Abby had 3 1/2 really good years with us. We adopted her through MHWR when she was about 5 years old and she had had a tough life up till then. Her owner was arrested and sent to prison (I don't know what for) and his wife didn't know what to do with the dogs so she tied them up in the basement and left them with no food & water. Her father-in-law came to the house and saw what was going on and took Abby and the other dog to a shelter. The other dog was adopted right away but Abby was scared and probably aggressive in the kennel. The shelter called weim rescue and said she was non-adoptable and was to be put down in two days if we didn't come get her. I had just found the weim rescue site that week and filled out an application to be a volunteer. I heard back from Darci on Wed. about 3 dogs in shelters in the Denver area. She told me about Abby and I said I would go and get her immediately. I brought her home and she was the sweetest thing . . . she walked into the house and stole our hearts. Sterling loved her and was happy to have her there. By the end of the week we went to Weim Fest and when Michelle asked for the foster dogs to come up so that people interested could meet them, Joe turned to me and said "she doesn't need to go"! We had failed "fostering 101"!!!! We were not about to give her up!

About one year after we adopted her she had a stroke and we thought we would lose her. You may see her episode on Animal Planet Emergency Vets, the Interns from time to time. I think it was on just a month ago. She came out of the stroke pretty well and we were told that she could possibly gain full mobility within a few months. We worked with her and were pleased that in a short amount of time she was able to walk again on her own with just a few problems in her back legs!

Since that time she has had a few mini-seizures or strokes and has had a few setbacks but she has always been a trooper. Each & every day . . . twice a day she would do her "food dance" when we fed her. She was SO excited that she got to eat AGAIN that she would bark & twirl and sometimes nip at our backsides if we weren't fast enough. We would laugh every time, she was so cute! After the stroke she still did her dance but a lot of times as she propelled herself in a circle she would end up falling because of the back legs but it didn't stop her enthusiasm!
On Tuesday, Feb 24th, we thought she had another stroke. I took her to the vet and he did a blood panel on her & found her to be anemic but other than that couldn't come up with any reason for the stroke. She couldn't walk & wouldn't eat. We carried her outside and helped hold her so she could go to the bathroom. It took her 2 days to come out of this but by Thursday evening she was back to normal . . . for her! I now realize that is was not a stroke after all.

She had another episode on Thursday last week at dinner time. She was lethargic and didn't want to eat . . . definitely not normal for Abby. She couldn't (or wouldn't) walk and we again carried her outside to urinate. Friday morning I called the vet as soon as they were open and was sent to an Internal Medicine specialist for an ultra sound. She was in shock by this point and they found that she was bleeding internal (accounts for the anemia). She had a lot of nodules on her liver and her spleen. They could not in good conscious recommend surgery as they believed that there were just too many tumors and that this was cancer that had spread to her other organs! The kindest thing was to let her go! Which is what we decided to do.

We will miss our girl SO much but she had Sterling waiting for her. Now she can run and play without those darn legs giving out on her and without the pain from bilateral hip dysplasia!

Here are a couple of pictures of Abby. One is with Sterling the day I adopted her- Abby is the one looking over her shoulder.

~Joe and Carolyn Beavers~

I contacted the Mile High Weimaraner Rescue 6.5 years ago. They notified me about a 9 month old male weimaraner that was going up for adoption at the Denver Animal Shelter. He had been a runaway for about a week and weighed only 40 pounds. I was so excited when I received the call and showed up extra early the morning of adoption. Surprisingly, I was the only one who was interested in him. He was a skinny mess with real anxiety and separation issues. I named him Ramsey. Once I got him home, we started down the long road of recovery and he soon became a loving member or our family. We had many adventures together like hiking, biking, snowshoeing and camping. Recently, when I lost my job and could no longer provide the care he deserved, I knew that I needed to get back in touch with the Mile High Weimaraner Rescue in hopes of finding someone special who could take over loving and caring for him. They found him a wonderful foster home that immediately fell in love with him and planned to make him a permanent member of their family. Unfortunately, Ramsey became sick. The foster family was quick to recognize his symptoms and was immediately taken to the vet for treatment. He was diagnosed with Bloat and died a short time later. Ramsey will always be in our memories and I would like to thank the Mile High Weimaraner Rescue for helping me find him a home that I knew would give him the same love we gave.

We miss you Ramsey,
The Hendersons

Eva, the girl who never met a stranger;
Though our time together was brief, you touched the heart of everyone in rescue. We will all remember your zest for life and how "crazy happy" you were at the meet-and-greet. When modern medicine failed and prayers were not enough, you knew you were loved by us all right up until your last breath. Take care sweet girl; have fun running and playing with your Weimy brothers and sisters over the Rainbow Bridge.
~Love,
Your friends at MHWR~

We don't want to be a downer during this time of year, but we wanted people to know that our beautiful boy Zeke passed last week. Although he was strong and stoic, he lost his battle to an infection that did not respond to meds. I want to thank everyone and anyone in this group, especially Darci, who always had answers for us (usually within the hour) for whatever the issue was at the time. Zeke was a stray that we had no prior medical history on and suffered with seizures caused by epilepsy. He also would get chronic infections of his liver and urinary tract, which we treated almost monthly. Although he wasn't in the best shape physically, he was a typical Weim who was smart, loving, and always wanted things his way. Thanks again to everyone for your advice and constant discussions about Weims in need.

"You have gone ahead and nothing is the same
leaving paw prints on my heart that always will remain"
Please read Sterling's touching story here

~Joe and Carolyn Beavers~

When we met Jesse at our first “meet and greet”, we were very afraid and immediately had second thoughts. Although we had done research on Weimaraners, we were more than a bit intimidated by such a big and rambunctious girl.  At PetSmart, she took us for a walk around the store; then a short while later at the dog park – we saw her at full strength, running around like crazy, through the mud, in and out of the creek - like she was possessed.  With visions of our condominium being destroyed by this big crazy beast, we politely told Michelle and Darci that “we would think about it” and left knowing that this was too much dog for us.  After some conversations and soul searching, we decided that we would give Jesse a try, knowing full well that if we took her in that we would be her forever home.  Little did we realize that we were not fully trained and Jesse knew that she had a lot of work ahead of her to get us up to speed.  Howling with disapproval, Jesse let us and our condominium neighbors know that she was not pleased with being left alone, and soon we were shopping for a new house for Jesse.  Looking back, Jesse wasn’t happy with us at first, but day by day we earned her trust.  Within a few months, we began to see her real personality emerge – happy, rambunctious, always ready go for a ride in her truck to chase or point bunnies, squirrels, birds, kitties, coyotes, cows, or practically anything else with fur or feathers. In the 3 ½ years that she was with us, we never once had to set our alarm clock.  Without fail, Jesse was giving us slobbery kisses and nips at 6:15 every morning. She always knew when we were hurting or upset, and would lovingly bring us one of her toys to make it all better.  When Chuck had surgery on his foot, rather than the usual thundering up and down the stairs, she slowly took each step with him or sat there quietly watching as he made his way.  If one of us stayed up too late or slept on the couch Jesse would give us a bark or paw to let us know of her concern and wasn’t happy until we were in our proper places.  She was a big happy girl who loved riding “shotgun” in her truck; enjoyed sneaking coffee, beer and the occasional slice of pizza.  Once we woke to discover that during the night a “ghost” had placed perfectly clean forks, knives and a spatula in Jesse’s bed.  Whenever one of us was away and retuned home, we were always greeted by Jesse with her happy smile and her full body tail wag. Sadly, our Jesse passed over the Rainbow Bridge following surgery to remove an intestinal blockage.
We miss our big girl terribly.

~The Jernigans~

It all started when MHWCR called me and asked if I would be interested in fostering this sweet guy named “Winston” to keep him from being euthanized at the shelter two days later. Winston had a family before for pretty much his whole life, but they couldn’t afford to care for his medical condition and gave him to the shelter. So I talked it over with my husband and children and we all agreed to foster Winston until he was found a more permanent foster home. When I first saw him I thought I was going to have to go get a saddle to ride him home! Winston was 106lbs. Most of his weight was due to his hypothyroidism, but that didn’t discourage me from wanting to bring this guy home so our family could help him get better. So, I went to the vet right away that day to get his medication as I didn’t want to wait for him to start his treatment. Then, I went to a pet store to buy him special “hypoallergenic” food, and of course chewy toys, treats, leash, and so on!!! While he was in the car I had a blanket for him to lay on. I initially thought he was going to chew it into pieces, but turns out, he just wanted the blanket to suckle on. 

Our family soon learned after having him in our home, this is what made Winston feel secure. So every blanket we brought out he would go after and try to take from us. Winston came into our home that day, and it felt like he had already been a part of our family and we already knew he was the one we wanted to adopt. He was so well behaved and had such an easy going temperament. He got along well with our Vizsla Kayden and they became friends. We gave him a “doggie bath” so he could smell better. His color was a beautiful dark blue, and it showed when we took him outside. Everywhere we took Winston, we got compliments on how beautiful he was. Although we only had Winston for 5 days, he touched our family very much and we feel he was brought to us, so that we could provide him with the love & happiness he needed before his passing. Winston had a condition that was inevitably going to put him through a life of misery. So, he was put to rest on Tuesday, September 16, 2008. We miss him, but know that he is no longer in any kind of pain or suffering. To some the date of 9/11 will be a day of sadness, but for us that is a day of joy, as that is the day “Winston” came into our lives. Thank You Weimaraner Rescue for giving us that gift!

~Lucilla Giron and Family~

Snickers came to us in a very unconventional way for a rescue. He was very much loved by his previous owners but he outgrew their very small home. They contacted the Weimaraner rescue director to put him up for adoption. I happened to run in to the director at lunch the very next day and she proceeded to tell me about this wonderfully trained and very handsome dog named Snickers. He seemed too good to be true and a perfect match for our 1 year old Weim, Aspen. We went to meet him that very night and that very night he came home to be a part of our family for the next 11 years.

He was so smart, so handsome, such a lover. He loved swimming, hiking and most of all just being our companion. He loved every day he was with us and we did the same in return. He was diagnosed with bone cancer in January of 2008 and we lost him to the disease 5 weeks later. Those 5 weeks we had with him were such a blessing. You don’t realize what you have in a dog until you are delivered the devastating news that they will only be around a bit longer. We cherished our days with him. We fed him whatever he wanted. We petted him even longer than usual. We loved him deeper than imaginable.

Snickers can never be replaced. He was a one of kind. You could see his soul through his eyes. I know now that when the day comes for us to pass, he will be waiting there with his Kong ready to run. He was definitely not too good to be true…he was our dog Snickers.

An old boyfriend and I picked Finley from two litters of Weim puppies in May 1997. He was the smallest puppy, but he was the one because he had a white "special spot" on his chest. After I broke up with the boyfriend, the one thing I fought for was Finley. I only had to pay the boyfriend for his half of the cost of Finley so he could get his own puppy. I would have paid ten times that amount to keep Fins.

Finley was a constant companion, and he was with me through the best of times and the worst of times. When I was upset, he would comfort me by laying his head on my lap and looking up with me with pure adoration. He was by my side, comforting me, when I was on bed rest for 3 months with a difficult pregnancy. When I was happy about something, he would run around the house celebrating with exuberance as only a Weim can do, knocking over end tables and running into chairs. When I brought my infant son home from the hospital in 2004, he greeted him as a member of the pack, with love and excitement, not an ounce of jealousy.

Finley was a true Weimaraner through and through. He was a champion counter surfer, he loved sleeping on the leather couch, and he inhaled his food so quickly that I was often confused about whether or not I had actually fed him. He knew how to play hide and seek, and he loved to show me his treasures, like a live possum or a half-eaten rabbit he’d caught in the back yard.

I married my husband in 2002 and became an instant mom to two children (then 8 and 10) who had lost their biological mother. Initially, I thought that Finley would have a hard time adjusting. True to his nature, not only did he embrace the entire new family, the children adored and loved him. They fought over whose turn it was to have Finley sleep in their bed. They gave Finley "spa days" where he would be lavished with attention in the bathtub. They dressed him up in bikinis and assorted outfits. Finley always looked slightly humiliated, but I knew he really adored the attention. My husband often complained about Finley’s behavior; I explained, "He’s a Weimaraner." I’m sure there were times when he wondered why I had fought for Finley, but in the end, my husband cried and cried when Finley died.

I watched as Finley suffered a stroke on November 20, 2007. He was in the hospital for over a week, unable to bark or walk. He still had the will to live so I brought him home and nursed him, taking him to physical therapy and waking up at night to put on his harness and taking him out to the back yard. He couldn’t bark, he couldn’t clean himself, and he couldn’t walk. Over time, Finley was able to walk in circles (like a car at Daytona 500) and bark when he was extremely excited, but he lost his Weimaraner spark. I would have been honored to keep Finley in whatever condition he was in, but he stopped eating and wouldn’t get off of the couch. Blood work showed that he was in renal failure, and his blood pressure and liver enzymes had increased again, despite medication.

The day I helped Finley over the Rainbow Bridge, he ate a favorite meal (rice and hamburger with pancakes for a snack), went for a walk in the spot where I am going to sprinkle his ashes and was constantly hugged and pet by all of the members of the family. I was by his side when he crossed to the other side. True to his nature, he didn’t complain or whimper. I am fortunate that he was mine; I hope I was deserving of him.

Cojo was surrendered to an animal shelter. The animal shelter had Cojo up for adoption, but because she was surrendered at 51 pounds, her immune system could not help her fight the bugs at the shelter. The shelter asked rescue to help Cojo. A wonderful volunteer family picked Cojo up a few days before Christmas. Her health deteriorated quickly and her pnemonia was so severe, her only hope would be to have a portion of her lung removed. We thought a lot about what was right for Cojo, so the rescue committee decided to let Cojo go over the Rainbow Bridge. Her foster home was with her when she passed. While it was very hard for them, it was the best thing for Cojo. Because of the foster home, Cojo got to spend a couple of days in a loving home and she did not have to die in the shelter.