Category: Dog Rescue

With a look like this…

Some curses are blessings in disguise. Last fall, I inherited responsibility for taking the dog’s photos for their website profiles. A lot more work, but simple enough? Not so!

For every shot that makes it –

there are dozens more that go into the recycle bin.

I try to get the dogs shortly after they arrive so we can share them as quickly as possible with the team and expedite their going homes. Those first couple of days can be an adjustment for the dogs resulting in sad faces. Some of those looks tug so hard at the heart that they help them get home immediately…like Talulah.

But what I really hope to capture is the dog’s true personality, be it playful, rowdy, sweet, or silly which often means revisiting them over the course of a week or so.

Adorableness is easy-just stick a puppy in front of the lens.

But in sussing out their true selves, I get some of the strangest, goofiest, and loudest looks!

A good assistant is highly recommended. Squeak-makers, tennis balls, and treats are required. Getting at dog eye level means mud and wet are part of the deal. And you had better learn quickly just when to step out of the way lest you get run over.

They can be devilishly frustrating.

I can’t tell you how many times tongues have been stuck out at me.

It is impossible not to smile back at a face like this.

It is time-consuming work, but incredibly rewarding. I get to be one of the first people they meet and watch their personalities transform.

And as their frequent “going home” photographer, I get to bookend their time with us.

A blessing indeed.

A Winter Rose

It doesn’t happen often—but often enough to wonder. Dogs that are long-time residents of the rescue—the ones with special behavioral or medical needs who wait for angel adopters—find their way home only to pass unexpectedly just as they have found love. Not that they aren’t loved by us. But there is a difference between being loved and cared for by volunteers and being a chosen special someone and finally being home. It is if—wrapped in that security—that they finally fully relax and let their guard completely down. And in that vulnerability, cancer strikes or hearts fail.

Our hearts go out to their adopters who opened their hearts and homes only to be robbed of precious golden years. And yet, they keep coming back to us to risk it all again. “How lucky that they finally got to experience home,” they—and we say…and believe.

It sometimes happens in reverse. At 10 years of age, Bear survived the Camp Fire and the stress of makeshift accommodations before being surrendered to us.

Without a home, the family had no way to keep him. It wasn’t that his body didn’t show his age: his hind legs were weak and strange lumps and bumps hung off him everywhere. But his demeanor was happy and his old soul was sweet.

One of those lumps concerned our Doc more than the others. Bear took a happy ride to the vet “talking” all the way there as his mom had told us he was wont to do. It’s a German Shepherd thing. Under a gentle, anesthesia-induced sleep, she discovered that that we were too late. The invader had already burst. Bear had given us no clue.

This time, we are the ones feeling robbed. We did not know him long, but you could not love him if you met him.

The first roses of the season are bright and fresh and last and last. But the short-lived last roses of the season—in their frailty—are some of the most beautiful.




Here’s to you, sweet Bear. A winter rose beyond its bloom.

And all of the others we have loved and lost too soon.

Blessings

Rosie was a breeder dog who was considered “used up.” A good Samaritan took her and brought her to us when the breeder made clear that she would be disposing of her.

She has never lived inside or been treated with love, and yet, she gives hers unconditionally. The first bed she had was the one we provided her.

When her adopters mentioned that they would be letting her pick out her own new bed and toys, Rosie made clear she was ready to go!



Cole was left tied up on a street with cut-out soda bottles filled with food and water.

A good Samaritan found him and, after ensuring that no one was looking for him, brought him to us. His thick coat was a matted mess, full of burs and foxtails. His new sister, Lucy, said “you can come home with us.” Cole will never be left alone and abandoned again.

Buddy’s only fault was being young.

His human man brought Buddy to us with tears in his eyes when his human woman said she had enough of him. His new people were overjoyed to find him and are looking forward to completing his growing up with patience and love.

Sadie and Sitka lost their home in the Camp Fire.

They are our honored guests while their humans work to get their lives back on track. Out of harm’s way, they spent days tied to the family’s bumper because the small animal shelters were full. They are with us for safekeeping until their people are ready and all can be reunited.

Milo was born without eyes.

He was adopted from Homeward Bound and went to live with his mom in Paradise, CA.
When the fire came, she loaded him in the car and raced to get down the hill.
At some point, they had to abandon the car and begin the journey on foot with so many others.
This boy with no sight put his full faith in his human mom through a five and a half hour trek in thick smoke and ash as she guided him to safety.
Now, she thanks us for the gift of Milo who gives her strength and hope to carry on.

As Thanksgiving approaches, we are surrounded by reminders of all that we have to be thankful for.

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.” ~ W.T. Purkiser

Some Things…

Some things make me laugh.


Some make me smile.

Some fill me with joy – like the asters in fall.

And others make me want to say, “Don’t worry boy, didn’t I tell you you’d be home in a flash?”

Some touch my heart.

Some fill me with hope.

And some make me wonder how a boy ever thought that peeing on a new girlfriend would win her over?!

But this just fills me with pride.

Last year, I told you about a young airman shipping out to South Korea for a year of service. She left her one-year-old boy in the care of our loving foster family.
This week, I was honored to be invited to witness their reunion –

and to share their story again.

Some things make me cry…with pride and joy. I could not love this “work” more.

Fall Project #2: The Puppy Pad

Maria’s decorations signal that fall has arrived in the garden…but gardening had to wait this weekend.

I’m a big fan of completing one project before starting another (the Virgo in me) – so I was hoping to complete the new bed this week. But when the success of a project depends on the muscles of others – you adapt! My crew was available this weekend…so this weekend was dedicated to the new Puppy Pad.

We built a Puppy Palace in 2014 with a dedicated shed, kennel, and a little enclosed yard for our youngest guests.

All was well until…the well! The pumping equipment was adjacent to the Puppy Palace, and when it needed replacing, it encroached upon the puppies’ yard.

While the shed and adjacent kennel space still provide excellent housing for newborns and puppies up to four weeks,

after that – the little monsters need more room to run and play.

For the past year, this meant carting them to the much larger puppy yard. They quickly outgrow wheelbarrow transfer leading to weeks of one-by-one carrying.

The solution: Puppy Pad South – or as I like to call it, Juvenile Hall. An enclosure within the large Puppy Yard that can house puppies when they reach four weeks or so.

The guys fenced off a space and built a shed at the end of the yard with a large tree providing all-day shade.

The surrounding ground, however, was a disaster. So we got to work leveling and setting pavers to provide a safe play space that is easily cleaned. While Kermit supervised…of course!

On one end, is a small patch of real grass and another tree. And under the large shade tree where grass doesn’t grow, artificial turf will be installed. The puppies will have plenty of safe room to play and stay – and when we have eyes on – the gate will open onto their very large, grassy puppy yard.

No more hauling back and fort! And everything a puppy needs for play and socialization.

Love in a Mist

There are near daily tests for the rescuer woman: her will to heal against theirs to surrender.
Most battles are won, but not all; the rescuer does not always get to be the savior.
The beloved dog who so kindly shared his home, heart, and rescuer mom has gone.

Sometimes, it feels like the universe conspires against us –
When it is simply saying, “I’m calling you home.”
It is not compelled to explain its timing or purpose –
Any more than the flower defends when it sets and seeds.
Like the Love in a Mist – our physical presence appears protected –
shielded –

But, in the end, it is as fleeting as dew.
You soak up the bloom for as long as you are able –
And come to learn that even in its passing – it sows the seeds of more.
More beauty.

More seasons.

More ways to meet – differently – in whispers and shadows and mist – but again.

Carried with us – always.

“If I had a single flower for every time I think of you, I could walk forever in my garden.” ~ Claudia Adrienne Grandi

One Family Here

Our garden is a haven for hummingbirds.
An all-day diner offering a smorgasbord of favorite foods…
Agastache

Cuphea

Sunflowers

Obedient Plant

and more.

There is no need to squabble –

mosquitos, gnats, flies, and aphids abound when a protein craving strikes.
Trees provide cover and shade and safe nesting sites.

Convenient way stations provide an opportunity to eat while sitting! Now that’s energy saving.

It doesn’t take all that much to help creatures thrive.
A place to heal,

to grow,

and thrive –

in safety,

security,

and love.

“God made all the creatures and gave them our love and our fear,
To give sign, we and they are His children, one family here.”
~ Robert Browning

Forrest

There is a reason why gardeners are increasingly moving to native plants.
Unlike fancy hybrids, native plants are uniquely adapted to their landscape. Having developed over time, they are resilient and well-suited to the available soil, water, and sun or shade.

As a result, they thrive where others languish – providing valuable habitat to others.

Today’s designer dogs are much like plant hybrids. Mixed breeds combined in the hopes of a perfect mix of genetic traits. Bernedoodles are apparently the latest rage: a mix of Bernese Mountain Dog and Poodle.

Unfortunately, these designer dogs bred (and inbred) with limited gene pools by unscrupulous “breeders” run the risk not only losing the desirable traits of each breed but also inheriting health issues and undesirable traits from both sides. The result: Forrest.

Neurological damage. Inability to walk. One leg longer than the others. And seizures.

God may work in mysterious ways – but this is a man-made travesty.


Some would call it collateral damage. I call it a grave injustice.

If Forest’s heart could will his body to heal – it would be done.

This guy – with his tangle of legs and constant right turns – is bound and determined to get somewhere. We’re just not sure where.



It remains to be seen if we have a miracle for Forrest. But we will try.
For Forrest’s sake, help us spread the word. Let Mother Nature be.

She knows best.

When Someone You Love Becomes A Memory

When someone you love becomes a memory –
The memory becomes a treasure.

Last July 4th, a miracle named Buster was delivered to us.
He stole everyone’s heart – but he claimed one as his own.
He stayed longer than anyone expected…
but it is never long enough.
To his heartsick human mom he would say ‘remember me with the smile and laughter that filled my days with love.’

“He took my heart and ran with it, and I hope he’s running still, fast and strong, a piece of my heart bound up with his forever.” ~ Patricia McConnell, For The Love of A Dog

When You Just Say “Try”

Every single person that contributes to our mission of rescue is essential and valued. Still, there are some donors whose extraordinary gifts over the years have created an essential foundation for our work. Many had not been to the rescue in a decade or more; so much has changed. Since or founding, our facilities and our programs for the dogs have morphed from buckets and tubs and potty breaks to a fully functioning, more modern operation with enrichment programs to support the dogs. To showcase all – and to show this unique group of donors all that they have contributed to – we hosted them last weekend for a Big Dog Brunch.

The morning began with Mimosas in the garden – made beautiful by the return of my wayward gardeners. It looked magnificent.

Despite an unwelcome heat wave, the roses’ second bloom appeared on cue

along with the Agapanthus,

Bee Balm,

Day Lilies,

Butterfly Bush,

Blanket Flower, Yarrow and Verbena.

From there, we took folks in small groups on tours of the facilities including the in-ground, heated swimming pool, senior yard and sanctuary, vet clinic, kennels, puppy palace, yards and training pavilion.

The volunteers were able to share how each resource benefits the dogs and invited them to demonstrations of swim therapy and playgroups.

At the brunch that followed, each received a small book capturing all of the special projects – a take-home reminder of the impact they have made.

Saying ‘thank you’ is one thing; giving people an opportunity to touch, see, feel – and be touched by – all that they support (hopefully) makes a lasting impact and demonstrates our genuine appreciation.

The garden – like everything they saw that day – was a labor of love. A volunteer effort. Created from dirt and weeds, it – and all that surrounds it – are a reminder of what can be accomplished when you just say “try.”