Special to the NEWS
Robin Haus of San Benito is shown with her two dogs. (Courtesy photo)
Thirty-eight-year-old Robin Haus of San Benito felt like she was running out of time and options in her battle with acute lymphocytic leukemia, so she made that dreaded call to somebody she hoped could find homes for two of her dogs.
Robin no longer is responding to treatment, and her last resort is a bone marrow transplant set for early July. It will be done in Kansas, where her parents live, so they can help care for her. Robin, a single mom, has a 12-year-old daughter and a son in college.
Robin had asked about boarding fees for her dogs at different facilities for the month she expects to be gone but decided she couldn’t afford the cost. Already deeply depressed that a transplant might not save her life, she decided she must spend her next few days saying goodbye to her dogs.
“I just can’t send them to a shelter to be put to sleep,” Robin said to an Angels Pet Rescue member who went to see them. “They are such good dogs.”
Piper, a three-year-old lab mix, has never had training as a seizure alert dog, but she starts barking and pawing at Robin when a grand mal seizure is imminent. The first time Piper displayed such behavior, Robin thought she was just misbehaving. Now Robin knows to sit down immediately when Piper begins her frenzied barking and nudging. Piper always stays beside or on top of Robin, often licking her face, until the seizure is over and the danger has passed.
“She would be a great dog for somebody who has seizures,” a tearful Robin said as she stroked the shiny black head in her lap.
That’s exactly why she should stay with Robin. Trained seizure alert dogs are hard to get and can cost up to $25,000. Piper, rescued as a puppy by Robin’s daughter, Morgan, is a natural. She just needs a fence she can’t jump.
Angels Pet Rescue found boarding facilities willing to reduce their rates due to Robin’s circumstances, Smith Ranch Kennels in Bayview near Los Fresnos. People wanting to help can send donations to the Robin Fund, Angels Pet Rescue+, 943 N. Expressway, Suite 15-72, Brownsville, TX 78520, or call (956) 371-7320.
If Robin’s bone marrow transplant is not successful, she would like for Piper to go to a home where she can help somebody else who has seizures. Her buddy, Chico, a Corgi mix, also would need a new home. Robin’s ex-husband will take her beagle. If treatment is successful and the seizures stop, Robin will consider letting Piper become a seizure alert dog to somebody else who needs her.
To see this story in print, pick up a copy of the June 22 edition of the San Benito News. Or view our E-Edition by clicking here.
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