Rescue in NH

Meet Remington and Lady....both are 12 year old Brittanys rescued from a breeder in New Hampshire.  New England Brittany Rescue along with NBRAN and ABR helped by rescuing 43 dogs.  The dogs have significant teeth problems but are heartworm- and fully vaccinated.  They have lived their lives in outdoor kennels and are not all socialized.  NEBR is asking for your help with fostering.  Lets give these brittanys a warm bed and comfort for their remaining years.

Anniversary!

Today is the one year anniversary of the day that Sam arrived in our lives. I remember in vivid detail waiting for him to arrive at a coffee shop parking lot after his two day trip from Arkansas. We were so excited to meet him and to take him to our house to give him a new home. It would not have been possible without all of you. A huge thank you for all that you did for Sam and for us and for all that you do everyday, year after year, on behalf on New England Brittany Rescue. Sam is a very special guy who has adjusted very well to us and his new home. We cannot imagine life without him. I imagine that this October weekend, you are also moving dogs to their new homes and soon to be new owners are sitting in coffee shop parking lots anxiously waiting for their dogs to arrive. It is good and important work that you do......so from all of us.....Catherine, Ian and Sam....our very heartfelt thanks for bringing us together one year ago.

Life after Rescue

Willow (top) and Marlo (bottom) were both fosters in my home. 
     Marlo was adopted and returned in the same 3 days and came to stay with us.  He was such a great boy that when he was adopted by his current family it was love at first sight on both fronts!  Marlo and his adoptive mom are inseparable.  He is "just the best dog" and "we love him" are the words that make me smile and know he is in the right spot with the right family.
    Willow was so shy and when she did realize she was safe and we loved her, was the best dog ever. It was so hard to even think of saying goodbye to her....In the sea of brittanys here in the house, she was just one of the girls!  Hopping, jumping, sitting for a treat, etc....She was still uneasy around men but the men in our house...just kept at it and soon she was fine!  When we were contacted by an adoptive family, we tried to tell them she was shy...didn't like men at first....and when they arrived, she hid and it took 2 hours for her to take a treat....but Jeff and Kathy saw the potential in Willow and took her home.  Her foster dad Jeff writes...."Willow is my shadow....she has bonded with me and we are so very happy"....I must confess....tears are in my eyes as I am writing this.
    Two very special dogs touched my heart and have moved on to find their forever homes with folks that will love them just as much as I did while they were here. 

Meet our trio….

We consider ourselves blessed to have three cute, adorable and wonderful pups. Each very special in their own way and all so different.

Lexis, the orange and white Britt on the right was our first rescue. We adopted after we lost our 15 year old Brittany Blend, Justice. She’s an Arkansas gal who we adopted in December of 2009 at the age of 3 ½. We are still trying to figure out how she is able to stay up right on all fours, seeing as how she is always wiggling. She is so easy going and always happy, but she’s a runner. So, Christmas came early for her this year, we recently had a beautiful fence installed, we told her it was just for her, and she acts like it is too. She is now free to run and run and run. I’m not sure who is happier, her or myself. It’s an awesome sight.

Next came Maggie, the liver and white Britt on the left. We got so much pleasure out of adopting Lexis we went for number two. Maggie came to us in October of 2010 at the age of 8. She’s a Jersey girl. Her elderly owner died and it was four days before they were discovered. I can’t even imagine, her life was turned upside down. She’s my favorite (but we won’t tell the other two that). I think it’s because we have so much in common, bad hair days, until she gets her summer cut, totally food motivated and loves to nap. But we know that we have to keep up with our exercise routine, so we are out walking every day. And at 10 ½ she can still keep up with the young ones.

And then there is Raeven. We are still trying to figure out how this happened (Maggie and Lexis are also a little perplexed, really a puppy?). And we are still saying, “what were we thinking”? We lost our German Shepherd, Guinness in September and wanted another. We couldn’t bring ourselves to spend a heap of money with a breeder when there are so many dogs out there just yearning for a loving forever home. So in March we adopted our purebred mutt, we have no idea what she is. Everyone we meet has their own idea, but nothing conclusive. She’s a Tennessean, she and her brother were on their way to the shelter when a co-worker stepped in and fostered until they were adopted. We were given a newspaper article from a Nashville newspaper shortly after adopting regarding the kill rate in shelters in TN being 78 percent. Hard to comprehend, but forever grateful that there are so many rescue groups going above and beyond to find these gorgeous pups their forever homes. She is so funny, and such personality. She literally makes us laugh out loud. She loves to hug and at 50 lbs. and 7 months, thinks she’s a lap dog. I tell her she’s a bit of bully, she does not like to share the toys, which were there long before her.

People think we are crazy having three pups but we wouldn’t have it any other way. They bring constant smiles to our faces and love to our hearts.

Thanks again for all that you do.

Cyndi and Scot

Dear Christine and Diane,

Thank you for all your support in our adoption process. We are very happy to have Rhoda with us. She is everything you described and is settling in very well. At first she was pretty timid but she is coming along great and has had no accidents in the house. She had trouble with stairs at first but she is making progress every day mostly because she always wants to be where we are. She sleeps upstairs in our bedroom in her crate and has found a few other favorite spots in the house.

Rhoda is thrilled to explore in the back yard when we are out there. She has even established a pattern for investigations that starts with checking out the perimeter and eventually has her running full steam in diagonals across the grass. I don't think exercise will be an issue! She has enjoyed walking around the neighborhood with me and is pretty good on the leash although I get the impression she hasn't spent much time on a leash. We've been our about 4 times (between 1.5 to 2 miles each) because it's been raining most of the week. Beginning June 6th Rhoda and I are attending basic training together for 8 weeks every Thursday.

Rhoda is now a legal resident of Longmeadow and visited our vet on Thursday. He didn't seem to worried about her weight (she is now 36 pounds) and gave her the first of 2 Lyme Disease shots. He agreed that 1.5 cups of food each day is the right amount. I have been giving her a Milk Bone when we return from our walk. It turns out she likes Greenies too. On Tuesday she is going to the groomer for a summer cut and teeth cleaning. We asked around and a number of people recommended a groomer in Agawam.

Rhoda has visited with the dogs next door, dogs on our walks, and will have a Whippet visit during our cookout tomorrow. I'm pleased with her social skills. We took her to the pet store and she was terrific.

It feels like Rhoda is unfolding like a flower and as we've seen this much improvement in one week I know that she will feel totally at home in a few months. I've attached a few photos.

Again, thank you for the work you did with Rhoda and with so many of the other dogs. NEBR folks are special people.

Andrea

This is a photo of our newest little girl... Abby. She's full of energy, loves walks, jumping, and frolicing. We decided to give her a thrown, and how she loves it - She has a complete view of the backyard - Focus. What an excellent addition! Thank you NEBR.

Daffodil joined me on April 10, 2010. It had been a long trip for her - she was rescued as a stray in Tennessee and ended up in a shelter, rescued from the shelter by a NEBR volunteer, transported to her foster family in RI, and then I picked her up and took her home to Woburn. Hopefully she enjoys traveling, because since then we have moved alllll the way across the country to San Diego, and Daffodil rode shotgun (with a seat belt of course!) the whole 3,000 miles.

I remember when Christine told me they had a dog coming up from Tennesse who might be perfect for me - but they named her "Daffodil", and Christine wanted to change it. I said no! If I adopt her I'll just change it back. Daffodils are my favorite flowers and it seemed meant to be.

Sure enough, Daffodil is wonderful. She loves doing absolutely anything as long as she gets to be included. Her favorites include hiking, chasing dogs who are chasing balls at the park (but she has zero interest in chasing balls herself), going to the beach, and chasing squirrels. Since our move out West she has adapted quite nicely to the lack of squirrels and picked up chasing lizards. Her favorite part of going to the beach is getting a few inches into the water, laying on her belly, and doing the army crawl to really make sure the sand gets everywhere. She's pretty sure getting dirty is just the best, second only to belly rubs. She makes me laugh and her nickname is Goofball.

I'm so thankful for the wonderful people at NEBR who put Daffodil and I together. It is a fantastic organization that truly looks out for both the dogs and the adopters.

Best,

Jen