So it is 11:33 pm on Sunday night. I should be sleeping as I have to work tomorrow morning. Instead I am so wide awake it would be impossible for me to even think about sleep! In the past 7 hours we (Natalie and I) have saved 5 lives. It is exhilerating. We made a trip out to a local reserve this afternoon and came back with 4 very, very adoptable dogs. It is always heartwrenching to go and I always am a little anxious but the feeling I have right now is well worth the indigestion!!!
The story of our afternoon:
On our way out there we saw a bunch of dogs in crates in a parking lot- it turns out that Pound Rescue from Okotoks was out doing their thing- they will take dogs for people, or just strays; spay/neuter them and bring them back. They took 28 dogs- amazing. They had trapped some from the dump and taken in dogs for people who can't afford to spay. They were heading out when we arrived.
Natalie and I figured that the dogs left at the dump would be pretty spooked so although we went out we didn't see anything. We did however pick up dog #1 (Polly) shortly thereafter. She had been saved by a really nice lady who has helped with rescue before. Polly is about the cutest thing on three inch legs. She looks like a kelpie (black and tan) but is short and stout. She is very submissive and falls to the ground when approached. She is a doll and will come around quickly with patience and love. With Polly safely stored in the back of the truck we did a quick tour through town- we aren't allowed to take dogs right from town as although they mostly appear to be strays they might belong to someone. I almost broke the rules with a little shepherd X pup- who looked to be about 7 weeks old, but there were too many people around when I wanted to grab him and when we returned later we couldn't find him. I thought of him alot today.
We saw a LOT of starving, neglected dogs. Dogs of all different breeds -not just mutts either- Rottweilers, Saint Bernards, Jack Russells, German Shepherds, Pittbulls. And of course your combination of all of the above. There are no fences, and the dogs are in rough shape, underweight, full of fleas or mange, scars and missing ears from fighting. Dogs limping around on three legs, dogs who have had litter after litter of puppies. We saw lots of young dogs- ranging from 7 weeks and up. It is a horrible situation- one that unfortunately will continue.
After finding nothing in the residential area we decided to try a new place- and after 15 minutes of the worst road ever we came across two little pups on the highway- about 3.5 months old and absolutely terrified of people. With Timbits from Tim Hortons and lots of encouragement I managed to catch one, a female. Unfortunately the other one would not be caught. The little pup is very cute- all tan and white with a little black grizzle on her face she will need a lot of rehab to overcome her fear of people. Getting her in a crate was really difficult. After much discussing between Natalie and I- the little tan pup will be going to a different rescue. We don't have a foster home that is willing to take on such a challenge.
About 1/2 hour later we found dog # 3- lying on the side of the highway.Yep. just lying on the road. As we drove by he didn't move, get up or otherwise acknowledge us. Instantly I noticed his best feature- SHORT LEGS!!! and He looks almost identical to the little female we already had!! (Polly) He was easily caught with just one Tim Bit- Natalie has dubbed him Tim. He is super cute- very stocky and about 13 inches tall. We guess he is about 18 months old. He really likes other dogs and is pretty friendly little guy. He is a little reserved right now but I think he is just a bit shocked at his life change!!!
After dropping the little tan pup off for pick up we decided to call it a day- no more dogs were readily available- and we still didn't have a shepherd cross! (of which we have a request for)
So back onto the highway to head home and we spy three dogs on the road. We stop and they all wag their tails. Dog #4 At first we guess Collie cross, about 4 months old. She is young and wiggly and very happy to see us! After a closer look we decide she is a Sheltie Cross who is almost a year old. She is adorable and is short and long bodied- (not as short as Polly and Tim though!) We decided we couldn't pass her up- We had reached our limit. We only had three waiting foster homes. Sadly we started closing the tailgate- the other two would have to stay. Then the beautiful shepherd cross sat, wagged her tail and tried to jump in the truck- how could we say no? We helped her up and closed the truck. The little lab pup had to stay. It was very hard to leave her standing on the side of the highway- but without a place to put her we were doing her no favours to take her. We can't save them all unfortunately and although harder than you can imagine those are the choices that people in rescue have to make. So we saved 5 lives, and brought 4 back to lethbridge.
Once back to lethbridge- vaccines, capstars (instant flea killer) revolution (for internal parasites) and a wound clean for the little sheltie and Polly. Everyone was set. We delivered three to their foster homes and Tim came home with me. I will have pictures tomorrow- and will be sending out a mass email in the morning. We did good today and although we had to leave some behind the ones we saved are very, very thankful. I just tucked Tim into a crate for the night- the gentle wag of his tail and a quick kiss makes it all worth it. And that is what rescue is all about.
-Amanda
