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MISSION
OF MERCY
:
Twelve
animal
lovers
each
volunteered
to drive
one leg
of a
journey
of more
than 700
miles
across
four
states
to give
three
rescued
dogs a
second
chance.
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"There are so
many dogs out
there that need
help, and if
they can get it
in another
state, I'm going
to help them get
there," said
Mary Schoenhofer
of Rossford, who
volunteered to
take the dogs on
the last leg of
the transport
from a hotel
parking lot in
Bowling Green
to the Sylvania
Veterinary
Hospital to meet
those who work
with the
Sylvania-based
rescue group 4
Paws Sake Inc.
"There's
transports that
happen all the
time. It's
people's fault
because they get
these dogs and
they just dump
them."
The Humane
Society of the
United States
estimates that
between 6
million and 8
million dogs and
cats wind up in
animal shelters
each year. About
half - 3 million
to 4 million -
are euthanized,
said Kim Intino,
director of
animal
sheltering
issues for the
humane society.
One dog at a
time
Rescue groups
all over the
country are
working
constantly to
decrease the
animal
euthanasia
rates.
When Cindy Smith
founded 4 Paws
Sake in
December, 2004,
she saved one
dog at a time.
Now, she and
other members
rescue between
40 and 50 a
month by placing
them in the 45
foster homes
they have on
their roster.
Ninety percent
of the animals
they rescue are
found locally.
The other 10
percent -
including
John-John, Oak,
and
Austin -
come from all
over the
country.
"A life is a
life," Ms. Smith
said. "It's not
the dogs' fault
they were born
in Georgia ."
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The
founder
of 4
Paws
Sake,
Cindy
Smith,
carries
Austin
into
the
Sylvania
Veterinary
Hospital
to
treat
the
dog’s
eye
infection.
(
THE
BLADE/JETTA
FRASER
)
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Austin
was just
hours away
from being
euthanized
in an animal
shelter just
south of
Atlanta
when Rick's
wife, Pat
McCutchan-Vernier,
49,
volunteered
to sponsor
him.
That
means
that the
radiologist
paid to
get the
puppy
out of
the
animal
shelter
and into
temporary
foster
care in
Georgia
for a
week
while
the
transport
could be
arranged
to get
him to
Sylvania
. Along
with his
veterinary
bill to
take
care of
his eye
abscess
and
vaccinations,
sponsoring
him cost
her a
total of
$400.
"He looked so pitiful," she
said
when
she
saw
his
photo
on
an
Internet
pet
transport
forum.
"He
looked
so
sad
and
alone
and
he
needed
medical
help."
John-John and Oak hopped on the transport after two individuals from Georgia rescued them from an animal shelter and asked 4 Paws Sake organizers if they could help find them a home as well.
Transporting animals across the state or, in some cases, across the country so rescue groups can find them a forever home is anything but a new idea, said Cherie Wagensomer, 45, who volunteers with the Northwest Ohio Siberian Husky Rescue out of Delta, Ohio.
"There is a dog being transported somewhere every day," said the Monroe resident, who owns six huskies and fosters up to two more at a time. "There are a bunch of dogs that need our help, which is why we do this. I can't save every one, but I sure make a difference for the one I help."
When the transports are initiated by reputable rescue groups, devoted volunteers like Sandy White of Holland , Ohio , serve as the group's transport coordinator to get the dog into the rescue group's care.
Mrs. White, 45, has been organizing animal transports on behalf of rescue groups up to four times a month for two years.
The tough part comes after she maps out the transport - finding the transportation and trustworthy volunteers willing to spend their time and money to get the animals to where they need to go.
To accomplish this goal, Mrs. White posts her transports on Internet forums that animal lovers frequent, such as www.Petfinder.com, and through transport groups on www.Yahoo.com, which link people from around the country who are working toward the common goal of rescuing animals.
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ANIMALS IN CRISIS
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• Six million to eight million dogs and cats wind up in the 4,000 to 6,000 animal shelters throughout the country each year. Of those, about half are euthanized .
• Thirty-nine percent of U.S. households own at least one dog.
• Sixteen percent of owned dogs were adopted from an animal shelter.
• Often, the last dogs to be adopted are large black dogs or beagles and hounds.
• The older the dog, the harder it is to place in a home.
Sources: The Humane Society of the United States , the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association 2005-06 National Pet Owners Survey
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But Mrs. White is picky and won't just take anyone who volunteers. "I ask for their name, phone number, references, driver's license number, and plate number so we can check each driver out," she said.
She also checks up on the drivers all day after each leg is completed to see whether the transport is running on time or if it has hit some common snags: construction delays, a broken-down car, or getting lost. That way, she can let volunteers know to expect a later transfer.
However, she said the trips generally run smoothly because 15 minutes are allotted on the end of each leg for the sometimes much-needed bathroom breaks.
"You can never have too many paper towels," Miss Schoenhofer said as she packed her van with two metal cages lined with blankets, rawhide bones, extra dog leashes, flea and tick mist, and doggie waste bags before heading to Bowling Green to pick up her four-legged hitchhikers.
A deadly countdown
Austin wouldn't have been alive to see another day if he hadn't been picked up before he was scheduled to be put down. Often, rescue groups that don't focus on a particular breed will pull a dog based on a shelter's "euthanasia short list."
Seneca County Dog Warden Kelly Marker said it's all too often that she sees puppies and purebred dogs fly out of the kennel while certain breeds or types of dogs are left behind.
"Dog wardens' offices can only hold dogs for so long," she said. "If our shelter gets full, then we don't have room for the stray dogs that are incoming."
She said the older the dog, the harder it is to place. Beyond that, large black dogs are the hardest to place along with beagles and hound breeds.
"Bigger black dogs are the first to be put down because, unfortunately, they are just a dime a dozen," Ms. Smith added.
Under Ohio law, dogs that have been seized by county dog wardens must be kept for three days in case the owners come looking for them. However, a dog can be euthanized immediately if it shows obvious signs of disease or injury.
If there is room, many dogs are kept for longer periods in the hopes that they'll be adopted. Seneca County , for example, has 38 cages that house one dog each, but Ms. Marker said it's been two years since all of them were full.
"But if our shelter is full, rescues will say 'Hey, we can take that dog,'•" and then they'll take them on the transports," Ms. Marker said.
Happy tails
Not all stray dogs find their forever home - John-John and Oak are still waiting for theirs. But there are the lucky ones who get their happy ending, including Austin, who is already known to his newly adoptive parents as Sudi, an Indian name that connotes a loved one.
Matt and Lisa Brichta of Bowling Green put their 15-year-old Australian Shepherd to sleep more than two years ago because of her deteriorating health, but said they were ready to open up their hearts to a new puppy and another playmate for Ubu, their 2-year-old yellow Labrador.
Soon after telling a Sylvania Veterinary Hospital employee that she was in the market for a new pup, and loved dogs with blue merle coloring, she got a phone call from the hospital informing them that Austin needed a home. That day, she and her husband packed Ubu in the car to meet the Australian Shepherd.
"You have to have a connection, and my husband and I both felt like we have a connection with him," Mrs. Brichta said of Austin . "How could you not fall in love with a face like that?"
Austin is scheduled to be neutered this week before joining his new family - companions he never would have known had no one been willing to pick him up and give him a ride toward that second chance.
"We're doing it because they are going to die otherwise," Mrs. Wagensomer said.
"We may not be able to change the world, but for each dog that we help, we changed their world."
Contact Erika Ray at:
eray@theblade.com
or 419-724-6088.
