What exactly is the difference between a rescue society dedicated
to a specific breed of canine and me who adopts from shelters?

What is it that makes adopters of purebreds "rescuers" ?

My (3) dogs come EXCLUSIVELY from shelters. Are my dogs
not "rescued" ?

Or is it just snobbery about purebreds?

(Not a troll, but this one invites flames.. I wanna know..)

"Mike D" wrote in message
...
What exactly is the difference between a rescue society dedicated
to a specific breed of canine and me who adopts from shelters?

What is it that makes adopters of purebreds "rescuers" ?

My (3) dogs come EXCLUSIVELY from shelters. Are my dogs
not "rescued" ?

Or is it just snobbery about purebreds?

(Not a troll, but this one invites flames.. I wanna know..)

usually, a breed rescue will pull dogs of their breed from kill-shelters,
thereby "rescuing" them from probable death. they may also take in dogs
directly from owners, or find them roaming the streets. IMHO, if you get a
dog from a kill shelter, you're rescuing the dog, just as much as if you had
found it on the street.

however, i know this word "rescue" is a hot button for certain people "in
the biz" on this group, so they'll probably tell me i'm wrong right about
now.

-kelly

"Mike D" wrote in message
...
What exactly is the difference between a rescue society dedicated
to a specific breed of canine and me who adopts from shelters?

What is it that makes adopters of purebreds "rescuers" ?

My (3) dogs come EXCLUSIVELY from shelters. Are my dogs
not "rescued" ?

Or is it just snobbery about purebreds?

(Not a troll, but this one invites flames.. I wanna know..)

usually, a breed rescue will pull dogs of their breed from kill-shelters,
thereby "rescuing" them from probable death. they may also take in dogs
directly from owners, or find them roaming the streets. IMHO, if you get a
dog from a kill shelter, you're rescuing the dog, just as much as if you had
found it on the street.

however, i know this word "rescue" is a hot button for certain people "in
the biz" on this group, so they'll probably tell me i'm wrong right about
now.

-kelly

"Mike D" wrote in message
...
What exactly is the difference between a rescue society dedicated
to a specific breed of canine and me who adopts from shelters?

What is it that makes adopters of purebreds "rescuers" ?

My (3) dogs come EXCLUSIVELY from shelters. Are my dogs
not "rescued" ?

Or is it just snobbery about purebreds?

(Not a troll, but this one invites flames.. I wanna know..)

usually, a breed rescue will pull dogs of their breed from kill-shelters,
thereby "rescuing" them from probable death. they may also take in dogs
directly from owners, or find them roaming the streets. IMHO, if you get a
dog from a kill shelter, you're rescuing the dog, just as much as if you had
found it on the street.

however, i know this word "rescue" is a hot button for certain people "in
the biz" on this group, so they'll probably tell me i'm wrong right about
now.

-kelly

"Mike D" wrote in message
...
What exactly is the difference between a rescue society dedicated
to a specific breed of canine and me who adopts from shelters?

What is it that makes adopters of purebreds "rescuers" ?

My (3) dogs come EXCLUSIVELY from shelters. Are my dogs
not "rescued" ?

Or is it just snobbery about purebreds?

(Not a troll, but this one invites flames.. I wanna know..)

usually, a breed rescue will pull dogs of their breed from kill-shelters,
thereby "rescuing" them from probable death. they may also take in dogs
directly from owners, or find them roaming the streets. IMHO, if you get a
dog from a kill shelter, you're rescuing the dog, just as much as if you had
found it on the street.

however, i know this word "rescue" is a hot button for certain people "in
the biz" on this group, so they'll probably tell me i'm wrong right about
now.

-kelly

"Mike D" wrote in message
...
What exactly is the difference between a rescue society dedicated
to a specific breed of canine and me who adopts from shelters?

What is it that makes adopters of purebreds "rescuers" ?

My (3) dogs come EXCLUSIVELY from shelters. Are my dogs
not "rescued" ?

Or is it just snobbery about purebreds?

(Not a troll, but this one invites flames.. I wanna know..)

usually, a breed rescue will pull dogs of their breed from kill-shelters,
thereby "rescuing" them from probable death. they may also take in dogs
directly from owners, or find them roaming the streets. IMHO, if you get a
dog from a kill shelter, you're rescuing the dog, just as much as if you had
found it on the street.

however, i know this word "rescue" is a hot button for certain people "in
the biz" on this group, so they'll probably tell me i'm wrong right about
now.

-kelly

Hi Mike,

You certainly did rescue your dogs! Kudos to you for adopting. It doesn't
matter if you adopted one from a shelter OR a rescue group. It only matters
that you adopted one and saved its life.

Now if you want to open up your home, on a continual basis, with a different
dog(s) every couple of weeks, then welcome to the rescue fold. We can
always use more help!

We take in dogs that were going to be killed from the shelters, get them
housebroken, leash broken, teach them house manners, socialize them, get
them healthy, vaccinated, neutered or spayed, and then we get them adopted
out and then start the process all over again with the next dog. Most folks
get to enjoy having their shelter dog around after it has learned how to
become a good house pet. We don't! After they are ready to be adopted,
and find their new "forever" home, it is on to next dog. Sometimes it is
really hard to let go - especially with the ones that were the most messed
up to start with. They take a huge piece of your heart with them.

What we do get out of it is the satisfaction of helping the dog(s) become
beloved members of people's families. Many of our former foster dogs and
their new people stay in touch with us and send photos. We get to enjoy
sharing our lives with many, many different dogs. It is hard to describe
how good you feel when you help to change the life of a dog who was
previously abused, starved and lived its entire life on a chain. To see
them become a beloved part of someone's family - it is very overwhelming.

I, for one, am growing weary of defending rescue. We take in the cast off
dogs that other people threw away. We help make them whole, and you would
not believe the amount of flack we get from people who don't realize what we
do. We have been accused of selling dogs, even though our adoption fee
doesn't begin to cover our expenses.

My favorite phrase is when someone calls and says that they want to "Get
rid of" their dog. You "get rid of" garbage - not a living being. Other
folks say that they are moving on Saturday, so on Friday afternoon they call
us up and tell us that we come need to pick up their unsocialized,
untrained, unvaccinated German Shepherd right away. Then they are angry if
we have to tell them that we do not have an open foster home. They make it
sound like WE are the bad guy. THEY are the ones that are dumping their
dogs, but they have the audacity to try and make us feel bad about the
situation.

Please don't get me wrong, I love what I do. Right now Sheba, a 7 year old
black GSD, is leaning against me as I write this diatribe. She is 75 lbs of
gratitude. Her ribs no longer poke out and her coat is starting to become
soft and shiny instead of dull and brittle. She no longer winces every time
we reach for her. She was found as a stray, and even though her owners
were located, through her tags that are several years old, they did not
bother to pick her up from the shelter. The shelter left repeated messages,
and after many attempts, someone finally answered the phone. They were told
that if they did not come and pick her up from the shelter, she would be
killed. Did they bother? No, they did not. Why? Who knows - but she is a
wonderful dog who certainly deserved better than being callously abandoned
and left to her fate at the county pound.

Sorry for the length of this, but since you asked, I answered.

Yours in dogs and rescue,

Lea
www.shepherdrescue.org
Virginia German Shepherd Rescue

Hi Mike,

You certainly did rescue your dogs! Kudos to you for adopting. It doesn't
matter if you adopted one from a shelter OR a rescue group. It only matters
that you adopted one and saved its life.

Now if you want to open up your home, on a continual basis, with a different
dog(s) every couple of weeks, then welcome to the rescue fold. We can
always use more help!

We take in dogs that were going to be killed from the shelters, get them
housebroken, leash broken, teach them house manners, socialize them, get
them healthy, vaccinated, neutered or spayed, and then we get them adopted
out and then start the process all over again with the next dog. Most folks
get to enjoy having their shelter dog around after it has learned how to
become a good house pet. We don't! After they are ready to be adopted,
and find their new "forever" home, it is on to next dog. Sometimes it is
really hard to let go - especially with the ones that were the most messed
up to start with. They take a huge piece of your heart with them.

What we do get out of it is the satisfaction of helping the dog(s) become
beloved members of people's families. Many of our former foster dogs and
their new people stay in touch with us and send photos. We get to enjoy
sharing our lives with many, many different dogs. It is hard to describe
how good you feel when you help to change the life of a dog who was
previously abused, starved and lived its entire life on a chain. To see
them become a beloved part of someone's family - it is very overwhelming.

I, for one, am growing weary of defending rescue. We take in the cast off
dogs that other people threw away. We help make them whole, and you would
not believe the amount of flack we get from people who don't realize what we
do. We have been accused of selling dogs, even though our adoption fee
doesn't begin to cover our expenses.

My favorite phrase is when someone calls and says that they want to "Get
rid of" their dog. You "get rid of" garbage - not a living being. Other
folks say that they are moving on Saturday, so on Friday afternoon they call
us up and tell us that we come need to pick up their unsocialized,
untrained, unvaccinated German Shepherd right away. Then they are angry if
we have to tell them that we do not have an open foster home. They make it
sound like WE are the bad guy. THEY are the ones that are dumping their
dogs, but they have the audacity to try and make us feel bad about the
situation.

Please don't get me wrong, I love what I do. Right now Sheba, a 7 year old
black GSD, is leaning against me as I write this diatribe. She is 75 lbs of
gratitude. Her ribs no longer poke out and her coat is starting to become
soft and shiny instead of dull and brittle. She no longer winces every time
we reach for her. She was found as a stray, and even though her owners
were located, through her tags that are several years old, they did not
bother to pick her up from the shelter. The shelter left repeated messages,
and after many attempts, someone finally answered the phone. They were told
that if they did not come and pick her up from the shelter, she would be
killed. Did they bother? No, they did not. Why? Who knows - but she is a
wonderful dog who certainly deserved better than being callously abandoned
and left to her fate at the county pound.

Sorry for the length of this, but since you asked, I answered.

Yours in dogs and rescue,

Lea
www.shepherdrescue.org
Virginia German Shepherd Rescue

Hi Mike,

You certainly did rescue your dogs! Kudos to you for adopting. It doesn't
matter if you adopted one from a shelter OR a rescue group. It only matters
that you adopted one and saved its life.

Now if you want to open up your home, on a continual basis, with a different
dog(s) every couple of weeks, then welcome to the rescue fold. We can
always use more help!

We take in dogs that were going to be killed from the shelters, get them
housebroken, leash broken, teach them house manners, socialize them, get
them healthy, vaccinated, neutered or spayed, and then we get them adopted
out and then start the process all over again with the next dog. Most folks
get to enjoy having their shelter dog around after it has learned how to
become a good house pet. We don't! After they are ready to be adopted,
and find their new "forever" home, it is on to next dog. Sometimes it is
really hard to let go - especially with the ones that were the most messed
up to start with. They take a huge piece of your heart with them.

What we do get out of it is the satisfaction of helping the dog(s) become
beloved members of people's families. Many of our former foster dogs and
their new people stay in touch with us and send photos. We get to enjoy
sharing our lives with many, many different dogs. It is hard to describe
how good you feel when you help to change the life of a dog who was
previously abused, starved and lived its entire life on a chain. To see
them become a beloved part of someone's family - it is very overwhelming.

I, for one, am growing weary of defending rescue. We take in the cast off
dogs that other people threw away. We help make them whole, and you would
not believe the amount of flack we get from people who don't realize what we
do. We have been accused of selling dogs, even though our adoption fee
doesn't begin to cover our expenses.

My favorite phrase is when someone calls and says that they want to "Get
rid of" their dog. You "get rid of" garbage - not a living being. Other
folks say that they are moving on Saturday, so on Friday afternoon they call
us up and tell us that we come need to pick up their unsocialized,
untrained, unvaccinated German Shepherd right away. Then they are angry if
we have to tell them that we do not have an open foster home. They make it
sound like WE are the bad guy. THEY are the ones that are dumping their
dogs, but they have the audacity to try and make us feel bad about the
situation.

Please don't get me wrong, I love what I do. Right now Sheba, a 7 year old
black GSD, is leaning against me as I write this diatribe. She is 75 lbs of
gratitude. Her ribs no longer poke out and her coat is starting to become
soft and shiny instead of dull and brittle. She no longer winces every time
we reach for her. She was found as a stray, and even though her owners
were located, through her tags that are several years old, they did not
bother to pick her up from the shelter. The shelter left repeated messages,
and after many attempts, someone finally answered the phone. They were told
that if they did not come and pick her up from the shelter, she would be
killed. Did they bother? No, they did not. Why? Who knows - but she is a
wonderful dog who certainly deserved better than being callously abandoned
and left to her fate at the county pound.

Sorry for the length of this, but since you asked, I answered.

Yours in dogs and rescue,

Lea
www.shepherdrescue.org
Virginia German Shepherd Rescue

Hi Mike,

You certainly did rescue your dogs! Kudos to you for adopting. It doesn't
matter if you adopted one from a shelter OR a rescue group. It only matters
that you adopted one and saved its life.

Now if you want to open up your home, on a continual basis, with a different
dog(s) every couple of weeks, then welcome to the rescue fold. We can
always use more help!

We take in dogs that were going to be killed from the shelters, get them
housebroken, leash broken, teach them house manners, socialize them, get
them healthy, vaccinated, neutered or spayed, and then we get them adopted
out and then start the process all over again with the next dog. Most folks
get to enjoy having their shelter dog around after it has learned how to
become a good house pet. We don't! After they are ready to be adopted,
and find their new "forever" home, it is on to next dog. Sometimes it is
really hard to let go - especially with the ones that were the most messed
up to start with. They take a huge piece of your heart with them.

What we do get out of it is the satisfaction of helping the dog(s) become
beloved members of people's families. Many of our former foster dogs and
their new people stay in touch with us and send photos. We get to enjoy
sharing our lives with many, many different dogs. It is hard to describe
how good you feel when you help to change the life of a dog who was
previously abused, starved and lived its entire life on a chain. To see
them become a beloved part of someone's family - it is very overwhelming.

I, for one, am growing weary of defending rescue. We take in the cast off
dogs that other people threw away. We help make them whole, and you would
not believe the amount of flack we get from people who don't realize what we
do. We have been accused of selling dogs, even though our adoption fee
doesn't begin to cover our expenses.

My favorite phrase is when someone calls and says that they want to "Get
rid of" their dog. You "get rid of" garbage - not a living being. Other
folks say that they are moving on Saturday, so on Friday afternoon they call
us up and tell us that we come need to pick up their unsocialized,
untrained, unvaccinated German Shepherd right away. Then they are angry if
we have to tell them that we do not have an open foster home. They make it
sound like WE are the bad guy. THEY are the ones that are dumping their
dogs, but they have the audacity to try and make us feel bad about the
situation.

Please don't get me wrong, I love what I do. Right now Sheba, a 7 year old
black GSD, is leaning against me as I write this diatribe. She is 75 lbs of
gratitude. Her ribs no longer poke out and her coat is starting to become
soft and shiny instead of dull and brittle. She no longer winces every time
we reach for her. She was found as a stray, and even though her owners
were located, through her tags that are several years old, they did not
bother to pick her up from the shelter. The shelter left repeated messages,
and after many attempts, someone finally answered the phone. They were told
that if they did not come and pick her up from the shelter, she would be
killed. Did they bother? No, they did not. Why? Who knows - but she is a
wonderful dog who certainly deserved better than being callously abandoned
and left to her fate at the county pound.

Sorry for the length of this, but since you asked, I answered.

Yours in dogs and rescue,

Lea
www.shepherdrescue.org
Virginia German Shepherd Rescue