Sedona Loves Our Big Friends - In Memory of Zoreo
At Sedona Shepherd we love our big dogs. Although our primary mission is to save adult and senior German Shepherds, whenever we have space and availability, we look to find ways to help out large breed dogs like a Cane Corso, Mastiff, or in Zoreo’s case, a Boerboel. Zoreo’s unique name originated when his owner wanted to honor his sister’s cat that was named Oreo. Since a Boerboel is a South African Mastiff, his owner added “Z” in front of “Oreo” and came up with Zoreo. We were lucky enough to spend just over a year in Zoreo’s presence before he passed away from cancer in December 2023. This is his video and a short tribute to his time at Sedona Shepherd.
A BIG BOY WITH A BIG HEART
In the fall of 2022, one of our rescue partners reached out to us about Zoreo, a 7-year-old adult Boerboel in need of finding a new home. Zoreo’s owner was in a difficult financial and personal situation. He was being evicted by his landlord and could not find a location that would allow him to bring such a large dog. At the time, Zoreo was ‘underweight’ at 95 pounds. When we met Zoreo, he was a pretty easygoing dog. He sniffed, ignored a Rottweiler we brought along, and was more interested in doing his own thing or meeting new people.
A Boerboel is a South African mastiff and a unique breed in the United States. There are no dedicated Boerboel or Mastiff rescue groups in New Jersey or the surrounding states, and no other rescue groups could help. Zoreo also had skin issues that needed to be addressed. One night, someone broke into Zoreo’s home and threw solvent on him, causing scarring on his skin. We knew finding a home for Zoreo would be a project, but we couldn’t let this majestic dog end up in a crowded shelter.
For some people, Zoreo’s size could be intimidating. He had some quirks; he didn’t like to stand on a scale in a vet’s office, and conversely, he didn’t mind being at the vet. Zoreo was also suspicious of being hugged and not always comfortable getting into a vehicle. Still, he was happy once he was inside a car. After a few weeks, Zoreo settled into a nice routine. He would enthusiastically go for long walks. With such a long stride, the walks were great exercise for our volunteers. Zoreo would work his way up to a “trot,” which was a good jogging speed for a human.
Over the next 10 months, we tried various medications and food regimens to get his skin in better condition and to deal with his allergies. In addition to spending time with all of our volunteers, Zoreo was featured on WHDA’s Rock ‘n Ruff segment. You could never really be sure if Zoreo was interested in playing with a soccer ball or just in the mood to hang out and sniff, but if you gave him a toy with a treat in it, he would gladly toss it around.
The environment for rescue in 2023 was much more difficult than in prior years. With so many people getting dogs in 2021 and 2022, there has been much less demand to adopt while the number of surrendered dogs increased. Zoreo was always a relatively easygoing dog for most of his time with us. Over the last two months, Zoreo appeared to have an extra pep in his step and very much enjoyed spending time with some of our newer volunteers.
On the morning of December 2, Zoreo was lethargic and had thrown up his dinner and what little breakfast he ate. By the afternoon, he was not interested in eating anything, which was not typical for this food hound. We were able to get him into our vehicle and to an emergency vet hospital. His vitals were fine, but an ultrasound revealed three large masses in his stomach and near his kidney, plus other medical concerns. It was clear that Zoreo had extensive cancer. We discussed the possibility of surgery. However, the surgeon felt that it would be difficult to remove all cancer, and his quality of life would be severely hampered. Even with surgery, he would require chemo/radiation.
Cancer can hit dogs quickly because they rarely give an indication of being sick until it is too late to have a successful treatment outcome. Although it was a difficult decision to make, we knew that Zoreo had been loved for the time he was with us. We could take comfort in the enjoyment he had shown us, especially over the past few months. Although never adopted, Zoreo did find his forever home with us.
We want to thank Sherri and Louis Ann for introducing Zoreo into our lives, all his fans at Elizabeth Ann Kennels, the volunteers who enriched his life, and Fanwood Animal Hospital and Crown Veterinary Hospital for taking great care of him.
