Transport Mission Accomplished!

The dogs in this post have a story. All rescue animals have a story. Most of the time the story themes are abuse, neglect, abandonment, or a combination of all. Every single dog pictured here was a throwaway. Three of them were victimized when their owner went into the hospital and then into nursing care. The owner's landlord threatened to open the door and "let them all go." Once they were safely in our care, we discovered serious health issues with one of them that had been neglected for years. Cleo required expensive surgery to correct a very serious condition. Our veterinarian removed seventeen large bladder stones during a two-hour procedure, stones that can be seen in this post.

@tarc's Steemit family raised enough funds to cover the cost of that surgery as well as the vetting required for transport across state lines. A little goes a long way when you're dealing directly with the front-line rescue rather than filtering money through a major animal welfare organization like HSUS or ASPCA. Pledged payouts, direct transfers, and several PayPal FIAT donations made the difference for these seven dogs. This is literal, immediate, life-changing stuff. It isn't a Sarah McLachlan commercial and a few damp tissues. Never doubt the power of community, or the generosity of Steemians. Just look what we've accomplished together!

photos above courtesy of @tarc volunteer @arrelaine13

THE SEVEN WHO WENT TO VERMONT

It has been estimated that in Central Appalachia, the ratio of unwanted pet to available home is roughly 26:1. This is why we send most of our rescues north, into New England states where the supply and demand is much more reasonable. It makes no sense to keep recycling them back into the same community that is already abandoning so many and surrendering thousands every year to local kill shelters. It's a costly, labor-intensive undertaking that's the equivalent of putting a Band-aid on a bleeding artery. This is never going to stop until we get some low-cost spay/neuter initiatives working in the area, and funding to provide this service for area residents. As it stands, the nearest low-cost s/n clinic capable of handling this kind of volume is nearly two hours from my rescue.

So after we've taken in the dogs, quarantined them, vetted them (which includes spay/neuter, at least two in a series of core disease vaccines plus rabies and bordatella,) gotten them comprehensive deworming, heartworm test, and health certificate,) we send photos to our rescue partners in New England, who post them on their website. People submit applications, those applications are processed, and qualified adopters begin the long wait for their dogs to arrive on transport. This time, we worked with Rescue Riders--Pooches on the Move We met them in Wytheville, VA, for the handoff. The dogs then rode thirteen hours to Vermont, where they were delivered safely to their adopters and New England fosters.

The following photos by @arrelaine13 show what our leg of the transport looked like.

THEIR CHARIOT AWAITS.

LOADED!

"IS THAT MY RIDE?" (BOOMER)

"GOODBYE, HARD TIMES!" (CLEO)

BEAUTIFUL, BILATERAL HETEROCHROMIA. LOVE THOSE EYES! (SURFIE)

FEAR. (CANDY)

One of the hardest parts of rescue and transport is knowing how terrified these dogs are, because they don't know what's happening to them. We have no way to explain it to them. We've learned to not be overly emotional at the handoff, because they tune in to us and if we are upset, they'll be even more upset. It must be very traumatic, being ripped from what is often the most comfortable home they've ever known and trucked eight hundred miles north. I imagine it's somewhat like being kidnapped--they're jerked away from everything familiar and totally at the mercy of people they don't know and don't trust. The look on Candy's face in the above photo says it all. The emotions you see there are real. Think dogs don't have complex emotions? Think again. Science has proven that notion to be completely wrong. If the mainstream news article at that link isn't enough, Google "dogs emotions MRI," and that will keep you busy reading for a while.

What keeps us moving forward with relocation efforts in spite of the stress and fear it places on the dogs should be evident by the time you see Candy's next photos. I've saved her Happy Tails for last. There's no doubt that rescue dogs are scarred by their experiences. But the joy that comes on the other end of that thirteen hour trip is almost always worth whatever monetary cost or emotional toll it takes to get them there.

photos below are courtesy of For the Love of Dogs Rescue in Waitsfield, VT.

SURFIE AND FOSTER CAROLE CROSSMAN