Hey! I came down from Canada in Feb and rescued the dog formally known as Doc, now Wayne! Wayne has the best life in Vancouver and could not have a better family ! Just wanted to thank you again and send you a few pictures! He is still as perfect as he was when I got him so relaxed, barely barks, and is fully bathroom trained ! Thanks, Kelly

I took this snap shot this morning. Pete is getting BIG! He and Swede were playing some kind of chase game this morning. That seems to be a ritual in the A.M. and normally it’s across our bed or across our faces. HAHAHAHA!! And Tuke is still indifferent. ~Tracy

Everything is working out better than I ever could have hoped. Buddy is such a kind, sweet, happy boy. He is great with the cats—–and in such a short time! And this morning he had his first of what will be many, many teeny tiny baby steps getting to know the chickens—–it went very well. Buddy is completely trustworthy in the house and in the truck—–he doesn’t touch anything without being told it is OK; I had to tell him repeatedly it was OK to play with the toys I bought him! Tomorrow he meets my friend’s 14-1/2 year old dog (the one I babysit at my house when she is out of town). We will be careful with the introduction but I have no doubt he will be gentle with her. And then we meet another friend’s dog (a 3-year old black lab) for a play session. Both of these friends have a little acreage and live less than a mile from me. AND, I just found out there is a HUGE (and I mean HUGE!) new park that allows dogs off leash that is so close to my house we can walk to it within just a few minutes!

I brought Buddy to my work on Tuesday to meet everyone. He was such a big hit that people were still talking about him today. I brought him in at lunchtime. People would come back to the office from lunch, stop to meet him and then just stay to visit and watch him until at the end of the visit a big crowd of people were all around him in a circle with him in the middle, calm as can be, doing his famous “rolling on his back waiting to be petted” routine. He would get up to meet new people as they came in, make the rounds to get petted and then walk back to the middle of the circle again and lie down. He was an absolute charmer. Even people who weren’t there that day have been asking me about him because they have been hearing about him from other co-workers who are STILL talking about what a wonderful dog he is.

I am completely and totally in love with this dog. It already feels like I have always known him. He is so sweet and loving (and so cuddly!). He is steady and well adjusted and remarkably responsive to direction. I love him beyond words. I hope you can tell Buddy’s previous owner that Buddy is well and happy and will never want for anything as long as he lives. And if you do talk with Buddy’s previous owner, please thank him for me. It seems clear that Buddy has been treated with love and kindness and respect all of his life. Buddy is a truly great dog and I believe his previous owner is responsible for that.

And I want to thank you, too—–you and the work you do makes happy endings like this one possible.

Rosemary

PS I will do my best to send pictures soon.

We’d just like to update you all about Lucy; the little terrier we adopted about a month ago. She’s doing very well adjusting to her new home. I took her to see Dr. Dale Marker at Jackson Highway Vet Clinic in Chehalis and she received her Rabies and Microchip and another dose of worming medication. She was 37 pounds then and I think she’s gained a few pounds since! She outgrew her new bed already. Apparently she’s not a boxer/lab mix but Dr. Marker said more like a Staffie mixed with Jack Russell and possibly some other type of terrier.

She’s quite a little squirrel chaser and has chased out all of our moles in the yard so that’s great news. We just love her and we think she feels the same about us but it’s hard to keep her still long enough to know…she just gives out kisses and keeps running. J

Thanks again for such a wonderful addition to our family and have a wonderful holiday season and New Year!

Sincerely,

Lori

Carys (Nikki) has just been wonderful. She’s been well behaved and friendly to everyone she meets. There’s a dog park near my house, and we’ve gone for the last 3 days. She loves the people there even more than the dogs, especially the kids. She even responds wonderfully off-leash, and comes to her name almost every time, even from across the park and with distractions, which is pretty amazing considering she’s only had this name for a week. Anyway, here are some pictures of her enjoying herself (and the attention) at the park.

Laura

Lucy is adjusting very, very well. She is so darn fast and has very sharp eyes. She chases squirrels and raccoons up the trees but leaves our chickens alone for the most part since they live in our backyard. Our chickens are used to dogs so they don’t pay her any attention. She hasn’t had any accidents yet and uses the doggie door pretty well. She really likes to go, go, go! We made a good choice and am looking forward to many years together. Thanks so much for all your help and what you do for the animals. We’ll come to visit next time we’re in town!
Sincerely,
Lori

Just wanted to share our experiences from her first day with me. Her name is Carys now, and she’s starting to respond to it already. She was very good in the car (threw up once, but Ocean Beach Hwy is really curvy, so I can’t fault her for that). She completely ignored my dad’s cat. She did amazingly well walking through downtown Portland and made friends with everyone she passed. She did just fine with my mom’s two Italian Greyhounds, though they weren’t as thrilled with her being in their house. She and my cat, Natalie, are getting along great. Natalie thinks she’s pretty neat, and she’s glad to have a dog to curl up with again.

Carys does seem to be scared of smooth floors, though, which is funny. She stayed glued to my doormat when I first brought her in, and I thought maybe she’d move to see what I was up to after a while, but she wouldn’t put more than a paw onto the hardwood before backing up and whimpering. After a while I carried her to her blanket next to my bed, and she stayed there until I took her outside. With a little coaxing I was able to lead her around the house, but she heads for every rug she sees, and seems very uncomfortable when she has to be on the bare floor. I imagine she’ll get used to it soon. Her food and water are away from the rugs, and that’s a powerful motivator.

Thanks so much – she’s a wonderful dog and has already made a lot of friends here.

Laura

Hello,

I wanted to let you know Charlie is doing great. We took all the dogs on a mile walk Saturday. Saturday and Sunday was working on letting the dogs bond. They spent a lot of time on our covered deck. Charlie has started joining in on the play, even batting and biting Opie. Opie and Charlie have even laid on the floor chewing on each other.

Last night was Charlie’s turn to sleep on the bed for a little while. We have a lot of work to do on his training – we haven’t found much that he seems trained on. But, he learned very quickly and easily that dogs aren’t allowed in our kitchen. We really enjoy and love Charlie – thanks!!!

Going on day three with the new arrivals, and all is well. They seem to have settled in well, and my other dogs have been very tolerant of them pushing in and taking over the couch or chair.

Ben, now “Jetsam,” loves to run, despite that bum rear leg. I plan to bring them to my vet this week and maybe put him on some meds if we think he’s in pain from it. Sally, new name “Flotsam,” is one confidant little dog. It’s different having such a small dog here, and she snuggled up on my lap last night while I watched TV.

They figured out the dog door finally, and come and go outside when they please. Mostly, though, it’s nap time.

I think they are happy to be here, and I’m happy to have them.

Ron

wanted to update you on Marley. We adopted him from spchs in mid-August. He is the love of our lives. He is very well behaved, leaves our senior Brittany alone, walks well on his leash and comes back to us when we call. We have taken him to the off leash dog park several times. He interacts with other dogs, but not as interested as we would expect. He loves his running time there, but will come to us when called by his new name. We just had a vet visit and his health is good, although the vet thinks he could lose a couple of pounds.

Our family took a road trip last week to Pendleton Oregon from Bellevue. Marley rode happily along with us in the car for the 5 hours. He stayed with us in the hotel, went out to dinner with us and walked around the towns and several parks. He’s a good traveler and my two teenage sons really enjoyed getting to know him better. They even took him swimming.

Thanks again – we are very happy with Marley.

Susan

Stafford Creek Corrections Center has saved 97 dogs in the past 23 months.  Check out their new Freedom Tails website.  We’re so pleased to partner with this great program.  Here are some of our graduates:

I just wanted to sent you an update on George (formerly Cinder).  He is now a year old and weighs a whooping 12lbs.  As you can see from the pictures, he has quite a unique personality.  He and Lily are inseparable.

Do you remember me? My name is Jazzie.

Before I was Eclipse. I just had my 2nd birthday on May 7 and I have been with my new family for 1 year on May 22. So here I am with my new pal Duane (2nd picture) And Rowdy my friend the cat and my cousin Colby, we play together. I don’t like taking a bath very much but Duane make me smell very nice. Mostly I love going places in the truck and Marcella is strict with me but I know she loves me. We love to play ball in the field while she drive the tractor around.

Ladies, Duane and I love Jazzie and we wanted you all to see her again and also know she loves her home with her kitties and alpaca/llama friends. Jazzie, Duane & Marcella — Hillsboro, OR

Here are pictures of Rasha after her 1 year anniversary with us.  She goes every day to run and play at the off leash dog park.  Hope things are well and not too busy for you and the staff.  Best to all, Robb

hey we adopted a Benji type dog over thanksgiving weekend and just wanted
to let you know what a blessing our little Gidget is to our family she is
great with kids other dogs and even cats and she loves to go for car rides
especially if the destination is a dog park she even let the groomers wash
her without problems we love her and thank you for talking us into a small
dog now about the barking oh well lol  ~Chanel