Help Suffering Rail Yard Shepherds

We all know and are aware that people are abandoning their pets like crazy. Shelters are overflowing and animal control doesn’t help. You’re told to leave a found animal in the streets. Rescues are full, overworked, tired and broke. I’ve worked in rescue a long time and I’ve never seen it this bad. Now we have to change strategy and do as much as we can WHERE the animals are located because there is just no place to put them anymore.

Three German shepherds showed up at a rail yard in Stockton emaciated and injured with open wounds and swollen legs. They’ve been on the streets trying to survive for a long time. The workers at the yard started feeding them. They’d disappear for a while and then come back. When they did come back they got fed. After a couple months they started staying close to the yard. The workers needed help but were turned down by every shelter and rescue they contacted.

Then someone learned of the situation who had adopted dogs previously from Finding A Best Friend Rescue (FABFR) in Stockton and called me. I’ve worked with FABFR and agreed to help. I got a supply of food and some supplies out there. I was impressed with the workers out at the rail yard, particularly Rob who has been feeding the dogs and working to gain their trust. He constructed a shelter for the dogs in a container. Rob has seen many dogs show up in the rail yard over the years and has reunited several with their owners. These three German Shepherds though really broke his heart. He named the dogs and told me their stories:

Duke is a big guy and the oldest. He was in the worst shape. I brought him to Sacramento to stay with a friend for a week so I could take him to the vet. As I write this, Duke is at the vet on an overnight stay. He’s getting a medicated bath and X-rays because he’s limping possibly from an untreated fracture (for which he had to be sedated), vaccines, microchipped, a full blood panel and the sores and calluses on his body addressed. Poor Duke is completely shut down and there is very little reaction from him to humans. At least he’ll get some medication now for his pain. He’s lost a substantial amount of muscle mass possibly from rapid weight loss due to starvation. The suffering he’s endured makes you break into tears. He deserves this care- finally. Duke was neutered at some point in his life. That also means someone in his past had given him a home, and then abandoned him to starve to death or die in the streets. If we can’t find a permanent foster or adopter Duke will have to be returned to the rail yard with the other two dogs because there’s just no place to put him. The estimate for his care is already over $1000 and we haven’t gotten any results yet from the tests.

Hank is the second German shepherd we think is about 5. He has a large open wound on his leg, the leg is swollen and he’s limping. Rob gave him some amoxicillin he had left over from his dogs and cleaned up the wound and is applying antibiotic ointment to the wound. It looks liķe it’s starting to heal. Because we have no foster/adopter we will be taking him to a local vet in Lodi. It doesn’t help that we’re in the week of Thanksgiving. He too will need to be vaccinated, microchipped and neutered as well as a full blood panel and X-rays. We know we will have additional expenses because of his leg. Since we have no foster for him he will likely have to be boarded for recovery. We are estimating his medical costs at close to $2000.

Princess is the youngest German shepherd about 1-2 years old and the most skittish. She has no outward injuries we can see but she too will need to be vaccinated, microchipped and spayed as well as the blood panel. Her costs are estimated at $1500. She too will have to be boarded for recovery if we don’t find a foster/adopter for her.

All three of these dogs need to be fed good quality food to gain some weight. We estimate that continual feeding for them could go on for a very long time. When you can’t place these dogs in foster care where they learn to be loved and start to feel safe, it’s even more difficult and probably unrealistic to get them adopted.

So Rob is building warmer, more secure shelter for them for the cold weather. It will also provide shade for them in the heat. This is the best we can do with the current high level of homelessness and abandonment of dogs.

We are asking for help. Rescues have no funds and the limited funds they do have come from adoption fees and donations that don’t cover the expenses they incur. There are no extra funds to feed and provide medical care to dogs not in their care. Someone needs to step up and organize a way to get these animals the help they need which costs a lot of money. None of us personally can afford this at this level of cost. We can put it on a personal credit card and hope we can get enough donations to cover the charge. That’s what we did for Duke. That’s what we will do for Hank and Princess. That’s what we will all probably be doing for the foreseeable future.

So we are starting this GoFundMe to cover the expenses and medical care of Duke, Hank and Princess. All donations will go 100% to getting them the medical care and rehabilitation they need. We will have to feed and care for them at the rail yard until fosters or adopters may be found. I will post regular updates and accountability for how the funds are being spent for their care.

More dogs will no doubt show up at the rail yard and Rob and the workers at the yard will step up once again and help them. We see this as an alternative to foster care when foster care is unavailable-take care of these dogs the best we can where they are, provide them shelter and get them needed medical care. Continue to search and beg like crazy for foster homes and do all we can to get them adopted. But in the meantime, take care of them now! That, quite simply, requires money.