Queenie came to Irish Retriever Rescue via a Dog Pound with which we have an excellent relationship. The Dog Warden brought her home and when he contacted Irish Retriever Rescue he informed us that she was in a ‘pitiful state’ filthy, laden down with faeces, her coat was a muddy brown colour. She stank so much that the Dog Warden had to leave his van open for three hours as it reeked so much it could not be used. The house she came out of wasn’t much better. The Dog Warden, on bringing her home had to air his own house for hours before the smell evaporated.
She is small, and looks like a 4 month old puppy and has been bred excessively from a very young age hence, her size. She is 13 years old, excessively underweight, has an external mammary tumour, is 95% blind and totally deaf with teeth requiring attention, has diarhoea and is ‘in heat’. He nails were so long and curled that she was walking on them bent but couldn’t walk except with great trepidation.
The first night Kathryn picked her up she was brought home to meet Charlie and the ‘gang of girls’ . She was fed and settled. The following day her nails were cut in two sessions as they were very very long. She was washed and groomed and the dog that emerged from the filth was a light golden who stole Kathryn’s heart. She snored the second night with relief that perhaps, life would be better. The name Queenie was chosen as she didn’t have name and it was felt that she was the Queen of everyone’s heart. No matter how bad life had treated her, she remained a dignified lady, hence Queenie. As Queenie had already been so traumatized and had so many medical issues as well as her age, Kathryn asked if she could adopt her. The adoption fee paid, Queenie will stay with Kathryn for the remainder of her life where she will be loved by Charlie and the girls, who are highly protective of her. Even when it is darkest in life, the dawn will eventually arrive with patience. Queenie has finally come full circle and is finally home, loved, cossetted and protected Charlie and by Charlie’s harem of golden girls.
As a footnote, Kathryn tells us; “Queenie also had a massive haematoma on her ear. She underwent surgery and had the mammary tumour removed, the haematoma drained and stitched and her ear canals and teeth cleaned. Her diarrhoea has cleared up and she is no longer in heat.
However, she developed a cough and we thought it might be kennel cough, but couldn’t understand it. The results came back from histopathology regarding her tumour and unfortunately it isn’t benign. it is a slow acting carcinoma and we just hope that she will last at least another six months.
She is loved beyond measure and seems perfectly content with all her sibling who love and cosset her. After enduring such a dreadful life, we were hoping that the news would be good. However, we will make every moment count and fit in as much as we can in the time we have left.