Lexi’s Holiday Wish

Lexi has 12 wishes this holiday season. Can you guess what her biggest wish is this year?

Special thanks to our volunteer Amy who helped us to put this video together!!

Song credit: “The 12 Days of Christmas”

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Dog Toy Safety

“That was a picture two days later; [his tongue] was probably 4x as big the day before. The picture shows what it looked like for about four days straight and we couldn’t get it to go down. It took IV feedings, antibiotics, and pain killers to get it to go down. He fought to live and I feel it shows the courage of dogs.” – Madagan’s adopter

Recently this dog adopted from BHS required emergency veterinary care because he got his tongue stuck in a dog toy. Unfortunately, this type circumstance is more common than most people realize. Make sure you buy toys made of sturdy materials and that there are no loose pieces that could cause choking. The toys must be size-appropriate for the breed. Also check that the toys are durable enough for your dog’s level of chewing. If you notice him tearing through his current toys, it is time to discard them and upgrade to a more sturdy toy (dense hard rubber or very hard plastic are good materials).

It is very important for the toy to either have no holes or multiple holes. The problem with a toy with just one hole is that it can create a vacuum. If the dog gets his tongue stuck inside, the air has nowhere to escape, and it can really hurt the dog.

This is what happened to poor Madagan (pictured above). The toy was removed but his tongue immediately swelled up to the point that it was dangerous. He could not eat or function normally for days. Now he is recovering, but this scenario proves that it’s very important for owners to monitor the condition of their dog’s toys daily. The same can be said for rawhide or anything the dog chews – when there are pieces small enough for the dog to try to swallow, it’s time to replace it.

We hope that this unfortunate story helps to keep other dogs safe. A special thanks to Maddy’s owners; we are all so sorry for what happened but we appreciate the feedback and we’re relieved that he’s on the road to recovery!

A big thank-you to our groomers!

Shelties are known for their beautiful long coats; however keeping them beautiful requires regular grooming. Recently we took in two Shelties who were overdue for their bathing, brushing, nail trims, and ear cleaning. We would like to thank Kathy from Pretty Paws for grooming Dallas! He looks stunning and we have received many compliments. We’d also like to thank Sondra from Windy Mountain Farm for her time in grooming Big John! He looks like a completely different dog and we have recieved many compliments on him as well.

 

 

 

 

Dallas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Big John

 

 

 

 

 

If you’re interested in adoption, please contact the kennel staff at 447-7878 ext. 26.

Congratulations, Ortiz!!!

We are very excited to announce that Ortiz has been adopted!! He smiled ear to ear yesterday as he left for his forever home with his excited family. This Adopt-a-Bull had been residing at the Berkshire Humane Society since January. A huge thanks to everyone involved with his training and care during he past few months – you helped to make a wonderful dog even more lovable!

Chopper’s Guide To Manliness

Note: Chopper has been adopted, thanks to the following video!!

We found this video while cleaning out Chopper’s kennel this morning…

Chopper is available for adoption at Berkshire Humane Society.
Stop by and visit or give the kennel a call for more information!  413-447-7878 ext. 26

Congratulations, Wonka!

Congratulations to Wonka, our sweet Pit Bull gentleman who was adopted last week!

Wonka had been at Berkshire Humane since January.

Happy tails to Wonka and his new family 🙂

Pup Pals

We strive to keep our dogs emotionally and physically healthy during their stays at the shelter.

Regular exercise, play, training, enrichments, and socialization all help keep them feeling their best.

And what better way to get socialization and exercise than with play?!

Adoptable dogs Chopper and Sophie go for walks together and have regular play sessions.  They’re doing quite well, and the staff even think they could go home together! (With our Buddy Program, one would go home for 50% off their adoption fee.)

Check out the video of them below!

Pup Pics

Troy, a dog up for adoption. Photo by Devon Overbaugh

Have you noticed the snazzy photos of our dogs on the adoption pages? 

Devon Overbaugh has been volunteering her time to take photos of our adoptable pups!  Many, many thanks, woofs, and happy wags to her for this HUGE help!