January 2014
We have been working with a rescue group in Oregon to find a home for Nita, a mix who recently went blind at seven years old. We think their description of her as a “Samoyed/Lab” mix is a bit optimistic, but she seems to be a very nice girl and we know blind dogs are easy keepers, especially at that age. When someone fills out one of our application forms there are check boxes for ‘purebred,’ ‘mix,’ or ‘either.’ We keep a list of all those who would consider a mixed breed dog, and when a dog like Nita comes along we send email to them. Over the years this has worked well, especially since we only take purebreds into rescue. Of course over those same years we’ve mistakenly taken many mixes in, but that’s part of rescue. Since reasonably priced DNA testing has come on the market we have learned how many ‘Samoyed mixes’ have little or no Sammy in them.
At year end we always get a few donations, but 2013 was a stellar year as many of our friends remembered donations to rescue are tax-deductible. We feel honored that so many people think Samoyed Rescue is a good place to donate. We can also provide what you need to talk to your attorney about estate planning, as some of our friends have.
How many of you routinely donate to the Humane Society of the United States? They have come under fire from people who say they aren’t really helping dogs. Well, I’m one who likes to do my own research and not take the word of others regarding how I spend my money. You know something? The detractors of HSUS are absolutely right. If you go to a website like guidestar.org you can investigate all charities (NWSR is included) and learn how they spend your donations. In the case of HSUS, they spend a great deal of money trying to make more money (fundraising expenses), and their officers are very well compensated. The greatest part of their spending is on lobbying, and their beliefs align very closely with other ‘animal rights’ groups like PETA. Less than one percent of their spending, actually closer to one half of one percent, is spent helping dogs. Their federal tax returns are online for all to see. A good site for more information is www.humanewatch.org.
This is a good time to remind you that we keep microchip records on all the dogs we place. Since we are a ‘chipping agency’ (that means we buy the chips and implant them here) we are usually the first place called when a lost dog is found and scanned. Do we have your most current information? Ideally we should be able to locate you almost immediately, so we like to have home, work, and cell numbers, as well as neighbors’ phones and all the email and text addresses you have. Over the years we have had many successes returning dogs home quickly. If you’re a breeder whose litter we chipped, this would be a perfect time to ensure your puppy people have provided you recent information.