RACHEL BELLE

A local Pet Detective Needs your Help Saving Her Bloodhound’s Life

Nov 19, 2012, 5:21 PM | Updated: Nov 20, 2012, 6:35 am

Zeke the Bloodhound

Back in July, I introduced you to local pet detective Kat Albrecht. A former police detective and bloodhound handler, Kat worked on 600 missing pet cases last year alone, returning missing pets to their relieved owners. But now, the tables have turned and Kat needs help with her 8-year-old bloodhound, Zeke, who is a rookie pet detective.

“He’s a bloodhound and he’s a troublemaker,” Kat says. “He’s kind of like the class clown. His nose gets him into trouble.”

But Zeke’s problems have recently moved beyond trouble making.

“He began having symptoms of an eye infection that couldn’t get fixed. We took him to the vet and he was diagnosed with lymphoma.”

Kat’s non-profit, Missing Pet Partnership, is fueled by volunteers and donations, and she just can’t afford Zeke’s treatment.

“The treatment for Zeke has a great chance of sending him into remission. The vet believes that we caught it early but the chemo treatment will cost about $7,000 and I simply don’t have that kind of funding. The prognosis was, without treatment, he will most likely die within the next 4-6 weeks. But with the chemo we have a chance of giving him another year.”

Kat had to put down her cat-sniffing dog back in September, so she’s extremely sad at the thought of losing another animal. She hopes that animal lovers can spare a few bucks to help keep Zeke alive.

“I’ve spent the last 14 years of my life, through my organization, helping people who, every day, email me or call me begging me to help them find their missing pet,” Kat said through tears. “This is one of the first times I’ve had to turn around and say, ‘Please help me.'”

Kat is also offering up a little bit of an incentive. She’s finishing up her very first romance mystery novel, “Bloodhound Love,” and the dog she writes about in the book is based on Zeke. Anyone who donates money to Zeke’s treatment can submit four character names, two for people, two for pets, and the winners will have their names published in her book.

“Many people are using this as a way to memorialize a dog or a cat that they lost to cancer or who went missing or who passed on. If that name is chosen, you’ll get an autographed copy of the book, you’ll be acknowledged in the acknowledgment section and you’ll get to see your animal’s name live on in a book.”

So far, Kat has received enough money to pay for Zeke’s first chemo treatment. His first treatment is tomorrow.

Click here to donate to Zeke’s treatment fund.

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A local Pet Detective Needs your Help Saving Her Bloodhound’s Life