THE R.O.A.R. SQUAD, BABY!

In honour of completing the April 2010- April 2011 R.O.A.R. Squad project of finding at least one rescue owner from every state, province and territory in the U.S. and Canada (+ some wonderful members from overseas!), this month’s masthead features a few of the 100+ smiling faces who have taken part.

Good lookin’ group, right?

Read more about the R.O.A.R. Squad: Rescue Owners Are Rockin!, meet all the R.O.A.R. Squad members and stay tuned for more R.O.A.R. Squad fun!

May 2011 Masthead (click to see full size):

Care Bear

And here you have it, folks! The last R.O.A.R. Squad member: Diane Carrier from Newfoundland, Canada!

I think it is fitting that Diane’s post should mark the final post of the April 2010 – April 2011 round of the R.O.A.R. Squad project.

Diane considered herself your “average dog lover” who, after basking in the unconditional love of her pet Pomeranians, and then sadly losing them one by one, was catipulted into activism after seeing Care Bear’s gorgeous face on the evening news after a puppy mill raid.

The reality is there are a lot of dogs out there, like Care Bear was, in exceedingly dire situations. The only way it is going to end is if we put puppy mills and backyard breeders out of business. We need to reduce demand for their “product.” If no one buys from them they won’t make money and these people will go into some other business.

Go to your local rescue organization or shelter when you decide to add a pet to your family. Shelters are struggling under the never ending influx animals to care for- you have the power to change this.

Adopt. Don’t Shop.

Thank you so much to Diane for joining the R.O.A.R. Squad! Read more about her story after the jump.

Learn more about the R.O.A.R Squad (Rescue Owners Are Rockin!) HERE.

Diane and Care Bear

Rockin’ Rescue Owner: Diane Carrier

About Diane: I’ve always been a dog lover my whole life and have to confess I’m partial to multiples! Both because I prefer it and I know they do too. Winning combination there! There’s not a breed, crossbreed or just a good old fashion “mutt” that I don’t love. I literally drool over a German Shepherd for example! LOVE big dogs! So how did I end up with poms? My ex husband, who does love dogs, didn’t think big ones belonged in the house so I compromised and down sized because a pom is a big dog in a small package. Don’t feel sorry for me though because in the end, I won… I ended up with 6 poms instead of the one big one. Right now I’m Mom to 2 rescued Pomeranians and if all goes well (fingers crossed!) a third one that needs rescuing will be joining our family as soon as the adoption process is complete.

Happy to be Part of the Squad: I salute Shauna for her whole concept of R.O.A.R. and am honoured that Tracy Laporte Marcotullio from New Brunswick, Canada, a lady I greatly admire for all the work she does, recommended me.

Clint

Ladies Man: Clint is my three legged, blind in one eye clown who EVERYONE falls IMMEDIATELY in love with because… well, just because he’s him! Clint loves company, anyone can come into the house, no problem but leave and what an ongoing ruckus for usually 15 mins or more… he doesn’t even have to know them and they didn’t even have to pay any attention to him while they were here… just don’t leave! Though fixed, he’s got a LOT of playboy still in him. Like all playboys he wants a woman in his bed at night, hahaha, so his solution is to rotate between whichever sister happens to be here (right now my younger sister is staying with us). This means Clint has a new bed mate right? Partially! When the older sister comes in for the weekend the younger sister is dumped for a new woman with even MORE experience in belly rubs and he’s all over the older one and sleeps with her! Once she goes, it’s back to the younger one like he never dumped her first nor last. Playboy, through and through! Don’t feel sorry for him with his disabilities, he can outrun any dog and actually puts the fear in most, including the poor Rottie next door!

Reba

Diva Reba: Then there’s my diva, Reba! She is absolutely, breathtaking gorgeous and like most poms, she knows it and acts just like a queen most of the time which I truly love and admire her for! To me, any animal that can come from a puppy mill with that much confidence and self esteem I say “You go, Girl!! She rules!!! Right down to where she eats… I usually have to deliver her food upstairs to her as most times she refuses to eat on the main floor with us lower class! Reba has one little quirk that I always watch for when someone new comes into the house because it’s priceless to watch their reaction… obviously my sense of humour is a bit warped…Reba is the ONLY female dog of any breed that I’ve owned that to show that she accepts someone will “mark” them just like a male (only thankfully without urine) to show her love! To see people jump back.. which I don’t blame them, not knowing and the look on Reba’s face of “What is your problem? I’m loving you!!” It makes me laugh every time and I do love to laugh!

Your Average Dog Lover I used to be what most would consider just your average dog lover. I took care of mine, always had them, donated to different organizations but I didn’t go out of my way if you know what I mean. I took care of mine and just carried on in my own little fantasy world that everyone else did too… Oh Boy!… let’s just say when I came out of THAT fantasy world, the real world sucked BIG TIME!

A Debt I Can Never Repay At that time, I had six of the most amazing, wonderful Pomeranians who I dearly loved and who I can honestly say from my heart, saved my life. The six of them have all crossed the Bridge now but they left me with a debt I can NEVER repay the breed. Each death resulted in my dying a little more inside. I just couldn’t, just couldn’t, get another one after I lost the last one. I was dead inside, you know? Deep depression after the last one died does not come anywhere close to describing my emotional state at this time.

When Everything Changed Life of course does go on, though it went on dogless for me for approx 2 years, still carrying the memories of my babies and what I owed them in my heart. I do believe in God, destiny and that everything in our lives happens for a reason. Case in point is what I’m now going to tell you: After working, the LAST thing I would ever do is watch the news. As far as I was concerned, if the TV was turned on, I was tired and didn’t want to be depressed by all the bad news so give me anything else but the news. But THIS day I did… and THANK GOD I did! Now I knew! I knew! I knew how I COULD keep paying back…

It Was Time It was a HORRIFIC story of a puppy mill rescue done by the Oromocto and Area SPCA (tears starting right now, just remembering… CRAP!). They were all Pomeranians and 6 of them during the course of the rescue had been beaten in the head with a mallet by the owner during the rescue. One of them, Ronald, though they thought he was also dead did survive due to the quick reaction of the rescuers in getting him to the Oromocto Veterinary Hospital. Ronald was being held by a rescuer in the news clip I saw. I have never, never, never had a dog speak to me as much as Ronald did in that 30 second news clip. He looked so… I guess beaten by life, just as I was, and I bonded instantly with him. I KNEW this was the time and way for me to try to repay poms. So, I called the shelter to inquire how they were all doing, said I was interested in donating and adopting, stressed one had nothing to do with the other, and that I would like to have more than one, pretty please! I wrote them a letter and poured out my heart… and if you think this is long, just imagine what that letter was like! But God love Tracy and the crew there, they did read it and I guess they could tell I WAS sincere and the application process went on from there.

Miracle of Miracles I then learned I was the one they had decided that Ronald should go to! Well, I have never changed a dog’s name in the past but his had to be…. he became Care Bear to me because as far as I was concerned he wouldn’t be alive if so many hadn’t cared for him and fought to get him and the rest of his friends out of that mill.

Care Bear… how can I describe him…. so loving, forgiving, sweet, cute, such a… EVERYTHING! He and I bonded INSTANTLY! We learned so much from each other! Through his eyes and actions, I learned that you have to let the past go and love life like he did. Through my eyes and actions, he now knew what love and being cared for was all about. Unfortunately, because of the blow to his head by the mallet a bone fragment reached his brain way too soon after I got him and took his life. (BTW, I should say here that the Oromocto & Area SPCA told me upfront they could give me no guarantees as to regards to how long he would live due to his injury but I didn’t care I wanted him for however long he did live). His death has had a tremendous impact on me and it’s taken me a long time to figure out why it’s been even harder than all the rest of my beloved dogs I’ve lost who I owned for so much longer than him. The nearest explanation, maybe, is because his death was needless and his life so tragic before I got him and all of mine were loved and cared for their whole lives. Now? Now I feel the pain he must have lived through his whole life and the pain of others like him. But Care Bear DID make a difference in his life… because of the unjust sentence that was handed down to the owner of the mill, the case being so publicised , and yes, his face being the face used… the laws WERE changed in New Brunswick. So if Care Bear, such a little pom, could do that, how can I, his Mom, not take up the fight… and that’s where I am today.

Eyes Wide Open My eyes are wide opened now as to what’s going on in the world reference all the horrors that face some of the world’s dogs and I fight, and I fight, in honour of Care Bear and others like him. My giving financially has changed a lot… I used to give what I could, or think I could afford, whenever… now if it doesn’t actually hurt… I didn’t give enough! I sign every petition I can get my hands on, I educate others, I jump on all the causes… especially when it comes to getting laws changed….. and I’ve opened my home again to poms. So much more I want to do, especially starting a blog in Care Bear’s memory, getting all the messages out, getting involved in more shelters and rescue groups, the list goes on but I WILL do it… for Care Bear and all the others like him…. EVERY dog born deserves and has the basic right to a GOOD life, not just a LIFE!

And I guess that’s me. Someone who believes strongly in what she believes.

Where: St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada

Meet Tracy from New Brunswick who introduced Diane to Care Bear.

The R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians now!

Welcome to our latest R.O.A.R. Squad members from my home town of Victoria, British Columbia: Marie and Dale!

Marie and Dale are currently fostering the incredibly cute Principe, a young Chihuahua cross. Principe is ready for his forever home- read more about him and see a photo of his adorable self at the bottom of this post!

Thank you guys so much for taking part!

The R.O.A.R. Squad April 10/11 is wrapping up this week so we are not currently accepting submissions. Read all about the project and what we’ve accomplished here. Rescue Owners Are Rockin!

Rockin’ Rescue Owners: Dale Olsen & Marie Zirk

Charismatic Canines: Stella, Becks and foster pup Principe

About Marie and Dale: Dale is the owner of Outlooks for Men, a dog friendly store in downtown Victoria, British Columbia. It’s so dog friendly that the staff all drop what they are doing to say hello when a dog comes shopping. Marie and a partner own Integral Creative PR & Design, a home-based marketing firm where Stella and Becks spend most of their time.

Gentle Giant: In 2003, I (Marie) thought I would help out a friend who had recently lost his Bernese Mountain dog to cancer by taking him to a rescue foundation where they had some big, black Bernese looking puppies. He didn’t go home with a dog but Dale and I did. Stella, named after my alter ego and Dale’s favourite beer, was such a gentle giant and so well behaved, we decided to add a smaller dog  a few years later.

Task Master: Becks, the little dog, runs the household and is the one who keeps us all on schedule. Somehow he seems to know  when it’s time to quit work and get out for  some fresh air, between  5pm and 6pm everyday he sits and stares until we get up and take him out for his evening stroll and ball game. 
 
Fabulous Rescue Orgs: Stella came from the Nana Foundation in Victoria and Becks came all the way from Turtle Gardens Animal Shelter in Northern BC.  In their honour, we hold a fashion show fundraiser at Outlooks every year called Man and His Dog (Editor: John and I modeling in this fantastic event! Click here for photos). Entire proceeds from the ticket sales and bar are donated to animal rescue.  Principe (Spanish for Prince) Pup-pup has been with us for about 3 weeks.  He was pulled from a high-kill shelter in the U.S. just days before he was to be euthanized. While he was very traumatized when he first arrived, he is becoming a confident, fun and very lovable pup who will stay with us until he finds his furever home. Stella and he get along beautifully, Becks not so much. Please see Victoria Adoptables Dog Rescue (scroll half way down the page) if you are interested in adopting Princie.

Principe is ready for his forever home!

Ready for Adoption! Principe (Spanish for Prince) Pup-pup has been with us for about 3 weeks.  He was pulled from a high-kill shelter in the U.S. just days before he was to be euthanized. While he was very traumatized when he first arrived, he is becoming a confident, fun and very lovable pup who will stay with us until he finds his furever home. Stella and he get along beautifully, Becks not so much. Please see Victoria Adoptables Dog Rescue (scroll half way down the page) if you are interested in adopting Princie.

Where: Victoria, British Columbia

Want to meet some more rescue owner from Victoria? Check out Jennifer and Steve and their dog, Angel!



The R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians

Introducing our latest R.O.A.R. Squad members from New York: Christine and Mike!

Chris and I used to dance together back in the day in Japan… we were roomies in Tokyo as well as in Toronto. Oh, the stories we have!

Thank you guys so much for joining the R.O.A.R. Squad!

The R.O.A.R. Squad April 10/11 is wrapping up this week so we are not currently accepting submissions. Read all about the project and what we’ve accomplished here. Rescue Owners Are Rockin!

Rockin’ Rescue Owners: Christine and Mike

Gorgeous Kitty: Rowdy

Lap Cat: Mike and I adopted our 10 year old cat from a vet who had taken it because they suspected abuse in his home – both his back legs were snapped in the same place… poor guy had to be in traction for 6 weeks and couldn’t move.  The vet loves how loving he still is towards humans – his orginal owners died of old age.  They must have been very loving because he is a very good cat and is very loving.  Definitely a lap cat.  It was important to Mike to give a cat a home because kittens are always in demand. 

White Hair, Black Clothes: We absolutely adore Rowdy… except the white hair on my black clothes…

Where: New York

Want to meet another R.O.A.R. Squad member from New York? Check out Peggy and her dog, Kelly! 

The R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians

A very warm welcome to our latest R.O.A.R. Squad members: Cindy and Matt from Nunavut!

Cindy and Matt moved up North so Mika and Nanook could take up sledding and skijoring, which is when a person on skis is pulled by dog(s). I think that is fantastic!

Read more about this wonderful family and see their gorgeous photos after the jump!

The R.O.A.R. Squad April 10/11 is wrapping up this week so we are not currently accepting submissions. Read all about the project and what we’ve accomplished here. Rescue Owners Are Rockin!

Nanook

Rockin’ Rescue Owners: Cindy & Matt Lottes

Gorgeous Pups: Mika (Black dog) Nanook (white dog); both 5 year old Husky mixes

About Cindy and Matt: Matt is a teacher and I am a photographer.  We met in high school and have taught in Thailand, South Korea, Manitoba and Nunavut.  We currently live in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut where we enjoy skijoring and dog sledding (Editor: check out their blog where there are heaps of gorgeous photos!) 

Mika

She Spent the Night on My Pillow: We moved to Poplar River, Manitoba in the fall of 2006 to teach.  There were lots of stray dogs on the reserve that were expert beggars.  Mika came to our back door one night during a thunderstorm.  We knew it was her because earlier in the day one of the students had brought her over.  She was so tiny and helpless but Matt and I had decided no dogs because we still had plans to travel.  That all changed when Matt jumped out of bed and carried the sopping wet Mika into our lives.  We dried her off and she spent the night on my pillow.

Together Ever Since: Nanook was also a stray puppy, looking for a home.  She frequently came over and played with Mika.  The two of them got along so well.  When the temperatures dropped to -40C for a week, we ended up letting in 7 of the local strays… Nanook being one of them.  After that we didn’t have the heart to separate the girls and they’ve been together ever since. 

Sledding and Skijoring: We moved to Rankin Inlet, Nunavut in 2007 so the girls could take up dog sledding and skijoring.  They’ve turned out to be excellent pullers but love their spoiled life in the house!    

Mika hates walking on tile floors, is my lead dogs and knows her right (gee) from her left (haw).  She loves to smell people’s breath.

Nanook loves to lick people and pick fights with other female dogs.  She is the biggest suck and loves to be pet.

Where: Nunavut

Want to meet another rescue owner from Nunavut? Check out Millie and Andy and their dogs!

The R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians

The Idea:

Profile rescue owners from across the U.S. and Canada, share a bit of their life and rescue stories with readers, and via humour, inspiration and fun photos make adopting a rescue pet THE coolest thing around.

The Goal:

In one year, from April 2010 to April 2011, profile at least one rescue owner from every state, province and territory in the U.S. and Canada.

And today, exactly one year later on Blog the Change… I am so very happy to announce…

TOGETHER WE DID IT!

The final R.O.A.R. Squad member posts will be published next week and with over 100 R.O.A.R. Squad members to date I am incredibly honoured and inspired to have had the chance to meet so many wonderful, caring, ROCKIN’ people this last year (check out all the R.O.A.R. Squad members here)!

Who joined the R.O.A.R. Squad? 

We’ve got rescue owners with every kind of background you can imagine…

• animal control officers and architects
• designers and doctors
• farmers and film producers
• make up artists and military officers
• performers and pilots
• writers and white water rafting guides
• (and we like to blog… oh we love to blog!)

And from every corner of the U.S. and Canada…

• Alberta to Arizona
• Manitoba to Massachusetts
• Nunavut to Nevada
• Prince Edward Island to Pennsylvania
• (and even Australia, Denmark, Italy and Kuwait!)

We have rescue dogs, cats, parrots, horses and rabbits. We adopt mutts and pure breeds and puppies and animals in their golden years.

This is what rescue owners look like. This is where we live. We are your neighbours, brothers, coworkers and friends. We are funny, talented, interesting and the kind of people you WANT to go for a beer with.

Even if you don’t drink beer, you want to hang out in a pub with us, trust me.

The aim of this project has been to make adopting a rescue the coolest thing around. By giving a face and a name to the great people out there who choose to adopt rather than shop for their pets we are showing that creative and inspired and most definitely cool people choose adoption. By aligning our images and our stories with the rescue cause we are casting a positive and motivating shine on “rescue” as a brand in the same way popular celebrities promote running shoes and fabric softner.

Well over 4 million cats and dogs are put down every year in the U.S. alone- that’s around one every eight seconds (via). This is a problem that needs to be tackled in a myriad of ways including a “changing hearts and minds” approach. When people are thinking about adding a pet to their home, adoption must be the first thing they consider. When a child begs his mom and dad for a puppy he should be dragging them to the local shelter or rescue organization, not to the local pet store.

The members of the R.O.A.R. Squad are changing hearts and minds by choosing to stand up and shout, “I am a rescue owner!” They talk about rescue on facebook and twitter, in board rooms and around the kitchen table.

That is what I would like to challenge you to do: Just tell people about rescue. Tell your friends, family and colleagues about your rescue pet and how important it is to adopt rather than shop.

If cool people like this think rescue is the way to go… shouldn’t everyone else consider adopting as well?

What’s next for the R.O.A.R. Squad?

• Stay tuned next week for the last R.O.A.R. Squad profiles to be published
• Make sure to follow up in May for a special R.O.A.R. Squad wrap-up that I will be working on for the next month with the help of some talented folks
• After that? Well… you’ll just have to come back in May to find out!

Me with Kayloo, my rockin rescue.

To everyone who has supported the R.O.A.R. Squad for the last year I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your encouragement has meant a tremendous amount. To all the R.O.A.R. Squad members, to everyone who tweeted, facebooked, emailed and called their friends, fans and followers to track down rescue owners across the nation… thank you. Thank you for helping me reach my goal (which really feels like OUR goal to me, I hope you think that too!), but even more than that, thank you for introducing me to so many wonderful people. Seriously- every single story I read made me smile. Some made me cry… but they all made me smile.

Thank you to my dogs, Mickey and Kayloo, for inspiring all this craziness.

And thank you to my husband, John, for putting up with me working on R.O.A.R. Squad profiles rather than cleaning up the dishes.

Learn more about Blog the Change.

Ernie

Welcome to our latest R.O.A.R. Squad members from New York: Linda, Michael and Maggie!

Linda is a photographer who started her journey on the other side of the lens as a model. I love this photo of Ernie above and the photo of Tusker and Ernie after the jump is so beautiful and unique, make sure you check it out!

Thank you so much for joining the R.O.A.R. Squad!

Learn more about the R.O.A.R Squad (Rescue Owners Are Rockin!)  HERE.

Rockin’ Rescue Owners: Linda Kuo, her husband Michael and daughter Maggie

Gorgeous Pups: Ernie, 10 year old rescue Airedale, and Tusker, 9 year old Lhasa Apso

About Linda: I’m a New York based editorial, fine art animal portrait photographer. I photograph pets, portraits, and farm animals. I volunteer at animal shelters and am an animal advocate in support of sustainable farms: responsible local farming in favor of ethical treatment of animals over the factory farm paradigm (check out Linda’s beautifully designed site, kuophoto).

Beautifully Unique: Tusker our Lhasa is not a rescue “per se” but we did get him from a breeder that wanted to get rid of him because he was “flawed” due to the cowlick on his nose! (we saw it as a bonus not a flaw!!) 

Ernie’s story is different: Ernie came from a country estate where the owners decided they wanted to move back to NYC (he was 5 months old.) They decided they didn’t want him anymore so they listed him with the house! Enter: second family to the estate. Elderly couple,  estate is their country home which they only visit on the weekends. We befriended the caretakers of the estate, the girl was a dog trainer, her husband a private chef. The dog trainer trained dogs in Schutzhund and french ring and had several dogs on hand at various times. Ernie was in the mix but she was not fond of him and he would always either stay crated or in the mud room while she took her dogs and dog walking clients out to the nature preserve. My husband Michael was immediately drawn to Ernie, whose personality is somewhat like “eeyore.”

Tusker and Ernie

Finally Coming Home: Then one day this girl and her husband got fired. We asked her what was going to happen to Ernie because the owners wanted nothing to do with him. She said he was up for grabs. I told her I’d help her find a home for him if she took him with her and she said she would. She did not keep her word and left him behind at the house alone. The owners were not there. I went and got him from the housekeeper. His new home did not work out so my husband said we would “foster” him. (That was 6 years ago. Needless to say we are no longer friends)

Powerful Sleeper: When Ernie sleeps, he dreams vividly and howls like the hound of baskervilles!! If you were outside, you could hear it around the block. It starts with him twitching and small squeeks, then a build up, and a creschendo that could wake the dead!!

Where: Westchester, New York

Want to meet another photographer from New York? Check out Lisa and  her dogs!

The R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians now!

A great big warm welcome to our latest R.O.A.R. Squad members from Idaho: Hollie and Greg!

I love it when R.O.A.R. Squad members send puppy pictures… and Abby sure was a cute puppy (super cute 1 1/2 year old too!)!

Read more after the jump! 

Learn more about the R.O.A.R Squad (Rescue Owners Are Rockin!) HERE.

Fabulous Pup: Abby Posey, 1 1/2 year old Black Lab/Border Collie mix adopted from Clearwater Humane Society

Pressure Was On: When Greg and I moved to Oregon, we adopted a couple of feral cats. Once we bought a house, I put the pressure on for a dog. I came home the day before Thanksgiving to the little blonde furball that is Ginger, fresh from the feed store down the street.

Ginger Needs a Playmate: Fast forward 7 years later after I’ve been mentioning repeatedly how much she needed a playmate. Greg flies back to Hawaii (where we met) for work, and after one of his 5 week absences, promised that when he got home we would start looking for a playmate for Ginger. I work at the local paper and always see the ads for the older dogs up for adoption because of owner illness, moving situations, sometimes the owner had passed away. We had talked about adopting an older dog and we had also weighed the pros and cons of a puppy. With two older cats in the house already, we thought a puppy might be more adaptable to them than an older dog that might already have set ideas, but we weren’t sold completely on what we wanted. Then we walked into Petco on a Saturday, where in a little rinky dink fence enclosure were two big black and white fur balls, and one serious looking shorter haired black and white pup with a serene face. She became Abby, named for the character Abby Sciutto the black haired goth girl on NCIS.

BFF’s: She has been crate trained since day one and loves it (something we didn’t start with Ginger until she was a year or so old), she can’t stand to be away from Ginger and basically sits on her when they are outside on the porch, and when we brush Ginger and she talks to us, Abby thinks we’re hurting her and rushes in to help (her addiction to Ginger is one of the reasons I don’t have many pictures of her solo!).

Heaven: She found a squeaky ball of Ginger’s that’s so nasty and old it’s lost it’s squeak, so she walks around and chomps on it while whining, thereby creating her own squeaker, and tosses it in the air to try and catch. She loves to heavy sigh when she moves around at night in her crate, but she never whines in there and hasn’t since Day One. Greg is a mobile mechanic, so when he can he’ll put the girls in his work truck with him and take them to get parts he needs and sometimes a bone from Dutch Brothers is involved…

Where: Idaho 

Want to meet some more rescue owners from Idaho? Check out Julie and Murry and their dog, Maggie!

The R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians  

Cholo

A very warm welcome to our first R.O.A.R. Squad members from New Brunswick: Tracy and Dave!

Tracy manages her local SPCA and Dave is an Army Officer- read more about this big hearted family after the jump!

To learn more about the R.O.A.R Squad (Rescue Owners Are Rockin!) all the info you need is HERE.

Tracy with Ronald who was in the SPCA's care before being placed with his adoptive family.

Rockin’ Rescue Owners: Dave and Tracy Marcotullio

About Dave and Tracy: I (Tracy) am the manager of the Oromocto and Area SPCA, and have been for the last 14 years. It’s the best, most rewarding job I have ever had (read the blog here). Dave is an officer in the Canadian Army.

It Was Decided: Cholo is a 4 year old neutered male chihuahua/corgi mix. He came into the Oromocto SPCA last spring after he was seized by the NBSPCA. He and 5 or 6 other dogs were owned by a backyard breeder and they couldn’t take care of them all anymore. He was terrified when he came to us and it took about 3 days before any of us could even touch him, but for some reason he LOVED my husband. We had recently lost 2 of our dogs and we had been waiting for the right one to come in… my husband and Cholo decided that he was it. He is a total clown and he has fit in well.

Spanky

Heart Dog: Spanky is a 6 year old dachshund who we adopted from the Oromocto SPCA when he was 4 months old. He was also seized by the NBSPCA from a backyard breeder. He is my heart dog. I even have his picture tattooed on my shoulder. Spanky and I did agility for a couple of years and loved every minute of it. He’s “retired” now as he has had an injury to his leg. I have owned several dogs over the last 20 years… but Spanky will always be special.

Oscar

Absolute Sweetheart: Oscar is a dachshund that passed away last February. He was my husband’s buddy. He passed just before Dave left for his 3rd tour in Afghanistan. Oscar was paralyzed when we adopted him from Dachshund Rescue. He was actually the 2nd paralyzed dachshund that we had adopted. Oscar was a complete joy and everyone who met him was amazed at how sweet he was. He spent almost 3 years as a therapy dog, visiting patients in the local hospital and nursing home, making them smile. We miss him terribly.

Where: New Brunswick

Want to meet another great rescue owner from Canada’s eastern provinces? Check out Joan and her dogs from Nova Scotia.

About the R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians

A very warm welcome to our latest R.O.A.R. Squad members from Oregon: Shanda and Damian!

That gorgeous smiling face above belong to Shawnee, whose name was originally Shawna (WHAT A GREAT NAME! (wink, wink, nudge, nudge)). Just kidding, Shawnee is way better- I love her ears, and love those clear eyes!

Read more about this great family after the jump.

To learn more about the R.O.A.R Squad (Rescue Owners Are Rockin!) all the info you need is HERE. A special shout out to the fabulous folks in Newfoundland. These is the last province we need-  we really need you!

Rockin’ Rescue Owners: We are Damian & Shanda Benson. We live in Medford, Oregon and have been married for 29 years.  We didn’t have children so our 5 dogs over the last 29 years have been extra special to us.

Captured My Heart: I saw Shawnee’s adoption photo on Sept. 3rd at 2:36 am. Her face captured my heart. I made a simple comment that if she wasn’t so far away I would take her. She was at T.A.R.A.: Animal Rescue Alliance in Independence, MO and I live In Medford, OR. I had no idea what would take place from that simple comment… a team of 16 volunteers helped her get to Eugene, OR! I picked her up Sept 26.

Destiny: Shawnee is a Cattle Dog mix and had been adopted and returned 3 times because she was too energetic. Before joining our family when she was about 1 1/2 years old she lived most of her life in a shelter. T.A.R.A rescued her from a county shelter, she was very sick and was a high kill risk, I am grateful for all the love and care they gave her until destiny brought us together. Not only did we get a wonderful new family member but many new friendships have been created.

Accelerated and Adorable: Shawnee is very energetic! She is obsessed with Frisbee, loves to play tug, and will climb into any thing that will hold water. We say she has two speeds, Accelerated and Adorable. At the end of the day, after a lot of exercise and play, she turns into the sweetest most loving cuddle bug.  I work hard with her all day so I can get that special reward, we call Sugar Time. We have our challenges, but we can’t ever imagine how anyone could give her up 3 times!  She is amazing and we look forward to many years with our forever girl.

Where: Medford, Oregon

Want to meet another fabulous rescue family from Oregon? Check out Erica and Karl and their cat, Louie!

Join the R.O.A.R. Squad

Our goal is to make having a rescue animal THE coolest thing around! Check out ALL of the R.O.A.R. Squadians

Recruiting Members

We are well on our way to reaching our goal of finding at least one rescue owner from every state in the U.S. and at least one rescue owner from every province and territory in Canada by April 2011. WE NEED YOUR HELP!

We’re looking for rescue dogs, cats, rabbits, parrots, horses… donkeys… snakes… we’re not biased around here. We just want rescues who have found fabulous homes! Check out all the R.O.A.R. Squad members HERE.

We need rescue owners from the following province asap:

Canada:

1. Newfoundland

I look forward to hearing from you!