So imagine this….you’re living out in the county where it is rare that you see anything out of the ordinary cross your yard…It starts to rain….then it start to hail….the wind picks up….and out of the corner of your eye, you see something moving in field outside your front window…it takes a moment to sink in that it is not a wild animal, but rather a dog.  That is what happened to a Baxter family recently, during this past week’s storms.  Like many folks, they were torn…should we try to help him or just let him find his way home….?  Seeing as how terrible the storm was, they ran outdoors and tried to save the life of this beautiful creature.

After bringing him into their basement, they realized that this boy had been on his own for quite some time….

A.A.R.F. volunteers showed up the following day and transported him to our veterinarian, Best Friends in Crossville, TN.  He received a comprehensive physical, which showed that aside from being a bit underweight and full of intestinal parasites, he was pretty healthy…but then they looked at his ear.  What we believed to be matted, was actually an abscess.  They immediately operated and were fearful that they may not be able to save the ear. 

We contacted the family who found him, who were so concerned about his well being….they told us a story that on the night of his arrival, he was so incredibly terrified, but eventually followed their son into their basement.  He ate some food and drank 2 bowls of water….as almost a “thank you”, he picked up a rag that was laying on the floor and layed it in their son’s lap….he thanked “Fred” by giving him some pats on the head and a few hugs.  “Fred” loved it so much, he went searching until he found a second rag to bring to him once again.  He knew that he was safe. 

One of the vet techs at Best Friends, Beth, volunteered to foster Fred while he was recovering from his operation.  His bandages needed changing daily and everything must be done properly, otherwise his ear could be lost. 

A week later, Fred is doing very well, and it appears that his ear will be saved!!!

A.A.R.F. is proud to announce our newest partnership with White County Animal Control!  They Operate a Shelter at 5600 Gum Springs Mountain Road in Sparta, TN.  Google it….you will never find it otherwise.  Mike, the director, can be reached at 931-510-3604 or 931-761-3647.  Because this is an animal control facility, the staff may be out on a call – so it is recommended that you call before making the trip out.  Mike is very anxious about getting more dogs adopted out of his shelter and saving more lives – AND – a new policy has been implemented that all animals MUST be spayed or neutered prior to adoption.  This is FABULOUS progress for this shelter and this county, and we are so glad to be on board.  All of White County Animal Control Animals can be viewed on our site as well their petfinder site.  Please visit www.whitecountytn.petfinder.com for directions, contact information and to see all of the WONDERFUL dogs available for adoption.

221 Dogs like Phoebe here are out of a once crowded, Sparta Puppy Mill and Never looking back.  Thanks to the White County Sherriff’s department for making the call to the HSUS, the owner of the puppy mill surrendered all animals to authorities and in return, no charges were pressed.  While this is a horrible situation, we are thankful that the authorities intervened and that these animals are now safe.  These animals went to shelters accross the region, including Nashville Humane Association and New Leash on Life in Lebanon (http://www.newleashonline.com/homepage.aspx).  These dogs will be spayed or neutered this week and will be available for adoption by the end of the week.  As for Phoebe (photograph), she is a 12 year young female miniature poodle (age is an estimate made by the HSUS) who now follows her foster mom everywhere she goes.  She is doing well with other dogs, does fine with cats, and does fine with older children.  She is in desperate need of dental work and a good groom (we are thankgful to Stephanie who will be grooming her on Thursday as a courtesy).  Phoebe gets scared when you make sudden movements towards her, and will cower in fear.  She is also fearful when new dogs sniff her and will bite if not kept calm during these encounters.  After 24 hours in our care, though, Phoebe has captured the heart of her foster family and makes the absolute PERFECT lap dog!!!  She likes to go ANYWHERE her foster mom goes, and will sniff her our if she disappears.  Phoebe is blind due to cataracts, but has excellent hearing.  If you are interested in donating to assist AARF in getting the dental surgery that Phoebe will need, please click one of the many DONATE NOW links on our site.  If you are interested in adopting Phoebe, the ultimate lap dog, please complete an online application.  To see many of the other animals available for adoption that were seized from this puppy mill, please visit http://www.newleashonline.com/homepage.aspx.

Barn donated to AARF to boost canine rescue efforts

For clarification purposes, we would like to address a miscommunication that was printed in Monday’s Herald-Citizen (4/5/2010).  A.A.R.F. was at one point looking at the possibility of renovating two barns in Cookeville for use as a shelter, but it was determined quite some time ago that the use of these barns would not be in our best interest.  Instead, we are working on renovating a building on the property of one of our board members.  Although not as large as the two barns, this building already has electric and concrete and is secure and the cost will be much less expensive then renovating even one of those barns.

Our Kennels are here!  We have our building!  Now we need to make the dream a reality!  Here is what we need to make this happen:

• The rafters in this building need to be repaired, as they are patched and not supported properly
• The slope on one side of the building needs to be dug out, and proper drainage needs to be implemented to avoid water getting into the building, as it does currently.
• There are cracks and hole throughout the building that need to be patched.  We have found Copperheads in this building previously.
• A ceiling and good lighting will need to be installed.
• The floor will need to be sealed.
• There is a window in the back of the building that we would like to turn into a door.
• There is currently no water or sewage servicing this building.  We will need that.
• The building will need to be insulated.
• The building will need to be ventilated properly, and a heating/cooling solution will need to be implemented for the very hot and cold months.

If you can assist, PLEASE contact Jennifer through email at [email protected] or by telephone at (931) 260-8018

We are pleased to report that our boys, Freckles and Drake, have made an AMAZING transformation into quite handsome fellows!  Marilyn did an EXCELLENT job with their groom, and has taken such wonderful care of them this week.  Today they are at the Humane Society of Putnam County Spay Neuter Clinic being neutered and vetted.  We already have a very promising application on Drake…we are hoping for the same for Freckles.  These boys deserve a loving home….

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUlXuwkNZok

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg9WGOy8Fvw

As most of you are aware, AARF volunteers have been slowing down on intake to concentrate on completing our no kill shelter facility.  This has been very difficult for most of us, since our passion in life IS saving these animals from life threatening situations.  So when a new friend called this morning and said “Hey….I have a solution to your shelter situation”, we rushed to the scene immediately to see this solution.

This new friend, currently remaining anonymous, has offered a part of their barn that was previously used years ago for pigs.  The stalls are setup already, and it sits on concrete – exactly what we need for an immediate solution!  We spent the day cleaning the area up, while the guys worked on removing the pen dividers, making plans to turn the electric back on, run water to this part of the barn, and create proper drainage for the pens.

We cannot express our appreciation enough to this kind family who has made our dream a reality.  We expect to start intake once again in the next month, and will continue on our path to assist and support local animal shelters in our region.

This space will really help us get up and going! But with this new opportunity will come a new wishlist of things that we will need; especially more foster homes and supplies for this new space. Donations of dog crates / kennels and Kuranda Dog Beds are also needed.

We in rescue sometimes come across animals that literally take our breath away…like we have trouble breathing at the thought that anyone could treat an animal so poorly.  Such is the case that happened today.  A.A.R.F. received a call from a concerned citizen about 2 severely neglected dogs that her mom had been feeding.  She agreed to take the animals into her care until A.A.R.F. could find a suitable foster placement for them.

We arrived to do an initial analysis of these dogs, two boys, Freckles and Drake, and our hearts literally sank at the sight of them.  Drake was the worst of the two….you could not tell where his ears were amidst the tremendous mattes in his fur.  We continuously lost track of his feet – matting from his torso right down his legs.  He walked with a limp – most likely due to matting and sores underneath this horrific mess.  Freckles had feces caked onto his rear side.  Every time he wagged his tail, we kept hearing a clinking sound.  I cannot express in words how heartbreaking this situation was.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36ahiQeQoFs

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8bSFVX3kzc

But what always amazes us is that these animals, despite their condition, are always in such GREAT spirits – such as with these boys.  Freckles wagged non-stop, while Drake rolled over on his back and enjoyed rubs to every place we could get to not covered by matting.  The lady who saved these animals stated that before her mom started feeding them, you could literally feel and see every bone in their body.  This abuse / neglect had been going on for quite some time – and we thank her for stepping in and saving these dogs from a slow, agonizing death.

Marilyn Weinke is our groomer – we placed an emergency call to her and were told to bring the boys up immediately.  We expect to pick them up sometime tomorrow and look forward to seeing brand new dogs!!!  Marilyn, who has worked with hundreds of cases similar to this, chuckled when I dropped them off this afternoon…she said that she has seen this and worse, and that I will not even recognize these dogs when I pick them up tomorrow!  We truly appreciate her confidence, and feel so blessed to have her as part of our team.

With cruelty cases such as this, expenses tend to add up VERY quickly.  They need to go on a high calorie, high nutrition content food, and will need to be seen by a veterinarian next week.  A.A.R.F. adoption fees barely cover the cost of the spay/neuter surgeries and typical vetting that we do – therefore we are looking, once again, for assistance in getting these boys seen by a veterinarian to tell us when we should be able to take them in for their surgeries.  Because of the malnourishment and life of suffering that they recently had, they are more likely to have certain diseases and conditions, all which will have to be identified by one our of Veterinarians.  A typical office visit and testing can range from $100-$150 for each dog.  A.A.R.F. relies on the public to take care of these animals financially.  If these animals had shown up at a high kill shelter in the condition that they were in, they would have most likely been euthanized.  Please consider donating to see that they get the medical attention that they need and deserve.

So our little Wally Monster is going in to be fixed tomorrow!!!  I expect that anyone who is looking for an awesome personality as their first pre-requisite for adoping a dog will just become smitten with him.  The pup that went from Devil Dog to “Stole My Heart” literally overnight…I just hope that we can find the absolute perfect home for him.  He deserves it!

You can come by PETCO in Cookeville on Saturday and/or Sunday of this week to meet Wally – assuming he is still available for adoption!!