What sad news! Courtland died yesterday of cardiac arrest. It was very sudden. She was having difficulty breathing and was rushed to the emergency vet where she was put on oxygen. Her breathing was quite labored. Her heart stopped beating when she was being taken out of the cage to see her foster mom. The only consolation we can all take is that this little dog had a few great days with some wonderful people. Over the weekend, her paws touched grass and she even ran after a bunny. Best of all, she slept in bed with her foster mom and dad! She smiled and wagged her tail constantly. We did the best we could for her and she didn’t disappoint for one minute. BACKGROUND: Courtland, a 5 year old female, was rescued from a West Georgia shelter several weeks ago. She had been picked up as a stray, with two newborn puppies who did not live long once they reached the shelter. When we found Courtland she was soaking wet, lying on the floor of a concrete run which had recently been hosed down. She tried really hard to look like a Golden Retriever so we took her out and promised her things would get better. While at the Vet it was noticed she was having a little trouble breathing. At first it was thought she had a defect in her diaphram but then that was ruled out. She had fluid in her chest which was removed and she began breathing better. But the fluid came back and it was feared she had a tumor on her heart so we took her to a specialist in Cardiology who did tests but found nothing wrong with her heart. Unfortunately, though the source cannot be located, it appears that Courtland has some type of Cancer. She is requiring removal of the fluid about every two weeks but still she remains lively and friendly and appears so happy and interested in everything. So now we can’t make her better in the sense of curing her illness but we can’t give her up just now when she is having such a good time compared to what it was like before we found her. We wanted Courtland to have the opportunity to have some time in a home and not have to live at the Vet clinic . Although she has great care, she needed a chance to sit on someone’s lap and sleep on their bed and play in the grass. She will still need to periodically go back to the Vet to have the fluid removed to keep her comfortable but we were looking for someone out there that could give this little girl some wonderful days as a permanant foster family. Courtland’s dream came true when a wonderful couple who had just lost their golden to cancer saw Courtland’s story. They felt their beloved Scout somehow sent Courtland to them. Well, Courtland is home and we hear she is rolling around on the carpet with a big smile on her face! We know that whatever time this little girl has left, she will be loved and spoiled rotten — something she so deserves! Thank you Beverly and Doug.