On June 19 we picked up a young Sammy male about two and a half years old. The story was that he ran away from home, and his owner decided to teach his children a lesson in responsibility by not picking him up at the shelter. Just when you think you heard everything, something like this happens. We have a good relationship with the Everett shelter so they told us the exact minute his stray hold would be up so we could be there. Erin and Tom were able to get him and report his family never showed up. His name is Juneau, though he didn’t answer to it at the time. That says a lot about his previous life.

On June 27, our boy Jack developed a cough. It didn’t seem too bad, but on the 30th we found him on the floor, stretched out with his head up trying to breathe. We rushed him to the vet where they told us he had pneumonia. It’s usually bacterial, and sometimes happens after a dog aspirates some water while drinking. We left him at the vet for three days, picking him up each evening and returning him each morning because they have no overnight staff. They were going to be closed for three days over the holiday so we brought him home with fluids to give sub-q twice a day. Sunday he seemed to improve a bit, and our vet-tech friend was here to check on him. During the night he was restless, wanting to be carried outside about 4 am, then put back on the bed. Shortly after that his body gave up and we lost him.

Two days earlier we discussed the idea of getting him tested for doggie flu, just in case, because of the upcoming picnic. The results didn’t come until three days after he died, and we were stunned to find Jack had Canine Respiratory Coronavirus, an extremely contagious virus that was first discovered only in 2003. There is no vaccine and no treatment except to let it run its course. The only strange dog in the past couple months was Juneau, but he showed no signs of illness. It meant we had to test him too, which took another five days.

Of course that meant we had two days to cancel the Rescue Picnic. We tried to contact every person on the invitation list, all the club members, and we posted on several Facebook groups and pages. We put a sign at the head of our driveway explaining what happened and that nobody should proceed to the house because we didn’t know if any of the dogs might be contagious. As far as we know, nobody showed up.

We have three other dogs who showed no sign of illness. Unfortunately, we took in another foster dog before the test result was in, and he is 13 years old. For 8 more days, until the results came back, we held our breath waiting for him to cough. We are relieved to say he didn’t, and the test on Juneau was negative on the entire panel. Juneau will be going to his new home before you read this.

The new guy’s name is Herbie, and he is a love bug. Herbie is an enormous dog, 94 pounds, but also the tallest boy we have had here. If you have a long memory, he’s just a little smaller than Tramp. He arrived with a very matted coat, caked-on feces, bad infections in both ears, and he walked like he hurt. The woman who called us said a car turned around in her rural driveway and he appeared in her yard a couple minutes later. In only a week Herbie has improved considerably. Kathy is making progress with his coat, we are treating his ears, and we will have to decide whether he is too old to clean his teeth. We took him as a permanent hospice dog and he will live out his life here.

And now back to Juneau. His new family planned to bring their 11 year old boy to meet him the day before the picnic, but we called that off because of the indecision about the virus. They came to visit without their dog, and we could see it was a great match. Now that he is proven negative for a virus, they are planning to pick him up as soon as possible.

In tribute to Jack

We first met Jack at the Olympia Animal Shelter in November 2013, where he had been dropped off by his family. He was about 8 years old, but they gave very little information beyond that. We brought him here and discovered a big goofy boy who weighed 116 pounds. He had no hair on his back and his tail was nearly naked. Our vet suspected a thyroid problem, and when tests confirmed it we put him on thyroid supplements twice a day. A couple in Graham was interested so we placed Jack with them. The house was bit unusual, but we work with dog people and we’re used to eccentricity.

They called about nine months later and said Jack “wasn’t friendly.” Within a few minutes Kathy was on the way to pick him up, and when he entered the house again it was with a smile and a wag. Jack stayed here, and he was as affectionate, mellow, and happy as a dog could be. With lots of love and not nearly as much kibble, Jack’s weight came down to 60 pounds. He moved easily and without effort. He wanted nothing more than to be next to us, day and night. Jack was about 11 when he passed, and he leaves an enormous hole in our hearts.

Our 17th annual Rescue Picnic is right around the corner. All our adopters and volunteers, plus all SCWS members, are welcome. This year it’s Saturday, July 9 at our home near Tenino. If you think you can make it, please RSVP to Ron (ron@nwsams.com). Although this is a potluck picnic, we need to know how many people are attending.

A few weeks ago there was a request for a visit to a hospice patient in Albany, Oregon. The original request came from family in England, and it was passed through Facebook by a breeder in the Midwest. They said their father loved Samoyeds and would like to see one again. Our adopters and volunteers are the most generous bunch of people in the world. Within an hour of getting the request, an adopter and a volunteer both said they could visit. Many thanks to Anita and Natalie.

Our application has many questions, one of which is whether the applicant would be interested in a mix. We heard of one in Portland, and it turned out that five people in the general area had checked yes, so we hope the Sammy mix (who is with another rescue group) will find a home with someone who appreciates her. Our waiting list is long, and the reason we don’t publicize dogs when we get them. People continue to ask for dogs even though we get so few, and as a result we have a waiting list with over three dozen families on it. Times have changed from the days we took in 12-15 dogs a year. For two years in a row we have helped only 4 dogs each year, which means a big part of getting a dog from us will be patience.

The Snowball of April is now the Ollie of May. In other words, Snowball moved to SeaTac to live with Erin and Tom, who named him Ollie. Sometimes dogs are meant to be part of a family, and it happened with lucky Ollie. He came back to us for two weeks so his new sister Abby could recover from knee surgery; when they left him, he had lived there for less than a week, but his eyes were on them as they left. When they came back for him, we thought he might turn inside out with happiness. Dogs have a way of telling us when things are what they want. Ollie is a very fortunate dog to have everything in his life he could ask for.

Early this month many Samoyed Rescue groups around the country heard from a small shelter in Wisconsin. They were about to visit a breeder and seize a large number of Samoyeds and they didn’t have the resources to handle them. Northwest Samoyed Rescue formed a quick alliance with three other groups, Playing Again Sams of Wisconsin, Denver Samoyed Rescue, and MidAtlantic Samoyed Rescue (the latter being the group that took three dozen Sammies in late 2011). We have all worked together before in different ways, and we made an offer to the shelter to help pay for boarding for all the dogs. They are a poor county and their animal control doesn’t have much budget.

It was done with a lot of secrecy. Things like this have a way of finding drama, and then swarms of good Samaritans who call the shelter, and then confusion, and finally things fall apart because shelter staff don’t have time (years ago a shelter put down a dog because they didn’t have time to talk to all the people who called, and we don’t want that to ever happen again). The day before they were scheduled to visit, the very large Wisconsin Humane Society stepped in and agreed to house all the dogs. The shelter agreed.

On the day of the visit, WI Humane came along. The breeder, who had first been visited two months ago and given time to correct bad conditions, had made most of those corrections. New kennels, cleaning, and better facilities meant no citations. She agreed to surrender a dozen dogs we were told were “unlicensed,” and the press release said she did it willingly because she was overwhelmed.

From the time we were contacted until the morning after the visit to the breeder, we understood we would be paying the boarding and would be able to place the dogs. We were looking for options to transport the dogs west (wherever we could get a driver or a cooperating airline). We spent several days trying to make contacts. At the very least we expected to send people who were waiting for dogs to Milwaukee. Maria, from the Wisconsin rescue group, tried to warn us about the HS, saying they don’t work well with rescues. And she was right. When they took the dogs, their intent was always to adopt them themselves, and to the first people who showed up with money. Their rates are far higher than any rescue would ever charge. No doubt it’s the reason they have assets of 22 million dollars.

For us, and the other rescues, it’s disappointing we aren’t able to help our applicants find dogs. It’s frustrating we can’t ensure these beautiful dogs are treated like the unique breed they are. Although our lives got easier, someone said something that made us stop and think. They compared some large Humane Societies to backyard breeders. They both profess love for dogs, but then sell to whomever shows up with the money. They don’t qualify buyers, they give only routine medical care, and they don’t know the breed. Playing Again Sams, the long-time and well-respected Samoyed Rescue group in Wisconsin, is almost certainly going to see some of these dogs again someday because they will be badly placed. And the bottom line is that we can’t do a thing about it.

None of us in rescue have mentioned the breeder’s name, and you won’t see it here. It was a hoarding situation, caused as most are by things that just got out of control. Hoarding is a mental illness and we hope she gets help for it. We’re going to try to stay in contact with the shelter we heard from first, and in the future we will help only under very controlled conditions.

It’s been an adventure this month.

Around the first of this month we were contacted by a woman in Lewis County who had a Sammy she wanted to surrender. He was purchased from an unknown breeder, possibly in the Olympia area, by a family member who couldn’t keep him. She kept him in a kennel in the back yard because she knew he would run away if loose. For a one year old, it was a small area to live, and she knew it would be better for him to have room to run.

His name is Snowball, which she changed from Napoleon when she took him. He doesn’t respond to either, so his new family will get to choose something they like. We weren’t really sure when he first got here whether he is a Samoyed or an American Eskimo Dog, based on his size of 40 pounds and height of 20 inches. We have experienced a couple Eskies, and based on his personality we now believe he is a very small Samoyed. Snowball has every friendly and outgoing trait of a Samoyed, plus all the qualities of a very young dog. Chewing is his favorite sport and he is still learning what is appropriate. He defers to our four other dogs, male and female, so he will fit his new family. They have two Sammies already and have been on our list for a very long time. He needs the other dogs to keep him exercised and teach him what to do.

In Memory of Shadow

Back in September 2002, we had just taken over the reins of rescue when we heard of a Samoyed at the Tacoma Humane Society. We found a big, handsome boy who was about a year old, possibly a little younger. They picked him up somewhere in Lakewood where he was running loose in traffic. He was totally, absolutely blind from a congenital problem. One eye was microphthalmic and both eyes had detached retinas. How he survived is hard to imagine, but he always had a talent for sensing things in his path. A home in Montana wanted him, and we made arrangements to meet them halfway. The night before he was going to hit the road, plans fell through when the guy’s wife called and said it was his idea, not hers. We both looked at each other and said “good.” And Shadow stayed with us.

 
He had been here about two years when he misunderstood Charlie’s disciplining another dog (Charlie was the one who taught new dogs what was OK here). Shadow jumped on, and from that day the two boys had to be separated. We lived with gates for ten years, until Charlie passed away in October, 2014, and we bear scars from the times the gates weren’t enough. In the last year Shadow’s hearing went bad, so his life was a quiet, dark place. His nose still worked and he always knew when there was food around. He enjoyed being petted and brushed, and especially like an occasional doze on a lap.

March 17 Shadow finally told us it was time to let him go. He was about 14 1/2 years old. He was the last of our “original” dogs, and now the longest a dog has been with us is only four years. One of the great parts of rescue is being in a position to take the old dogs. The flip side is that we rarely have a dog for a long time, and never for his whole life.

Twice this month we were approached about taking or placing a dog. The first was a family in the Bremerton area who has a seven month old dog they don’t have time for. It’s a common story, especially at that age, and we hear it from people who bought from a backyard breeder and weren’t told how much work a Samoyed puppy is. This time it was a true backyard dog from someone who “didn’t mean to have a litter” and ended up with puppies. They asked if we could find an adopter close to them so they could be involved with their dog later. We explained to them that the adoption of a dog is similar to that of a human, and it’s unlikely anybody would be willing to do that. They plan a family meeting later this month to decide what to do, and we hope they will find a way to keep him. It’s not the dog’s fault he was purchased by someone who didn’t understand he would take some effort.

The other dog was listed as a Samoyed mix on Craigslist and we contacted the owner. He has been visiting the neighbor’s chickens and it always ends badly. When they sent pictures we couldn’t see any Sammy in the dog, but one shot looked like a pit mix. We offered to help as much as we could (without taking the dog), but fortunately they decided they will keep him and work with the problem. Hopefully they will work on fixing the fence, too.

As has been the case recently we haven’t had any Samoyeds needing homes, but we continue to get applications. Currently we have about three dozen families on the waiting list, many of them previous adopters or people with lots of Sammy experience. As good as this is for the dogs, it’s frustrating for all of us. We always say we’d love to be put out of business, but we didn’t expect it would happen this fast.

The bite Melissa received while checking on a dog last month is healing fine. We talked over the situation and decided we had no choice about reporting the dog to animal control, so she filed a report. The animal control officer agreed, but since this is a first offense the dog will be allowed to remain in her home. We feel this is an unpredictable dog, and she already has attacked several other people. She must now wear a muzzle if not in her back yard, and since the muzzle is what set her off last month, the owner can’t to put it on her. That means a life relegated to being alone in the yard. We feel bad for the dog, but it had to be reported.

A few days ago we received a picture of Misty, the young girl we had late last year. She lives with a family many of us know, people who have had Sammies their whole lives. She ended up in the perfect home. Here’s a picture of Misty greeting her family with a morning woo.

The tentative date for our annual rescue picnic this year is July 9.

In the past month we heard about three dogs. One was in McKenna, one in Spokane, and one in Billings. All of them were posted on Craigslist, all were contacted by rescue, and none of them acknowledged our mail. It’s the way of the internet and often discouraging. Finally, a day before this report was written, we made contact with an all-breed rescue that has a Samoyed mix (perhaps a purebred, but we don’t know yet). Melissa is going to visit and assess the dog, and then we will have the info we need.

Update February 14: During our discussions with the rescue we were told Bella bit her foster mom, and we will not take a biter into rescue. Depending on the assessment, sometimes we will refer people, so Melissa arranged to meet the dog in Portland. We were told she was a Samoyed or Sammy mix named Bella. Melissa discovered a huge dog, probably a good hundred pounds. What Melissa found was definitely a mix, and whether she has any Samoyed is beside the point, because after warming up to Melissa for a half hour, Bella attacked her. It wasn’t just a bite, but a full-on attack. One second Bella was nuzzling her hand, and the next she had hold of her arm. Melissa is experienced and was able to get away, but not without some bite wounds. We know now that “that’s what Bella did before” with the foster mom and two other people. Our advice to the rescue group is that this dog has to be euthanized. Melissa will recover from painful but relatively minor wounds; this is a first we would rather not have.

One of our previous adopters asked if we can help them bring a dog north from Eureka, California. Although she isn’t a Sammy, we will always do what we can, so we contacted San Francisco rescue and they told us it was a safe, no-kill shelter. The adopter will make contact, and we hope we can do more.

We are sorry we had a request to help an adopter diagnosed with cancer. There is only one rule in a case like this; we will do what they ask (and keep our fingers crossed). This is an appropriate time to ask you an important question. Are you prepared? For the sake of your dogs, make plans now. Write out your directions and keep them clipped to your will (or have your attorney draw it up properly). If you want rescue to help, please tell us so we can ask the right questions now while they can be answered. Who do you want to take your dogs, and where do they go? We always worry that our dogs will leave us too soon, but the opposite can happen. Take a moment to think about it, or better yet put your wishes on paper.

We in Northwest Samoyed Rescue are also trying to plan ahead. Although we’re helping fewer dogs than we used to, we will probably never hit the zero mark. That means we’ll always need someone willing to help Samoyeds who find themselves in a bad situation. We won’t be around forever, and we need people willing to begin working with us for that eventual transition. Right now it’s going well — but the IRS rules say if we ever stop that we have to give away our funds to other 501c3 non-profits. If that happens nobody will be helping our Sammies in the northwest. If you have considered helping run the group, now is the time to do it while we are all around to make it happen easily. Please give it some thought.

Our month began when we heard of a blind Samoyed lost in King County, close to the Cedar River. We shared the details on our list and our Facebook page and it was forwarded many times. The owners did everything right, and a day later she was found safe and sound. During that time we exchanged a number of emails with the director of the Missing Pets Network and got some good ideas. The most important thing when a dog is missing is to tell everybody you know. If you make us part of the process we can help; our adopters are all over the northwest.

Since the last report we heard of four dogs, in Kalispell, Seattle, Moses Lake, and Palmer, Alaska. All were listed as either Samoyed or Sam mix, but none of them were either. We chase a lot of listings before we find one that’s really a Sammy. We appreciate the help Holley gives us as she checks all the Craigslist posts twice a day.

December is a month when people think about taxes, and we are grateful to have received quite a few donations this year. Our goal is to make Northwest Samoyed Rescue a self-supporting charity, well-funded enough we never have to worry about getting a dog with a major problem. We’re happy to say we are getting closer every year, and it is with the help of our rescue friends. Because we applied for and received our 501(c)3 status, your donations to rescue are tax-deductible. We thank you for your support over the years.

We were also contacted by two Sam-families doing estate planning. Both wanted to know if they could note in their wills that their dogs would go to Northwest Samoyed Rescue. On average this happens two or three times a year, and we always say yes. Planning ahead means your dogs are provided for and it’s not a worry for you or your family. In one case the people want us to be called, but they gave us a list of who we should call in return, and which family members would be good for the dogs. It’s always your choice what happens to your dogs.

Last Spring we took in an old girl named Princess. She had been put in the yard as a puppy and left there until they dropped her at the shelter eleven years later. She is a fearful dog, and because she bonded with Ron we decided to leave her where she is. We had some questions whether she was purebred because of her big round eyes, as well as the fearful temperament. A few weeks ago we bought a DNA test to satisfy our curiosity, and after waiting a couple weeks we have a definitive answer: Princess is undoubtedly a purebred Samoyed. If you are curious how the tests work, her test results are online at http://www.nwsams.com/princess-dna.pdf.

Because so many people who apply to rescue want puppies, something we don’t often have, many of them turn to breeders. We are lucky to have many great ones in the northwest; we also have a puppy mill and quite a few backyard breeders. After answering the same questions over and over, we finally put an article online for people to read. Could you spare a few minutes? Please review what we posted and let us know if there is anything you disagree with, or would add, or if you think we should change our advice. www.nwsams.com/breeders.htm We all work together for the dogs, so please write ron@nwsams.com with your suggestions. Thanks!

Thanks to Holley, we almost never go more than twelve hours without hearing about new dogs listed on Craigslist. She checks faithfully twice a day, every day of the year. Her dedication is legendary, and the last day of November found her on vacation, running scripts from her computer in Maui. She let us know about a Salem dog that was just listed; we called the phone number and left a message, then followed up with email, but heard nothing. As happens on many of these, the listing was taken down by the owner a few hours later and we will probably never know what happened.

Another dog popped up in the Kalispell shelter, listed as a Sammy mix but probably a Husky. Sandy went to check and let us know it was one we shouldn’t take. Sometimes a negative answer is as valuable as a positive answer, and having volunteers like Sandy is an important part of our rescue family.

A few days ago we had a question about temporary fostering for two dogs, and we will follow up as we find out the exact circumstances. At this point it doesn’t sound like an emergency, but these things have a habit of changing abruptly.

During the Christmas season we benefit from the purchases made on Amazon by our friends. If you go to www.nwsams.com/amazon and click the logo, Northwest Samoyed Rescue will receive a little bit of purchases made on Amazon. It costs you nothing and rescue benefits quite a bit. Imagine how much the dogs would be helped if all your Amazon purchases were done that way. We also have a reminder on the website for those who shop at Fred Meyer because they have a similar program. If you want the exact instructions write to rescue@nwsams.com and you’ll get everything you need.

It’s also the time when many of you make end-of-year donations. We are a 501(c)3 federal non-profit and your donations to Northwest Samoyed Rescue are tax deductible. If your check isn’t enough documentation for your tax account, we’re happy to send a statement showing what a generous and cool person you are.

Whether it’s Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, or Happy Holidays, we hope you have a wonderful holiday season and 2016 is filled with clouds of Sammy hair.

Every so often something happens in rescue that we haven’t seen before. For example, this month we took in the sister of a dog we had in rescue a year and a half ago. Her name is Missy and she came from the area around Pendleton. Her first owner gave her away to her sister in Idaho, and her sister is moving. Fortunately for Missy and rescue, Hollie Eller heard about her and stepped in to help.

Hollie picked her up and fostered her through her spay surgery, and as a bonus she did a beautiful job of grooming Missy (it’s rare we get a dog that has been professionally groomed and is ready for adoption). We put out the word that Missy needed transportation to the west side, and within a day it was all arranged. A thousand thanks to Tom and Barb, who made a 220 mile round trip to Lewiston to meet Hollie and Missy. Most of the drive was made after dark, and it was in the face of a WSU game night and thousands of oncoming headlights. The next morning a new friend named Deb met them, Missy was handed off, and Kathy met her in Federal Way late that afternoon. Transports are usually difficult to arrange, but this went as smoothly as could be.

Once we got Missy here we could compare her to Lily, the girl we found in the Walla Walla shelter in April last year, only 40 miles from the first home Missy had. Lily is the one who was covered with ticks, living with puppies along the river, and when we first saw a picture of Missy we thought they might be related. Once they were together it was obvious they are litter sisters, dead ringers for each other. They are both unusually small, badly bred (sorry, girls) but as sweet as dogs can be. Hollie told us Missy was wonderful with her grandkids, and Lily is good with our grandkids.

Many of you already know Russ and Joan in Portland, who lost their Sammy earlier this year. That’s hard on people who have had Samoyeds for over 35 years, and they were on our waiting list hoping for a female the age of Missy, which made this adoption a no-brainer. We only fostered Missy for two nights before they came to meet her, and she happily left with them for her new home.

We’re sorry to say that Iona, the senior Sammy girl taken in by a rescuer in eastern Washington, has a spindle cell tumor in her mouth and the prognosis isn’t good. She is 16 years old and her foster mom is taking her to WSU for a second opinion. They aren’t going to do anything aggressive, and will look for whatever will make her most comfortable. We are glad Iona has had the opportunity to spend time with Sandy, her foster mom, to learn what a loving dog home is all about. If there is something that can be done we will help Sandy publicize her fundraising.

Many thanks go to those great friends who helped us this month getting Missy here from Idaho. A special mention goes to Hollie, who picked her up and fostered her through surgery. It’s humbling to have friends like Hollie, Tom, and Barb.

Back in May we had a call from the Everett shelter and picked up an eleven year old girl by the name of Princess. She had lived in the yard all her life and was actually a little confused being in the house. It took us a little time to realize the reason she wasn’t eating was because she didn’t understand food being in a metal dish. When someone suggested her owners may have tossed food out the door for her we began feeding on the floor and she ate with enthusiasm. These months later she still doesn’t like a dish, so we have a special towel we put on a pillow, and her food goes on it.

Princess was initially afraid of everything. She was suddenly mixed in with other dogs and humans who wanted to be social, very different than her previous life. Gradually she came around nicely, albeit slowly, and we mark the special occasions like sneaking up beside one of us and waiting for petting. Her tail is up most of the time now, and when we call her in from the yard she runs happily toward the house. We expect she will stay with us because she isn’t a good candidate for adoption. We will enjoy her as long as she stays. The is nothing as special as a senior Sammy.

It has been a slow month in rescue. Another few applications come in each month, and we always have to say our waiting list is long and getting longer, while no dogs have needed our help. Recently we modified our application webpage to ask people not to apply unless they want an older dog, but still we have people who want young dogs or puppies. We try to help people who ask us to find a breeder’s dog, so if you know of an adult dog that is available, please let us know.

Do you remember Jack, who came into rescue a couple years ago? He had hairless patches all over his body and he was over 110 pounds. After finding him a home that didn’t work out, he came back and we decided he should stay. Over the months he has lost weight until he is now 60 pounds. We’ve had him on thyroid medicine and his coat has grown back except for his tail. We modified the meds slightly and will be taking him back to the vet in a month for more tests. Jack is one of the most mellow, well behaved, and loving dogs we have had.

Ron, Kathy, Melissa, Terry, and Joy make up the board for Northwest Samoyed Rescue. All of us are past retirement age now, and we can’t run rescue forever. If someone is willing to help, and perhaps someday take over, now is the time to step forward. We can all work with our replacements to make a smooth transition as long as we are still here. We can still do most of the work while you get experience. Otherwise, someday it’s going to be a difficult transition — or maybe Samoyed Rescue will disappear. There will always be dogs who need us and we don’t want that to happen.