Buttercup Wants YOUR Help!
This post is a little off subject, but maybe you can help - or know someone that can.
The below email arrived in my inbox today and I just had to do something about it. You’ll see Rob’s response to Teresa’s email below her email that went out to quite a few folks in the Houston area…
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Teresa’s Email:
Subject: [Lone Star Shih Tzu Lhasa Apso Rescue NEWS] HELP!! WE’RE DROWNING IN SHIH TZU AND LHASAS
From: Teresa
Hello and welcome to the newsletter for Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue. You can read these stories and keep up with what is happening on our BLOG.
Ok, we know it gets very rainy in Houston in the Spring, but darn it, it’s not supposed to rain DOGS!!!
I just don’t know what to do right now. Every day, we’re getting emails and calls about dogs in need. Shelter dogs, owner turn ins, strays, everywhere there are needy shih tzu and lhasa apsos.
I just added them all up and since MAY 1, we’ve been asked to take in THIRTY NINE, yes THIRTY NINE, yes, I said 39, shih tzu and lhasas. I am just so depressed about this, we absolutely cannot save all of these dogs. But, with your help, we will try to save some.
Now, some of them were adopted from the shelters and we’ve taken them off the list. Thankfully, some have been picked up by other rescues, and we’ve taken them off the list. We’ve also told owners trying to surrender their dogs that we really need them to hold off for a month or so - we absolutely must focus on the ones in the shelters who have only days left. I must extend huge thanks to the local shelters who are bending over backward to hold dogs for 5-8-10 days longer than normal for us. THANK YOU THANK YOU.
But, we desperately need donations for the vetting for any dog we take in AND, since we have absolutely no foster space available, we will have to board them for at least four weeks. I cannot even say which ones we will be able to save, but we will save them one at a time as we get donations. We have run up some horrendous bills in this past month - much of it was not even for extraordinarily large stuff (like Charo), it was smaller stuff, like $450 for Kula Park’s physical therapy and splint, $175 for a Cushings test for Reyna Oak (thankfully negative), another $325 scheduled for an ultrasound for her and much more. We paid over $17,000 in vet bills just in the month of April - I think that is our largest month to ! date. Can you believe this?
So, we’re totally tapped out - we’ve used up all of our adoption fees for this past month, which we usually use for the “normal” stuff like ear infections, eye infections, eye drops, etc. We just cannot take in any more dogs until we have the funds to vet them and get them healthy AND we have to have a place for them. Normal vetting, the way we do it, which includes bloodwork, dentals, shots, and other diagnostics, average $370 per dog which is over $100 more than our average adoption fee.
But, the floodgates are wide open and we need help to be able to save at least a few more of these dogs.
We desperately need foster homes - but it does take two - three weeks to get a foster application approved, so we’re looking for sponsors right now - sponsors to cover their vet bills and boarding until we can get them into a foster home. HELP!! We cannot promise which ones we can save - we have alerted all reputable rescues that we know throughout the US and are trying to arrange for some of them to take a few after they get vetted. We will prioitize based on need.
If you can help with this, please DONATE HERE. Or to send a check go HERE and indicate “May 2007 Intake Sponsorship.”
If you want to see the pictures of the little dogs, please click here.
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Here is Buttercup & Rob’s response to everyone:
Subject: RE: [Lone Star Shih Tzu Lhasa Apso Rescue NEWS] HELP!! WE’RE DROWNING IN SHIH TZU AND LHASAS
From: Buttercup and Rob
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Subject: RE: [Lone_Star_Shih_Tzu_Lhasa_Apso_Rescue_NEWS] HELP!! WE’RE DROWNING IN SHIH TZU AND LHASAS
From: Buttercup and Rob
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Hello everyone,
For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Buttercup and I’ve asked my daddy to attach a couple of photos of me in case we’ve never met. 
I’m sorry to bother all of you, but my grandmother, Anna sent the email below to my mommy and daddy. They then showed me the email and photos of all of my friends and it made me very sad.
You see, a few years ago I was abused. The people who owned me treated me very badly. They let my hair get too long and it became all matted.
I thought that this was how my life was always going to be.
I would stay up all night crying and praying for something good to happen to me. I wanted nothing more than a nice clean place to sleep, food, and most of all… I wanted someone to love me.Although I’m just a little dog, I had so much love to give. I couldn’t understand why the people who owned me would hurt me. I remember one time they hit me and really hurt my back. In fact, it was because of that that when I stand up my back legs shake still to this day. But don’t worry it doesn’t hurt anymore. J
Anyways, as time went on, I started to get really scared. I knew that my little body wouldn’t be able to take much more abuse. I became very sick and I had blood in my urine. I can honestly say that I had given up on my dream to one day find someone who would love me and take care of me. If only they knew how much love I had to give…
But thankfully one day my prayers were answered. Because I was so sick, I don’t remember much, but I know that someone saved me from the horrible place I was living in New Orleans. The next thing I knew, I was brought to Houston to Teresa at the Lone Star Shih Tzu Rescue and Lhasa Apso Rescue.
After a few weeks, I was feeling much better. I gained back some weight, my fur coat wasn’t dirty and matted any more, and I was starting to get back on my feet again.
Even though I was now eating good food, I had made new friends, and I was being taken care of and nursed back to health, all of which I am forever so thankful for… something was missing. I still had so much love to give – and all I wanted in life is for someone to love me back. Every night I would say a little prayer that someone would come pick me up and take me home. I’ve never had a home and only heard about it from my friends.
I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to have someone love me, take care of me, take me for walks, rub my belly, and take me on trips.
And on one sunny day… my prayers were answered.
I remember when Rob and Kristin walked into Teresa’s house, I knew right away that they were the one’s that I wanted to go home with. When Kristin first picked me up and I looked into her eyes, I immediately felt safe and felt a love I had never felt before.While Kristin and Rob talked to Teresa, I played and ran around and then let them rub my belly to show them that I really love them.
And I even gave Rob a kiss on his hand. 
Kristin and Rob brought me home and I can’t tell you how much my life has changed. They love me so much and I love them with all of my heart. In fact, my doctors were shocked that the heart murmur that I had disappeared. He told Rob and Kristin that he had never seen that happen before and didn’t know how it was possible. I do. It’s because I can finally love and be loved. J 
They give me new toys almost every week and at last count I have 23 toys.I also have four comfortable beds and I sleep on a big feather down comforter at night. I eat the best food and have my very own backyard. I live the most incredible life thanks to my mommy and daddy. And I owe it all to Teresa for saving me and nursing me back to health.
Thank you so much! Now the reason why I’m telling you all of this is because I want to do everything that I can to help my friend’s out. My mommy and me cried when we saw all of the pictures that were sent out. I really want all of my friends to have the same life that I now have. And most of all, I want them to be loved by a family who adopts them.
I’m just a little dog and I really can’t do too much to help them, so I asked my daddy to help me write this email in hopes that you could either adopt one of my friends and love them or donate money to help feed and save more of my friends.
Now I don’t have much money because I used most of it to buy a new toy that I’ve wanted for a long time, so I asked my daddy to help. And he said OK! My daddy just sent Teresa $200.00 through PayPal to help her pay for the hospital bills so my friends can get better and be adopted sooner.
You should think about adopting one of us… really!
I’m ½ Lhasa Apso and ½ Shih Tzu and I can promise you that we make the best pets in the world. We don’t know why some bad people abuse us because all we want in life is to love and be loved. We’ll make you so happy and we’ll always try out best to put a smile on your face each and every day.I’m begging you to please do something to help out my friends.
I’m living proof that your help not only changes the lives of all of my doggy friends, but you’ll also change the lives of the families who adopt us.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope you really consider adopting one of my friends or donating some money. They really need help right now and if we all do what we can, I know it will make a big difference out there.
Thanks again. Your friend,
Buttercup
P.S… My mommy doesn’t even know that my daddy and I did this. I just ran downstairs and saw that she was on PayPal donating money too. Wow, I’m good. J Now let’s see if I can convince them to take me for a little walk right now. It looks beautiful outside!
To make a donation or to see a list of my friends that are available to take home, go to: http://www.lonestarshihtzurescue.com/