Saturday's Dog: Still Dill

Dill was my very first Saturday's dog almost one year ago.

Sadly, she is still in foster care and available for adoption. I'm going to let her foster mom speak to what a good dog she is and what a loving companion she would be for the right family:

"Dill is a sweetie and very affectionate dog with a waggly tail...
She’s great with kids and other dogs. No cats, she is just too interested in them. She is a great companion dog; she makes no demands on anyone, loves everybody and loves attention but isn't pushy about it.

Dill is ready to be your walking partner, encouraging you to share fresh air and exercise with her. She can be your couch partner, waiting to cuddle with you and watch an old movie...

It takes a special person to adopt a dog already in the twilight of her years. When we open our hearts to an old dog in need with lumps, bumps and graying muzzles, we know that our time together will be all the more precious.

Are you that special person? The rewards of loving a senior are great indeed. She will give back tenfold."

Because North East All Retriever Rescue requires a home visit before placing a dog, she is available for adoption only in the New England area. She does however, qualify for their "Foster-to-Adopt" program. You can read all about her and learn more about NEARR's adoption policies on the website.

In the meantime, would you please tweet her story and let people know she's still looking for a home of her very own? You can do so here or from her profile on the web site. Thanks.

Saturday's Dog: Handsome Hank

It's that time again, friends. Time to ooh and ahh over a lovely dog in need of a home. (And to Tweet and Facebook said dog around to your friends and family. ;)

Today I'd like to introduce you to:

Handsome Hank!

Hello.

Photo courtesy NEARR.

Handsome Hank came to North East All Retriever Rescue when his family no longer had time for him. He's okay with that though because now he gets to meet more people and have lots of fun with his new foster family and their dogs.

His foster family says he's a great dog. Loves everyone, gets along with everybody. Kids, dogs, even cats! He's just a typical happy Lab ready to go whenever you are.

Hank is 7 and a half years old so he's at that perfect Labby age where they're starting to mellow but still very playful. The foster family is working on his leash-skills (I swear Labs pull better than Huskies sometimes) but he's over all the other puppy hi-jinks Labs are known for.

So maybe you can help find Hank a home? He's available for adoption in the New England area. You can read his complete profile on the NEARR website where you can also learn about our policies and procedures for adopting a dog. If you don't have room for him yourself, please consider tweeting his story or sharing it on your Facebook wall. While Hank is having a grand old time at his foster home, he'd surely like to find one of his very own.

I'm waiting for you...

Photo courtesy of NEARR

Saturday's Dog: Bruno

Photo property of North East All Retriever Rescue.

Part of me thinks all I should have to do is post this photo and people will be scrambling over each other in their bid to adopt beautiful Bruno. Part of me knows that's not how it works. So allow me instead, to introduce you to this affectionate, mellow senior softie, Bruno, the black Lab.

Bruno is 9-years old and looking for his new forever family. He's currently living in foster care through North East All Retriever Rescue and you can read his whole profile on their website.

He used to live with a family that had five children so he's really good with them. He's also very good with other dogs but cats, not so much. He's a bit of a couch potato and maybe a little bit velcro (I think that's part of the breed standard for Labs. ;) And come on, he's gorgeous, isn't he?

So, if you find yourself in need of a couch companion, hop on over to NEARR's website and tell them you just can't live without this big, beautiful boy. Or if there's no room at your inn these days, just click one of those social media buttons down at the bottom of the page and help Bruno out by getting his info in front of more people. The more people who see him, the sooner he finds his once and future forever home.

Thanks! And have a wonderful weekend.

Saturday's Dog: Nessie, the Chocolate Couch-Potato

Photos courtesy North East All Retriever Rescue (NEARR)

There seems to be a run on Chocolate Labs entering our rescue lately. I don't know why because they're all lovely, sweet and cuddly-bugs. And 7-year-old Nessie is the cuddliest of them all.

Nessie came to NEARR from a local Humane Society where they just loved her too much to let her sit in a kennel all day long. She loves her people, is good with children but doesn't much care for other dogs and dislikes cats.

Nessie is a REAL couch potato for a Lab - walk her once a day, throw her a ball or let her go for the occasional swim and you will have a happy girl will to sit by your side at days end. (She will also "keep your yard free of anything that moves, which includes skunks", so beware.)

She's allergic to wheat and fleas so you might have to get inventive about treats but since she doesn't like to exercise, maybe she should be eating carrots, not cookies, anyway. (In fact, Nessie would make a great partner for anyone interested in participating in the "K-9 Kamp Challenge" going on over at Kol's Notes right now!)

Learn more about Nessie in her profile over on the NEARR website.

Do you have room in your heart for this big, lovable girl? Or maybe you could tweet or share her story so the family we know is looking for her can find her even faster? Nessie and I thank you for helping her get to her forever home.

Saturday's Dog: Chance

"Take a Chance on me!"

So North East All Retriever Rescue up here in Massachusetts got word that that handsome and friendly fella was languishing away in foster care all the way down in Texas and, even though it's quite a bit out of our usual territory (ha! understatement of the year), we think he's so sweet and friendly that we agreed to help him find his forever home. Transport is included so don't let the fact that he might not be close by deter you!

Chance is a beautiful, unique-looking dog - check out those blue eyes! He's also friendly with people as well as other dogs and, get this - (relatively) low energy! A Lab mix that's low energy? Who knew?

You can find all the details, as well as a way to contact his foster mom to learn more about him over at the NEARR website.

And if you don't have room in your life to take a Chance right now, please tweet or share his story with your followers and friends. I can't say it enough: social media saves lives. Thanks so much!

Come on, you know you want to!

Saturday's Dog - Chocolate Lab Casey

Being involved in rescue, you hear a lot of horror stories that make you wonder how people can be so cruel to their animals. Believe me, I've seen surrender applications come through my email that make you wonder if you couldn't find a way to drop the human off at the shelter instead of the dog.

This is not one of those times.

This is one of those times that reminds me we're all in this together and our world is facing hard challenges. This is one of those times that makes me happy to know there are rescue groups out there to help ease the landing for some old friends whose human-folk did everything they could but just couldn't make it work.

Allow me to introduce you to Casey.

Photo courtesy North East All Retriever Rescue.

Casey is almost 12 years old and has found himself homeless because his family just couldn't make ends meet any more. They did the best thing they could for him: they found a rescue group where Casey will live in a foster home with a caring foster family until his new forever family comes along.

At 12 years old, Casey would have had a difficult time had he just been dropped off at the county shelter. Now, thanks to North East All Retriever Rescue (NEARR), not only will they make sure he's in a good foster home, but they will ensure his new forever family provides regular updates about him so his previous family can sleep at night knowing he's loved and in the best possible home (if not theirs).

This old boy is mellow and sweet and so ready to share the couch with you. You can view his entire profile on the NEARR website.

And if you don't happen to have room in your life right now for a big lovable lug, maybe you could push one of those buttons waaaaaayyy down there and share his story so someone who does have room can find him?

Thanks!

Train Your Dog Challenge: The blooper reel (video)

I seem to be on a bit of a video kick lately. I think that might be the slacker in me realizing it's easier to show than to tell. ;)

I put this video of outtakes together from our participation in the January Is Train Your Dog Challenge so you can all see what I had to work with to get that 1 minute video in last Monday's post. I have to say I'm surprised there wasn't more footage of me hanging my head in defeat.

Anyway, hope it gives you a chuckle on this fine Friday morning.

Saturday's Dog: Bradley the Coonhound (Urgent!)

Hi friends,

We have an urgent case here today for our Saturday's dog.

Bradley is currently in a high-kill shelter in Marion County, South Carolina and as of Thursday, 4/5, was on the "red list" to be put down. My friend, Cindy, stepped up and paid to sponsor him which will cover his "pull fees" and vetting costs but we need to find him a place to go so Paws to the Rescue can get him out of the shelter and to some place safe. He'll even have transport up north if we can just get a rescue group or (no-kill) shelter to take him.

Photo courtesy Paws to the Rescue.

Sweet, smart and friendly, this guy deserves his chance to get out of this shelter. Please help us make that happen by sharing his story with anyone you know in the animal rescue community who might be able to help. You can see his profile on Petfinder or check him out on Facebook.

From his Facebook profile:

ID: #120156
BREED: Hound Dog
HW STATUS: -
AGE: 1 year
WEIGHT: 49 lbs (too skinny)
TEMPERAMENT: Bradley is friendly and eager to make friends with people and dogs.

Bradley is located at a HIGH KILL SHELTER:
Marion County Animal Shelter
123 Dog and Cat Court
Mullins, South Carolina 29574
(843) 423-8370

To rescue or adopt an animal, please send an e-mail ASAP to our Rescue/Adoption Coordinator at: SaveAMarionPup@gmail.com. This email is for SERIOUS INQUIRIES ONLY. Please include animal's name and ID#.

Thanks friends.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE 4/7 5 PM

Paws New England has agreed to take in Bradley but they need to find him a foster home. Please continue to spread the word to get this guy a place to stay. Word has him coming up here next week.

Yay Bradley! And way to go, Cindy!!!!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Saving the life of one animal may not change the world,
but the world will surely change for that one animal."

Saturday's Dog: And the wins just keep on coming...

So I've hit a bit of a slump in scheduling photo sessions of dogs to feature here on our "Saturday's Dog" section. Lucky for me, though, the dogs we've featured previously here have been batting 1000!

Today I'm excited to tell you about 2 long-term shelter/rescue dogs who finally went home to be with their very own forever families. Let's here it for Missy, who spent a year in foster care with North East All Retriever Rescue and Ed, who spent almost as long at the Buddy Dog Humane Society shelter.

Missy

Ed

Please join me in wishing them lots of hugs and snuggles with the new families.

PS - I'm trying to coordinate some time with another rescue/shelter since the one I was originally working with seems to have their own photographer doing photo sessions now. It may be quiet or just not as personal here on Saturdays for a few weeks but I promise, as soon as I have a new place to go, I'm going to head over there, get some pictures of some awesome dogs and share them here with everybody to help them find their own forever homes.

Thanks for all the tweets and shares about all these guys. It makes a difference.

More Saturday's dog celebrations!

Well, Happy St. Paddy's Day, boys and girls! I hope everyone has been enjoying their holiday. (I'm not exactly Irish but I live in Massachusetts so it's kind of honorary.)

Today I thought I'd share some good news today about 2 "Saturday's dogs" who've had a little 'luck of the Irish' directed their way - they've been adopted! Althea and Sasha, 2 dogs featured here in January 2012 have both gone to their forever homes and we couldn't be happier for them!

Althea

Sasha

Thanks for spreading the word about these two active and clever girls. We knew they'd find a wonderful family to call their own and we wish them all the best in their new lives!

Saturday's dog: Laini, the Basenji

Would you look at this pretty dog?

Laini is a 6-year old, female Basenji available for adoption in Arizona through Basenji Rescue and Transport. She's good with cats and kids. She's good with big dogs but has reportedly been snarky with small dogs. (She, like most Basenjis, apparently doesn't realize she is one.)

If you (or someone you know) have always wanted a Basenji but were afraid of the demands the breed may put upon you, Laini just might be your girl. She's described as well-mannered and of mild temperament. A true cuddle bug, she likes to lie with her head on your lap and sleep "under the covers with her human". (Can you even stand it?)

Adopting through BRAT, "adopters receive a dog that has been spayed or neutered..., fully vaccinated and tested for heartworm and strip-tested for Fanconi (negative unless otherwise noted), and temperament evaluated. In addition, BRAT provides free lifetime post-adoption counseling to help deal with behavioral issues. Finally, we provide a free lifetime identification tag connected to our "lost dog" toll free number." Pretty impressive support system there, yes?

If you're interested in adopting Laini, hop over to the B.R.A.T. website for more information about her.

Saturday's dog - Lekoda adopted!

A couple of months ago, I had the pleasure of introducing everyone to the lovely Lekoda available for adoption through North East All Retriever Rescue.

Today it's even more of a privilege to tell you that she has been adopted! Her new forever family brought her to her new forever home a few weeks ago and I'm happy to report, she is doing great in her new climes.

I think one of the best policies NEARR has in place is the requirement that adopting families provide periodic updates throughout the life of an adopted dog. This allows those of us who have fallen in love with the dogs in our care the ability to watch them thrive in their new homes. It's my favorite part of volunteering with this organization. You can read those stories on NEARR's Happy Tails page.

Congratulations, Lekoda! Have fun in your new life.

And thank you to everyone who shared her story helping her new family find their new beautiful family member. :)

Saturday's dog: Who wants a Cookie?

Look at that face! So eager to please.

Meet Cookie

Cookie is a sweet, 6-year-old Beagle boy who for some reason keeps getting overlooked at the shelter. Available through Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury, MA, he would make a wonderful addition to an active home.

Cookie loves to go for walks, loves running and playing fetch and, as you can see, absolutely LOVES his belly rubs. Mostly, he just wants a home of his own where he can stay close to his family - he's a real love bug and so cute, too.

Maybe it's because he's had a few too many cookies while at the shelter that he gets overlooked but Cookie is still a vigorous and active boy. He just needs someone to play with him to help him shed those few extra pounds. Wouldn't seeing this boy smile when he gets to run and play be reward enough to get the whole family off the couch and running about? :)

If you want to help spread the word about this lovable guy, I've made it easy for you: just click this --> or this --> . And thanks.

Saturday's Dog - Coco, the chocolate Lab

Click through to view her profile over on the NEARR website.

Check out today's beautiful entry for Saturday's Dog, Coco. Isn't she lovely?

Somehow this beautiful 5-year-old girl found herself abandoned at the shelter because she wasn't "good with the small children who lived with" her. Coco is currently in foster care and is available for adoption through North East All Retriever Rescue where they have found she's not bad with "dog-savvy", older children.

Coco has some degenerative joint disease that likely causes her some pain but weight loss seems to be helping with that. She's a cuddle bug and, like most Labs, prefers to be with her people. She's not recommended for homes with cats or little dogs.

So, as always, here's where you come in: just click on either of these buttons and you, too, can bring attention to this lovely dog who just needs a home and family that will love her loads.

Thanks.

Saturday's dog: Princess the Lab/Doxie mix

So today's little cutie comes to us from Forever Dachshund Rescue. I got to meet her last week when she hitched a ride with me on her way from a high-kill shelter in North Carolina to a foster home in Rhode Island by way of northern Massachusetts. (Say what huh? Ah well, okay, it happens...)

Allow me to introduce you to Princess, a Doxie/Lab mix who really looks like a Lab on 4 inch legs. She was a sweet and perfect passenger snuggling in immediately to the crate as if she understood it was bringing her to a new life.

Princess is 5 years old, very active, good with kids and dogs (and maybe cats...) She's a real cuddle bug but likes to be left alone in her crate or while under the influence of a particularly good toy.

You can view her whole profile on the rescue's web site. And you can help her find her forever home faster by sending her story out to your Facebook friends and Twitter tweeps.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures. My leg of the transport comes at the end of a very long day for these dogs and I don't want to stress them out too much with a full on photo session. 

Saturday's Dog: Celebrating the wins

When my friend, Cindy, and I got together at the end of December to photograph some of the dogs available for adoption at Buddy Dog Humane Society, we got in 11 sessions - 11 dogs. Between then and now, 5 of those dogs have been adopted! At this rate, we have a better batting average for adoptions of the dogs we haven't featured here. ;)

Today, I'd like to take a moment to celebrate the wins, the dogs who found their forever homes, the ones who keep hope alive, the ones who prove there are families out there looking for dogs as wonderful as these. I'm just thrilled to have had the opportunity to spend a day playing with them.

So kick back, put your feet up and enjoy the awesomeness of happy dogs.

Bauer

Sam

Annie

Josie

Boomer

Happy tails, pups! May all your days be as much fun as this one was.

Saturday's dog: Althea

What is is about a picture of dog with ball that can raise a smile to the face of any viewer?

Meet Althea.

Althea is a 3-year-old Shepherd mix available for adoption at Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury, MA. She is full of energy, friendly and affectionate. She would do well in an active home that can keep her well exercised and mentally stimulated. (Read: She's smart!)

So once again, here's my weekly plea to ask you to help get Althea's story out there so that active family who's looking for her can finally find her. You can just click here to tweet her story or here to post her to your Facebook stream.

As always, thank you.

Saturday's Dog: Sasha

Look at that face!

You might think by looking at her, that Sasha would spend about fifteen minutes in a shelter before someone came along and scooped up this charming young dog (still less than a year old). In fact, she has already spent a few months there and her puppyhood is slipping away.

She's a sweet, somewhat shy Miniature Pinscher mix who looks a bit like a teeny, tiny Chocolate Lab. She has spirit and spunk to spare and doesn't appear to be nervous around other dogs. She was shy around me (our first meeting) but not with Cindy whom she knows. She's a funny, very playful puppy and, like all puppies, will need some assistance in becoming a confident, grown-up dog. An adult household would be best because she's both small and a bit 'intense'.

Don't you just want to throw that ball for her?

Sasha is available at Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury, MA.

Saturday's Dog: Tatiana

My friend, Cindy, canine massage therapist extraordinaire, and I recently spent some time at Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury, MA playing with and photographing some of the dogs there available for adoption. The idea is to feature different dogs here each week in the hope of getting them in front of more people - one of which might just be looking for this dog to add to their family.

Today's dog is: Tatiana!

Isn't she cute!?!

Tatiana is a very shy, 9 year old Sato who has been at Buddy Dog for about 4 years. She's so shy in fact, this was the second time I tried to photograph her. The first time, whenever I picked up the camera, she turned her head and hid. A little wiser on our more recent visit, I set up a blind of sheets and took pictures of her while she played with Cindy, paying "no attention to the 'man' behind the curtain".

Tatiana was adopted out once before but she came back even more traumatized by the experience than she was in the shelter. In fact, she's not unhappy at the shelter - she's not terribly bothered by other dogs and she doesn't get a lot of attention from the public, which is just fine by her.

When I first arrived yesterday, she had her face tucked into her blankets and her back to any visitors who might want to befriend her. This, as you can imagine, makes it unlikely people will stop to inquire about her.

Oh but they should. She's playful and sweet to those she knows and is comfortable with - she was giving Cindy kisses before she even got the leash on. She just needs to get her head out of her blankets so the right person(s) can find her.

She will need a gentle, patient owner, one who is familiar with shy dogs and ready to give Tata the space she needs to adjust to a new environment. She would not do well in a noisy, busy home and I would not recommend children in the home of any extremely shy dog.

It's also likely that, due to her first bad adoption experience, Buddy Dog would rather she continue to live with them as the shelter mascot than be put in the wrong home again.

But every dog deserves their own home with their own people who love them above all comers. And Tatiana is no exception.

If you want to help that special person find this special dog, please consider tweeting her information or posting her to your Facebook profile.

You never know who might be looking for a dog just like Tatiana.

Oops, the Great Oz has been discovered.

Saturday's Dog: Milla

Hello friends,

Well, it's not quite Saturday any more (nor, despite what the publishing date notes, is it Friday either - guess I've been trying to write this for 2 days) but I didn't want to neglect my commitment to my "Saturday Dogs" - dogs that are waiting for their new homes in local shelters and rescues I volunteer with. Dogs that, for whatever reason, can't seem to get the attention of that perfect family they just know is out there looking for them.

I've been planning to feature today's dog all week and she certainly needs and deserves the spotlight but before we get to her, I did want to take just a moment to recognize the tragedy in Texas and express my deepest sympathy to Sandra and her family (both 2-legged and 4.)

For the few people that may not have yet heard, "The Houston Pittie Pack" suffered a devastating fire Thursday night losing their home and 5 of their 7 rescue dogs. Their grief and pain is unimaginable.

Some folks in blogville have set up a "ChipIn" to raise cash for the family while they work through this terrible time. I've posted a picture link to the ChipIn on my side bar and it will remain there until the ChipIn closes on February 15. If you have any cash at all to spare, these folks could surely benefit from some holiday kindness.

You can also visit the blog and leave a comment for Sandra to let her know you're thinking about them.

---

And now a word about Milla, our "Please-adopt-this-dog" dog of the week.

I usually try to feature dogs I've actually met here so I can personally speak to their temperament. I'm breaking that "rule" today because I'm worried this dog may be running out of time.

Milla is a beautiful black Lab mix that North East All Retriever Rescue was asked to help find a home for because the new baby in her home is allergic to her. She didn't enter our program because the family said they were willing to keep her until a new loving home was found so we started featuring her on our "Referrals" page. Unfortunately, that was four months ago and there seems to have been no interest generated by her post or from the ads the family is running.

She's a pretty dog and has been raised by a loving family. She loves people and gets along with other dogs (no mention of cats). She just can't seem to get anyone to notice her. And that's where you come in. Can you take a moment out of your busy day to tweet or post Milla's information to your friends and followers? The perfect family is out there looking for her, I just know it. Maybe your tweet will be the one that helps them find her.

Thanks.