FALLING IN LOVE WITH NESTER AND FRIENDS!
Let us introduce you to the remarkable Karen, a true advocate for dog adoption and a dedicated supporter of senior dogs in need of loving homes. Karen’s heart holds a special place for these wise and gentle souls who often go unnoticed. She has poured her love and experiences into a captivating story that recounts how she fell head over heels for her furry companions. Through her narrative, Karen imparts invaluable advice to all doggy lovers who are contemplating welcoming a pug into their family. Karen’s story is not only a testament to the power of love and rescue but also serves as a guide for those considering opening their hearts to a pug’s wrinkled face and wagging tail.
The beautiful photo above is Karen with doggies, from left to right we have, TYRION, HODOR, JESSIE, NESTER AND KHALEESI and was taken by Danni P. Photography, you can find them here…. https://www.facebook.com/dannipphotography
This is Karen’s story in her own words……
The Nester & Friends page arose from my first pug Nester. He was the only pug I had since he was a puppy, and he lived to be 3 months shy of his 16th. birthday. We lost him in December of 2019. It was so extremely sad. The page goes on in his name. His name will live on forever. He was such a sweet angel. He enjoyed playing with his stuffed animal toys. He used to know which toy the lion was. He used to bark at any animals on the tv and would even bark at the animated bladder in the overactive bladder commercials lol. The original crew of Nester & Friends was Nester, Booberry, Jessie, Skylar and Mojito. Booberry was a happy go lucky black pug that I acquired when he was almost two years old. Nester was the only dog until he was 6 years old. I wasn’t planning on getting another dog. It just so happened that Booberry was at the petsitter’s house when I was dropping Nester off when I was going away for a few days. The petsitter told me that his owner could not keep him. So she ended up giving me the lovely Booberry. Funny story, it turned out Booberry’s mom was a girl I went to high school with. I renamed him. His name was Mr. Goobers when they had him. We lost Booberry in October 2018 to an aggressive jaw tumor.
BOOBERRY LIVING THE BEST LIFE EVER! – LOVING FLOATING AROUND IN THE POOL!
Jessie was a mixed breed rescue that was from the humane society. She was for my mom originally. My mom was very sick and missed her dog Snoopie that recently passed. He was 16. She wanted the companionship of another dog so badly, however she was very sick and was suffering with COPD. We ended up adopting Jessie for her with the seniors for seniors program. It was for senior citizens to adopt senior dogs for a reduced fee. Well Jessie gave my mom a wonderful last few months of her life and really brightened her days. When my mom passed we took Jessie in to live with us and she stayed with us for 8 years until we lost her. She was a sassy little girl. She was also a sweetie pie. Skylar and Mojito were the feathered friends. Skylar was a sun conure that lived to be almost 21. He was very smart and knew his colors. We had him since he was a baby. Mojito was a rescued cockatiel that came to me with almost no feathers from the humane society. After he was with us and received love he started to sing beautifully and grew his feathers. Mojito would make the sound of a police siren and other sounds. He was so funny. He lived to be 10.
NESTER, JESSIE AND BOOBERRY ARE NOW ENJOYING LIFE OVER THE BEAUTIFUL RAINBOW BRIDGE
Now – onto the current crew. It is Khalessi, Hodor and Tyrion. I named them all after Game of Throne characters and the names fit them pretty well. I adopted Tyrion in April of 2019 from Pet’s Come First Rescue in Pennsylvania. He was 10 years old when I adopted him and his prior name was Shiloh. That would make him about 14 now. He sat on my lap the entire drive home from the shelter. It was a three hour drive. He is such a sweet and gentle pug. He has a perfect curly pug tail. Tyrion has since lost his vision and hearing. Also he developed pug myelopathy which is a common condition in pugs. It is rear leg weakness. It is similar to MS in humans. So now Tyrion cannot ambulate on his own. I have adjusted Khalessi’s Walking Wheels for Tyrion by adding front wheels so that he can stand with assistance of the quad cart to eat and drink comfortably. He needs the quad cart because his front legs are not strong, whereas Khaleesi has strong front legs and only needs the cart with rear wheels.
STOLEN OUR HEARTS, KHALESSI AND HODOR!
Both Khaleesi and Tyrion are incontinent of stool. This happens with pug myelopathy because they cannot feel their back legs or their back end. So poop just happens when they are full. I also have to express both of them of their urine. This is very important so that they will not get UTI’s. It took me four months to get proficient with it with Khaleesi and she is used to the routine now. I have been expressing her for a couple years now. I just started expressing Tyrion this past year when he started exhibiting signs of myelopathy. I had to learn with him all over because he is male and his bladder is not in the same exact area as Khaleesi. Tyrion still enjoys life though. He loves his food and treats. He enjoys dental chew treats. He loves his lick mat from Fluff Trough, I put peanut butter on it and he licks it. It helps keep him stimulated when I am not home. Tyrion also loves the outdoors and likes to feel the sun on his body, He also enjoys snuggling with mommy.
TYRION WHEN HE STILL HAD HIS MOBILITY – STILL EMBRACING LIFE TO THE FULL!
Khaleesi and Hodor were adopted from Animal Resource Center (ARC) in PA. They were surrendered together to the shelter and I could not imagine separating them. Khaleesi’s prior name was Bella and Hodor’s prior name was Tank (very fitting for him because he looks and acts like a little Tank). Currently Khaleesi is about 10 years old and Hodor (aka Ho Ho ) is 12. As stated earlier, Khaleesi also has myelopathy. When I first adopted her she was extremely mobile. She was like a cat and wound climb to the top of the couch and chairs. She would jump and was extremely agile. So she has strong front legs and gets around even well without her wheels. She pulls herself with her strong front legs and can go quite fast. She is sassy and does not let anything stop her. She loves her Hodor. She loves to meet new people and ask for pets and when they stop petting her she will bark for more. She is the only current pug that plays with stuffed toys. It is cute to watch her play like a young pug. She is a beautiful little girl.
Hodor has collapsing trachea and therefore some breathing issues. He also has some arthritis and moves slow. He loves to explore though and will go over to the neighbor’s house and right up to her door to ask for treats. He LOVES to eat and will bark to alert me that it is time for breakfast or dinner. He also goes and knocks over the other pugs’ Fluff Troughs when they are done eating to see if they left any morsels of food underneath their dishes lol.. He is such sweet boy.I am an advocate of adopting and I have a soft spot for the senior dogs. They have so much love to give. I have adopted the “Adopt Don’t Shop” attitude. Their are so many homeless dogs that need love.
I would advise anyone that wants a pug to please do their homework. Pugs unfortunately develop a lot of medical problems due to their short snouts. They have breathing difficulties and cannot tolerate extreme weather temperatures. They also develop conditions that limit their mobility. There can be expensive vet visits. However, if you have the love to give them and the will to help them even when they are older then by all means help them and shower them with the love and attention they deserve. I would advise against getting one solely because they are cute. They are a big responsibility.All of my animals have been rescued except Nester (the original pug that started it all) and Skylar (my sun conure parrot). I would indeed rescue again, although I have my hands full now. That is not to say if a pug in need came along I would not help or foster. Like I said I have a soft spot for the seniors.
I found out about my current rescues online. One of my friends in our pug Facebook community saw Tyrion on a site up for adoption and sent me the link. I put in an application for him and the rest is history. I found Khaleesi and Hodor through Petfinder.com. I had an alert set up for pugs that were in need of rescue. I was originally looking for another black pug and they sent me Hodor’s pic and then when I was reading his bio it said he came into rescue with Khaleesi. So I thought I would not separate them. There were several visits to that rescue to meet them. First I went myself to meet them. Then next time Nester, Jessie and Tyrion came along for a meet and greet and everything went fine. Then the final time I went to pick them up to take them home.
TYRION ENJOYING THE BEACHES OF THE BEAUTIFUL EMERALD COAST – PRESENT HOME
NO STOPPING TYRION WITH HIS QUAD CART FROM WALKIN WHEELS – GO GET EM TYRION!
After I lost Booberry in October of 2018 I was not ready to rescue until six months later. That is when I rescued Tyrion, and then the next month Hodor and Khaleesi came along. So at one point I had five sweet little dogs. Four were pugs and Jessie, the mixed breed little sweetie.They have changed my life for the better because they fill my life with love. One of my favorite things to do is sit with them in the evening and watch tv with them all by my side on the couch with me. The feeling is wonderful. And I love to hear them just snoozing and snoring comfortably while relaxing with me. They provide companionship and unconditional love. Also I have learned from them that even though they have some special needs, they don’t let that get them down. They don’t let it get in their way of doing what they want and enjoying it. They are positive and live for the day. So we rescued each other and learned from each other.
We are in love with all these photos, all with a story within them……….
We are sure you want to follow Nester and friends now they have a place in your hearts. You can find their facebook page here…….
https://www.facebook.com/Nesterpug
If you love Instagram, you can find HODORS page called HODOR THE GREMLING PIG. Check it out here…. https://www.instagram.com/hodorthegremlinpug/?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D
For Tik Tokers please look up karenasana
KHALESSI AND HODOR were rescued by the ANIMAL RESOURCE CENTRE https://www.facebook.com/nokillarc
TYRION came from the wonderful PETS COME FIRST, they have a lovely Facebook Page here…. https://www.facebook.com/PetsComeFirst
TYRION SENDS WOOFS AND RECOMMENDS ALL YOUR DOGGIES GO GET A LICK TROUGH FROM FLUFF TROUGH. You can find them on link below..
https://www.facebook.com/flufftrough
Karen we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for writing for us. Thank goodness there are such beautiful souls like your own in this World. We have fallen in love with your crew and we also totally adore the mature doggies!
We have several posts dedicated to the beautiful mature dogs……
This article is such a heartwarming testament to the power of love and rescue. Karen’s dedication to senior dogs is truly inspiring. The photos of her furry companions are adorable!
Thank you for your lovely comments 🐕🦺