Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue welcomed Sasyak in August of 2020.

The name Sasyak means he who is perfect. And perfect he is, so incredibly sweet and friends with everyone he meets. 

We do not know about Sasyak’s past or how he became paralyzed, but we will give him a happy and wonderful life. Part of the happy and wonderful life includes a cart.  

Sasyak was seen by a neurologist. The neurologist believes Sasyak likely had a previous intervertebral disc herniated. The disc material is likely scarred down and stuck to his spinal cord, blood supply and surrounding tissue, surgery removing it  would likely cause more harm than good. 

In July of 2021 Sasyak had a large mass on his ear and was diagnosed with soft tissue spindle cell sarcoma, stage 3. He had surgery to remove the mass and is doing well.

In mid-March of 2022 Sasyak had additional tumors removed and was diagnosed with histiocytic sarcoma, an uncommon and very aggressive cancer. His prognosis was guarded to poor. Sadly he passed away on April 1,2022

Sasyak was a beautiful, soul that we had the honor of knowing. Our condolences go to his foster mom and pack and all that loved him from a distance.

It is with great sadness we share, eleven year old George has passed away. George was surrendered to a shelter earlier this year when his elderly owner could no longer care for him. He then went to live with a Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue volunteer family. They gave him a wonderful last few months and were at his side until the end. Our sincere condolences to George’s family.

Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue welcomed Sally in February 2019.  Sally was very petite but what she lacked in size is made up with sweetness. She was a 10-12 year old Dogue de Bordeaux mix that was fostered in Illinois. Sally liked all the other senior dogs in her foster home. Prior to coming to Dogue de Bordeaux rescue Sally was very much loved by her family but sadly they could not provide the level of care she needed.

Sally peacefully passed away in her sleep on on September 25, 2020.

Our thoughts are with her foster family.

We will miss you longer than we have known you. Travel well our little Julia Goolia.

Carla & John

“There is no pain so great as the memory of in present grief.”-Aeschylus 

Henri was very loved and is greatly missed by his foster family. Henri is with the angels now.

Kona passed away at the age of eleven. 12/5/2020

Kona, 9 years old, Heartworm positive
Dekalb, IL

Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue was contacted by a third party about a dog that was living alone on an vacant property in Missouri. We were told the dog was only fed if the women’s son “remembered” to feed him. The son hates the dog and planned to shot him.
We thought this story sounds familiar but didn’t yet have the owners surrender information.
Once we received the owners surrender information we knew why the story seemed familiar.
This owner had already surrendered three (3) adult male DDB to Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue in the last 18 months. Ugh…

In February of 2017 Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue was contacted by a third party about 2 adult DDB, Rascal and Ransom that were living in a barn isolated from each other on a vacant property in Missouri and only being fed if someone “remembered” to go feed them.
Both dogs had limited socialization and had to be treated for heart-worms.

In June of 2017 we were contacted by the owner, she had another male DDB, Rufus that needed a home. Rufus was socialized and appeared to be better cared for than Rascal and Ransom.

These dogs were stud dogs for a breeder and then left behind when no longer needed. This person used these dogs to make money while not giving the dogs basic care.

Where are these dogs now?
All four (4) of them are being cared for by a volunteer family in Illinois that specializes in senior Dogue de Bordeaux. Caring for and feeding four (4) senior dogs is costly. Donations are needed to care for these and other Dogue de Bordeaux in need.

Safi has passed away. She was in kidney failure and we could not let her suffer. Her foster mom said she had the best personality and anyone that met her fell in love with her sweetness.

Safe came to us in August of 2018. Safi is around 4-6 years old, super sweet, but had many health issues. She was heartworm positive, had horrible skin, bilateral ear infections and eye infections from entropian. Safi was also very underweight. A few months later she had gained weight, she no longer had ear infections or eye infections and we had cleared her of heartworm. She was at the vet having  pre-spay blood work and was diagnosed with CKD – Chronic Kidney Disease. There was no cure for CKD – we could only manage symptoms and perhaps slow down the progression. 

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Sadly Ruby passed away from a blood clot after her spay surgery. She is greatly missed by her family.

Seven year old Ruby was surrendered to Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue after her owner died.

Jada passed away. Jada was a gentle, loving soul. Our condolences to her foster family,

Penny loved to run and play with her foster brother and sisters. She was very much loved by her foster family. Sadly Penny had a health condition that greatly affected her quality of life and we had to let her go.

We watched her bloom and the once fearful, timid dog picked up toys to toss in the air, climbed in the car on her own, loved bacon cheeseburgers without the bun and would seek our affection incessantly. I hope that’s all she remembers… the time spent with us.

Carla & John

Ava came to us when she was about 5 years old. She was one of 15 dogs that had been saved from horrible circumstances – all dogs had been kept in a barn for breeding purposes. Ava was very timid but she is tried her best to come around and we know in time she would. She had a heart issue and her mammary tumor.

We are so thankful for our foster homes. Without a foster Ava would not be given the chance to find out how special a real home can be.

This beautiful, six week old Dogue de Bordeaux puppy was put in a cardboard box and left on a strangers porch. The puppy could not walk, he just laid on his tummy.
The person that found him believed he had swimmers syndrome and had his legs hobbled. When hobbled one of his front legs would swell and he would try to chew the tape off. When we were given pictures of the puppy we thought maybe there was something in addition to swimmers but no worries we will get this guy the vet care he needs to have a happy, good quality of life. We thought he might not walk perfect or if he needed a cart that wasn’t the end of the world, he can still have a great life.
Our volunteer picked up the puppy. He was a sweet, happy puppy that didn’t know there was anything wrong. Our volunteer took him home for the night and then to the vet the next day to develop a treatment plan. His x-rays showed more than we could of ever imagined.
He had a hernia in his diaphragm, so his organs were not held in place, metastasis cells in his stomach, no hip sockets, one shoulder socket, we think that’s why the leg swelled from the hobbling. He was trying to chew the tape off because he was in pain.
We couldn’t fix him, he would never be able to walk and then add the other issues. With this information the decision was made to have him put to sleep. Our volunteer held him and loved him as he took his last breath.
We loved him, we named him Finn.
Even though we only knew him a couple of days he will be in our hearts forever.

Dogue de Bordeaux Rescues Rufus  passed away on June 5, 2019.

Rufus was having surgery to remove a bad tooth and died most likely from congestive heart failure. They tried to revive him but he is gone.
Rufus was 10 and has been in our Fospice program for two years.

We would like to thank his foster mom for showing him love and kindness. We are sorry for your loss.

Chilibean, the beautifully freckle-faced boy, passed away on February 13th at the age of 10. He was super sweet, he loved dogs, he loved kids, he loved boiled chicken and eggs and french toast.Chilibean loved toys and stuffed animals, his stuffed monkey was his favorite!

Chili came into rescue as a senior in 2015 and was adopted at Christmas time that year

Sadly, Dude (fka Gus) has crossed the bridge 12/20/18 due to all of his major health issues. We are so crushed for our foster home. Dude was 5 when he came into DDBR in October 2016 and had issues from day one. He was underweight, had hip dysplasia and bad knees, but did well on supplements. In Feb 2017, he was diagnosed with liver failure and kidney disease too. He was managed well on medications until recently when his organs started shutting down. Rest easy sweet boy, rest easy.

Herman is doing his “Happy Dance” for treats in heaven tonight. The dapper older gentleman who we believed to be 8 or 9 years old passed away 11/13/2018. He had not been eating well and when he did eat he couldn’t keep the food down. The vet said there was nothing more they could do and suggested we put him to sleep. Based on his liver levels he most likely had liver cancer.
Herman’s foster mom was with him when he passed. Herman’s foster mom had cared for him since he came into rescue in April of 2017 from a shelter in Franklin, Ohio.
Thank you to Herman’s foster mom for opening her home and her heart to one of the old guys. Thank you to those that donated to his vet care.

Emma came into rescue in July 2017 and was adopted in August 2018 after just over a year in rescue. She was approximately 9 years old. She thrived in rescue and was adopted by the Tschumperlin family. She fit in with their family perfectly… She had only been with them for a couple weeks and she passed. She was so very loved, not only by her family, but by all of us in DDBR. She was the sweetest girl. 

Heartbroken to announce that DDBR lost Forrest on 5/30/18. Forrest came into DDBR earlier this month from a shelter in Southern California. When we pulled him, he was unable to walk and had complete paralysis in his rear. Within the first couple hours of having him, his Foster Angles removed dozens of ticks and our vet immediately started him on the treatment for tick paralysis. Almost instantly, he started to feel better, was trying to move his legs, was actually using his legs during swim therapy, and he could stand on his own, but could not walk. His improvement would be short and he failed to get any better and started to fail. The vets agree, there was something dramatically wrong, neurologically, with Forrest. His bone structures were ok, but he had very little feeling in his feet, very little feeling in his tail and he started to become incontinent and apparently, lost all feeling in not only his bladder, but his anus as well and he became completely incontinent. This morning, it was clear that Forrest was in pain, our vet told us his body was starting to shut down. Our Foster Angels held him in her arms as he crossed the bridge. Run free sweet Forrest. You were so very loved.
Big hugs to Rod and Dawn who loved Forrest and helped him for these few weeks we had him and Chelsea and family who helped with his vetting and had him for a short while as well.

It’s days like today that just rip your heart out. One of the many Hospice dogues that DDBR has is failing. Unable to be spayed because of not only heart disease, but severe lung disease, she developed pyometra. At almost 12 years old, coupled with her other health conditions, she’s not very likely to make it through the $2800 plus surgery. Through a tearful conversation with her foster mom, the decision was made to have her put down….. She will be taken home and the vet will come out shortly to put her down. Our foster is absolutely devastated. I am sitting at my desk, balling my head off for a dog I have never met……. My heart breaks for my foster home……..
Below are a couple of pictures, the first is the day she came into rescue at just 72 pounds, and the second is after being in Kim’s home for a year. This, this right here is what DDBR does. We have an amazing group of volunteers who open their homes to dogues in need. DDBR could not do this without them fostering and donor support. If you would like to make a donation in Coco’s honor, it would be greatly appreciated and will help us cover her expenses, paypal can be sent to donate@ddbrescue.org. Thank you for your continued support.
Coco girl, rest easy sweetheart, you are so very loved…

What can we say about Coco. Weighing only 72 pounds, partially bald, grade 3 heart murmur, anemic, nails so long she could barely walk, filthy, and her abdomen full of fluid is how Coco came into DDBR. Coco’ initial vetting has been donated, but continuing vetting will be DDBR’s responsibility. Can you help us help her?

Coco is in a hospice home with our treasurer. She is doing well, but has strange episodes almost like a pyometra where she starts bleeding, then has pus like infection drain, then she is fine again. Since Coco is almost 11 and in heart failure, she is much too old and weak to handle a spay surgery, so she will live her life out with Kim.

A 10 year old (Yes, TEN year old) DDB in a shelter in NY. DDBR immediately commits to taking her thanks to our amazing foster homes. Then, she crashes on the table during her spay. Poor momma dog, whomever owned her, dumped her at the end of her life. She was full of fluid and her heart was so enlarged, there was nothing they could do. The shelter was able to bring her back, for a short time. She has now crossed the bridge. No more pain, except for those of us that are crying our eyes out because we could not save her…… Rest easy sweet Shorty, you deserved better.

All of us at DDBR are heartbroken. After being in Rescue almost a year, Frank has crossed the bridge. We are so very thankful for his foster family who kept Frank comfortable all these months, without families like this, we could not do what we do.

Rest Easy sweet boy.

Frank Update 10/12/17:

Frank has had quite a long journey since coming in to rescue! To recap, he was surrendered to a shelter after his veterinarian diagnosed him with renal failure.

After many different tests including blood panels, multiple urinalysis, X-rays, and an ultrasound, it was determined that Frank has a neurogenic bladder, not renal failure as originally thought. He is thoroughly enjoying his time in his foster home, going to work at a doggie daycare with his foster mom, and greeting all of the clients with his contagious smile. 

New blood work shows that Frank’s kidney values have actually improved, but his thyroid levels are dropping, requiring more medication on top of his long list of current medications and supplements.

Frank Update 9/20: After doing an ultrasound, it appears the kidneys are normal. The infection is gone, but our volunteer still has to express his bladder for him to completely empty. The vet seems to think Frank has a form of Cauda Equina (a narrowing of the vertebra that is crushing the spinal cord/nerves, causing the nerves to is bladder to “fall asleep” and not function properly).  DDBR cannot afford to do an MRI to get an affirmative diagnosis of CE nor the surgery that may or may not help if it is CE. The medications that are helping to keep Frank comfortable are about $200 a month and his fund raiser has stalled.

Frank is a very loving boy who at 5 years old found himself in a shelter.  Thankfully this shelter was aware of our rescue and contacted us immediately. They knew Frank needed more help than they could give him and wanted him to have the best possible chance to have his medical needs addressed and also the hope of the best future forever home.
When we took Frank into rescue we were told he was in kidney failure. It’s been only a few weeks and many tests later – Frank does not appear to be in kidney failure. His blood tests and multiple urine tests do not show this. He does have a very bad urinary tract infection that we are treating.
X-rays were done to look for possible kidney stones, but there were none. His urethra is very inflamed and this could be related to whatever is causing his urine problems. An ultrasound is in Franks future to see if that can shed more light into what is causing his urinary problems. Please consider a donation to help us figure out just what is wrong with this sweet boy.
X-Rays have confirmed that Frank has bad hips, more than likely born that way and although his gait is not normal he does get around very well. He’s been good with all dogs so far, large and small. He’s somewhat a little too interested in the chickens at the foster home so based on that he may not do well with a cat in the home. He does OK in the car and loved the dog pool! Frank is a very sweet, loving boy that deserves a second chance. Homes with children over the age of 7 will be considered once we have taken care of his veterinary needs.
It may take us a little longer to find out what Franks real health issues are but we will not give up. His foster mom needs to express his bladder a few times a day and he will fill a belly band with pads in it within 2 hours. He is very comfortable and happy but as with all our foster dogues, Frank would love a home to call his own someday.

Franks vetting so far has included multiple urine tests, blood work, xrays and more blood work and several medications to try to get the raging infection under control. We will be doing an ultrasound shortly and have some additional testing to do as well.

12/12/17- Crushed to report that we lost Paddy… He declined extremely quickly and the only thing we could do was to put him down.. He lived such a great life since coming into DDBR……. We are all crushed, especially his foster families.

7/3/17 UPDATE: Thank you all so much! Patrick’s surgery was a HUGE success and the specialist was even able to neuter him while he was under!! We are thrilled that this boy is doing so well. He is back in his foster home and healing wonderfully and he is now ready to be adopted if the perfect home would be willing to open their heart and home to him! Without your continued support, DDBR would not be able to help the dogs we help. THANK YOU for your continuous generosity! Paddy thanks you too and send smooches!

6/18/17 Update: Patrick update from Kristina, our Regional Coordinator who has Paddy!!
The wonderful Dr. Jim Bridge DVM repaired his cantaloupe sized hernia and also neutered our foster boy 🙂 It was a bigger surgery than imagined, as Dr. Bridge said that the defect was large enough for him to put his entire fist through comfortably. His intestines were irritated and so was his liver. Paddy has a pretty bad skin infection as well. He is on antibiotics and pain meds as well as the regular 5 medications he gets twice daily. My kitchen counter …looks like a small pharmacy. He HATES the Elizabethan collar but we can take no chances. If we aren’t right next to him it is on at all times he must wear it. Leash walks only and crate rest, as he is not allowed to jump or get up on the sofa for 2 weeks. He is on diuretics and needs frequent potty breaks. We cancelled our father’s day trip to stay home with him. He is well worth our time, but is an around the clock patient right now because he needs to be kept separate from our pack. We have triple digit heat this week to add to the circumstances of juggling dogues in the yard. Paddy thinks I’m a big party pooper because he can’t play in the pool. And then the “cone of shame”… I hope he knows how much I love him. Thank you to all of our DDB rescue supporters!! We couldn’t have helped him without your continued support!!!

Paddy is a 2 year old male ddb located in Palm Desert California. He is in hospice care with our regional rep. Patrick was surrendered to his vet when his owner could not deal with his health issues. Paddy has an enlarged heart and possibly other heart issues going on as well, we will get him to a specialist to see what else is going on. What we know at this time is that he fills up with fluid and has to be tapped. He was loaded with fleas and ticks when we brought him in and was in desperate need of a bath (doubt he had ever had one before as he seems to have been an outside only dog). Paddy is learning what it’s like to live in a home and be spoilt, he is learning how to play. We will post more about Paddy once we know more. We do not think Paddy will be adoptable, not sure yet, but we do need funds to help with his care and to figure out what is going on with him.

Not the update we wanted to give, Rest Easy sweet girl. You were loved, even if it was just a short time.

UPDATE 4/29/2017:

DDBR picked Darla up on 4/27 at the Carson shelter. She came into the shelter on 4/23 and was being held on a stray hold. You may have saw the horrible video that we saw, of a petrified Darla clinging to her shelter bed, trembling, and shaking as though she were freezing to death (it was over 100 that day, but comfy in the shelter).  DDBR sprang into action, placing a stray hold immediately and getting her out as soon as the shelter would allow her to be released to Rescue. What we know from the shelter, she is emaciated, now around 60 pounds (gained 8 pounds during the stray hold), she was loaded, and we do mean loaded with ticks. She is now in the loving arms of a DDBR foster family and we will post about her and start a fund raiser to help cover her expenses. First update is below:

Pending labs, so far sweet Queen Darla looks better than expected. Thank you TLC Pet Medical Center and Dr Howie Baker and of course Lauren Krieger (her foster mom) and our volunteers. She will need spay and dental work when Darla is healthy enough for surgery. Xray shows no blockage and clear lungs, whew. We think she’s 4-5 years just was severely neglected but she’s already learning love and spending time resting at TLC and being spoiled like she deserves. Lauren  made her a big batch of yummy chicken and when we get lab results we will post them.

Sometimes, Dogues come into our rescue program and live their life out with us. Meesha was one of those girls. She came to DDBR earlier this year when her owner passed away and the daughter could not keep her (though she did keep in touch with the foster and kept up on her momma’s girl). Meesha wanted for nothing and had always been spoilt and loved not only with her own momma, but with her foster family as well. Shortly after coming into DDBR, Meesha was diagnosed with lymph…oma. We opted not to treat with chemo as lymphoma (T-Cell) in DDB’s is always terminal, we did treat with prednisone and were able to get several months of quality time with this beautiful girl. Today (12-28-16) Meesha crossed the rainbow bridge and has been reunited with her momma. Rest easy sweet girl, you were loved by so many people……… Our sincere condolences go out not only to Meesha’s family, but her foster family as well. Without their love and dedication, Meesha and dogs like her, would not have been helped. Thank you!

Poor Max likely had a brain tumor and had to be put down.

Exactly two years ago, Mia came into Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue on behalf of Voiceless Michigan. The vets gave her just a few months to live as she was in full blown congestive heart failure. With moderate care, she lived a happy two years. Rest easy sweet girl.

Mia was being fostered by DDBR on behalf of Voiceless, www.voiceless-mi.org

Sadly, we lost Brewster. His foster parents and all of us at DDBR are crushed. Dogs like Brewster are one of the many reasons we do rescue.

Brewster came into DDBR from a shelter near Sacramento. He had been found wondering. He was between 60-65 pounds, bald from demodex and had secondary skin infections.

We Lost an Old One Today

No one really wants them,

The world seems to say.

You’re old, decrepit, faltering,

My God you’re in the way.

Their eyes may be dim with longing,

Of families long ago.

But their tails are slowly wagging

With love they still can show.

Their eyes have gentle wisdom,

And love that is profound.

A quiet, steadfast loving,

For people all around.

Their lives with you are shortened,

By years already lived.

But Old Ones love their families,

With all they have to give.

The world’s a little sadder,

With what we lost too soon,

An Old One from the Rescue,

Walked the Rainbow Bridge at noon.

RIP Handsome Man and all the Old Ones

(Carol Catlett foster Parent)

Shockingly – someone decided they could not keep their eight year old boy so they dropped him off at a local shelter. While so many of these beautiful babies don’t even make it to that age – this senior boy got tossed away in his golden years.

Dee Dee (formerly Delilah) was a 3 year old female who was surrendered to a shelter when her owners could not care for her.  We pulled her and immediately got her to our vet, we knew she was in bad shape, but we still though she would be coming home with us. What we discovered once we got her to the vet is:

Severe, grade 6 murmur (none of her heart valves sounded normal).

Fluid buildup in her abdomen (probably from the heart condition)

Liver was starting to failing and she was in renal failure

Severe neglect and emaciation, she had no muscle tone at all

Severe spondelosis in her spine and her hips were so bad that they were “frozen” and could not move easily

Severe skin issues plus bilateral eye and ear infections

Several fractured teeth

Her white blood cell count was off the charts…

Our vet thought she was also likely riddled with cancer as the x-rays showed suspicious areas in her abdomen

Less than 4 hours after pulling her from the shelter, as she was being set up for fluids, she collapsed and became unresponsive. We opted to put her down and not let her suffer, she had suffered far to long in the hands of whomever neglected her…. Rest easy sweet Dee Dee, you were loved, even if for a short time.

Sadly, Chuck could not overcome the issues he had upon coming into Rescue and has crossed the bridge.

Chuck is a 3-4 year old male who came into DDBR from a high kill shelter in Florida. He is located near Orlando. Chuck came to us at the end of July, 2015 and since, we have been dealing with his health issues trying to get him healthy to be adopted. At this point (December, 2015), it does not look like Chuck is adoptable as he has the following issues:

Chuck has a very strange disease in his ears (it’s actually a doggy venereal disease, but it’s in his ears and causes tumors in the ear canal and on the ear flap).

Chuck has a large mass in his abdomen and one on his heart. This is by far the worst of his issues. It will likely kill him. We are not sure at this point if it’s cancer, but likely, with the tumor on the heart as well, it’s most likely hemangiocarcinoma. We have started a fund raiser for Chuck to help keep him comfortable and to cover what we have already spent (well over our adopt fee). If you can help, please do.

Wrinkles was a 10 year old male Dogue de Bordeaux that was surrendered to DDB Rescue due to his owner not being able to care for him any longer. He was not in great shape so we immediately got him to the vet, only to discover that he was in end stage of heart failure. Wrinkles was suffering, his abdomen and lungs were full of fluid, he struggled to breathe. The only humane thing to do was to let him go, in the arms of one of hour Foster angels. Rest Easy handsome boy. You were loved.

Emmie has crossed the bridge in the loving arms of one of our volunteers. She had a wonderful month that she would not have had if she would have died in the shelter. We are so very thankful that our volunteers open their homes and hearts to rescued Dogues, even if it’s for just a short time. Rest easy sweet girl.

Emmie (formerly Amelie) came into DDBR from a high kill shelter in Southern California. She was taken to the shelter when her owners could not treat a large lump on her leg. The tumor on her leg is Osteosarcoma and she is terminal. DDBR knew this going into the shelter to pull her. DDBR was notified about her at a point when she only had a few hours left before the shelter was going to put her down. We could not just let her die in the shelter. Within less than 90 minutes, we had a plan in place for Emmie and our volunteer was on the road to pick Miss Emmie up and make her last few days, weeks, months the best possible and completely filled with love. Our volunteer has opened her home to Emmie for as long as Emmie is comfortable.

Emmie is between 3 and 5 years old. Our volunteer said she is just the sweetest thing and just wants to be held, cuddled and kissed. She travels well in the car and is a joy to have in the home.

Freckles crossed the bridge in the arms of a DDB Rescue Angel and her family. Rest easy sweet girl, you were loved and admired by so many not only in the flesh but your followers around the world.

Freckles was a Dogue de Bordeaux/American Bulldog mix who found herself once again, in the shelter system. She was adopted through the shelter over two years ago and recently was found wondering the streets (previous person who adopted her from the shelter had given her away). She was somewhere between 7-9 years old. DDBR was contacted by the local Humane Society and knowing that she was a senior, who had had a really horrible past, one of our volunteers stepped up to Hospice Foster this girl until it was her time to go.
Freckles had severe hip dysplasia, a congenital defect in one of her eyes, her skull is sunken in (often, this is a sign of cancer) and was about 20-30 pounds over weight.

Mojo was adopted by his foster mom who had fallen head over heals for him. Unfortunately, he started having pretty severe seizures and then started getting violent during the seizures, so he crossed the bridge in the arms of his momma. Rest easy sweet boy.

Mojo is a around 2 year old male located near Ocala FL. He came into DDBR from a high kill shelter in pretty bad shape. Mojo is heartworm positive and has started heartworm treatment, he came to us with bilateral deep inner ear infections and a cough that we are not sure is from kennel cough, the heartworms or just barking his head off in the shelter. He is a wonderful young boy, neutered and up to date on vaccinations. It will be a while before he is available because of his heartworm treatment. Mojo is very, very sweet, easy going, good with other dogs, good with cats, good with just about everything. We will post more once we know more.

Sadly, shortly after her dental, Stella crossed the bridge. The dental went wonderfully, without any complications and Stella seemed to be recovering extremely well, then, she had most likely what was a massive heart attack and she crashed, unable to be revived. Though she was only with us for a few short weeks, she left an imprint on our hearts just like each rescue does. Rest easy sweet girl.

Stella was an older girl who came into rescue from a hoarding situation. When she came into us, she was emaciated (60 pounds or so) and in extremely bad shape with her teeth rotting out of her mouth. . Stella was sweet as can be, loved everyone and craved attention. She was an absolute joy to have around and had proven good with most other dogs and with children. We were guestimating she is about 8 years old.

Sadly, Maxine crossed the rainbow bridge.

Maxine was a very spry 7.5 year old. Maxine came to us when her owners lost their home. She  was absolutely adorable and extremely outgoing. She LOVED her toys (and would steal all of the toys in the home and put them on her bed). She was the funniest dogue and just exuded personality, you would not believe she is technically a “senior” as she did not act it.

The hardest part about rescuing dogs is the ones you get that are too late to be saved, sometimes all you can do is hug them tight as they cross over. RIP sweet baby Jane, sorry we could not do more to help you but you are in a better place now… Jane came to DDBR in complete organ failure. She had been a stray for many months. Full blown demodex, secondary skin infections, emaciated and in end stage heart/organ failure.

Nala was a senior DDB who’s found herself in rescue through no fault of her own, twice! First time, she came to us at 10 years old, in horrid shape, with a giant tumor hanging off her chest. The second  time, two years later at 12 years old, her adoptive mom could no longer handle Nala’s vetting and could not bring herself to put Nala down. So, Nala came back to Rescue and was only with us for a week. It was pretty clear she was near the end, she had a large, hemangiosarcoma that was ready to rupture and had spread to her organs, it was only a matter of time. Thank you so much to the Morrill family for loving her in her final week and realizing the kindest thing to do would be to let he go.

Jean Luc was a 9.5 years old when he came to us. Sadly, Jean Luc’s issues were too extensive and he could not over come them and crossed the bridge in the arms of a loving DDB Rescue Angel.

Babette was 6-8 year old female who came to us in pretty bad shape. Sadly, Babette was in organ failure and we lost her. Thanks to DDB Rescue’s Angels, she knew love and compassion.

Duke was all set to go to his new forever home in a few days. He got up in the morning, romped in the yard, ate breakfast, played in the pool, had a great time with his buddy Storm, then laid down to take a nap and didn’t wake up.

Buddy came to DDBR unable to walk. He had major hind end weakness and it was discovered he was likely hit by a car as he had severe spinal degeneration. On top of that, xrays showed he had severe elbow and shoulder dysplasia as well. There truly was nothing that could be done, we even tried a wheel chair for him, but his front would not support him.

We try to post positive pieces and available dogs in our program, but every once in a while, we pull a dog out of a shelter or situation that is just truly heart wrenching and the only humane thing to do is to have the dog put to sleep. Yesterday was one of those days. We were informed about a female ddb that we could NOT say “no” to. She was in a shelter, but had been found wondering the streets. We were told that she was a stray, and that per state law, they could not immediately put her to sleep, even though she was suffering. She was in the final stages of lymphoma, had stopped eating, had dropped down to 44 pounds (yes, you read that right, 44 pounds). Her organs were failing. So, one of our amazing volunteers went to the shelter and with the help of another rescue who is allowed to pull “medical” cases, Miss Doe was pulled. Our volunteer took her home, laid with her (cuddled her until they both fell asleep), then took her to the vet to see if she was really as bad as the shelter said (and as bad as she looked). Of course, she was just as bad as we were told, end stage cancer with organ failure. She left this world knowing she was loved in the arms of our rescue volunteer. Even if only for a few hours, Doe was truly loved and cherished by ALL of us. Doe’s ashes will remain with her foster mom, who will hold her in her heart for eternity, just as though she spent a lifetime loving her.

Princess came to us at 10 years old and sadly was only with us for a few weeks, but those few weeks were wonderful. Her poor old body was riddled with cancer, she had numerous masses and an open tumor. She was very much loved by those who helped her, she was the perfect Bordeaux in every sense of the word, loving, protective, smart, sweet, everything a ddb should be. THANK YOU to everyone who helped with Princess.

We are very sad to announce that Larry has passed. We are very thankful to our amazing foster homes who open their homes and hearts to these special dogues. Larry had an amazing life once he came to DDBR and Lone Star Dog Ranch , he was loved, something he never was before coming to rescue. He will be missed by all.

Donations have been received in honor of Larry from:

Lone Star Dog Ranch, Pamela Long, Peggy Shannon, Carolyn Dortch and Joan Moore

After spending a few days with Larry and having his entire medical history assessed by our Vet, we  determined that Larry is in very bad shape. He was significant traumatic injuries to his spine, he had very bad hip dysplasia.
He was somewhat incontinent because of the partial paralysis in his hind end. He had a history of seizures that have been controlled through medication. He was on pain medication to make him comfortable. He was a happy boy, who loved food and affection. Our vet believed his age to be somewhere in the double digits of 10 or 11.

DDBR is crushed that we lost Callie. She started going down hill and the only kind thing to do was let her go.

Callie was 8 years old.

We were notified about Fabro, a 10 year old female that was surrendered to a very high kill shelter in Southern California. Emaciated, giant mass on her chest that was broken open and oozing, eyes so goopy she could barely open them. She was likely riddled with cancer, she had lost all the mass in her head as well and had blue berry sized black eye lid growths, her uterus was hanging out and she could barely walk and required assistance to get up. There really was only one option. Fabro got a few hours of intense love from Erica and Andrea, and she showed her appreciation by giving them thousands of kisses. Fabro crossed the bridge a few hours later, in the arms of our volunteers, knowing, even if for short time, what love is.

A huge thank you to our volunteers for being with Fabro at the end.

Rest in Peace sweet Fabro, we wish we could have given you more.

Reese came to us from a very high kill shelter, around 3 years of age, 30 pounds underweight and heavy heartworm positive. Thanks to the loving foster home he had with us, he rallied back from deaths door several times over the 4 months he was in our program. Unfortunately, we lost him to bloat.

Sweet Bella lost her battle with Hemangio Carcinoma. Her months with us, she was treated as a princess and a beloved member of her foster moms home. We are so very sorry we couldn’t do more for her..

When Sheldon came into Dogue de Bordeaux Rescue, we weren’t sure if he would even last a week as he was in such horrible shape. His kidneys showed major damage, or had the beginning stages of organ failure, but he was happy. Sheldon started gaining weight and was treated for what we could treat him for, and most of all, he was very, very loved by all who’s lives he touched. Unfortunately, Sheldon’s organ failure started getting worse and we lost him just over 3 months after he came into our rescue. Our hearts go out to his foster family and all of Sheldon’s friends who were pulling for him.