December 2013
Several months ago someone in the Seattle area contacted us about taking his dog, who had separation anxiety and was tearing up his apartment. Upon talking to him we learned he didn’t really want to lose his Sammy, but he didn’t know what else to do. He sounded sincere so we asked for volunteers to work with him. Ryann responded and went for a visit. We all kept in touch with training suggestions, and just a few weeks ago his happy owner said training was the ticket. His dog is now reliable in the apartment alone, and is getting enough exercise. We don’t mention this often, but our first duty to a dog is to keep him in the home he already knows. Sometimes that’s impossible, but many cases turn out like this.
A Samoyed came into the SpokAnimal shelter in Spokane last month, and Cheri offered to take a look. He was a purebred, but would be held a few more days. Another check on him found he had an adopter, and Cheri asked them to give her name to the adopter in case they wanted any help with their new Samoyed. Having volunteers all over the northwest who are ready to jump to help makes rescue possible.
Another dog came into the Redmond, Oregon shelter. Ken offered to help and we called the shelter to make contact. Once again, the shelter had someone on the way to adopt, but they said they were glad to keep our contact information. We also gave them Ken’s number because he has helped with a number of dogs in the area.
It was the month of shelter dogs, and yet another ended up in the Blue Mountain shelter in LaGrande, Oregon. Cathie has always helped in that area so we called right away. She checked in and worked with them, and someone she knew (who had Sammies before) ended up adopting this one. In the process we learned we have yet another member in the area who also offered to help. And we also heard from a woman who helped with Georgia Samoyed Rescue who has moved to the northwest, who wanted to volunteer for rescue here. Our network of volunteers keeps getting larger and we appreciate it more than we can say.
We had an early Christmas present in the form of an update on Rikki (formerly Graham), who was rescued by North Texas Samoyed Rescue during the seizure a couple years ago. We worked with Christie to get him placed in a great home in British Columbia. His new mom’s name is Lorraine, and she is a senior with a terrific support network. She grooms him several times a week, walks him twice a day, and they have an incredible bond. You could even say they rescued each other, because he gives Lorraine a reason to get up in the morning. She still lives alone with Rikki at just over 100 years old.
