I was a Pet Transport Virgin – Until Today
Since my son works at a vet’s office in town, I hear about “abandoned” dogs on a regular basis. I even ended up with Lucille, an American Bulldog because she was dropped off at the vets starved to death and with a dislocated hip after someone found her running around outside the closed animal shelter in Paulding County.
So Lucille joined our home – and thankfully, she’s been restored and is a happy, happy girl.
Our Lucy-Goosey in her favorite spot – her new Christmas bed!
Before Christmas, there was a story that broke my heart. Two months earlier Duke the Doberman had been abandoned at the vets because his owner was heading to jail to serve a 10 year sentence. He’d languished in a kennel at the vets for about two months, but everyone was gearing up for a busy boarding season at the vets and she said she’d be forced to put him to sleep.
I told my son I couldn’t take him, but I’d try to find a rescue organization or someone who’d have room in their homes and hearts for this sweet, older boy. I took him for a couple of days into my home, and then he was placed over Christmas with a local dog rescue organization. But, a more permanent solution came via the magic of the web.
I was contacted by the Doberman Assistance Network who said they’d found a foster home for Duke, but it was in Illinois. He asked if I’d have Duke ready to go on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011, at 9:00 a.m. Plans were great – until Atlanta was hit with the hugest snow/ice storm ever. For literally four days – no one moved from their homes. And, if they did, they were at risk because of the ice the blanketed the city, the interstates and especially the local roads. It was dangerous to even walk to your mailbox this week.
Thankfully, today was a fine day for a transport. So my sweet husband, Steve (who got recruited for this adventure at the last minute) drove us to almost the Georgia/Tennessee border. Along the way, we also accumulated two 12 week lab-mix puppies who were going to other rescue organizations.
Doggy Limo Driver, Steve Miller:
Here’s Duke looking forward to his new home in Illinois:
We met up with Micky, who works for the Humane Society in Dalton, Georgia, who was going to provide Duke and the two puppies with a ride into Tennessee to make the next let of their journey. Micky’s bumper sticker says it all:
So that’s how my Saturday morning went this morning – how about yours?
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Hey, I DO feel rather heroic. Just took a couple of hours and we helped to take some otherwise condemned dogs and sent them on their way to loving homes.
Our contact in Dalton said that in their county, about 4,000 (I think that’s right) animals are killed each month in dog pounds. And that’s just one county! Apparently, there are much less killed in northern states because they require dog owners to purchase a license each year. You pay much more if your dog isn’t spayed/neutered. The money goes toward helping to pay for neutering, so that it’s more affordable for all. Now why can’t we get that implemented here in Georgia so that we don’t continue this canine holocaust?