
home with access to a fenced yard, little to no stairs (or stairs blocked off); a caring foster parent with the patience of
Job; someone who will abide by the post-op care rules; someone who can easily set up a special spot for Maxi's crate near
the back door to the yard; someone who can get him out for tinkles regularly, lift him when necessary, spend quality time
with him to chase the beagle blues away as he's rehabing, and watch for any signs of trouble as he heals.
As you
can see from one of his precious pics above, Maxi loves kitty cats! He also loves other dogs but it's best that he not get
too excited while recuperating from surgery so the ideal foster home wouldn't have any other dogs to hinder his progress unless
that other dog is senior with no interest in partying with our pupster. Maxi, by the way, is still a spring chicken at approximately
4-5 years old. That's why this surgery is so important to us too. He deserves many more happy years ahead. He deserves to
be a real beagle again. And if you knew Maxi like we knew Maxi, you'd know that this boy was meant to be happy. He's a clown
at heart. Our little BOB clown.
Could you help us to do the max for Max?
Call or Email Us TODAY!!! And
please, if you're not able to foster our little beagle clown after his operation, consider a donation towards this expensive
surgery. It will mean his happiness and our ability to continue to save other beagles just like Max. THANK YOU.
Read
Maxie's story below!
HOME SWEET FOSTER HOME!!!
We're tail-waggingly tickled pink to announce
that we found Maxi-Millionaire a howlingly happy place to hang his leash! Our thanks go out to his new foster family and to
Ritchie's foster parents for recommending them to us! Maxie has won the jackpot!!!
Maxie will be in his foster
home for several months. He is grossly overweight and will need much time to shed these dangerous pounds. Read about his story
below:
What happened to Maxie is heartbreaking. Only 2 1/2 years old and, yet, he weighs over 60 lbs. And discarded
by his owner at a local animal shelter.
Maxie was originally bought from a PJ's Pet store when he was just a little
puppy. No ounce of unwanted fat on him back then. 18 months ago, he was sold through the paper to an elderly man. In the last
2 1/2 years of his life, Maxie has grown into this dangerously obese and very sad dog. We could see it in his eyes when we
went to visit him at the shelter on June 13th 2006. Just moving is difficult for Maxie.
The caring staff at the
Scarborough pound (Toronto Animal Services - East Region) contacted BOB in the hopes that we could take him in. Ever since
he was surrendered by his elderly owner in early June, he's been a nervous, anxious wreck. He's had such bad diarrhea that
his backside is literally raw, and he's barely eating the food provided. You can see the confusion in his eyes.
To
ensure Maxie was not suffering from a medical issue, the staff ran bloodwork to check his thyroid. All came back fine. So,
they're sadly chalking up his obesity to poor diet , overfeeding and little to no exercise. At his age, it's positively sickening
to see.
But the folks here at Big On Beagles can see beyond all the fat. Instead, we see a wonderful little fellow
with lots of love to give and be given! Thanks to our beagle-lovin' friends, we found him the foster home he so desperately
needed.
Maxie is not neutered and, only until he loses the weight, will we consider it safe to have him undergo
the surgery. With each day that passes and each pound that's shed, we will begin to see the REAL Maxie come shining through!
It will be a truly rewarding experience to see those sad eyes begin to sparkle, that tail start to wag, and those legs lift
him off the ground and into the air with every leap he takes on his walks and in his paradise of a backyard!
Our
tremendous thanks go out to his new foster family for making Maxie's dreams finally come true!
