Rescue knows no boundaries..

luckily, so that when we have a situation in Minnesota needing our help, we have the volunteers who say "just tell me when to get on the plane to help". And we have people willing to donate miles to defray the cost of the plane trip. And we have rescue people in that part of the world willing to help with saving the life of a special little boy!!! Its what makes doing rescue with ARWNY so wonderful -- we have such a devoted group of people willing to help in almost every way possible -- without them, we couldn't do all we do here to help the Akitas in need!!

It started out by ARWNY being contacted by a "breeder" about a puppy she bred that she stated was deaf and blind. Carla Boyd contacted her back immediately asking for more info. Carla, who is very involved with the blind dog organizations since she owns a blind Akita, Pawlee, wanted very much to help this pup who was only 5 weeks old when we were contacted. Seems others closer to her were not wanting to save a deaf and blind puppy; but while we knew this would be a challenge, Carla felt she was up to the task.

Then the "breeder" (btw, I use the term breeder VERY distastefully because she is obviously NOT an ethical nor educated breeder by any standard) writes back that she had already dumped this little guy on a sanctuary, www.thesanctuaryforanimals.com in MN because she no longer wanted to deal with him.

The wonderful lady that runs the Sanctuary, DJ Rotter, was happy to care for this little boy, naming him Polaris and taking him immediately to her vet for consultation. It was found he was starved, dehydrated & probably has cerebellar hypoplasia http://www.upei.ca/~cidd/Diseases/nervous%20system%20disorders/cerebellar%20hypoplasia.htm but most likely only partially deaf and not blind!! Now, I still wonder how anyone that is breeding dogs cannot know a puppy in their care was starving, not feeding correctly nor getting hydrated carefully enough? That alone makes me sick -- but her continued correspondence with Carla in which she calls herself a good breeder who does NOT intend to stop breeding nor feels there is anything wrong with her breeding program is the worst part -- she will continue doing breedings and we wonder how many other poor puppies will suffer in this way?

Anyway -- it all has a happy ending for this one puppy -- Polaris will be coming to us here at ARWNY as soon as our volunteer Deb Karfs flies out to bring him back to ARWNY -- if he has any neurological issues as he grows a bit, we can work on them through our army of wonderful vets, trainers and behaviorists. We have a geat home lined up for him already with lots of Akita experience to foster him, our wonderful Heather & her new hubby Julius along with big sister Tasu. So with Carla's help & experience with this disease and Heather's wonderful care, this pup will be in fine hands!! Once he is here and thriving, I will post more including updated pictures of the little guy!!

*****NOTE**** I may be off line for about a week, due to having my right knee replaced on 2/19/10 but will post more about this baby as we get to know him better!

Its freezing cold in many places in the USA today. Has been for weeks. Below 32 degrees most nites, with snow and or freezing rain covering the ground. So can you imagine yourself sleeping outside, without any shelter, a huge chain connecting you to a wall or a tree stump, nowhere to get out of the cold wind, rain or snow?

Well that's the fate of many dogs out there today. Not just Akitas -- but many breeds -- breeds whose coats cannot handle the cold weather as our Akitas often can. Dogs should not live on chains. Dogs should be inside with their families, being loved and cared for as the family members they are meant to be.

Dogs on chains suffer in many ways -- not just physically but mentally too. Dogs on chains have no socialization, no chance to know love and kindness. Dogs on chains become frustrated, territorial and fearful.

Here is a link to a very sad situation that could have been avoided had this dog not been on a chain:

http://www.kmov.com/news/local/7-year-old-girl-mauled-by-dog-during-snow-ball-fight-83829752.html

Speak up if you know of a dog living on the end of a chain -- call your local shelter, leave a note in the owner's mailbox. Call Tammy at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.com/ and find out what you can do to help or ask her for help with a certain situation.

By not doing anything, it makes you as bad as the owner in a smaller way -- by turning our backs on a situation like this, it lessens our humanity. Please please speak up -- and always make chained dogs a priorty when voting for upcoming legislation because the right politicians can make a difference in getting laws upheld, changed and updated to prevent this kind of animal abuse.

When those special, wonderful great adopters come along, they work miracles! Spirit (on right side above) sat in rescue with ARWNY at his foster Mom's place (bless you Greta!) for a year. He was a "real" Akita, and he was a long coat -- not so much demand for either one -- everyone today wants those "Labs in Akita coats" pretending to be REAL Akitas but actually more like silly Labs than Akitas, looking like Akitas but acting pretty much anything but. Yeah, we all want easy, right? Luckily, not everyone because Spirit got VERY lucky the day Linda did some checking on the internet to find just the right male Akita for her home -- he had to be a REAL Akita and he had to be a LONG COAT!! Well Linda spent months making sure Spirit was the right boy for her thru ARWNY, and after a home check, reference checks & her visit to PA to be sure all the way from her home in CA, Spirit knew he had found a home. Read this wonderful email from Linda -- she has made 2010 a better year already for me!!

Hi -

Just wanted to let you know that Spirit (new name 'Tenjin', which is the Japanese translation for the word 'spirit') is doing just great in his new home with me in the San Francisco area!

He has adjusted very well, and now has adapted to 'house rules' and a routine - he is such a smart dog! It is very evident that Tenjin was raised well by his previous owner, and continued to do well under Greta's care over the last year. Tenjin is now accomplished in all of the basic obedience commands (he still needs work on his 'stay' command, but we're working on that). We walk twice a day, with long hikes on the weekends. He loves meeting new people - and everyone praises him on how handsome he is!

Tenjin gets along very well with my female Akita (Yoshi). By the end of the 2nd week, the two of them no longer needed to be separated and now play together all the time. Yoshi has accepted him fully, and is very helpful to me in teaching Tenjin, as he copies her every move (he is sooo smart!).

I could not have asked for a better addition to my family - Tenjin has indeed found his forever home with me. Thanks to you both for taking such great care of Tenjin over the last year and for not giving up on him - he is a pleasure (he is the sweetest boy - but fierce when he needs to be!).

Here are a few pics of Tenjin in his new home with me and Yoshi - enjoy!

Best regards,
Linda
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Thank you Linda -- for giving this special boy a warm place in your heart forever!!