Greta’s Story

This is the story of Greta, a German Shorthair Pointer that I have the privilege of caring for.  This story is told by her owner.

This is not my story, but it certainly begins with me. I was
born into a dog-less household and despite 20 years of pleading for a pup, my
effort fell on deaf ears. When I graduated college, I had a traveling job and
was never able to fill the need for a four-legged companion in my life. My next
stop was New York City, hardly the place to raise
an active dog so the opportunity was delayed further. When Jenn and I got
engaged and agreed to move west, it was the first time I knew I would have a
dog in my life; after all, Jenn came from a long family dog tradition.

Jenn and I agreed that we would get two dogs, and my first would be a puppy.
Jenn wanted me to go through that experience. We were waiting for Tyr, our
younger GSP, to enter the world when we learned about Greta. Greta came to us
through the Jackson Hole Animal Shelter and her
life prior to our adopting her was not one filled with love.

Greta

If you believe the limited documentation on Greta, today she would be at least
13 years old. The earliest records we have of her are from 2001. We adopted her
in 2006, meaning there are at least seven years unaccounted for. While we would
like to believe her first four years were happy ones, wh know the three years
prior to our adoption were down right tragic involving two owners, a foster, a
shotgun and a very benevolent veterinarian.

Despite her breed, Greta is not an optimal hunting dog. She was likely a litter
runt as evidenced by her much lower and stockier build than a standard GSP,
despite appearing to be a pure bloodlines. She has a great nose but her prey
instinct is incredible, meaning she has periods where her ability to listen are
mitigated by her desire to hunt small animals on her own. It was possibly this
combination of personality traits that led to Greta being shot and abandoned in
2004, potentially after a bad day in the field coupled with too much alcohol,
but this is merely speculation (save for the shotgun part). Luckily for Greta
her owner had wayward aim and the scared and wounded dog was able to escape
into the backwoods of Star Valley, Wyoming.

While it is unclear how long Greta lived as a stray, what is known is that a
good Samaritan scooped up the starving and wounded GSP and delivered her to a
veterinarian in Star Valley. The vet removed the majority of the buckshot from
Greta’s torso, legs and abdomen, some of the pellets remain in her today and
are readily identifiable. She was turned over to the Jackson Hole Animal
Shelter for foster and adoption. Unfortunately for Greta a scared, untrusting,
and injured dog is not a top candidate for adoption.

After a foster period during which Greta fully healed, she was finally adopted
by a local man and the team at the shelter could not have been happier.
Unfortunately, a year later that same man returned Greta proffering some
unfathomable excuse why he could not longer keep her; the shelter team was
devastated. Greta went back out on foster and waited for her luck to again
turn, but her age and circumstance continued to make her a tough case.

When Jenn found out about Greta’s situation, we immediately knew we wanted to
adopt her. We knew we were the right people to restore this dogs faith in
humanity and enable her to realize her potential. There were a number of
hurdles between our decision and the time we were able to make her part of our
family, but the wait was well worth it.

Greta’s transformation was slow and involved a lot of time, love and patience,
but today she is one of the most remarkable dogs anyone has ever met. Most
people put her age at 7 – 8 based on her appearance, strength and energy. In
short everyone loves Greta, and in turn Greta loves everyone. The addition of
Tyr was of great value to Greta, as Tyr had only experienced love all her life.
Tyr taught Greta how to play, manipulate her owners into feeding her more (I
didn’t say it was all good), and gave her a partner to chase furry rodents
with. With a partner in crime, so to speak, Greta reached even greater heights.

Tyr & Greta

I can’t image our lives without Greta and making her happy is one of the
greatest achievements of our lives to date.

Guest Post: Pet Insurance

This guest post comes from Heather Kalinowski, a pet lover and internet journalist at pet insurance company Trupanion.

No one wants to think of their beloved dog or cat getting sick or injured. We like to think we can protect them from everything that can cause them harm. I was like that. I prided myself on taking extra special care of my dog, keeping her out of danger, making sure she was up to date on all her vaccinations, and never allowing her to get in contact with a sick dog. I even carried her in a dog sling when there were a lot of people around, or when there were potential dangers on the ground.

But unfortuantely, I learned that we can’t protect our pets from everything. My dog ended up developing an auto-immune disorder, which is something I never could have protected her from, never could have predicted, never could have added to a list of ‘possible dangers to keep her away from’. She developed it not because of anything I did or didn’t do – or anything she did. It just happened based on heredity and genetics. And diagnosis and treatment was costly. Extremely costly - in the thousands of dollars.

I shed a lot of tears and lost a lot of sleep during those months she was in and out of the hospital. But luckily, I had pet insurance so I was able to make all my decisions based on what was best for her, not what I could actually afford at the time. We never want to have to put a price on our pets’ lives, and because I had pet insurance, I didn’t have to. And now my sweet little pup is doing well.

Now, it’s true that pet insurance only becomes financially beneficial if something actually happens to your pet. I have a second dog who I have insured as well, and (knock on wood) I haven’t had to submit a claim yet. But just as with human insurance, while you can’t predict if you’re ever going to need it, you don’t want to be caught without it when you do.

Here are some common claims we see here at Trupanion, and the costs associated with each:

1. Patellar Luxation – A condition that occurs when the kneecap moves in and out of place, which can cause lameness. Cost: $600 – $2,000+
2. Glaucoma - Just like with humans, this is an eye condition in which excessive fluid buildup causes increased pressure which may damage the optic nerve and lead to progressive loss of vision. Cost: $1,400 – $3,000
3. Ingestion of a Foreign Body – Our furry friends are curious and like to eat things they shouldn’t be eating. Sometimes this can require surgery. Cost: $2,000 – $3,000
4. Portacaval Shunt – A condition in which the embryonic blood vessel in the liver fails to go away after the puppy or kitten is born. As a result, blood bypasses the liver and never gets detoxified. This causes a litany of issues, including neurological symptoms. Cost: $6,000 – $7,000
5. Seizures - Seizures can be caused by a number of issues, including epilepsy, brain tumors, and portacaval shunts. Cost: $1,000 – $2,000

Pet insurance can give you peace of mind if your beloved pet develops any of these conditions, and more. And remember that if you only invest in pet insurance after a pet becomes sick or injured, it’s too late to receive reimbursement for that particular condition. Invest early to ensure that you are covered for any and all future health issues.

What caused your most expensive trip to the vet?