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Friday, October 29, 2010

weekend houseguests...

I am absolutely thrilled to have two very special guests staying at the house this weekend!
Actually, two very special puppy-angels:
Brittany and Kristen!


waiting for Brittany and Kristen to arrive!



New Hampshire does not have the same overpopulated pounds and shelters as they do in the South. We have lived here now for two and a half years and have never... never seen a stray dog....incredible! It is said to be because of strict spay and neuter laws, but quite honestly (having been born, and raised and lived in the South I will say) it is primarily a cultural issue. It is just not okay here to mistreat, dump, let your dog run lose, or chain your dog to a bumper as it is in some places in the South.
So, the empty shelters here partner with the overcrowded shelters in the South and bring up dogs to find homes!


Here is information from the Shelby Humane Society's website explaining about the Shelby Partner's Program.... you can click on the photo to go to their site.
Shelby Humane Society's Shelter Partners Program, founded in November, 2006, is a volunteer driven (literally) transport program providing second chances for thousands of shelter dogs.
Shelter Partners moves pets from Shelby County, which is experiencing extreme animal overpopulation, to shelters in states where the success and enforcement of animal and spay and neuter laws and initiatives limit the number of pets available for adoption. Shelby Humane works with a dedicated group of partner shelters to find new forever families for dogs being transported. With rare exception, the dogs and puppies transferred are placed with adoptive families within a few days of becoming available for adoption at our partner shelters.
This program would not be possible without the dedicated volunteers who are willing to drive 19-23 hours to make these life-saving trips possible. We are always in need of additional drivers so we can make more trips and save more lives!
Please visit our Shelter Partners picture page which includes adoption day photos and updates for many of the dogs that have benefited from this wonderful program!
Save a Life - Sponsor a Dog for Our Next Shelter Partners trip!

Each Shelter Partners trip costs SHS $750-850. For $50, you can sponsor one of the dogs leaving our shelter to go to New Hampshire. We will send you a picture of the dog that benefits from your kindness and any information we have about it.



It was over a year ago that I first found the blog One Dog at a Time (while blog hopping) of two sisters who had just completed their first rescue trip driving dogs to New Hampshire. I was heartsick to find their blog literally two days after they returned home, as they had had van trouble, and I could have/would have helped them had I known. I contacted the sisters, Brittany and Brooke, and introduced myself and gave them my contact information for their next trip. I wanted them to have a NH contact, a "just in case" name and number.
From that point, we became fast friends and in May (on their second rescue trip) Ella and I were able to meet them in person! You can read about it HERE!


Sisters Brittany (left) and Brooke, with Ella at the Nashua Humane Society

Gorgeous "puppy angels"- Brooke, Kristen and Brittany

On this trip this weekend, Brittany (right) is coming with her friend- Kristen (center in photo above) and they are driving 33 lucky shelter dogs from Alabama to New Hampshire!
They will depart Alabama Friday morning and drive straight through, arriving in New Hampshire early Saturday morning. They will drive to two NH Humane Societies in different parts of the state to drop off the dogs.
Usually the girls have to head back immediately, but I am thrilled that Brittany and Kristen have taken some vacation days and will stay with us over the weekend!
The girls requested antique shopping! I want them to see and get to know New England, so I have lots of shops and sight-seeing planned!
(you will be greatly missed Miss Brooke...)

To see the adorable dogs they are transporting this trip and to follow their adventure, go to
One Dog at a Time blog (also on my sidebar).
The three girls also make dog collars that they sell on etsy! A portion of sales go to fund their rescue trips, so that the shelter doesn't have to pay for them. Be sure to check our their fun designs at the link at the bottom of my blog!



Ella modeling a One Dog at a Time collar!



Safe travels to the pups and the wonderful puppy-angels driving them!
Can't wait to see you!
xo,
joan

19 comments:

  1. Joan,
    You are an angel, as are the beautiful girls making the trip. I love you all so much for doing this....
    Have a wonderful and successful weekend!

    If you saw some of the diplorable things that animal owners get away with here...you would go insane. I just bypass the humane society and call the police. so, thank you.
    Sarah

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  2. Aw, what a great bunch of girls!

    I do rescue transport locally. There are relays each weekend that do the same thing...driver 1 drives an hour or two, then hands the dogs off to driver 2, and so on. It's an easy way to get involved with this work if you can't make the huge commitment those girls made. :)

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  3. I forgot to add...GORGEOUS GORGEOUS picture of your entry way!

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  4. They are doing such a good thing. I can't wait to read more about this.

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  5. I know the girls will have a ball with you, Dan and Ella. Ella looks divine in her collar!

    Susan

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  6. Hi! It's me again. Our computer crashed a couple of months ago and we just finally replaced it this past weekend. I had been using my iphone to keep up on everybody. Your entry looks wonderful. We still have some unfinished projects here at the farmhouse. My bannister never got painted because our painter quit on us at the end of our project. We've lived in our house for over a year now and it's driving me crazy!! Just wanted to know what color and finish you used on your newell post/baluster. It looks like the perfect color and sheen.

    I have been waiting and waiting to see pictures of your kitchen. It looked like from a previous post that you had some issues with the kitchen but it still looked absolutely beautiful.

    Sherry

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  7. Just had to say it - I love your Mark Twain quote! So very true and just what I needed to hear, thanks!xx

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  8. hi joan,

    just have to say that i love the picture of your entry. one day i will see it in person!

    next, i cannot believe it's been a year since i first read this on your blog. wow, time flies. these gals/you are angels to these dogs. i adore animals as you well know and wish everyone had this spirit in them. and also wish that everyone would take a moment to consider the "meat" that they are eating for dinner tonight. that meat was once a beautiful animal with just as many feelings as our pets. sorry for the little rant but sometimes i just gotta say it.

    thanks joan for this post.

    ~janet

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  9. My hat's off to kids who choose a path of goodness over riches. And how nice of you to open your door to them to show them some thanks.

    Is your newel post painted or is it a dark stain? It looks great from here.

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  10. Hi Joan and Dan: Beautiful....entryway, bloggers/host(ess), puppy angels, and puppies. Enjoy your weekend! Cindy

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  11. How fun to be having a sleepover. The girls do an awesome job and it is so nice of you to invite them into your home. Your pup is so cute! Happy shopping and have fun! xo

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  12. You're such a good person to give those young gals a go to person if they need help. I'll have to go check out that web site and go see if there's a collar for Dylan. Ella looks stunning in hers! Have fun antiquing!!!

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  13. Joan,
    Gorgeous photograph of your beautiful entry! And what a great, great cause! So many sweet pups will find the love they deserve thanks to them.
    Have so much fun this weekend!!!!
    xoTrina

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  14. First...beautiful entrance picture! Second...As a longtime local SPCA supporter (in the South!) thank you for being a "doggy angel"..following now......K

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  15. How wonderful! Have a lovely weekend with the angels.

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  16. That is so fun!! You are an angel for taking them in on their long journey from the South. I think it is an amazing thing they are doing and those dogs are so lucky to be finding new forever homes up here in the North where we LOVE our animals like they are family members :)

    Headed to check out their blog now!

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  17. Good Morning Joan!
    What a wonderful post...and I agree that you are an angel too for giving them your contact information if they need it. I bet you girls had a WONDERFUL weekend and I'm looking forward to seeing your post on it. I looked up the girls blog and your previous post...just wonderful. They truly are Angels with a capital A. I hope you have a wonderful day.
    Maura :)

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  18. Sherry & Steve:
    The newel post was a very tired stained wood when we bought the house (it didn't even match the stained handrail), so I painted it a gorgeous Black to give it importance! The newel post on the second floor is painted the same!
    I used Benjamin Moore's Latex Highgloss Metal & Wood Enamel in Black (309 80)!

    joan

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  19. Joan, What a wonderful story! This is Stacy (yes, Country Home Stacy) and I saw your comment over on Deb's blog and it brought me to your beautiful blog. This one hit me especially because of my love of dogs (I have two) and I lived in Alabama for almost 8 years while working at Southern Living and Southern Accents. Great to meet you here! Please check out StacyStyle and my new venture www.dunesandduchess.com!

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Welcome! Thank you for leaving a comment; you have no idea how much your comments inspire me to keep writing- I appreciate each and every one. Comments are moderated by me prior to publishing on the blog, so if you don't see your comment post immediately it will be posted as soon as I receive and read it. joan