We had a super packed shelter visit this weekend with multiple operations executed by different members of the team, and oh was it so successful!

The biggest and most complicated mission was with our sweet Lassie girl. Lassie is a 13 year old German Shepard mix that was recently dumped at the shelter by her lifelong owners. We spoke a bit about this in our previous post, but to recap: they noticed she was looking ill, dropped her off at the shelter, requested that we fix her and wanted to pick her up once she was better. First of all, the shelter has no onsite vet. Second, two teams of volunteers, Gatalunya and Rescue Me, pay for the vast majority of vet bills, medicines, and treatment for all of the animals. This means that not only is Lassie all of a sudden our responsibility, but that we have to find the resources to cover all medical expenses for her ourselves. In addition, under no circumstances would we ever return her to the neglected life she had before. After numerous vet visits, it turns out that Lassie has Pyometra, a condition that due to her not being spayed, her uterus has become infected. This usually results in death at a dog her age. But the trouble does not stop there. Lassie is also sick with numerous tumors and growths that protrude from her body. Some are rubbed raw and others are covered with fur. Her back legs are giving out and she has difficulty walking upstairs. But once we start with a dog, we refuse to stop. So here we go, Lassie girl! Let’s get you better.

It started last week with Manuela and the Rescue Me team working on vet visits. They got her set up on a number of meds to fight the infection and relieve her pain. Our team coordinated on finding her a home, which ended up being with our very own Sarah and her partner Alina! Together with Morgan and a Matt, they will share the responsibility of caring for her and making sure she is loved in what could be her final months.

Although she has only been with the shelter a short time, her walk out was an emotional one. Without looking back, she walked into her new life of love and happiness like a fearless warrior. Her first stop was to a groomer where she had a spa day! Thank you to Núria Llora-Animal Art for taking care of her with chemical free scrubs for elderly and sensitive dogs. She looks incredible! She walked along Passeig de Gràcia feeling like a million bucks!

Her foster home is a very special environment for her. Alina is an energy healing specialist and will be working on Lassie with techniques meant to strengthen her spirit and encourage healing. She is also a professional massage therapist, so we know she will be getting good pets all the time! We are very excited for this opportunity for Lassie and can’t wait to see the progress she makes on her recovery! Thank you to Sarah and Alina for opening up your hearts and homes to this sweet girl. And to Matt for hopping onboard with afternoons at his dog friendly coworking space! This team will do wonders for Lassie!

The next big mission if the day was with little Nina. Nina is a very timid cat but has become increasingly social since her cage has been emptied out. Her personality has begun to blossom and we knew that she’d do great in a quiet foster home with the time and patience to let her come into it on her own. Biggest thank you to Jî and her roommate for bringing her in under your watch. We can’t wait to see her journey progress!

Our next big mission was to bring good boy Lucas to the vet. He needed bloodwork done because he hasn’t been feeling like himself lately. His teeth are very badly infected, and one of his back legs is swollen. He’s another elerdly dog that has lived at the shelter for mostly of his life and is quite the sweetheart. He’s still looking for someone to take him out of the cold and into their home to give him the love he deserves! Imagine if he didn’t know what it’s like to be loved ever in his life. Let’s change that before it’s too late!

Elin managed the trip to the vet with Lucas as well as heading the team this week with returning volunteers. It was an all hands on deck situation, one that we will explain in a later post, but a very important and difficult job. Thank you to Elin for always going in full force.

Team member Anne was the purrfect the foster mom this weekend and stayed home to take care of Penny, who was just spayed on Friday. She’s doing great and is getting all the love and attention she can handle from Anne. Thank you for treating her like she’s one of your own!

In addition to all the adventures mentioned above, we had 2 other dogs get out this week! First was Merlot, one of the puppies that were so lovingly taken care of by Giovanna and Sebastian for wrestling, kissing, snuggling, and adventuring with these guys. We couldn’t have done it without you! Second was Duna, an elderly Golden Retriever. We are so excited for you to be loved in your new home!

All in all it was a very successful and adventure filled week at Gatalunya! We want to give a big shout out to our team member Tom, who so graciously and without any complaints played taxi driver yesterday. He swung around from appointment to appointment and pick to drop off throughout the entire day. We wouldn’t be Gatalunya without your patience and commitment to the animals, Tom, even when it comes to things like transportation. Thank you!

Stay tuned for another blog post tomorrow on some big and scary news we have received about the shelter. We’re working hard today on putting together a plan of action and will fill you all in ASAP!