Blog the Change - transports

Most of you know by now that mom drives transports sometimes on the weekends. We thought we would take this Blog the Change moment to walk you through how she gets noticed and what is involved.

When mom first got interested, she just put "dog transports Ohio" into a search engine. That led her to a yahoo group and she joined that group.

Now, starting Sunday night she gets about 15 emails that have states in the subject line. This allows her to easily filter out and delete the emails that she isn't even close to. Then it is a matter of reading each and seeing the number of dogs in transit and if they are actually going through where we live. Keep in mind, mom drives a small car so she is limited to how many fit. And the Beetle isn't exactly crate friendly.

As part of this group, mom was introduced to Ontario Bloodhound Rescue. That is who she drives for the most....the tend to send one dog at a time and it is easy to fit into a schedule.

Generally run sheets are completed and sent out to drivers on Fridays. This includes the information about the dog being moved and each driver on the transport - so you know who to look for in parking lots. Most hand over spots are restaurant parking lots since there is enough space and those are usually right off of major interstates. One of mom's friends used to drive and joked that she and her husband were seeing Ohio one Cracker Barrel at a time.  :)

On the day of transport, mom checks the car....cover for the backseat, water dish and water, extra towels, paper towels (she has a box she throws in the hatchback). Then it is off to the pick up spot. Get the dog and paperwork and anything going along and then take off for the next spot.

Mom figures on the list she belongs to, there is probably about 100 dogs moving each weekend. And there are so many groups out there. Just be sure when you agree to drive that you understand the time commitment and safety issues driving with dogs in your car. Follow the rules set by the coordinator (some dogs can't be let out of crates, puppies are usually no paws on the ground). Be on time - or early - to your meeting spot. And most important have fun - you are helping to save a life.

And it isn't just dogs....there are cat groups out there too helping to save lives!!

Transport Saturday

Mom drove another transport yesterday. Brooklyn is a Cane Corso mix and as of last night made it to her forever home!!

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And in baby news.....remember the bottle baby from last weekend? Well that same weekend someone else brought in another orphaned group. But mom spoke to the rescue lady yesterday and a nursing mom with older kittens (ready to be adopted) took the kittens and is taking good care of them.

plan, what plan???

Quick Emma update: Mom got a text this morning. X-ray showed just soft tissue injury to her back leg. No real definitive answers on what is going on her with her when they arrived at the hospital but she seems to be acting better. She is supposed to be on cage rest, so mom is going to talk to the manager at Petco about just taking her back there. Heaven knows she won't get any rest at our house. MOL  (hey Kelly: what kind of climber do you use at Petco - we have tried a couple of different ones and can't find anything that is really tall enough).
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Mom had a plan for Saturday. Pick up the blood hounds, run north. Come back, get lunch. Pick up the cane corso, drive west. Come back, get groceries. Go home watch basketball.

Well, the transports went well, but if you read the post yesterday about Emma, you will know the day didn't go quite as planned. But, we thought we would share the transport part with you.

Charlie and Ellie Mae are headed to Canada. Charlie is going to his foster home and Ellie Mae is headed to a foster-to-adopt home. Charlie was super sweet. Mom doesn't normally crate dogs for transport, but she knew that Charlie didn't know Ellie Mae and worried what would happen in the back seat of a small car.

Ellie Mae was the bloodhound you think about when you think about bloodhounds. Joyful, goofy and wonderful. Mom said she and Ellie Mae had to tango a couple of time to convince Ellie Mae to sit IN THE BACK!!! And Ellie Mae was a kisser....she got mom a couple of times from the back seat. :)

Mom says if she ever gets a dog, it may end up being a bloodhound and she wants one like Ellie Mae. We know her foster-to-adopt family is going to meet her and know they can't live without her.

And then the afternoon was Apollo. He is an 8 month old Cane Corso....weighing in at 65 pounds (mom mumbled something about "puppy my @##"). But he was super sweet and great in the car. And another kisser. Mom was meeting his new mom and dad so got to hand him off on his way home.

Mom will say this - she picked up Apollo at a local vet office. As she got there, another client walked in with a very overweight Malamute. Apparently had an appointment with the groomer. And the appointment had been screwed up and he was getting angry with the receptionist. In the meantime, he let his dog wander all over the lobby. Rachel (with the rescue who also works at the vet office) came out with Apollo and mom asked the guy to grab his dog. His response "she wouldn't hurt a fly". ugh! Rachel said that Apollo was a rescue and we don't know his background. Mom ended up body blocking the Mal so Rachel and Apollo could get out the door. As the dog wandered closer, mom slammed her foot down on the dog's leash. The guy turned and look like he was gonna say something to mom - she said she raised one eyebrow in the "dare you" expression and he never said another word. Makes mom certain that some people should be required to take a quiz before getting a dog.....or an IQ test.

Mom's Saturday Adventure....

We know you want to hear about the adventure, but first - a break for some kitten news: the fast food kittens were neutered on Thursday and mom got to see them at the shelter on Saturday.

They all looked great. And..... the Rally man was adopted on Sunday.

Happy Gotcha Day Rally - concats to your new family!!

And, now.....on to the adventure (oh, and the powers stayed on through the brief storm yesterday - yeah for a/c!!):

We know what you are thinking....that is NOT Penny the Beetle.

Nope.....this is the official June 30 Bloodhound Transport Vehicle.

See, mom got an email a couple of weeks ago from the bloodhound rescue that there was supposed to be a huge sale in Ohio on June 30th of puppy mill dogs (of all breeeds - total number to be sold was over 546). We HATE these things. But the rescue had a possible opportunity to get a pair of bloodhounds and mom assured the rescue that we were in and would do whatever to make sure they made it to the temporary foster near us.

The slobbery kids were picked up by mom and transferred into the rented transport vehicle. Neither knows anything about a leash or cars. They both had to be picked up to be put in the SUV.

This is the girl. The idiot (and that is all we are going to call him) said she had been only bred once, with puppies weaned in February (no, we have no idea what happened to the puppies - presumably sold in a pet store or online). Mom took one look and her and snorted - she told the rescue coordinator that if this girl had only been bred once, mom would eat her auction tag.

This is her handsome boyfriend. They weren't in bad body condition and their skin wasn't bad - though in need of a bath (or four). Put his nails were so overgrown....there was one that had to be an inch and a half long. Plus it appears both of them may have abcesses between their toes from the wire crates.

They will both go to the vet tomorrow and be checked out. They are approximately 6-7 years old. Hopefully they can adjust to a home life quick and find their forever homes.

Mom got to name them too - she decided to name them Marie and Edison. They are named after her maternal great-grandparents. Both started life out a little rough but once they met each other their lives got so much better and they lived a love story. Mom figured that was a good start for the slobbery kids.

As a side note: she rented a Chevy Equinox (pictured above). While she wasn't sure how she was going to like an SUV considering our regular car, she was surprised how much she liked it. She couldn't get 2 big dog crates in the back, but the one did fit and Marie traveled tethered next to the crate in the back.