On Thursday, March 1, PugHearts was contacted by Homeward Bound to help care for 32 pugs who were rescued from a hoarding situation. 

The story got significant news coverage in the Oklahoma City area.  KOCO news story.  

We were at a fundraising event for PugHearts and CAP that evening and began brainstorming about how best to help.  Keith Hall suggested that he could call local commercial rental companies and see if someone would donate the use of a van to facilitate the trip.    First thing Friday morning he got on the phone and spoke to Ann Rawlinson at PV Rentals who donated the use of a brand new cargo van for the trip.

The cry went out for volunteers to make the trip and help with supplies via Facebook and I soon got my co-pilot:  Becky Roark.  She was selected first from the many who offered to help because she was available first on Friday afternoon to pick up the vehicle and give her drivers license for the paperwork in person.  It may have been poor planning on our part:  the two shortest volunteers to climb in and out of the tallest vehicle either of us had ever driven!

Saturday morning Becky and I loaded up the van in my driveway and headed to Sugarland Pet Hospital to pick up donated crates, harnesses and supplies. By 11 AM we were all smiles and ready to ride!

By 5 PM we made it to Oklahoma!

By 8 we were checked in to the LaQuinta in Norman, OK, and got directions to the puppies’ location from Gail, the director of Homeward Bound.  She was very apologetic about not being able to be there in the morning, since she had an adoption scheduled.  She gave us the sad news that one of the puppies we were scheduled to pick up had just died.  We were so sad, but were ready to hit the road Sunday morning at 8 AM.

We then drove to Dana Scott’s beautiful ranch in Blanchard, OK.

The younger puppies were crated in a beautiful sunroom, while the older ones were just outside in a fenced run where Dana was letting them go potty and enjoy the morning sun.

We had already decided the puppies were all to have candy names.  These are the four older pups (about 20 weeks). 

Top:  Bazooka

Middle:  Godiva and Hershey Kisses

Bottom:  Goober.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The little pups:

Top:  Skittles

Middle:  Reese’s

Bottom:  Baby Ruth

 

 

Then we had to put harnesses on each one, picking the right size from our selection.   Later in the trip we would be glad we had a “handle” for each pup!  Here is Jujube (a shy, scared, young adult) getting pretty in pink:

Dana had to say goodbye to each of the puppies.  Here she is with Goober.

 

Dale helped carry the pups to the van, where Becky and I started to make the first of many climbs in and out of the tall doors.  Finally we were all loaded up and ready to ride!

We were worried about the smallest puppies, especially the little black female, who was quite lethargic and dehydrated.   We named her Baby Ruth.   Dana said she was the only one who didn’t drink that morning.  After a phone conference with Cindy, we made a stop at the closest Petsmart and got some puppy replacement milk and an eyedropper and got her to take about 5 droppers full.  I held her on my lap in the sun while Becky drove.

After an hour or so, Baby Ruth perked up and started looking around.

When we made it to Texas an hour or two later, we stopped for the first potty break, setting up our x-pen at the Texas welcome rest stop.

The older pups all went potty and had a drink; then they wanted to play.   The two bigger fawn males, Goober and Bazooka, were VERY interested in JuJube, who is probably in heat.  Although she was still very shy with us, Jujube started to play with her male admirers!

Baby Ruth and Reese’s just kind of huddled together, while Skittles seemed the strongest of the little ones.  He sat up and was interested in the goings on, but did not participate.

Godiva (she’s pretty and knows it; a bit of a diva) and Hershey (KIsses):

Bazooka who also has an injured eye:

Then it was time to load back up (did I mention how short we are and how tall that van is?).  We made it through Dallas, where we determined I’m a better navigator than Becky is.  We made no wrong turns on the way up, but missed the exit from I35-E to I45 twice coming home, allowing us to tour downtown Dallas on a sunny Sunday afternoon!.

Around this time the little ones started to vomit.  Each time, Becky crawled out of her front seat, into the back, took the little ones out of their crate (did I mention how handy those harnesses were?), changed the potty pads and put them back in.

We made the next stop in Centerville.  The bigger pups had lots of fun, and all drank and went potty as soon as released in the pen.  The little ones still looked pitiful, so they all got more milk by dropper.  Skittles was starting to look worse than at the last stop; his eyes had a discharge and he was less alert.  Reese’s and Baby Ruth both walked around a bit, which we found encouraging, although they are both so skinny it breaks your heart.  The bigger pups knocked over the milk can, and tried to lick every blade of grass with milk on it so we decided to feed the bigger pups some kibbles, which they all enjoyed.

We changed potty pads in all the crates and loaded the babies up one at a time.  That van step is even taller carrying a wiggle-worm puppy!  Becky and I commiserated about aching knees and decided the next time we would bring along someone younger to climb in and out!.

Around Huntsville, the diarrhea started.  At least we were smart enough to reload the three sick little ones in a crate on the other side of the van so the door opened towards the front, making the pad changing a bit easier for me than it was for Becky.  By then it was getting dark, so  I sat on the floor in the back with a flashlight since we couldn’t figure out how to turn the dome lights on, and kept changing pads as each one got sick.  I think I’ll burn the jeans I was wearing rather than try to clean them (and they didn’t even have paint on them)!

We finally pulled into Sugarland Pet Hospital where we offloaded the three sick little ones to get some emergency subcutaneous fluid, and took the rest to their foster home in Katy which had an isolation room all set up.

We made it home about 10:30 PM.  It was one of the longest, most rewarding days of my life!

The pugs are excited for St. Patrick’s Day and to celebrate they will be showing off their green at Chippendale Eastlake Antiques in the Heights, Saturday 3/17/12 from 11-4pm!  This will be an outdoor event, but the tents will be up!! 

Please come out and party with the pugs for St. Patty’s day!!!

Chippendale Eastlake Antique
250 West 19th street
Houston, TX 77008

It will be St. Patrick's Day so make sure you and whoever you bring are in GREEN!!!!

The pugs will be back at Natural Pawz West U on 3/11/12 from 11am-4pm.  Please come out and party with the pugs.

Natural Pawz West University
4032 Bellaire Blvd
Houston, TX 77025

THIS IS A PEOPLE ONLY EVENT

Please join us all for the "Spring has Sprung" Yappy Hour benefiting CAP and PugHearts.  Located at The RAILYARD at 74200 San Felipe Housoton, TX from 6pm to 8:30pm.

There is a $10 admission donation that will benefit CAP and will include; entry to the event, 1 free drink, and great snacks!

There will also be HAPPY HOUR prices all night ~ PRIZE GIVEAWAYS ~ Fun stuff from HAUTE PETS ~ AND A SILENT AUCTION BENEFTIING PUGHEARTS!!!!!

Please come out and support 2 great groups at once!!!!!!

Tonight I, Popsee (aka Pauly D – the spray-tanned pug) visited a pet store for the first time. I’ve been settling in nicely to my new foster home with two very accommodating foster sisters, or better known to many PugHearts volunteers as the pug imposters (below). I had a wonderful time visiting my favorite garden earlier this evening, the one from my first adventure mentioned earlier in the blog when the nice lady came and picked me up from that place I was staying. I wanted to bring home some gifts to my foster sisters to thank them for letting me stay with them and asked my foster human to take me to get some rawhide chewies. Aren’t I a sweet thoughtful boy?

The pet store was full of so many good smelling things I just didn’t know what to sniff first! There were lots of people to lick and other dogs to say hi to. I was sure to meet everyone with a huge smile and as always, lots of kisses. I even impressed a lady so much on the way out who smelled like all the best things who liked me so much she said she’d seriously considering filling out an adoption application for me. My foster gave her a card and told her to go to the awesome PugHearts Web site, www.pughearts.com, to do so. I hope she does because I’d have a real brother of my own and a daddy with a really cool accent.

My foster takes me out on lots of walks and is trying to teach me to heal. It’s hard work because there are so many things to smell and see in my new neighborhood I just want to run everywhere. I’m fast and love to run around. I’ve got lots of energy to burn so I’m trying to be good but sometimes you just gotta be a puppy, know what I mean? I've met lots of humans and they are all so nice and like me so much. My foster makes sure to tell them I'm looking for a forever home and a lot of them seem really interested. Paws crossed!!

Well it’s about time for me to take my foster human for her last walk of the night. My foster sisters loved their chewies and we all had yummy treats tonight. I’m tuckered out so I need to go so I can get my human to bed. She has to get up early for our walk in the morning. It’s hard to train a human sometimes, but I’m working on that too!

I’ll be out at Natural Pawz in the Tanglewood/Galleria location on Saturday. Come out and say hi. I’d love to meet each and every one of you. I promise to save you some kisses. Maybe I’ll even chose you as my forever home. I’d love to have a place to call my own where I can run and jump, love on little and big humans alike, maybe even have a brother or sister like me.

See you soon. Hugs and kisses,

Popsee 

The American Heartworm Society has just released an updated Heartworm Incidence Map showing last years cases.  While we are thrilled to see there has been a reduction of case throughout the country we were horrified to discover that Houston is still one of the highest ranking for Heartworm cases in the country.  Come on Houston, lets show the rest of America we love our dogs enough to keep them safe.  

Please read my previous post here to see how you can prevent Heartworms.

Robbi C
Pughearts of Houston

Three days ago I smelled something WONDERFUL!  I forgot about my people, I forgot about my yard, I forgot about everything but trying to get to what promised to be the BEST thing that ever happened to me in my short life.  Being a smart, manly dude, I managed to get out to find the origin of that wonderful smell and all the heavenly rewards it promised.  I looked really hard, and ran really fast (more about how fast I can run, later), but in the end all I managed to find were my people.  I didn’t understand, but they were really upset.  They put me in the car which was really exciting (I love car rides), but they took me out at a noisy place that was full of strangers barking, whining, and smelling of fear.  My people left me and a stranger took my picture (not my best…you can see it below) and put me in a cage with strange dogs barking, crying, and smelling above, below, and on both sides of me.

They were always mopping the floor and the cages with sharp-smelling water that made me sneeze and my eyes water.  My people were no where to be found.

I didn’t like that place.   I really didn’t like that place when they put me on a table and poked me with something sharp and put stuff in my eyes.  But I got kibbles…and I love kibbles. Three long days and nights I spent in that awful place and then today somebody came and put a leash on me and took me OUTSIDE!  Waiting for me was another stranger, but she smelled good.   Lots of happy doggy smells.  And best of all she opened her car door and I couldn’t wait to get inside.  I jumped from the ground to the seat in one big leap and then explored the front seat, the back seat, and a big space behind the back seat all in about 15 seconds.  Then the good-smelling stranger got in and I had to show her I like laps and give big sloppy kisses.

I went for a short ride.  I tried to drive, but the nice-smelling stranger wouldn’t let me keep my paws on the steering wheel.  I did manage to find several things on the floor to chew, though….  But then it was time to get out of the car and I saw a green fence and a big red gate.  I couldn’t WAIT for the nice-smelling lady to open the gate, so I tried to help her…showing how tall I can stand on my back legs, and how strong I can scratch.  But FINALLY she got it open, and inside was PARADISE.   And best of all, she took off the leash and I could show her how fast I can run!

There was water, fountains, and plants everywhere.  I took a drink after making two laps around the yard so I could reload to keep marking this great place!  The water felt so good on this hot day, I decided to see if I could dig it all out of the bowl.  The splashing water was really fun!

And then I discovered I wasn’t alone in this garden.  There were two neighbors, but they were on the other side of a fence.  They were pretty friendly, though, so I gave them some good sniffs.  I minded my manners, though, and didn’t bark.

The nice-smelling lady kept following me with this big black camera, so I decided to pose for her.  First I gave her the pose I saw on TV when I watched the the dog show, and then I broke out my best close-up smile.

Then it was time to run again.

She managed to catch me a few more times, especially when she called my name.

I visited the water bowl a few more times, digging until it was empty and I was all wet.  Then I decided it was time to go get some petting since she was sitting on the step.

See?  I can sit still too!  Aren’t I a handsome boy?  And my brown color is so special, especially when you compare with that ordinary pug on the other side of the door.  By the way, isn’t it time to meet the rest of the pack I’ve been smelling out here in the garden?

So then the lady opened the door and I got to sniff all these other dogs.  I bowed my head and looked away when the alpha bitch checked me out, and then I found a playmate to chase me!  Can this day get any better?

And then the lady put a harness on me and took me for another car ride!  But this time I couldn’t get out of the back seat since she tied the leash to the seat.  But I managed to stretch it out and get my front feet on the console so I could give her kisses and rest my head on her shoulder while she drove.  It wasn’t as much fun as jumping over the seats, but it was a longer ride, so that was OK.

Then we pulled up to a new place.  It smelled pretty good, too, and there were more nice people there. 

My nice smelling lady told the new people my name was Popsee, which sounded pretty good to me.  I gave her kisses whenever she said it to show my approval.  I got to go outside and potty and then I think I smelled kibbles!  This has been the best day.

P.S. from the good-smelling lady:  Popsee is heartworm negative, young, boisterous, and a very unusual color.  He’s all boy, and needs to be neutered so he’ll never try to find those wonderful smells again.  Want to continue his adventure in your home?

I’ll never forget the fear and anger I felt in 2005 when my vet told me my newly-adopted pug, Chucky, was heartworm positive.  Since I’ve been involved with PugHearts we have taken in and treated hundreds of HW+ dogs, and I personally have cared for half a dozen pugs who have gone through the treatment.   It has never become routine for me, and I am angered each and every time.  This disease is totally preventable!  Monthly heartworm preventative costs so little compared to the treatment costs.

Heartworms are an internal parasite of both dogs and cats. These worms live in the bloodstream and cause life threatening disease. Heartworms are a leading cause of lung and heart disease in dogs and dogs are dying of this disease every day.  Just this month we lost sweet CoCo: 

Heartworm disease is caused by the parasite, Dirofilaria immitis. It is transmitted by mosquitoes and has been found in every state in the US. It only takes one mosquito bite for your dog to get heartworms and, without prevention; there is a 100% chance your dog will get it.

Last weekend we had an adoption event at Rover Oaks and I met an adorable little guy called Ricky.    This tiny little guy is severely heartworm positive, with an enlarged heart.  It broke my heart to watch him struggle to breathe.  This was much more serious than the cough we usually see as the first symptom.

The way a dog becomes infected with these parasites is the stuff of nightmares. Infected dogs are the breeding ground for the next dog to become infected.  When a mosquito bites an infected dog, it ingests immature heartworms known as microfilaria. Microfilaria is the larval form of heartworms that change within the mosquito to reach the third stage. It is the third stage that can infect your dog. When the infected mosquito bites your dog, it deposits third stage microfilaria on your dog's skin and the microfilaria enters the dog through mosquito's bite wound. The microfilaria then travel or migrate through the tissues (meaning skin, muscle, connective tissue) and mature to become a juvenile adult or fifth stage larvae.

This process takes about 50-70 days in the dog. Sometime between 70 and 110 days after the dog is infected, the larvae reach the blood stream and end up in the arteries of the lung (pulmonary arteries). These juveniles then grow up to produce microfilaria of their own in about six months.

Heartworms cause the most harm just by being present in the major arteries of the lung, the pulmonary arteries. They wreak havoc in these arteries and the entire dog suffers. It happens on many levels and here is a list of the damages:

1. Injury to the lining of the pulmonary arteries (pa).
2. Pulmonary hypertension, or Increased pressure within the pa due to the presence of the heartworms, the thickening of pa walls, scarring and blockage of pa, and pieces of heartworm that lodge in pa or clots that form and lodge in pa (known as heartworm emboli). Pulmonary hypertension is then responsible for right sided heart disease, even right sided congestive heart failure. The severity of pulmonary hypertension is dependent on the number of adult heartworms, thus, the larger the number of heartworms, the more severe the disease.
3. Changes within the lung itself. These changes include the infiltration of lung by eosinophils, a white blood cell that takes part in the immune response to allergy and parasitism. Eosinophils are capable of causing and perpetuating a severe inflammatory response which damages the lung and leads to scarring of the lung. Other white blood cells and inflammatory cells may invade the lung causing damage. The heartworms can actually block an artery (thrombosis) and, in areas where thrombosis has occurred, nodules made up of inflammatory cells known as granulomas may form.
4. Vena Cava Syndrome. This syndrome strikes fear in the heart of every veterinarian. It can happen when there are excessive numbers of adult heartworms in the pulmonary arteries and the heart to the extent that they block blood returning from the liver and the back of the body. This results in severe pulmonary hypertension, the death of liver cells, and the destruction of red blood cells. Large numbers of adult heartworms can interfere with the closing of the valve on the right side of the heart (tricuspid valve) and cause increased speed of flow through this valve exacerbating these problems.
5. Serious injury to other organs, especially the kidneys, due to the deposition of damaging immune complexes formed between heartworm proteins and antibodies the dog produces against them.

Our director, Cindy, recently sent out an e-mail telling all foster families that the medication we use to treat heartworms, Immiticide, is going to be unavailable for an indefinite period of time.   Merial, the company that makes this drug, is working to correct the issue, but at this time is unable to fill any new orders for Immiticide.  According to a Merial spokesman, the company is “officially out” of the drug, following an unexpected run on the supply after sending a letter to vets warning of a shortage that may “last several weeks to months.”   

There is a small supply available at Sugarland Pet Hospital, but small is the key word here. It will be reserved for special cases. Cindy and Dr Hendrix will work together to make decisions about which fosters will go through this treatment.

What will the impact be for PugHearts?  Heartworm positive fosters will have to wait longer before treatment and even potential adoptions may be delayed, meaning we will have more dogs to care for.   What do we do when our small supply of Immiticide runs out?   The American Heartworm Society supports a protocol using a combination of a heartworm preventative and doxycycline (an antibiotic) to manage infestation — a protocol the society is expected to release as as guidelines for practitioners on treating heartworm-positive dogs without Immiticide.

Dr. Tom Nelson, a past president of the American Heartworm Society and a practitioner at the Animal Medical Center in Anniston, Ala., notes that the use of doxycyline in combination with heartworm preventive has been shown to reduce pathology, the number of adult worms and the infective potential of microfilaria in canine patients.  Treating heartworm is tricky business. An infected dog, for example, must not vigorously exercise because an increase in heart rate raises the risk that fragments of dead worms in its blood vessels could cause thromboembolism — the formation of an embolism, in this case of dead worms — to the lungs, which usually presents as acute shortness of breath. The condition is treatable with steroids but may prove fatal. Nelson notes that Immiticide quickly kills worms, thereby shortening the time that a dog's exercise must be restricted.

Slow-kill therapies, such as the use of heartworm preventatives, potentially allow for greater opportunity in which worms might block blood vessels, leading to worse lung problems.  Exercise will need to be restricted during the duration of the treatment which may be over a year without Immiticide. 

So now, more than ever, it’s extremely important to keep your dogs on heartworm preventative and to give it monthly on a regular schedule!  Lets all say a prayer for our heartworm positive rescue dogs, too.

Heartworms.  That word should strike fear into the heart of every dog owner.  They are insidious creatures, slowly and silently killing thousands of dogs in Houston and around the country every day.

PugHearts takes in an extraordinarily large number of heartworm-positive dogs every year.  It is especially prevalent in warm weather areas as they are excellent breeding grounds for mosquitoes who transmit the larvae to dogs when they bite them.  If we lived in Alaska, for example, your dog’s chances of contracting heartworms would be cut drastically.  But as we’re here in Texas, the chance of your dog contracting heartworms if it’s not on any preventative is extremely high. 

Think about how many times a year you are bitten by a mosquito or see one buzzing around you.  Your dog will encounter these little vampires every time it is outside as well.  We hear owners say “oh my dog lives indoors so they aren’t in any danger.”  Really?  Do you live outside? No. But do you get bitten by mosquitoes when you do go out? Yes.  Ever find a pesky mosquito buzzing around inside your house?  Wake up and find that one has been feasting on you during the night?

The same is true for your dog.  But you won’t die from the heartworms because they do not survive in your bloodstream.  It’s just a sad twist of fate that the dog’s bloodstream is so compatible for these horrible creatures.

And sadly, there is a severe shortage of the medication used to treat heartworms right now.  The manufacturer, Merial, has announced the medication is temporarily unavailable and they have none in stock.  Our vet (as well as all vets around the country) is unable to get anymore in right now to treat heartworms.  PugHearts has a small amount in stock and we will have to make decisions about treatment on a case-by-case basis.

However, the fantastic news is that heartworms are completely preventable!  With simple, once-a-month medication, you can help prevent your dog from ever contracting heartworms.

There are many medications to choose from.  Pills/chews include Heartgard, Tri-Heart, Iverhart, Interceptor and Sentinel.  Topical medications such as Revolution and Advantage Multi will also prevent heartworm infestation.  All of these medications are effective against some worms and many of these also prevent fleas.  Most of these come in multi-packs, so you can buy a 6-month supply in one box.

What is the cost?  Well, that depends.  These medications are all sold in dosages based upon your pet’s weight.  As pugs are relatively small dogs, if their weight is maintained at a healthy level you should be able to get away with the “under 25 lbs” dosage – which happens to be the cheapest.  If not, the next level up isn’t much more expensive and that will take care of dogs up to 50 lbs in weight.  If your pug weighs more than that – you should call Guinness World Records ‘cause that’s unbelievable!

A 6-month supply of Heartgard will run around $40 from your vet.  Iverhart will be around $30. Revolution and Sentinel will run just over $100 (but remember they also kill fleas and treat ticks, worms and ear mites.)  You can also order these online for a little less, but will have to have your veterinarian authorize that.  It is a prescription medicine because your vet wants your dog to have an annual heartworm test.  Once you get that negative result, they will write you a year’s prescription. 

Okay, so what happens if it’s time for your dog’s heartworm medication and you’re strapped for cash?  Please do not even think about “skipping” a month!  It is a monthly treatment because the effects of the drug only last for 30 days.  If you skip a month, your dog will NOT be protected, even if they had their pill every month prior for the last 2 years.  So please talk to your vet about how to get your dog covered.  Maybe your vet can offer a generic alternative to the more expensive brand name.  If not, your vet will be happy to let you buy the medication in a one-month dose instead of paying for 6 months all at once.  That means for less than the cost of a Happy Meal, your dog will be protected from heartworms for another month.  Now THAT’s a value!

Please, we cannot stress it enough, make sure your dog is on a heartworm preventative.  It really is a matter of life and death.

Robbi C
PugHearts of Houston

There have been a few questions from members wanting clarification of what’s going on with PugHearts’ online presence.  What’s going on with our website?  What’s the Facebook group for? Are we on Twitter? What’s up with Petfinder? Hopefully we can get some information out there to get everyone up to speed on our changes.

Website
Our website is not going anywhere!  We are extremely proud of the polished, professional site that we have to showcase our rescues.  In addition to the OurDogs page which features all the dogs, our website is a wealth of information on PugHearts and all things Pug!  We have information about the breed itself. We have educational pages that explain why you should adopt a rescue instead of buying a puppy from a breeder.  We have information about who we are, how we got started and our mission to save every pug we can.  We have detailed information about way to give, our non-profit status and contact details.  We have great stories from our fosters and other volunteers.  And of course we have lots of details about how to adopt. 

Petfinder
We do list some of our dogs on Petfinder.  In the descriptions for the dogs we list, we give details about PugHearts and how to adopt from us.  Each listing refers the reader to our website to complete our online adoption application.  We do not accept adoption applications or queries in any other format except our adoption application.  We use Petfinder to help people find us who do not know we exist.  Often times, people looking for a breeder will stumble onto us through this site, as they weren’t looking for a rescue in their search.  It gives us a chance to let them know about the beautiful Pugs we have and help teach them that buying from a breeder perpetuates the cycle of over-breeding and creates more unwanted cast-offs that end up in rescue.  Due to the listing software being rather awkward to use, we do not list every dog we have through their website.  However, we will continue to keep a presence on Petfinder  so that we can get the word out about pug rescue in Houston.

Facebook
As Facebook is such a popular venue, we knew we had to have a presence on there.  After careful consideration, we decided to open a Facebook Group rather than a Fanpage.  We wanted a dynamic, interactive place for our supporters to find ways to get involved with our Rescue.  A Fanpage only allows a person to “Like” it and then do nothing.  But a Group keeps everyone involved!  So now, for those of you who want to commit to be an active supporter, you can join our Group. We update Group members on events and can even keep track of who’s attending via the Invitations.  We really want everyone who signs up for our Group to be an active participant, not someone who just adds us to their Friends. Remember, this is not a Fanpage; this is your chance to stand up and be counted as an active supporter of PugHearts in a way that our website doesn’t allow.  If you make the commitment to join our Group, we want you to roll up your sleeves, dive in and make an impact! This is your chance to post comments, share our pages and help get the word out about our adoptions and fundraising! Let everyone know you’ve donated, fostered or helped in some other way – have your moment in the spotlight!

If that’s too much of a commitment for you right now or you’re not ready to be actively involved, then please continue to visit our website for updates and information.  For those of you who are committing to actively participate: welcome to our Group!

Twitter
Yes, we are on Twitter too!  We’ve had the account for a while, but have only posted sporadically.  Until now! We now have our volunteer Whitney doing a fantastic job of getting us active with this newest social network venture.  And as we gain more of a presence on Twitter, we are hoping more of you join up and Follow us.  Twitter is the perfect venue to give quick updates on new rescues and happenings, with links back to our website for details.

So as you see, our website remains our primary online resource.  All of our other online venues will always link back to www.Pughearts.com  for the heart of our endeavor – adoptions.  These other forums offer ways for you to get involved that the website doesn’t offer, but when you’re ready to find the newest member of your family you know exactly where to come!