Where You Have Helped
In December 2024, Your very generous donations to our annual Health Fund fundraiser allowed us to provide a $35,000 research grant to Dr. Benoît Hédan and Dr. Catherine André at the University of Rennes in France. The research supported by this grant involves looking for genetic mutations, that can be found in a blood sample, associated with histiocytic sarcoma. This will allow detection of the disease long before the cancer develops in our Berners. Ultimately early detection, in combination with interventions that have yet to be identified, will help us lose fewer dogs to this insidious disease.
Benoît Hédan and Catherine André of the Canine Genetics team, at the Institute of Genetics and Developement of Rennes (IGDR) - CNRS, University of RENNES, warmly thank the BMD Charitable Foundation for their support of histiocytic sarcoma research and their donation of $35,000! This money will support research into new blood biomarkers enabling early diagnosis of histiocytic sarcoma with a simple plasma sample.
Best regards,
Benoît and Catherine
In December 2024, Amritam, an 8 week old puppy, was taken in by the National BMD Rescue Network. She was diagnosed with Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA). PDA is basically a cardiac shunt, where blood leaks from one chamber of the heart to another. A catheter procedure was successfully done to close the hole in her heart and save her life. Because of your donations, the BMDCF was able to grant $4,000 to help pay for her $8,000+ surgery. She has recovered well and is doing what a puppy should be doing: PLAYING!!
In December 2024, Roman, an 11-month-old puppy, was surrendered in SC with what were thought to be neurological issues. But due to his foster's insistence that it was something else, Roman was transferred with BARC to Kansas for MRI’s and further evaluations. It was found that Roman had NO neurological issues but had X-rays that confirmed bilateral angular limb deformity of both legs. Roman had surgery on his first hip and the BMDCF contributed $5,000 of your donations toward the bill for this surgery. Roman required a fixator brace for a time, to be replaced by a cast and is doing well. As of 2/17/25 he is ready to go to his forever home with plans for the 2nd surgery.
In October 2024, the BMDCF donation of $5,000 was made to the Piedmont BMD Club to assist with members in need after the disastrous flooding in areas of South Carolina due to Hurricane Helene. The club was able to help someone whose Berner required emergency bloat surgery, and upon returning home after the surgery found that they had lost absolutely everything.
In July 2024, Effie (AKA Amaranth) was rescued by the National BMD Rescue Network Inc. (NBMDRN Inc.) out of a puppy mill along with several other Berners. She was spayed and had major complications in the aftermath. She had to have emergency surgery. She also developed cardiac problems and lost a lot of blood. It was unclear whether or not she would make it. Her surgery exceeded $10,000 and the BMDCF granted $5,000 to the NBMDRN Inc. to help cover her expenses. The surgery was successful; she is now healthy and living a great life with her forever family. Her new name is Hazel.
In August 2022, Tucker’s Donation encapsulated the extremely generous and self-sacrificing nature of Bernese Mountain Dog owners when it comes to possibly helping a Berner in need.
In June 2024, Clancy was taken in by the Bernese Rescue Auction Coalition (BARC) with bilateral luxating patellas.
Tucker's and Clancy's Story
Tucker was born in a puppy mill. He had detached retinas and was, therefore, blind but otherwise deemed healthy. He was rescued and found his forever home at 10 weeks of age with a couple who have special skills in raising blind dogs. Unfortunately, with time Tucker’s other problems became evident and he was diagnosed with dwarfism, chondrodysplasia in all four legs and severe hip dysplasia by the age of six months. At 10 months, Tucker suddenly couldn’t walk, and it was discovered that he has subluxating patellas. At times his back legs are rendered useless because his kneecaps slide up into his thighs.
​When Tucker was 12 months old, his owners thought that fixing his kneecap problem would give him a better quality of life. At least he would be able to walk and play. Facing expensive surgeries to fix both of his legs, his
​Tucker’s owners decided to donate the money in Tucker’s GoFundMe account to the Bernese Mountain Dog Charitable Foundation with the stipulation that it go to help a rescue dog with expensive medical needs. They couldn’t afford to fix Tucker but maybe they could make a difference to another Berner.
owners started a GoFundMe page for Tucker. On the day of his first surgery, when Tucker was anesthetized, leg shaved and on the table, the vet informed Tucker’s owners that the cost of his surgery was going to be more than they had originally been told and that both legs would need additional surgeries. To their dismay, an original estimate of $8,400 to fix his kneecaps skyrocketed to over $20,000. They could not afford the astronomical price tag but decided that they couldn’t continue to ask strangers for help to pay for the surgeries. In a state of shock and disbelief, they called off the surgery and decided to keep Tucker comfortable with pain medication.
Fast forward to June 2024, Clancy arrived at the Bernese Rescue Auction Coalition (BARC) with bilateral luxating patellas, meaning both knee caps were out of place. He needed two surgeries. This matched the criteria to use money raised for Tucker. Tucker's donation, supplemented by the BMDCF, completely covered Clancy's first surgery. The surgery was successful and Clancy is with his forever family in Texas. Tucker's owners made a huge impact for Clancy.
In April 2024, Rouge was surrendered to the Heart of Michigan BMD Rescue at 3.5 years old. The sweet boy was surrendered because he had unexplained weight loss/inability to gain weight. After some concerning bloodwork, it was determined that he had a chronic foreign body in his intestines - basically, he ate something that was not food, and it got stuck inside of him. It had been stuck for a long time. He had emergency surgery which resulted in him losing 3 feet of badly damaged, perforated intestine. His bowel was repaired and he was given antibiotics to clear his infection, which was successful. He is currently healthy and has been adopted. Your donations covered approximately half of his surgery costs.
In March 2024, one year old Enzo (AKA Todd) was taken in by the Arizona BMD Club Rescue. He had major complications from neuter surgery and was taken care of at an Emergency Vet. His bill would have wiped out the rescue’s funds so the BMDCF and the BMDCA collaborated to cover his bill, each contributing $3,000. Enzo recovered and is doing well in his new home.
In October 2023, two year old Remi was hit by a car and broke his elbow. The vet said his leg would be amputated unless money could be raised for the more expensive surgery to repair the joint. Your contributions to the BMDCF Rescue Program allowed us to team up with the Buckeye Bernese Mountain Dog Club and the rest of the Berner community to provide the funds to save his leg. He has made an amazing recovery and Remi was taken in by the Bernese Auction Rescue Coalition (BARC) to help him find his forever home.
In April 2023, the Bernese Auction Rescue Coalition (BARC) rescued thirty Berners from a commercial breeder. It was a herculean task carried out by a group of dedicated Berner people who met unbelievable conditions to secure the surrender of these dogs. The story is familiar to most of you but if not, please see the BARC, Inc. Facebook page. The next steps in giving these dogs the lives they deserve is going to be extremely expensive and the Berner community is coming together to provide the funds. The BMDCF is proud to partner with the BMDCA as part of the community that cherishes the breed and its preservation. We support this extraordinary rescue effort and hope that the rescued Berners experience love in their new lives.
The BMDCF was able to quickly respond to BARC with a pledge of $10,000 only because of the Berner community’s generous support of our past fundraisers for Rescue and ongoing donations to our General Fund. For this we thank you; we couldn't have done it without you. It is our goal to be able to react to similar situations with the same expediency and substantial support in the future. But we need your help to ensure that the funds are readily available. Your continued support of our mission by helping us build our rescue program fund will allow us to be there when needed.
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In November 2022, the generosity of the Berner community during our fundraiser for cancer research allowed the BMDCF to award Dr. Matthew Breen at North Carolina State University a $25,000 grant to continue his work on histiocytic cancer in BMDs. The project funded by this grant will be used to identify mutations in histiocytic tumors in Berners with the intent to target treatment for dogs carrying specific cancer-causing mutations. This will be a huge step forward in fighting this insidious disease.
Dr. Breen thanks the Berner community and all who contributed to funding this grant.
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Dear Joye and the BMD Charitable Foundation,
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Thank you so very much for your generous donation to our ongoing canine cancer research. As you know, we have been working hard to learn more about histocytic malignancies in the Berner for many years. Much of our progress has been made possible from studies supported by you and the countless Berner owners who have donated to the BMDCF. The trust you continue to show in our abilities to conduct much needed research is very humbling and what drives us forward each and every day.
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As part of our ongoing work we have identified a series of genetic changes (mutations) in some dog tumors that have not been previously reported. However, when the equivalent mutations are detected in human patients with histiocytic cancers, they are used to help guide treatment and inform outcome for these patients. Our next step towards helping dogs is to determine if these mutations are also present in canine histiocytic malignancies and whether they could be used for guiding treatment selection for our dogs.
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As a consequence of our long-standing relationship with the Berner community, our research team here at NC State University has accumulated numerous histiocytic cancer specimens from Berners. With the generosity of the BMDCF we will now be able to further analyze these Berner specimens, with the aim of providing an opportunity to identify the canine patients most likely to respond to specific forms of treatment.
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Thank you again for your continued support. This work would not be possible without the sustained generosity of the Berner community.
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Kind regards,
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Matthew Breen
​In July 2022, Georgeann Reeve asked if the BMDCF would accept donations in memory of Nell Ward. Nell was the founder of the Rescue Gallery at the BMDCA National Specialties and was passionate about educating people about Berner rescue. Nell’s family asked that donations be set aside for the expenses of the Rescue Gallery and for our Rescue Program in general. Approximately $2,300 was donated. Your donations ensure that the Rescue Gallery will be a part of the National Specialty for years to come.
In March 2022, the BMDCF made a $3,300 donation out of our unrestricted funds and contributions from our Board members to The Ukrainian Bernese Mountain Dog Relief Fund through Joanne Gerow and the Catskill Animal Rescue. With the help of Berner breeders in Poland donations to this fund were used to get food and supplies to Berner breeders in the Ukraine, and to get dogs and their people out of areas of conflict.
In February and March 2022, you contributed a total of $17,285 to the BMDCF rescue fund between our 2022 Rescue Fundraiser ($10,285) and Longshots at the National ($7,000). Thank you very much to the Berner lovers who have given us the means to help financially assist in rescue situations that arise in the coming year. We couldn't do it without you!