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!!

Thanks to The River Community Church, volunteers will hold a special adoption event on Sunday, March 21st in hopes to find more homeless animals a home.  We will be at PETCO between 10AM and 1PM.  Come out and meet the newest addition to your family!

Thanks again to The River Community Church for making this happen

The River Community Church – 931-528-3660
Worship experiences at 9:00am and 10:45am, at both campuses:

http://therivercc.com/default.asp

A.A.R.F. launched it’s Pets for Seniors program, sponsored by Purina, in 2010.  This is a program that we have been trying to get started for over a year now, and it has finally become a reality.  We want to help the Seniors of our community by matching them with a great pet – with Purina’s assistance, we can now reduce the fees and accomplish our goal.  Please spread the word to senior citizens who are looking for a pet to love and care for. 

WHO IS ELIBIBLE

If you are 60 years of age and older and are looking for an indoor pet (over the age of 2 years) to love and spoil and take wonderful care of – then you qualify for the Pets for Seniors Program.  (Approved application required).

WHAT IS INVOLVED

A.A.R.F. has a standard adoption procedure that must be completed.  Contact an A.A.R.F. volunteer who can assist you in finding an animal that is right for you.  To participate in the program, you must be over the age of 60 years, and the animal that you will be adopting must be over the age of 2 years.  Once you find the animal that is right for you, you will be asked to complete an adoption application/contract.  Upon approval, you will go home with the newest love of your life!

WHEN AND WHERE CAN I SEE THE ANIMALS AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION

All of our adoptable pets can be viewed on our website at www.aarf-tn.com.  Many pets can be seen each Saturday at PETCO in Cookeville between the hours of noon and 6PM. 

WHAT ARE THE REDUCED FEES

Any animal, over the age of 2 years, that is adopted by a senior citizen 60 years and older will be just $60 until our funds are depleted.  We are hoping that the program will be a success and that sponsors will want to contibute to allow this program to continue year round. 

HOW CAN I SPONSOR THE PETS FOR SENIORS PROGRAM

Send a check, payable to A.A.R.F. to P.O. Box 4074, Cookeville, TN  38502.  Be sure to note in the memo section “PETS FOR SENIORS” or you can paypal your sponsorship to [email protected].  In the notes section, be sure to indicate that you want to support the “PETS FOR SENIORS PROGRAM”.

Please direct any questions to [email protected] 

Wally is doing WONDERFUL! He just recovered from a mild virus and is getting back to his, now, normal, wonderful, sweet and HUNGRY self! The only thing he would attempt to eat during his bout with this virus was bologna…he is very strong willed and has the courage to fight everything that tries to take him down. Luckily for him AND us – because we have ALL fallen in love with little Wally. I have decided for certain that there is nothing better in this world than a big, wet, sloppy puppy kiss across the face from a pup who was so scared that he nearly attacked me in a parking lot…talk about a compliment! We expect him to go in for neuter surgery in about 3 weeks or so. In the meantime, Wally is looking for a temporary foster home or he can be pre-adopted.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010:  9:00AM

Great News!  “Wally”, formerly named “New Guy” (Thanks Facebook fans), had a great night sleep, and a little bit more bologna before bed, and when I woke up this morning, he was wagging and barking and demanding attention like the other pups in foster care!!  I opened his crate, he licked my hand, and then put his face up to mine and licked my nose…I was wrong about this one, and SO HAPPY to report that!  He scarfed down his food very quickly this morning again.  Once he realizes that he will be fed twice a day, he should calm down some.  We will work on worming and vaccinating this afternoon after my husband gets home to assist.

Would anyone be willing to foster him for a few weeks??  If you don’t have an active foster app on file, please visit the following link and complete:  https://aarf-tn.com/foster/foster-app/

Tuesday, March 2, 2010:  7:00PM

It was a typical Tuesday night for A.A.R.F.  Delivering dogs to their new families, and meet ups with volunteers in the Wal Mart Parking lot, as well as doing some shopping with their families.  A lot of commotion arises from one area of the parking lot, where it appeared that a young couple was trying to get something to come out from underneath a vehicle.  A.A.R.F. volunteer Jennifer goes to investigate, only to find a frightened and starved puppy coming out from under the vehicle to get the french fries that this young couple is trying to lure him out with.  The pup is frightened of Jennifer, but is focused on her stepson who now has possession of the McDonald’s french fries.  With the help of A LOT of kind hearted citizens who want to see this dog get to safety, Jennifer’s stepson and his special gift with animals, and Jennifer’s husband, whose philosophy with frightened dogs has all to do with bologna and NOTHING else (thank goodness the deli was right there!!!!), we trapped this pup in a carrier and brought him into foster care.

Jennifer says “He is focused solely on my husband, now…which convinces me that he is right about the bologna.  I have seen him work two cases of feril dogs, now, and within 24 hours and 1/2 pound of bologna, the dog is our new best friend!  I hope that this is the same for this new little guy”.

This male pup was spotted in the wal mart parking lot around 5PM this evening and people had been apparently trying to capture him since that time.  Jennifer says “when a dog is frightened, or has had to fend for itself for its entire life, it trusts no one and will snap, bite, lunge and run away out of fear.  The best thing to do in a situation like this is to stay calm and lure it to safety, such as into a crate or kennel (which most A.A.R.F. volunteers keep with them at all times).  Fear issues can be resolved at a later time…the idea is safety first, and to avoid being bit since no one knows the history of this animal.  Chasing, sudden movements, loud noises…this will only make the animal more anxious to get away”.  When asked her thoughts on how the animal arrived in the parking lot, Jennifer said that it was too soon to tell, but her initial thought was that this was a wild pup who made its way away from it’s mom and was just looking for someting to eat.  She does not believe that this is a dump case.  “If I visit with him in the morning, and he wags and licks and jumps in my lap – then absolutely!  this pup belonged to someone.  But I honestly suspect, just by the reaction that I received from him upon arriving at the scene, that this animal is feril by all means”.  At one point during the rescue, the pup lunged and attempted to bite Jennifer’s leg.

It took Jennifer and her husband about 5 minutes upon arriving home to get this little guy out of his crate and into his new, temporary foster kennel…and yes, bologna was involved!  Once confined, he stood at the door of his kennel and watched Jennifer’s husband for about an hour – wagging his tail- his eyes following him everywhere he went.  Within an hour’s time, they could put their fingers inside of his kennel and he sniffed them and looked into their eyes. Jennifer expects the rehabilitation to take some time, but expects that he will be a great candidate for adoption once he is ready.

The moral to this and every story is that spay and neuter is the answer.  If you are allowing your dogs and cats to reproduce, you are only contributing to the ever-growing problem of animal overpopulation.  For more information on how you can be part of the solution, please call (931) 372-2728 or your local veterinarian to make an appointment to get your animals fixed today.  Financial Assistance may be available.

Any ideas of a fitting name for him?

EVEN MORE AWESOME NEWS!  On a stroke of good luck, Pam and Kyle Peterson with Peterson Express Transport Services- the ONLY transportation provider used by A.A.R.F. – was picking up their new trailer yesterday in the vicinity of Shelbyville and offered to pickup the kennels for us!!  The kennels are now here in Cookeville and waiting to be re-assembled! 

Thanks SO much Kyle, Pam and crew!  Here is a photo of their new trailer. 

P.E.T.S. will be featured on a new Animal Planet show called “Last Chance Highway”  which premiers this summer.  Read more about the show:  http://corporate.discovery.com/discovery-news/animal-planet-rolls-out-new-summer-series-last-cha/

Visit the P.E.T.S. website at www.petsllc.org for more information on how the Peterson’s are making a difference for these animals – nearly 24,000 saved since starting their organization!!!  P.E.T.S. makes northern adoptions possible and cost effective!  A big heartfelt “Thanks” for all that they do, and for jumping in and assisting us when we were panicked on how to get these kennels here quickly!!!

——————————————————————————————————-

Awesome News!  We found the kennels we have been searching for for our new holding facility!  Problem is, they are in Shelbyville!  We need to get them from Shelbyville to Cookeville ASAP! 

Does anyone have a truck-driving friend who can pick up and deliver these sections to us – possibly someone who drives through that area frequently? 

Anyone have a truck or trailer and the ability to volunteer to drive there to pick up for us? 

And in the worst case, if A.A.R.F. has to rent a truck, anyone with a good driving record available to volunteer to drive the truck, load, and bring back here?

The largest section of this is 20′ long, so a pickup will not cut it.  We can rent a Budget 24′ truck, but if we can avoid spending $200, we would prefer not to, of course…Please volunteer your services if you can.  Remember that all donations are tax deductible – this includes your fuel, etc.