Dog for adoption from Hearts United for Animals - national no-kill animal shelter, sanctuary and animal welfare organization.

Telly

Homeward Bound - Adopted!!

Now living happily in Elkhorn, Nebraska.

Telly invites everyone who cared for and supported him to drop in and visit him on the cool new website his folks are doing just for him. There are photos and updates you won't want to miss:

http://www.littlebluedog.org

Telly was given to an HUA volunteer in a cardboard box that was covered in blood, skin and dirt. He was wrapped in a poop encrusted blanket. He has been paralyzed for six months. His back legs are completely atrophied. He was never given an x-ray or proper medical care. The HUA volunteer asked our vet why his stomach was so enlarged when he appeared to be emaciated. The answer was that his bladder probably had not been emptied fully for the entire six months. The smell of blood and infection in the urine was so overwhelming it almost made people faint. His skin is peeling off by the bucket loads.

Telly is a blue dachshund. Blue is a dilute color, a defect. Blue dachshunds should not be bred as it leads to baldness. They almost never have a normal life span. And in fact Telly is mostly bald - hence his name after Telly Sevalis. The "kennel" had been using this dog as a breeder dog for five years. Imagine how many bald blue dachshunds he produced in that time just so that people could buy the latest fad dog. So of course unscrupulous puppy mills breed blue dogs as fast as they can. Then when the dog needs medical care, there is none and the dog is dumped. Of course she kept him without providing any care for a few months just in case he recovered without costing any money. This delay severely limited the likelihood that he could recover.

In spite of being paralyzed, bald, full of infection and malnourished, Telly is about the happiest most fun little guy you could ever meet. He enjoyed his soft food, the first drink of clean water he's probably ever had in his life,and a nice bath. He probably thought he'd been flown to Paris when he saw his big new living quarters with his big soft bed, clean blankets, and plush toys. He got to walk with a towel around his middle, and he tore around the shelter investigating. He had a blast.

There isn't much hope that Telly will walk again but for a dog with this kind of spirit, anything is possible and we will do everything we can to help him. Our vet was very surprised that he did have some deep pain sensation left. So he's off to Kansas State University this week for surgery. With extensive rehabilitation that he will get at HUA, we hope he will be able to walk again.

If you are ever tempted to buy that cute little puppy in the pet store, remember Telly. Tell everyone you know to boycott stores that sell puppies.

Update 1/20/2006

Telly had surgery at the vet school at Kansas State University. He had two calcified disks in his back. The injuries were clearly months old as we knew. They repaired them as best they could. He is now undergoing extensive therapy at HUA. He walks with a towel around his middle. His legs are exercises like a bicycle. He has some movement in his legs which is very exciting. But the muscles in his legs have so atrophied that he has no ability to stand on his own. Throughout this experience Telly has remained incredibly loving. He gives a million kisses.

Update 2/16/2006

Telly is making encouraging progress! Each day holds improvement it seems. We started to become excited when we saw Telly bicycle peddling with his back legs as we held him up. Then today as he was towel walking with his therapy person she held the towel up a little higher, then higher yet, and he started to WALK USING BOTH OF HIS BACK LEGS!! Everyone had to rush in to see it. The excitement was grand! He still cannot do it on his own, but this is significant progress. His muscles are atrophied so badly from being kept in a box for 6 months that he cannot exercise for very long without tiring. Telly's body is weak but his spirit is not. He wants to just go, go, go! We will continue working with him, baby steps at a time every day. He is wanting to walk and run so very much, and we will do everything we can to build his muscles back up so he can do it on his own again. Telly continues to shower us all with grateful kisses for his rescue and recovery.

Update 4/16/2006 - Scroll Down to See Photos

There is no stopping Telly now! He is like a 16 year old boy who just received his driver's license and is off to the races. Thanks to your outpouring of generous support Telly now has the Cadillac of carts. This cart was especially made for him. He started zipping around in it like a pro the minute we put him in it. His back legs touch the ground and he does use them to go for the first few minutes. Then he gets very tired because his muscles still are not built up to have much strength yet. It will take a long time. When Telly's back legs tire out he doesn't notice, he just keeps going and going. His cart has special stirrups so that when his back legs tire we can put them up so he doesn't drag them and hurt them. Telly's spirits are phenominal. He is so happy to be mobile and free. Running in the big fields of fresh spring grass is especially exciting for him. Like many mill dogs Telly may have never touched grass before in his life. He is one smart little guy. He learned reverse on his cart the first day he had it. We can tell that he also looks ahead now to judge distances so he doesn't run into things. We think Telly's insurance rates will be low, as he is a very good driver!

Update 07/28/06

Telly is enjoying his summer at HUA. His legs aren't working much better. But he really doesn't seem to mind at all. He is having a blast running around in his cart. He has a special volunteer named Sandy who comes to visit him from Omaha regularly and spends the day working with him in his cart and just generally giving him lots of love! He is a favorite of everyone who meets him. Well, except the cats. We found out quite by surprise that Telly has quite a dislike of our furry feline friends. Because kitten season is so heavy this year and so many cats are being euthanized at kill shelters, HUA has taken in several cats. Telly will watch intently, not even blink, if he spies a cat. He will just watch and watch...hoping that he will have the opportunity to be the hero of the shelter and help rid us of the wild beasts who have dared invade canine territory! What a character our little bald blue boy is!! Regardless of his 'handicap' he sure gives those cats a run for their money.

Update 02/25/07

Telly continues to enjoy himself at HUA. He goes for his daily runs in his cart for exercise. He likes to go 100 miles an hour and then hit a big pile of blankets and just hang out there for awhile. He also visits the sunroom regularly where he has quite a harem of adoring lady dog friends, as well as lady human friends. In the new photo he is pictured with Ingrid, Sidone, Minette and Trista. He is obviously quite proud that he has such a beautiful audience for his dare-devil moves. We're sure if Telly could talk he'd ask these fine ladies "Who loves ya baby..." and give them a wink.

Telly is so happy that he has SO MANY wonderful, extra special Buddies!

His Buddy, Benny, from The Dachshund Rescue Web Pages, sent him this message: "Hey Telly! I'm so glad my friends at Hearts United were able to take you in as quickly as they did. I was very worried when I learned you had only a short time before your execution. That's what you get for becoming an inconvenience to your owner. Now you're safe, though! Safe and you'll be in my thoughts always for a full recovery from your past neglect. Always remember, kid...If you need me, I'll be here for you!" Telly sends Benny from www.drwp.net grateful kisses. Benny literally saved Telly's life by alerting us to his need for immediate assistance! He would not be here today without Benny going to bat for him.

His Buddy, Jayne Nohner, from Minnesota, sent him this message: "You are absolutely adorable! My heart goes out to you sweetie! Good luck with recovery of those little legs of yours. There is someone very special out there who wants to have you and hold you. Good Luck Telly! Your Buddy, Jayne" Telly sends Jayne many happy grateful kisses!

His Buddy, Roxanne Goeltz, from Minnesota, sent him this message: "Telly you deserve the love of a good home. Your eyes show the love you are willing to give even after all the hurt you have been through. Hope you find it soon. Roxanne, Cash & Saydee" Telly sends grateful love and kisses to Roxanne, Cash & Saydee.

His Buddies, Carol & Jeff Gill, from North Carolina, sent him this message: "Hang tough, little Telly. Your perfect home is coming. All the dachshunds & basset hounds of Auturmn Hill send you strength." Telly sends Carol & Jeff sweet kisses.

His Buddy, Ronda Marks, from Fort Worth, Texas sent him this message: "You're doing great Telly! Sending you love and healing light from Buddy, Cleo, and Chuckie! And that special gift from our Mom that has helped you get better!!!" Telly sends the Marks family many grateful kisses.

His Buddy, Kay Stemnock, from Chicago, Illinois sent him this message: "I am so glad to see that you are doing better and better each day, Telly. Love, Kay" Telly sends Kay many loving kisses. Kay sent Telly this updated message on 5/15/06: "Keep up the good work Telly. Love, Kay".

His Buddy, Silvana Leung, from Seal Beach, California sent him this message: "You are a beautiful boy. I am glad that you are in a safe place with lots of love and attention given to you. Hang in there. Peanut and Lucy send you lotsa dachsie kisses, too." Telly sends Silvana and her doxie kids many happy kisses!

His Buddy, Tine Johansen Jardine, sent him this message: "Friends, a dog with a deficit in the neurology department does is not a insurmountable probelm. Dachsies in particular, will prove that to you. I have one little Dachsie boy with double neck surgery, on steriods, but boy, does he love life, in a different way. Telly is the most courageous and trusting little dog. He refuses to act any diferently than his brothers and sisters, and he is proud of hs wheels. Look at him, he is simply adorabel, and will bring you so much love and joy, and deep gratitude. Dogs know, they just know when the are with good people. Look at him, and you'll know too." Telly sends many happy, grateful hugs and kisses to Tine and her sweet doxie boy.

Hearts United for Animals is a national no-kill shelter, sanctuary and animal welfare organization. Hearts United for Animals does long distance adoptions if there are safe flights and we have volunteers in the area to do a home visit. We require an application, references and a home visit to adopt one of our dogs. Our dogs are all spayed or neutered and are current on health care. We can cat test a dog if requested. We can give you more information on each dog if you click on the adoption link below. If you are interested in adopting a dog, please click on the adoption link below. Buddies are people who help support the dog and send them love while they are waiting for their new home. The dog does not live with the Buddy.