Run Free Koda-bear. 06/12/16
Koda came to us after being chained for the first five years of his life. It took about as many more for him to learn that he could really trust us and to stop trembling at the mere sight of a child. Eventually he grew into a much beloved “Koda-bear” for our volunteers and educated a lot of guests 
about the negative impact chains have on dogs. In 2016 we discovered he had a lump on the outside of his elbow and decided to watch it. When it grew quickly we made the appointment to biopsy it and found it needed removal. Despite his age and bad reaction to the initial sedation, we felt removal was the only option for Koda to have a longer healthy life. The second procedure seemed to go well but the next day we noticed he had difficulty breathing. The best medical available could not save our Koda-bear and he was released from his struggle to breathe on 06/12/16.
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We were contacted about Koda due to his family having to move out of their rented home. The husband was in jail at the time and the wife needed to move home to care for her mother who was ill. Koda had been kept chained out to a tree behind the home and there were very few options for him. They thought they had acquired a pure wolf pup from breeder friends in NC. He was “pulled” from the mother at 5 days old and bottle fed. The couple who owned him claimed to be very bonded to him and have contacted us since to check on how he is doing. Koda obviously has german shepherd in his lineage. He had stress and digestive issues that we have been dealing with since his arrival through supplements, probably due to being pulled from the mother so young and the diet he was being fed.
We went to pick Koda up the day after Thanksgiving, 2008, when he was 5yo. Our initial intent was to get him safe in our isolation pen and attempt to re-home him. Having evaluated Koda’s temperament, we have decided he is not one of our adoptables. He does warm up to and love certain people and his companions, Mia and Saia, but he wouldn’t be adoptable to just anyone.
Koda is lucky to be alive. While we feed a raw diet that includes chicken bones, he was being fed cooked whole chickens prior to his arrival. Cooked bones can splinter and perforate intestines or bowels. Koda has also been one of our animals to benefit from chiropractic adjustments. We feel a great deal of his stress & attitude upon arrival were due to pain that has been alleviated with the adjustments.
