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Saving Sadie - Oregon Basset Hound Rescue

How much would you give to save your pet? What about someone else’s? Oregon Basset Hound Rescue (OBHR) sees no difference between the two. Founded in 1999, OBHR is supported by volunteers who help rehome around sixty basset hounds a year. These volunteers help find foster or adoptive families and are guided by a few dedicated board members.

A Desperate Call

Sadie at home

The organization was Diana Zwicker’s last resort when she turned to them in 2006 to help her basset, Sadie. At one year old Sadie was diagnosed with an adrenal disorder, known commonly as Addison’s disease, in 2004. Addison’s affects the production of steroid hormones and can lead to crises if not closely monitored and medicated. Zwicker and Sadie received more tough news when they learned she also suffered from hypothyroidism. “You have to keep an eye on it all the time; notice their ups and downs,” Zwicker says about Sadie’s care which costs approximately $150 each month.    

As the economy began to turn down, Sadie’s medical bills began piling up and Zwicker could no longer afford to keep her healthy. When OBHR learned of the situation they immediately placed Sadie in their foster program and began paying for her medicine. Unfortunately, this problem is not uncommon. Nancy Vanis, board member of OBHR, reports “bassets are prone to Addison’s... they are known to be hit by it.” Sadie has had a great response to both treatments. At one point she tipped the scales at 71 pounds, but as soon as her thyroid was regulated Zwicker was able to slim her down to 48. She gets two pills a day, exactly 12 hours apart with each of her meals.

Sadie's Future With Addison's

If an owner doesn’t understand the disease and how regimented the medicine has to be it can be deadly for the dog. OBHR tried to adopt Sadie out to a new home which was looking for a companion for their male basset. Within one week Sadie was experiencing Addison’s related complications because her adopted family didn’t stay on top of the situation.     

   

So for now Sadie, 9 years old, stays with her owner who knows her every mood and is adamant about her medicine. OBHR still pays to keep the medicine cabinets full and Sadie healthy and happy. They hope to one day find a donor to cover the remainder of her bills, but until then they do as much as they can.

Help OBHR Help Hounds

A limboing basset at the Games 2011

Fundraisers like the Oregon Basset Hound Games (pictured), a yearly event showcasing the best bassets have to offer, and adoption fees make up the majority of funds for OBHR. Most of the dogs they receive are relinquished by their owners because they didn’t understand the breed or don’t have time for the dog.  Others they pull out of shelters which are so overcrowded, many dogs are euthanized simply because there is no room.  

If you would like to help please visit their website, www.oregonbassethoundrescue.com, for more information.

Check Out My First Published Piece

No Fairy Tales at Bedtime
By Kimberlee Adolph

Published by Yahoo! Associated Content

Collateral Damage in State of Play

Collateral damage. That’s how Rep. Stephen Collins refers to the civilians killed in the name of war in State of Play. Unfortunately the real collateral damage in this film is journalism’s ethics. Conflicts of interest, obstruction of justice, gathering information under false pretenses, and scare tactics are all issues raised by Russel Crowe’s character, Cal McAfferty- journalist for the Washington Globe.

credits: IMDB

This film, released in 2009, follows the trail of McAfferty as he tracks the killer of four people in the streets of Washington, DC. Unfortunately that path leads him to the doorstep of his former college roommate, Collins (played by Ben Affleck). From the moment this connection is made fellow journalists gravitate to McAfferty for inside information and access to its biggest player. While he shuns their questions, he is digging for a story of his own.

In McAfferty’s efforts to protect the reputation of his friend and a major public figure, he crosses more lines than he toes. Not only does McAfferty begin to craft a story to take the spotlight off of Collins, but he drags colleague Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) down a dangerous trail. Giving in to his methods of gathering information, she lies to potential sources regarding her intentions of speaking to them.

This film takes on the task of examining how far one should go to get a story. While it’s debatable, the Globe’s withholding of evidence from the police may very well have cost two people their lives. Had the killer been apprehended earlier in the case, he may not have killed the witness to his first murder nor would the police have needed to use lethal force to save McAfferty’s life. Conflicts of interest are everywhere in all the personal relationships intertwined in this story and they lead McAfferty to the wrong conclusion. He thinks he is ahead of the story when his bias has actually caused him to almost miss the real man pulling the strings.

The Society of Professional Journalists calls on each reporter to always question sources’ motives before promising anonymity. This is one of the major errors in McAfferty and Frye’s reporting. It never occurs to them what Collins’ motives or stakes may be in this case. Because they begin their search for answers with the goal of clearing the Congressman’s name they fail to consider he may be behind all the problems.

The film is slow to begin as it sets up the relationships, but takes off once the scandals begin to develop. While it is entertaining and reveals twists in the story only at the last possible moment, it does have collateral damage. A viewer can be left with an even larger distrust for the media and journalists themselves. Too many rules are broken to justify the outcome of this story. Pressure does not mean an editor should overlook illegal taping or allow them to leave a reporter on a case when the conflicts of interest are so glaring.

How far do you think one should go in the name of justice? How far does one have to go before collateral damage becomes a primary target?