Posted by Jim Erhardt on November 1, 2016 at 6:39 AM
Since I was a little boy I have always had a canine family member. The first dog I can remember was a Boxer named Lady – there is an old photo of me standing with her in the Photos section of my Facebook page.
Immediately after Donna and I married in 1979 we adopted our first dog, a German Shepherd-Collie mix named Coco, from the Kent Shelter on Long Island. As our family grew we always had at least one canine family member, and always a dog from Kent. In 2004 we broke with that tradition and purchased two German Shepherds from a breeder, Risa and Shadow, who were truly wonderful dogs.
Risa suffered from a number of maladies and only lived to be five years old. Shadow passed away in 2006 and by that point I was convinced that I could not stand another death of a canine-child in my life. We remained without a dog for the next eight years – the longest span in my life.
In 2007, we moved from Long Island to New Hampshire. With our three human children grown and successfully out on their own, Donna and I were empty nesters. Donna gently yet continuously nudged me to consider getting another dog, but for too long I stubbornly resisted. One day she showed me a photo of an adorable hound mutt she had found online – it was a photo posted on Mary’s Dogs.
Seeing that photo and reading about the rescue process pushed my stubbornness aside. In 2014 we adopted a new canine child from Mary’s Dogs who we named Gracie Rose. Not long after, we adopted another from Mary’s Dogs, a terrier mix we named Maddie Lou. Like our canine children who are long gone, Gracie and Maddie bring great joy to our lives - but this time it’s different. This time, the process of adopting through Mary’s Dogs educated us on the plight of homeless dogs and the tremendous effort required to save them.
Gracie and Maddie are not only our latest canine family members who we love dearly, but to me they are also ambassadors to those dogs less fortunate – those who are never adopted and end up euthanized in high-kill shelters or who die as strays on the side of the road. Like losing one of my own, the usual fate of these homeless dogs is something I cannot emotionally reconcile.
I began to volunteer at Mary’s Dogs as a photographer, capturing images of the dogs arriving on transport who are not yet adopted. Then this past summer we received an email from Mary’s outlining their plans to move from an LLC business structure to a non-profit 501(C) status, asking if we would consider sitting on a newly-formed (and uncompensated) Board of Directors. It didn’t take long for Donna and me to decide that this would be a very worthy use of our time and an extremely rewarding endeavor.
As board members and advocates, we are now intimately familiar with the operation of a dog rescue and the gargantuan task it represents: the rescuing of dogs in southern states from shelters and off the street, their immediate medical care including spay/neuter, their transportation to NH, quarantine requirements, more physical examinations and vaccinations, and finally the huge effort required by our adoption team to vet applicants and place these dogs in good homes. The adoption fees charged just barely cover the medical and transportation costs. As it stands now, without a team of dedicated volunteers this operation could not survive.
Our goal is to take Mary’s Dogs Rescue and Adoption (MDRA) to the next level: to rescue more dogs (we currently rescue about 800 a year), promote spay/neuter programs, provide education and training on responsible dog ownership, and the hiring of paid staff to fill key positions that are critical to our success. We cannot do this on adoption fees alone.
Today, I ask all of my friends, family and business associates to join me in this most worthy cause: please consider making a generous donation to MDRA. Your contribution will help ensure more homeless dogs live a full life in a good, loving home.
On behalf of all of us at MDRA, our heartfelt thanks for your support!
Jim, a very challenging but rewarding endeavor for the entire group at MDRA. It is a wonderful read and a salute to all in your organization for providing this extra effort with support to these poor well deserving souls.
Our first dog was a rescue and he too was part German Shepherd and part Collie like your dog Coco. Although we've enjoyed a collection of other fine dogs over the years no doubt Lobo was the best in our dog family. He had the Collie smarts, but was an immediate fierce guard dog for our family with his resulting German Shepherd genes.
Our present Aussie was a bit of a rescue too. He came to us as a result of an ill family member who could no longer battle the illness and handle a rambunctious 1 year old pup also. He is a perfect fit for me.
Posted by Jim Erhardt on November 3, 2016 at 6:50 AM
Preston and Paul, thank you for commenting!
My view of the world keeps evolving as I grow older and animal cruelty (of all kinds) is something I increasingly find abhorrent: from elephants chained-up in captivity to dogs chained-up in backyards, destined to lives of solitary confinement. Of course, these two examples are only the tip of the iceberg of man's inhumanity to animals and wildlife around the world.
The photo on the MDRA Donate page is one I took of Clarice, a small hound mix who arrived this past summer. She was picked up as a stray in NC and judging from the scarring on her face, did not have a good start to life. We don't know how she was injured, but she was quickly adopted into a good home.
"The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi
Posted by Jim Erhardt on November 4, 2016 at 11:21 AM
Pulled from a high-kill shelter (usually just before they are scheduled to be euthanized), taken to a vet for neuter/spay and initial examination, placed on a transport that drives straight through to NH, finally arriving at MDRA. Observing these dogs and the way they interact with MDRA personnel leaves little doubt in any observer's mind that these dogs know something miraculous has just happened...
Discussion
4 repliesSince I was a little boy I have always had a canine family member. The first dog I can remember was a Boxer named Lady – there is an old photo of me standing with her in the Photos section of my Facebook page.
Immediately after Donna and I married in 1979 we adopted our first dog, a German Shepherd-Collie mix named Coco, from the Kent Shelter on Long Island. As our family grew we always had at least one canine family member, and always a dog from Kent. In 2004 we broke with that tradition and purchased two German Shepherds from a breeder, Risa and Shadow, who were truly wonderful dogs.
Risa suffered from a number of maladies and only lived to be five years old. Shadow passed away in 2006 and by that point I was convinced that I could not stand another death of a canine-child in my life. We remained without a dog for the next eight years – the longest span in my life.
In 2007, we moved from Long Island to New Hampshire. With our three human children grown and successfully out on their own, Donna and I were empty nesters. Donna gently yet continuously nudged me to consider getting another dog, but for too long I stubbornly resisted. One day she showed me a photo of an adorable hound mutt she had found online – it was a photo posted on Mary’s Dogs.
Seeing that photo and reading about the rescue process pushed my stubbornness aside. In 2014 we adopted a new canine child from Mary’s Dogs who we named Gracie Rose. Not long after, we adopted another from Mary’s Dogs, a terrier mix we named Maddie Lou. Like our canine children who are long gone, Gracie and Maddie bring great joy to our lives - but this time it’s different. This time, the process of adopting through Mary’s Dogs educated us on the plight of homeless dogs and the tremendous effort required to save them.
Gracie and Maddie are not only our latest canine family members who we love dearly, but to me they are also ambassadors to those dogs less fortunate – those who are never adopted and end up euthanized in high-kill shelters or who die as strays on the side of the road. Like losing one of my own, the usual fate of these homeless dogs is something I cannot emotionally reconcile.
I began to volunteer at Mary’s Dogs as a photographer, capturing images of the dogs arriving on transport who are not yet adopted. Then this past summer we received an email from Mary’s outlining their plans to move from an LLC business structure to a non-profit 501(C) status, asking if we would consider sitting on a newly-formed (and uncompensated) Board of Directors. It didn’t take long for Donna and me to decide that this would be a very worthy use of our time and an extremely rewarding endeavor.
As board members and advocates, we are now intimately familiar with the operation of a dog rescue and the gargantuan task it represents: the rescuing of dogs in southern states from shelters and off the street, their immediate medical care including spay/neuter, their transportation to NH, quarantine requirements, more physical examinations and vaccinations, and finally the huge effort required by our adoption team to vet applicants and place these dogs in good homes. The adoption fees charged just barely cover the medical and transportation costs. As it stands now, without a team of dedicated volunteers this operation could not survive.
Our goal is to take Mary’s Dogs Rescue and Adoption (MDRA) to the next level: to rescue more dogs (we currently rescue about 800 a year), promote spay/neuter programs, provide education and training on responsible dog ownership, and the hiring of paid staff to fill key positions that are critical to our success. We cannot do this on adoption fees alone.
Today, I ask all of my friends, family and business associates to join me in this most worthy cause: please consider making a generous donation to MDRA. Your contribution will help ensure more homeless dogs live a full life in a good, loving home.
On behalf of all of us at MDRA, our heartfelt thanks for your support!
--P
Our first dog was a rescue and he too was part German Shepherd and part Collie like your dog Coco. Although we've enjoyed a collection of other fine dogs over the years no doubt Lobo was the best in our dog family. He had the Collie smarts, but was an immediate fierce guard dog for our family with his resulting German Shepherd genes.
Our present Aussie was a bit of a rescue too. He came to us as a result of an ill family member who could no longer battle the illness and handle a rambunctious 1 year old pup also. He is a perfect fit for me.
My view of the world keeps evolving as I grow older and animal cruelty (of all kinds) is something I increasingly find abhorrent: from elephants chained-up in captivity to dogs chained-up in backyards, destined to lives of solitary confinement. Of course, these two examples are only the tip of the iceberg of man's inhumanity to animals and wildlife around the world.
The photo on the MDRA Donate page is one I took of Clarice, a small hound mix who arrived this past summer. She was picked up as a stray in NC and judging from the scarring on her face, did not have a good start to life. We don't know how she was injured, but she was quickly adopted into a good home.
"The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi