2013 Annual Meeting

"Maggie" watercolor © Susan Melrath www.susanmelrath.com

Here's the scoop on this year's meeting....

• Meet this Sunday, May 5th at 1:30pm.
• Venue is Kennydale Memorial Hall, 2424 NE 27th St, Renton, WA 98056.
• Same as last year, less than 1 mile from Exit 6, off of the 405.
• Dogs can bring owners, on leash. Short leashes, preferably. Keep in mind that some dogs don't appreciate enthusiastic greetings in closed spaces!

The meeting will be conducted in 3 parts:

1. On arrival dogs and their owners will participate in obedience training, focusing on manners and good behavior in close confined spaces.
2. We'll then conduct a blissfully SHORT business meeting, focused on the annual election of the Directors and Officers to the Board. We'll also vote to accept the Minutes of last year’s meeting.
3. Finally, we'll receive some grooming demonstrations then participate in some hands-on grooming. 

Annual Reunion Picnic

Summer is flying by quickly and August 19th will be here before you know it so remember to RSVP for the Reunion Picnic if you have not done so already. It's not too late! We've extended the deadline to August 10th.

All EGRR adopters, volunteers, members and their dogs are invited. EGRR will provide eating utensils, hamburgers, garden burgers, hot dogs and dessert. Please bring a salad or side dish to share and your own beverages.  Nick Thain, our volunteer with the funny accent from “down under” J will be back at the grill and those who went last year will attest to his excellent cooking skills.

We are most fortunate to be able to use this camp and we will be the only ones there!  It is located on the Cedar River and is very private. There is a covered picnic area, running water, bathrooms and includes a large sports field where an Agility course will be set up.  We will have some games like last year and other door prizes. A Booster Bath will be raffled with proceeds going to cover the veterinary costs of foster dogs.  The main purpose, however, is to provide a relaxing afternoon for you with your dogs among other Golden lovers. It is also a wonderful opportunity for EGRR volunteers to see the “fruits of our labor” - happy adoptive families with their wonderful dogs!

Here are the specifics:

Date: Sunday, August 19, 2012   Noon – 3 PM

Location: Lion’s Day Camp;  21230 SE 184^th St.  Maple Valley, WA 

Send your RSVP to Pat Jordan at  patcarrj@gmail.com    

Please note that EGRR is also participating in Macy’s Shop for a Cause which will be held on Saturday, August 25^th. Tickets for this are $5.00 and you are automatically entered in a contest to win a $500 Macy’s Gift card. EGRR receives 100% of the ticket sales (that’s right, the $5 you pay to attend this event goes entirely to EGRR) so it’s a “win-win” for everyone. Tickets can be purchased  on-line from our website http://www.egrr.net/macys-fundraiser/  Gail Miller is heading up this project and she will also have tickets at the picnic that you can buy. 

 

Hope to see you all there on the 19^th !!

"What We Love About Goldens"

"What We Love About Goldens" 22x28

We are excited about this fund raising project and want to let everyone know about an opportunity own a unique piece of artwork capturing the beauty and versatility of our beloved Golden Retrievers! The “What We Love About Goldens” poster is available for purchase online, via this IGRR link. This is a philanthropic project by the Des Moines Golden Retriever Club. Proceeds will be donated to: 80% Golden Retriever Foundation - April Fund and 20% to the Iowa Golden Retriever Club. Don't miss your chance to own one of these custom designed prints by the talented artists of "Sticks," an award winning studio based in Des Moines.

Annual Member's Meeting

Our annual member's meeting takes place Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 1:30 pm at the Kennydale Memorial Hall, 2424 NE 27th Street in Renton, WA. The agenda will include a business meeting with board elections, a presentation by Lee Cummings on emergency preparedness for your pets, and a microchip clinic under the direction of Kent Thomazin, DVM Of Animal Hospital of Newport Hills. The cost for microchipping will be $15 per dog. Please remember to keep your dog on a shorter leash and out of the faces of other dogs there.The floor is linoleum tile, so if you feel you need it, bring a mat for your dog. As always, we will have human social time for refreshments and conversation. Come meet our volunteers and learn about fostering and volunteering. We hope to see you there!

Click here for a map.

"Pure Gold: Adventures with Six Rescued Golden Retrievers"

 

I wanted to pass on the following information to those who might be interested in and available to attend.  Monday, April 16, Holli Pfau will be a Eagle Harbor Books on Bainbridge Island from 5-6 PM for a book signing for her book “Pure Gold: Adventures with Six Rescued Golden Retrievers”.

I have read this book and found it to be well written and very enjoyable.  The challenges she faces with her 6 Goldens are similar to what many of us have faced with our dogs and if you have ever done agility or obedience with your dog, you’ll really appreciate her stories.  I was also pleasantly surprised to see a chapter devoted to the National Specialty dog show that was held in Snohomish in 2007 and shocked to see my name in that chapter!

I appreciate Holli’s effort to help Golden Retriever causes including EGRR with the sale of her book.  I’ve been told that EGRR will also benefit from books ordered from them during this event. 

Happy Spring!

Nancy

Nancy Kiesler
President
Evergreen Golden Retriever Rescue
serving western Washington state

Holli Pfau, author of Pure Gold: Adventures with Six Rescued Golden Retrievers, will be at Eagle Harbor Books, 157 Winslow Way East, Bainbridge Island, WA, 98110, on Monday, April 16, from 5 to 6pm. She'll be discussing and signing her books. A portion of all proceeds will go to Evergreen Golden Retriever Rescue, serving Western Washington state.

Holli Pfau started her career in advertising and marketing, and was a success. But she decided to switch career paths, inspired by the lives, antics, and talents of her six rescued or second-hand golden retrievers. Now Pfau has written Pure Gold: Adventures with Six Rescued Golden Retrievers to support the efforts of Golden Retriever Rescue and other dog rescue and adoption programs. Pfau's dogs guided her to a new career in animal-assisted therapy, deeper into wilderness adventures, and to relocation in the Rocky Mountains. Along the way, she added rally obedience and dog agility to her compendium of canine activities. In every case, the dogs led the way. Pure Gold is a tale of unexpected adventures and the richness of life with rescued dogs.

Rainy Day Fun

In the summer time my dogs are outside running, swimming, fetching, etc. But this time of year when it's just wet and muddy, I admit I am not inspired to go out as much. But we do have some fun games for inside the house. The favorite is hide and seek. Once they're in a sit-stay, I take my pocketful of treats, find a hiding place and call them. They are determined, and don't quit until I'm found. 

Then we have a little party and do it again. 

Here's another fun activity that gets them all wound up. These fun treat-hiding toys are gaining popularity and you can find a great selection of them at All The Best pet stores, where you can even take your dogs and try them out. Watch Crosby playing with his favorite....

PS - Not a good idea to leave these games unattended. Also, best played one dog at a time!

Golden Retriever Uveitis

The Evergreen Golden Retriever Club is again sponsoring an annual screening clinic for Pigmentary Uveitis (also known as Golden Retriever Uveitis) at the Animal Eye Clinic on Roosevelt Way in North Seattle. This year's clinic will be held on Saturday, April 28th. The cost is $22 per dog. Registration is limited and can be made by calling the Animal Eye Clinic at 206-524-8822. Call any day except Wednesday and ask to speak to Leah. Once registered, you'll be asked to send in a check 

and they will send you information and directions to the clinic.

Every Golden Retriever from the age of four years should be checked yearly for this condition. This is a serious condition and is thought to be present in as many as 1/3 of all adult Goldens. If left untreated, the dog may develop Glaucoma, resulting in severe pain and blindness. The prognosis for dogs affected with this condition is guarded. With early detection and treatment, some affected dogs will go years without major complications or loss of vision. But more advanced forms of the condition sometimes fail to respond to therapy and vision cannot be saved. 

Please note that this clinic is for pet and rescue dogs, not breeder's dogs or dogs that normally get eye CERFs done.

Happy Ever After

These two lucky dogs were adopted last year at age seven. In this recently received note, it sounds like
their new family feels pretty lucky too....

"Retrieved"

 During the chaos of the 9/11 attacks, where almost 3,000 people died, nearly 100 loyal search and rescue dogs and their brave owners scoured Ground Zero for survivors. Now, ten years on, just 12 of these heroic canines survive, and they have been commemorated in a touching series of portraits entitled 'Retrieved'.  

Moxie, 13, from Winthrop, Massachusetts, arrived with her handler, Mark Aliberti, at the World Trade Center on the evening of September 11 and searched the site for eight days.

Bretagne and his owner Denise Corliss from Cypress, Texas, arrived at the site in New York on September 17, remaining there for ten days

Guinness, 15, from Highland, California, started work at the site with Sheila McKee on the morning of September 13 and was deployed at the site for 11 days

Handler Julie Noyes and Hoke were deployed to the World Trade Center from their home in Denver 

on September 24 and searched for five days

The dogs worked tirelessly to search for anyone trapped alive in the rubble, along with countless emergency service workers and members of the public. Traveling across nine states in the U.S. from Texas to Maryland, Dutch photographer Charlotte Dumas, 34, captured the remaining dogs in their twilight years in their homes where they still live 
with their handlers, a full decade on from 9/11.

Their stories have now been compiled in a book, called Retrieved, which is published on Friday, the tenth anniversary of the attacks. Noted for her touching portraits of animals, especially dogs, Charlotte wanted 'Retrieved' to mark not only the anniversary of the September 2001 attacks, but also as recognition 
for some of the first responders and their dogs.

'I felt this was a turning point, especially for the dogs, who although are not forgotten, are not as prominent as the human stories involved,' explained Charlotte, who splits her time between New York and Amsterdam.

'They speak to us as a different species and animals are greatly important for our sense of empathy and to put things into perspective.'

Summertime

Does this picture really need any explanation? 

Dog Bite Prevention Week

That's right - there's actually a dog bite prevention week. Millions of people are bitten by dogs every year and several hundred thousand require trips to the hospital. Most of these could probably be avoided. 

When I was 7 years old I was bitten in the face - 24 stitches! I didn't have a dog of my own, but I LOVED dogs! I was visiting neighbors (who did not educate me about their dog) and had cornered the dog with a box of dog treats. I was going to feed him. I thought that would fun. He didn't like being in a corner. He didn't like kids. He didn't like that I had the treats. I teased him by pretending I was going to eat his treat. I was right up in his face. The skin on a child's face is very soft and tender. It tears easily. It was a horrible experience. 

I wish someone had told me that my behavior was intrusive and rude, had taught me how to approach a dog politely. It would have been nice if the owners had been paying more attention, especially if he was a fearful dog. Not all dogs want to be touched by strangers. Educate your kids!

Here's a great video on how to approach a dog. And if you want to read more on this or other behavioral stuff, check out the blog of Dr. Sophia Yin, an expert on dog behavior.

Chance to Win!

We have until tomorrow, May 14 to nominate our rescue group to win up to $20,000 in veterinary and pet supplies: http://www.drmartybecker.com/contest

Dr. Marty Becker, the resident veterinarian on Good Morning America and The Dr. Oz Show, wants to give more than $70,000 in veterinary and pet products to shelters and rescue groups. If you are a 501c3 organization or a municipal shelter located in the U.S., you are eligible.

Nominating EGRR is easy.  Simply LIKE the Dr. Becker Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/DrMartyBecker) and post the name of our organization, our location and our web address on his wall. But hurry – you only have until May 14!

Dr. Becker will randomly select 50 finalists for the voting phase, which begins on May 18. The more times our group is nominated, the more chances we have to be a finalist. Read all the details at http://www.drmartybecker.com/contest

Baby Star

I don't have a heart wrenching rescue story to tell today. I just came across these pictures of Star as a puppy and HAD to share them. Star is 8 years old now. She has crachio pharyngeal dysphagia...it's a swallowing disorder, apparently genetic in Goldens. It means she has to be hand fed each meal. Yep, that's right, every meal for eight years! She chokes and has a hard time with water too, but she manages. I jokingly tell people she has a drinking problem. Bless her heart.

Our first rescue experience

We've had Goldens forever and love them dearly. Sam was our first rescue though. We got him about a year ago when he was 4. He was used as a stud and he was/is gorgeous. He had been tied to a tree and was rescued with 2 bitches and 9 puppies as I understand it. He got along with our 11 year old golden, Chester, who made sure he knew who was boss. Chester definitely kept him in line...along with some behavior training with us. We'd never had such a strong minded Golden but he's definitely coming around. Chester died suddenly in Dec and Sam has missed him...and of course we miss him too but we're so glad we got Sam to fill the void. Sam has been snowshoeing and hiking with us and definitely loves the outdoors and the smells of the wild. We keep him close but he is learning to be off leash and come when called. This has taken a number of months but we are definitely more trusting of his behavior now.
Sam is definitely a part of our family and tolerates our little 2 year old granddaughter who loves to poke at him and take him for walks. I definitely recommend EGRR as they helped match us with Sam, a wonderful good natured golden!

Shelby

Shelby was the greatest dog ever. I am Rory and I am twelve years old. Shelby is a free spirit that can run really fast. I remember when we first got her she was kind of chubby so we called her the "little red sausage". She also would destroy every toy she got. She destroyed a little rubber dog toy tire and I think she might have ate some of it. Shelby even jumped on our counters to eat two frozen chicken patties. That was amazing. I am sure that you have seen those commercials for that "indestructible" dog toy. Well, Shelby ripped the squeakers right out of it. She loved to play tug of war. I would pretend to be a fisherman and the couch was my boat and I would "cast" the rope and wait till Shelby grabbed it. She was so strong she could pull me off the couch. We got Shelby in august of 2006. She died today, February, 22, 2011. She had a tumor in her spleen that caused cancer. We will always remember Shelby as she plays tug of war in heaven.

Update on Jazz (Formerly Jasmine) Who I Adopted Spring of 2009

Jazzy has blossomed into a beautiful Golden Retriever senior citizen.  Thinking back to the afternoon that I picked her up at the top of Stevens Pass makes me realize how lucky I am.  She was an unknown but must have had some training because she arrived with lots of good manners.  And she is such a quick study.  I remember one of our leash walks through the park early on -I ended up being dragged, for s short distance, on my belly, while Jazz took interest in a duck.   Jazz is still prey motivated but does really well on the leash.  She is such a dignified lady.   As I leave for work each morning she bounds upstairs to sleep on my bed until I get home.  We are still working on her “other dog” crankiness, but with a few tips from the Academy of Canine Behavior she is no longer reactive to other creatures that we encounter.

Jazz is truly a love machine.  Toys are still not her thing but she loves her walks and car rides. We are both at our best when we’re together.  From that first night she has relished her brushing time and always enjoys a good back scratch.  Did she ever love rolling in the snow!  Wonder if it reminded her of her years in Wenatchee. Jazz wears her nine plus years very well with a beautiful gray mask. 

Must admit that after Clovis died it took me a bit of time to get in tune with this Jazzy red lady but I’ve come to cherish this wonderful creature and can only hope that I’ve enriched her life a bit as much as she enriches mine every day.

Linda S.

 

Comet's Story

Sometimes it's hard to witness the abandonment of dogs. People can be so heartless. But not every dog is carelessly discarded. Sometimes the rescue is a blessing to a loving owner. Comet's family was an elderly couple. Due to health concerns, the couple needed to move to a nursing home and couldn't take Comet. He was six years old when he came to the rescue and the owners loved him very much.

 I fostered, and subsequently adopted him (something I've been making a habit - but that's another story!) I was told me how broken up the owner was when he left Comet. A few months later, after Comet had worked his way into our hearts and home, I sent some pictures of him to his owner, along with a note telling him how happy we were to have Comet, and how much he was loved. 

I got a long letter back. He said leaving Comet was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do.... harder than having to put a dying dog to sleep, even though that was a heartbreak as well. He was so grateful to know that Comet was in a loving home, and thanked me for the letter. It made me feel good to know that I was able to help not only a dog but also a family trying to do the right thing for their dog.

Elvis

Elvis is a joy in my life, my constant companion, best friend, and the finest gift I've ever received. We're together all day everyday. He was two and I was living on Camano Island when EGRR gave him to me. He didn't know his own name, couldn't climb stairs or walk on a leash, had no idea that kitchens meant food, and was so desperate for love and attention that he shadowed me through out the day. He was a scrawny gangly fearful guy who was hesitant to try anything new and expected the worst of other dogs. Over time I realized that he'd been trained as a hunting dog and that he responded to hand signals. I'd been wondering why on earth he kept looking at me the way he did. He walked in the circles that you see in dogs who've lived caged. His teeth were ground down, probably from chewing on stones. I fished stones out of his mouth for the first year or so. On Camano he began to come to life. He swam most days, played endless games of tennis ball and frisbee and fell in love with stuffed toys. He carries one everywhere, even to bed, and loves making them squeak. Elvis is eight now. Gradually over the years he's become more confident. He's learned to play and I swear that sometimes he laughs. His eyes twinkle when he's having fun. He's even occassionally been naughty, looking guilty when caught. This delights me. We live in Colorado now and Elvis has become a Rocky Mountain dog. He loves snow.. Plays in it like a puppy. His best friend is a neighboring Golden, Dakota. He's developed allegies as he's grown older, but we can keep them at bay with an organic diet, veggies, and supplements from the holistic vet. He loves everyone except the UPS man. And everyone loves Elvis....except the UPS man. He's ever so smart and amazes me with what he understands. He adores cats. He greets them with that touching noses thing that cats do. I can't imagine life without him. He came to me when my son was dying of cancer and watching him come to life, living with his constant love and affection, has made a huge difference in my ability to keep on.