COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL December 9, 2015
7A
S URVEY
Continued from page 1A
Raining Meatballs?
D
ecember is miracle
month for Pet Tips ‘n’
Tales! Here is your fi rst story
to enjoy!
“Meatball is a mystery,” said
Debra. “He arrived with a valu-
able lesson, ‘Be careful what
you wish for, you may get it,
right away, and it may come
with some challenges!’ A year
ago, on a Friday night, my hus-
band, Adam, and I decided it was
time for our Pit Bull, Elsa Mae,
to have a little brother. Adam
had always wanted an English
bulldog. There are many good
and loving animals in shelters
that need homes. So we spent
the weekend online, unsuccess-
fully looking to rescue one.
Monday morning, I arrived at
work (out in the middle of the
woods) and sitting on the porch
was a fi lthy, tan and white, about
three-year-old English bulldog!
I bent down to pet him and the
male dog rolled over on his back
for me to rub his tummy. I told
him he was a ‘little meatball’.
My boss said the collarless
dog had appeared that morn-
ing and none of his staff or his
neighbors recognized it.
I said, ‘If he is here at the end
of the day, I will take him to a
vet and see if he has a micro
chip.’ The whole day was sur-
real because at the end of it the
‘surprise’ dog was still waiting
on the porch, as if he knew he
was mine and I just needed time
to fi gure it out. After all, I had
prayed him into my existence!
We pulled into our driveway
and I called to my husband,
‘Come and meet someone!’
I was anticipating seeing his
face! What are the chances of a
stray rare breed dog showing up
after we had spent the weekend
searching for — one in a mil-
lion! That is what Meatball is
— one in a million.
Our veterinarian confi rmed
that Meatball was chipped but
NEVER registered. What good
is a chip without ID to confi rm
its origin?
The vet sent a “found” bul-
letin to other veterinarians. We
posted the dog on Craigslist,
shelters and a bulldog rescue. If
someone was looking for him,
we made it easy to fi nd him.
After a few months, a friend
saw a sign at a grocery store
matching our little guy’s de-
scription. Adam bravely phoned
the number, left a message tell-
ing them we had their dog and
that he was loved. They never
called. It was a great relief. We
love Meatball. The thought of
losing him was devastating. We
had his microchip registered to
us because we did not want to
take a chance that he would dis-
appear from our lives.
Meatball had a nasty eye in-
fection. Could the threat of his
impending vet bills led to his
abandonment? Or was he se-
verely neglected? His past re-
mains a mystery.
In the meantime, Elsa and
Meatball became inseparable,
snuggling with each other. He
loves his big sister and does
The Cottage Grove Lions Club
will be offering wonderful See’s
products to benefit their sight &
hearing projects in our community.
Our sales trailer will be located in the Pinnocchio’s Pizza parking
lot on Main Street.
Our hours will be 10:00 A.M. until 6:00 P.M. through
Christmas Eve. NOW ACCEPTING Credit & Debit Cards
Shop early…..stock will be limited!
If your business would like to place a
large order, please contact Alan Payment
of the Cottage Grove Lions Club
at 767-8154.
G U I D E
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estaurant
Thank You in advance for your support!!!!!
Courtesy Photo
Adam cuddles Elsa Mae, and Debra shows off Meatball
as they explain their one-in-a-million chance of fi nding
Meatball! It was as magical as if he’d been dropped out
of the sky!
whatever she does, just like
any little brother. On walks, he
speeds up to catch up with her
and she slows down so he can.
His big face wrinkles give him
such a darn cute look, but they
also caused him discomfort.
His eyelashes rolled inward and
scratched his eyeballs making
them cloudy and infected. We
also discovered the painful fact
that his eyes don’t produce tears.
We drop artifi cial tears into his
eyes three times a day for his re-
lief and comfort. I can’t believe
that breeders continue breeding
dogs that create this pain for
puppies and a fi nancial struggle
for their adopters.
Three vets suggested that
Meatball receive entropian sur-
gery, a facelift where excess skin
is removed from around his eyes
so he can keep them open and
his eye lashes turned out. Also
suggested was having his nos-
trils enlarged in hopes that he
could breath better. Meatball
had surgery and the top nose
wrinkle was removed because
it was pushing up on his eyes
and down on his nose, closing
off his nostrils so he couldn’t
breathe and smell.
The fi rst night after surgery
I was concerned. It sounded
like he wasn’t breathing right.
We couldn’t hear his proverbial
snoring. The surgery was such
a success that he was breathing
better than ever and his eyes
now make tears!
Meatball is a mama’s boy. No
other creature has ever made me
feel so appreciated. He loves
his Poppa and sleeps on the bed
between our heads. One of his
most endearing qualities is that
he appreciates everything - even
the things he doesn’t like, such
as baths and medicated eye
drops. Yes, he squirms, huffs
and puffs while he is experi-
encing them, but as soon as it’s
done he snuggles and loves.
He fi ts perfectly into our fam-
ily and we couldn’t imagine
life without our little Meatball.
His arrival was reminiscent of
watching a miracle manifest.
“Clearly Cottage Grove resi-
dents are interested in having a
healthier community,” said Tom
Wheeler, executive director of
South Lane Mental Health, a Be
Your Best partner. “The survey
is validation of what many of us
in the social services and health
sectors already know — that we
have some critical issues that
need to be addressed, includ-
ing reducing drug and alcohol
abuse and increasing opportuni-
ties for better-paying and more
meaningful jobs here in Cottage
Grove.”
The younger sample was
less optimistic about Cottage
Grove’s state of wellbeing com-
pared to the older individuals
polled. In the phone survey, 64
percent of respondents agreed
with the statement “I think Cot-
tage Grove is a healthy vibrant
community” while less than half,
48 percent, of on-line/in-person
survey respondents agreed with
the statement.
The majorities of both groups
felt Cottage Grove should be-
come a more healthy and vibrant
community, but the younger
people agreed more strongly
with this sentiment.
According to the survey re-
port, Be Your Best aims to identi-
fy how Cottage Grove describes
a healthy, vibrant community,
then determine what steps lo-
cals are taking (or could take) to
foster their own well-being. The
survey represents a partnership
between United Way of Lane
County and a group composed
of local stakeholders and agen-
cies dedicated to local health.
“Although the challenges that
the sample identifi ed, like un-
employment and lack of fam-
ily-wage jobs, cannot be solved
by Be Your Best Cottage Grove,
there are many opportunities
where Be Your Best Cottage
Grove can help the community
maintain their strong sense of
civic pride and help the com-
munity work together toward a
common goal,” the report stat-
ed.
Everyone Can Ride to Local and Metro Destinations
Providing Public, Accessible
Transportation to the Region
TIPS
“More and more people are
using natural and homeopathic
vet care,” said Debra. “Meat-
ball and his sister are on an all
raw food diet that we learned
about on Healing Paws Well-
ness Center’s website. www.
healingpawscenter.com
541.942.0456
Cottage Grove, OR 97424
www.southlanewheels.org
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