2010 is getting underway

We had our first meeting of 2010 and the new year is getting underway. I'm excited. We've had ups, downs and lots of growth and changes over our first few years of doing rescue, and I feel like we have a group that can really work together and get things done.

2010 is the year to really start working for grant funding, doing lots of fundraisers and more to get the word out about rescue to the general public. It's so frustrating that people still go to the mall pet store to find a pet - don't they know that all those dogs are puppy mill dogs? No respectable breeder would ever give their dog to a store that's just going to sell it to the person who comes up with the cash first. A respectable breeder would want to see where their dog is going. So here it is in 2010, our challenge to raise funds so we can really start to advertise, educate and get the word out to "think rescue first."

It's been a while since we've posted, so just wanted to update that we raised more than $6500 at our Holiday Paw-ty fundraiser on December 4th! We had double the people at this year's event, so we need to look for a bigger event space next year. It was packed, so packed that not everyone had a seat but since the Phillie Phanatic was there and leading the line dancing all went well.

We did another beagle rescue - beagle mania! The rural shelter we work with is getting overrun with beagles and hounds because it's the end of rabbit hunting season down south so the hunters are just dumping dogs that aren't good hunters. Those dogs usually make great family pets because they've been around people, aren't aggressive hunters and they've been around other dogs. So we're here to help. We pulled 8 dogs last time around and we have to go back - the shelter has room for 22 dogs, and they had 45 before ARF SEPA and a few other rescues stepped in to help. It's a tragic situation. I had my eye on "Cricket" and I want to go back as soon as I can to pull her into foster care.

Follow up: "Normie" the husky/shepherd mix from our last blog posting on 11/13/09 (he's the cute husky pictured), has been adopted and he's doing great. He had a geriatric screening at our ARF SEPA vet, and he has elevated liver function so he'll be on some antibiotics and other meds for about a month (served in cream cheese so he's happy about that!) but he should be fine. He's going for walks in his new neighborhood and making all sorts of new friends. The vet thinks he's 8-10 years old, so I'm so glad we took him in because no one would ever have adopted a dog that old. We just love him, he's a fantastic dog. This is why we do rescue!!

So 2010 is here, and we have lots and lots to do at ARF SEPA to make a difference in the lives of homeless pets. Let's do it!!!