Muffin and Silvie bordeaux. Muffin was given the ultimate "Second Chance"
Raising a vision impaired pet can carry with it a feeling of helplessness. Witnessing a loved one time and time again bump into inanimate objects and have troubling missteps weighs heavy on a pet owner. A trip to the dog park quickly becomes a severe exercise in patience as you watch your pup listen on the outskirts as the other dogs frolic. Fortunately, the pet world was graced with Silvie Bordeaux and her solution to the problem in 2012.
The creation of Muffin's Halo is one of the most moving stories that has come across my desk in the 6 years of writing within the pet community. It’s not just an inspirational story but also an answer to the dilemma for blind dogs - offering aid to vision impaired dogs, pets with dementia, and pets that are prone to seizures. Muffin's Halo uses an unrestricted three-part guard system to protect your cat or dog from those annoying little bumps when discovering a new space.
Buddy, a courageous blind dog who survived a severe mauling from a bigger dog is our Muffin's Halo Ambassadog in Texas.
As a major animal lover and human dad to 6 dogs, I can confidently say that every animal hospital, veterinary facility and rescue organization around the world should have Muffin's Halo on hand for our furry friends in need. With a simple purchase, we can restore an innocent animal's life back to normalcy. The faster these pets are equipped with Muffin's Halo, the faster they can regain their confidence and feel freedom again.
Noah visits schools to teach children not to bully others who look different.
A couple of years ago, when Muffin was 11 years old, Silvie noticed that Muffin was bumping into things. Muffin even fell down the stairs one day. Silvie immediately took Muffin to the vet and, unbeknownst to her, they found a mass in his stomach.
They then went to see Dr. Christin Fahrer, a leading Veterinary Ophthalmologist at Eye Care for Animals in Culver City, CA. Dr. Fahrer diagnosed Muffin with cataracts and informed Silvie he was losing his vision.
Between the mass in his stomach and losing his vision - Muffin needed a miracle.
Silvie immediately went to an internal medicine vet to deal with the mass in his stomach. While the vet was performing a fine-needle aspiration to investigate the mass, Muffin was accidentally lacerated. The vet recommended an emergency blood transfusion telling Silvie to prepare for the worst.
Muffin's Halo is great for big dogs also. German Shepherd, Mandy, finds quality of life again.
It’s interesting how life puts us on the ropes to test our moxie. Silvie made a proclamation the night of his surgery - if Muffin pulled through, she was going to find a solution for blind pets. Lo and behold, a miracle was delivered. Muffin survived the surgery.
It's not uncommon to hear the suggestion, “You should probably just put him down,” from loved ones as a blind pet can have a very difficult life. Not to mention eye surgery can cost over $5000. When Muffin first lost his sight, he was reasonably timid, scared, and depressed.
Silvie wasn't having it. Putting Muffin down was not an option.
Through sheer perseverance, Silvie created the solution she promised the night of Muffin’s surgery. Between lightweight wire, tubing, fabric, Velcro, and two patents, Muffin's Halo was born. It's true what they say, "Love is the Mother of all inventions."
In the past 6 years, Muffin’s Halo has brought happiness to thousands of animals. It’s not just a game changer, it's a life changer. Muffin was now happy, confident, and adventurous again.
Dr. Fahrer said “I think Muffin’s Halo Guide For Blind Dogs is a good tool to help augment the lives of our patients with vision loss.”
America's favorite Celebrity Veterinarian, Dr. Marty Becker on Muffin's Halo; “I was recently sent a review product called “Muffin’s Halo” to try, and it blew me away enough that it became one of my Top new products of the year. These wings and halo help my blind dog ‘see’.”
Embrace Pet Insurance company's CEO, Laura Bennett says; “Muffin’s Halo has taken a major problem for blind dogs – the risk of head trauma – and solved it in a remarkable way, improving their quality of life substantially. It only makes sense to do our part in helping pet parents afford this impressive product by covering it under Wellness Rewards.”
Beautiful Sheltie, Sochi, getting his confidence back
Silvie's dream is for people to order Halo's and have them donated to blind dogs in shelters. That dream will literally save lives and return happiness to our furry friends.
You see, in kill shelters, blind dogs never get a chance. Bronwyne Mirkovich, a certified Dog Trainer and rescue volunteer out of Los Angeles, said that blinds dogs are at the top of the kill list in shelters. It's very sad actually. All of that has changed because of Muffin's Halo.
Browyne rescued vision impaired dog, Max, that later went blind, who'd been surrendered by a homeless person to Glendale Humane Society, a nonprofit that’s been finding loving Forever Homes for thousands of pets for nearly 100 years. Bronwyne purchased a Halo and put the wind back in Max's sails. She said that he bumped into things like he normally did but it wasn't his nose bumping into it. It was this shield. "It was like having some kind of superpower for a blind dog".
Sweet Yorkie is one of thousands of lives who've been transformed by Muffin's Halo.
Silvie even went the extra mile to bring a sense of fashion to Muffin's Halo. Just because the halo involves the subject of "blindness," doesn't mean it can't be fashionable and trendy. Each Halo comes with Angel wings attached to them. The wings let people know the dog is guided by angles. I love that. For bigger dogs, the halo is made stronger to deal with more impact. Silvie came up with a quarterback-style with shoulder pads and all for the bigger Halos
As we know, Silvie turns dreams into realities. Silvie created "Second Chances for Blind Dogs", a 501(C)(3) organization. Second Chances fulfills Silvie's dreams. Donations to "Second Chances" go to purchasing Halos for blind dogs in shelters and rescues throughout the world. One random act of kindness may not change the world, but it changes the world for the recipients of that kindness.
Prince with his halo
On December 5th, 2015, Sadly Muffin crossed the rainbow bridge. As heart breaking as that was and is, it's important to remember, Muffin lived out his life for another 4 years with grace, dignity and quality of life thanks to Silvie's creation of Muffin's Halo.
Towards the second half of 2016, on the way to a business meeting, Silvie saw a Facebook notification about a blind dog in need of loving family and home. The onwer was very sick with lung cancer. Silvie canceled her meeting and drove two hours to meet him.
Amazingly enough, the woman's name was Sylvia and some of friends called her Silvie too. She had rescued Prince from the streets a few years before. Silvie knew she had to take Prince and continue her journey giving blind dogs their lives back.
Prince is literally now the Prince of Muffin's Halo. Not bad for a dog who was rescued off the streets years ago. It goes to show you with love, hope and faith, anything is possible.
Muffin's Halo went on to win 'Best dog product' at SuperZoo, a national show for Pet Retailers conference in 2015 and 2016. Silvie and Muffin's Halo won "Best New Product' at Canada's Pijac trade show in September of 2016. And if that were not enough, on February 9th, 2017, Silvie Bordeaux was awarded with the "Pet Hero Award" at the 14th Annual New York Pet Fashion show.