From our Hospital Director Angie Werth:

One thing is for sure you can say about Jeff and Theresa Dinslage is they have a passion for Pekingese! We were fortunate to meet Jeff and Theresa at our Gentle Doctor Open house in 2000. They came because they were seeking   something “different” in veterinary care.  We feel honored the Dinslages chose us to care for their four legged kids.  Over the years we have shared tears as we said  goodbye to  Benny , Bart and Jack and shared their joy as they open their home to Gretel, Jorja and Mia .  

This is Gretel, Mia and Jorja enjoying the outdoors. Hard to get a good picture of all three of them together!

Tell us about your family – humans and pets!

Our family includes Jeff, Theresa, Gretel, Jorja (pronounced Georgia) and Mia.

Mia, Age 4. Her nickname is "Choppers."

What do the adults in the family do for a living and for fun?

We are owners of an online nursery business. We enjoy Nebraska football, Creighton basketball, travelling and taking the girls for a walk every day in the park.

Gretel, Age 12

What do the kids in the family do for fun? 

They go to the park every morning for a walk, chase squirrels and rabbits in their yard, look out the front door and bark at everything that goes by and beg for snacks! Gretel loves sitting on the table on the patio to get a better view of what is going on in the neighborhood. 

Tell us more about the pets you have now and the pets you have had in the past.

Gretel, Jorja and Mia were all shelter dogs adopted from the Nebraska Humane Society. 

Gretel was very lucky and didn’t spend much time at the Nebraska Humane Society. She was actually picked up by Angie Werth of Gentle Doctor as a surprise for us shortly after we had to put another one of our Pekes to sleep (Jack). 

Jorja (pronounced "Georgia"), age 7, our sweetest girl

Jorja came to the Nebraska Humane Society needing to have an eye removed due to a prior incident with her first owners. A good friend of ours at the Nebraska Humane Society texted us a picture of Jorja while were were on a cruise and right away we knew we wanted her. A week after we came home from the cruise, she was ours. 

Jorja and Gretel. Jorja loves to lick Gretel's ears several times a day!

Mia was actually born at the Nebraska Humane Society along with two brothers which Theresa’s sister adopted. 

Prior to our three girls, we had three boys – Benny, Bart and Jack. Benny and Bart were pure breeds from a reputable breeder. They lived a very long and spoiled life due to the care and compassion of the Gentle Doctor team. Jack was only with us for eighteen months. He was found wandering the streets before he was picked up by the Nebraska Humane Society. When we adopted him, we soon found out he was in renal failure. With the compassion and knowledge of Dr. Pete Bashara, along with Angie Werth, he was able to live a wonderful eighteen months with us. 

Tell us about when you first met the Gentle Doctor team or a story about the team others may not know.

We have been taking our pets to Gentle Doctor for over fifteen years. They were having an open house for their new location on 154th & Maple, and we were driving by and decided to stop in. We met the staff and doctors and had a tour of the facility. We were so impressed with all the staff and facilities that we decided to switch from our current clinic to the Gentle Doctor team. 

Putting a beloved pet to sleep is a very hard thing to do and go through. Dr. Pete Bashara is a very compassionate person and has always made us feel at ease with our decisions. He has always been very gracious in answering any questions we have had over the years with any of our pets.

We were also lucky to find a dog sitter with Angie Werth.  She stays at our home with our girls when we go on vacations.  We are happy that she does this so our girls can stay in their own home while we are away.

When it is nice out, Gretel loves sitting on the table on the patio so she can watch what is going on. She loves being as high up as she can get!

Do you have wisdom about any medical conditions that you could share with someone who is perhaps just starting to walk their pet through a similar situation?

We have been through numerous eye abrasions, eyeball rupture, skin conditions, knee operations, back issues, vaccine reactions and renal failure. Keep in mind that animals will generally attempt to mask signs of illness. Be aware that any subtle change in your pet’s appearance or behavior could indicate illness. When we see any signs of a behavioral change, we don’t wait to see if they are going to get better, we call Gentle Doctor for an appointment. 

Jorja had a serious reaction to her annual vaccination. I had noticed she was very lethargic and wasn’t acting like herself. I didn’t hesitate to call and get her an appointment. When I brought her in, she had a very high temperature, and I was told it was a good thing I brought her in when I did. She was in a very dangerous state, and they immediately put her on fluids, and she had to stay at Gentle Doctor for three days. In the evenings she had to go to the Emergency Clinic so they could watch her during the night. We were so thankful we did not wait to see if she would get better on her own!

Jorja

Do you have a favorite breed or type of pet?

Pekingese!

Is their a shelter or rescue group that is dear to you that you would like us to help spread the word about?

We support the Nebraska Humane Society and Hearts United for Animals.

I work from home at the kitchen table, and sometimes Mia likes to sit on the chair next to me and watch me work.