For over 20 years, I have been doing limited AKC registries with some very exceptional rescue dogs and entering them in competitions. This is especially true with throwaway hunting dogs. So many have suffered neglect and abuse, but with a lot of TLC, finding underlying tick borne diseases, treatment and patience, many do go back into the field and show desire to point and hunt.
I knew Whitley had been to a trainer and was hunted over before her life changed and she was dumped-- days from giving birth. I waited 3 months and only until after her second set of blood work revealed her anemia was gone and her overall health was so much better to let her run and scent point pigeons. She was also gaining weight, feeling great, and running around the yard and playing with her remaining puppies and the other dogs in foster care.
I was so pleasantly surprised at how well she scent pointed, but also how well she handled for me off leash. I even ran her in a fun field trial on Labor Day and she was amazing. After her spay, I was able to get her PAL- Purebred Alternative Listing with the AKC and I plan on putting an AKC Junior Hunter title on her the end of October. I would love it if we could get some sponsors for her events. I think her registered name is perfect!! We now have VENMO with @illinoisbirddogrescue or ZELLE with info@illinoisbirddogrescue.org if you would like to help another special throwaway dog show what bird dog rescue is all about!!
I have had some interest in Rowan-- but I want him to have a loving but working home. He has so much potential to do agility, tracking, nose works, besides other fun events like Fetch, Farm Dog and Barn Hunt. He is so biddable and is so food motivated, he's been a pleasure to train.
Rowie is also a big squish and I have been loving on him since he was a week old. He loves to be loved on and he is used to being kissed all over. Lately he has been curious about TV and he's also learning how to be a couch potato. Rowie is also my tester puppy as the whole litter could be infected with momma Whitley's tick borne diseases even though they nursed on her while she was being medicated. Rowie is also being medicated now based on his Complete Blood Count and Chemistry.
Best guess is Rowan will grow to be 100lbs or more. The Setter in the mix is giving him lovely, softer features like his momma. My hope is his lifespan will also be a lot longer than a typical Dane because he is half Setter and also because I am being so proactive about his overall health.
Daisy is a beautiful, young, liver and white Pointer we saved from an over-crowded shelter in Tennessee in January. She tested positive for heart worms and while she was in foster care out of state, we started our slow kill program. When she moved to her new foster home in St. Louis, we had her seen by a vet for a cough, but nothing was noted. When she finally moved to foster care in Illinois in April, we got the worse diagnosis that Daisy has Blastomycosis-- a terrible fungal infection in her lungs and her tick serology also showed Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
UPDATE October 2026: Daisy is still in foster care but she is doing AMAZING!! She is no longer on itraconazole for her Blastomycosis but her heartworm treatment is living up to the Slow-kill name as she was still positive at 18 months. Even still-- Daisy is the happiest Pointer, she has tons of energy outside and her favorite hobby is squirrel watching. It's possible the antifungal meds interfered with the moxi-doxy treatment so we'll just retest in January 2027. As long as she is eating and running around like a Pointer NUT, she is doing well.
UPDATE: Elvis aka Bubba is heartworm negative-- YAY!!
With all the new rescue dogs in need of medical help and nearly 100% of them fighting tick borne disease, we really need a lot of help with donations. Want to be an Illinois Birddog Rescue Sponsor? We would sure love your support!!
Buckwheat came into IBR's program in 2002 as a little GSP mix puppy. He broke with a terrible virus called Parvo but thankfully survived. He was my constant companion for nearly 17 years and IBR's mascot until I lost him the end of 2019. How lucky was I to have my darling little bestie for such a long time. That is my hope for all IBR's adopters.
We are thrilled to be partnering with Charity Dispatch in an effort to raise much needed funds for IBR. Click Here to start the process of donating your car to our program. Charity Dispatch makes it easy and safe and does all the work from towing your vehicle away, and also providing the necessary documention for your tax deduction once your car sells at auction. Thank you for your consideration!
More about Charity Dispatch's Vehicle Donation Program: Automobile owners who believe that their vehicle is not suitable for an automobile donation, are advised that we will accept automobiles in all in conditions, and the car which is not in running condition will bring in funds by stripping the car for spares. The sale of the spares will be used for the funding of the charity organization, and as such, any type of automobile donation, no matter the condition or the age of the vehicle, is a selfless act and will go a long way in assisting an organization that is battling to stay afloat because of a lack of funding. The automobile donation is very common and in fact, donating a car is as common as donating used household goods or money and since the automobile donation process is expertly handled by Charity Dispatch, which will handle the collection of the automobile at no cost to the donor, those who would like to make an automobile donation will find our services to be very helpful.
Charity Dispatch is a specialist in automobile donations and more than offering assistance with an automobile donation, donors are free to make donations of SUVs, boats, motorcycles, airplanes and timeshares. Those making an automobile donation will not only be offering a helping hand to organizations that are in dire need of funds, but since the charities represented on our website are all IRS Approved non-profit organizations, the donor will benefit from a tax deduction with the automobile donation.
Check out our anniversary Pointer Setter mugs. My hope is to sell a few to help with the care of our senior dog population. I think they are super fun and the watermark is not on the uploaded image. You can order your mug HERE.
It has been 6 years since I heard about Olivia's need for rescue from an over crowded shelter in North Carolina. She came a long way from that sickly emaciated Setter with the terrible skin infections and mange and fighting Heartworms and at least 3 tick borne diseases, but now she is 14 or 15 years old and struggling. Olivia is losing her sight and her hearing and I need to force feed her twice a day to keep going. Olivia also has a bit of dementia. Recent blood work also shows not only is she still infected with Ehrlichia, Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, but Anaplasma also showed up and I suspect she has been infected with the whole time. It's tough seeing her health decline, but I am committed to helping her until she tells me she is ready to go.
With all the new Setters in need of medical help and nearly 100% of them fighting tick borne disease, we really need a lot of help with donations. Want to be a Setter Sponsor? Please visit our SETTER SPONSORS FUNDRAISING PAGE. Any donation no matter what size would be appreciated. Would you consider a monthly donation to help a dog like Olivia or one of our other seniors? Take a look at our monthly sponsorship program.
Most every fundraising app takes a big percentage of the donation- up to 7% and added processing fees. Chase QuickPay by Zelle transfers donations without any fees and the transfer is automatic. If your bank has Zelle transfers- you can sign up with their app. Transfers can be done using IBR's email address: info@illinoisbirddogrescue.org
The past 17 years nearly 100% of our incoming dogs, cats, kittens and puppies are showing tick borne disease infections. Why is this? Several years ago this rescue and me personally went on a quest to help find the best testing and diagnosis to help our rescue population. Because I suffer from Lyme disease, I understand how hard it is for people to be diagnosed properly, and the testing available for pets is often not accurate and sadly as Animal Hospitals are businesses-- many clinics use diagnostic labs that offer them better pricing. The worst thing about what I have learned is the best tool for diagnosis is not even in the IDEXX manual. The 371 IFA serology is most like the testing that is often more accurate in humans. The testing IDEXX promotes is their snap tests that use a Lyme Quant C6 approach to Lyme disease diagnosis which we have shown test after test, is not accurate. The turning point in IBR's tick borne disease testing was when a DVM adopted an infected Pointer from me, "Because he wanted to learn more about Lyme disease." Since then Dr. John Rimkunas has adopted a beagle also struggling with tick borne disease. Seeing both his dogs struggle physically and emotionally has helped him see what I have been seeing for years.
I will be posting more about this- but wanted to at least show the comparison between the IDEXX 4DX snap test and the IDEXX 371 IFA Serology that we ran on new rescue Pointer Shaun. Shaun came in with a fever and enlarged lymph nodes. Shaun was also limping from his left front wrist and had a large bloody seroma extending from the joint and another seroma on the right wrist too. Dr. John noted that he suspected tick borne disease and thankfully we did the better testing as Shaun is feeling so much better now that he is being treated. Many vets are taught that Shaun's Lyme titer of @1:800 and Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) titer @1:200 would be "exposure" and not treat-- even if the dog is symptomatic. I will never understand this- and so frustrating. Note that the result for Lyme disease on the 4DX snap was negative and sadly the snap does not test for RMSF. Could Shaun had been vaccinated for Lyme disease- not likely and we will do follow up testing to see where his titers go. Because he also has RMSF, we can assume he has been subject to tick bites. I do hope some folks find my page and if their dog is struggling and only a 3DX or 4DX snap test was performed, that a better IFA Serology can be done for better diagnosing. Tick borne disease is epidemic in this country- and so many animals are suffering because of it.
***This is an older story-- but a very good story***
Brady finished his Derby season with first in Open Walking Derby at the Fort Dearborn GSP Club in September and a first in Amateur Walking Derby and another first in Open Walking Derby at the German Wirehair Pointer Clubs trial in October. Brady came into IBR's program in the worst health suffering from at least 3 undiagnosed tick borne diseases- Ehrlichia, Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Brady had chronic diarrhea and bloody stool and was a pointing training reject. Brady has made the most remarkable progress in foster care with his loving foster dad Hector Becerra and while he had a few medical setbacks, he has regained all of his natural scent pointing and hunting abilities. As we have Brady's FDSB papers, we know his Great Grand Pappy is Hall of Fame Inductee CH Erin's Southern Justice and his pappy is CH Erin's Brave Heart . While he has fine genetics, being infected with tick borne disease caused terrible damage to his health while affecting his confidence and drive in the field. I knew we could help him and thanks to many sponsors, after a year plus of medication- he is recovering very well and we are thrilled at his success in Derby this fall.
To date Brady's breeder has no interest in this puppy's health or welfare and was unwilling to test his mom and sold her :O(. This lack of responsibility for the dogs breeding programs is a HUGE problem with the the American Field and with back yard breeders everywhere. Rarely are any of the puppies micro-chipped for their protection and so many of these magnificent dogs wind up in landfills or shot dead when they don't perform. We have proven over and over that these dogs are so at risk for tick borne disease working and training in tick infested areas or being borne to infected Bitches that there is no hope for them to recover unless they find a rescue as dedicated as we are here at IBR to help them succeed and find forever homes. Brady's Vindication is one amazing little Pointer- he looks like a million bucks on point and has the sweetest personality. I can not be more proud of Hector and Brady and am grateful that he trusted me mentoring him in the field- but that was easy- Brady was such a natural once he got over his bad memories and fear. On his last run at Des Plaines Conservation area on October 26th- he ran hard, was incredibly smart and bold following the Derby course and was breathtaking in point. Hector handled him magnificently and as a newbie to field trailing and Pointers, and brought back so many memories of my own when I ran my first Pointer in field trials so many years ago.
THANKS TO ALL- that donated and sponsored Brady's medical bills and Field Trial entries to make all of this possible. We do GREAT work here at Illinois Birddog Rescue and we need as much help as ever. Lisa- IBR Founder and President.
***My sweet Gavin turned 13 in 2023-- but he is hanging in there.***
So many TO DO's on my TO DO list while trying so hard to raise funds and help save more- that I pushed Gavin's Story further down on that list. His story is an important one and I created his own Web Page. I never gave up on him- NEVER- even when it was suggested that he be put to sleep. I thank my own Setter stubbornness and my Setter guardian angel for helping him be the little over-achiever he was meant to be.
I have been in Pointer/Setter rescue for over 20 years now. I have seen many vetting successes and many vetting failures and once we started to see the high incidence of tick borne disease in our positive heartworm dogs and how so many of these dogs struggled with the Immiticide/Cyanide treatment we had to find a better way. After doing some research and hearing from vets that only used Heartguard or similar product and adding doxycycline for the Wohlbachia issue, then adding good blood work including the IDEXX 371 tick panel to uncover tick borne disease complications- we are happy to share the IBR's Slow Kill Method success story page. All the dogs that went through this treatment plan were examined by our attending vets and they in turn scripted out the Heartguard or Iverheart and helped us get the appropriate blood work done. Some dogs were treated out of state and to the surprise of their attending vets also did very well. As a rescue we never want to rush treatment in order to move a dog out the door for adoption and thankfully most of the dogs in the slow kill are in foster to adopt.
It is always wonderful to be recognized for all the hard work we do here at Illinois Birddog Rescue. It is especially gratifying when my hard work pays off especially when it comes to my special deaf Setter rescue Gavin. I will put fingers to keyboard soon and document his story as it needs to be told. This little dog is what makes all the hard work and sacrifice worth while.
View the new Powerpoint slideshow showcasing our rescue legacy from the first nine years.
**You must have Powerpoint to view the slideshow. Each slide will advance on its own. This is a large file and may take time to download.**
Illinois Birddog Rescue wants to make sure all of our adoptable dogs stay healthy throughout flea and tick season. We welcome donations of Frontline, Heartguard, or any similar product. Email Lisa if you would like to help.