Follow News about the Memphis Animal Shelter

The Memphis Animal Shelter has long seen problems in administration and staff. Reports of abuse of animals housed there, animals (pit bulls) that were confiscated and ended up disappearing from the shelter, animals starved to death, improper euthanizations ... and the list goes on. We really need to aggregate the list of issues that have been reported. When we have a few uninterrupted days, we'll try and do that.

If you haven't heard, the Memphis Animal Shelter was raided by Shelby County Sheriff's Deputies on October 27, 2009. This was a great day for the Memphis/Shelby County animal community.

We have posted information and links to additional stories and videos on our blog. Please follow along there and make comments on the stories if you'd like.

You can access our stories by using this link http://bit.ly/RGDR_mas and click on the title of any of the stories for more information, details, and pictures (where available).

Thanks to everyone who staffed, shopped, & petted the dogs at our first Wag the Tail Garage Sale to benefit Real Good Dog Rescue's efforts to save good dogs & puppies & place them in loving forever homes.

We had a fabulous time participating with volunteers and friends at the B-I-G Countrywood Garage Sale on Friday & Saturday, September 18 & 19 from sunup to sundown both days.

We had a lot of saleable "stuff" and several of our adoptable dogs & puppies. We learned a lot of lessons that will help us at next year's garage sale!

If you have items that we could collect and sell at next year's sale, please send an email to cynthiakrussell@gmail.com. People were asking for mowers, microwaves, and kid's clothes, among other things. This is a great way to get rid of things that are old to you, but still in great shape to benefit someone else and to help us raise money to defray our vet costs!

We Went to the Dogs @ Wags & Whiskers!

Real Good Dog Rescue thanks Bettye Kay for allowing us to be the FIRST local rescue group to have a daily adoption event at her Wags & Whiskers Dog & Cat Boutique.

We were at Wags & Whiskers 6 days a week: Monday thru Friday with a Good Dog of the Day and Saturday for a regular adoption event.

We had a huge number of dogs and puppies adopted as a result of Bettye Kay's generosity. While Wags & Whiskers has officially closed its doors, Real Good Dog Rescue will forever hold fond memories of the store, its' great customers, and its' fabulous owner.

Best wishes to you, Bettye Kay, as you progress to the next phase in your life's journey!

Woof! Woof! from the dogs and volunteers!

Special Woofs for Assistance

We always have dogs and puppies that need much more care than we could ever hope to recoup with our modest adoption fees. While we are happy to absorb those costs on behalf of our precious animals, we sometimes put out a call for assistance for the special cases that are more exhorbitantly expensive.

Visit the Special Woofs page to see who needs YOUR help!

Exciting News

Good Dog Rescue now has a blog!

We invite you to visit the blog at http://gooddogrescue.wordpress.com and get into the conversation. Read a story, make a comment, suggest a story. Especially if you've adopted one of our special dogs or puppies, please drop by and add your story.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Make sure to visit the website of the Memphis Animal Coalition. MAC continues to ask for input on your experiences at the Memphis Animal Shelter, both good and bad. Please note the following:

NAME of the person you deal with
time and date of your visit
animal ID# of any animal you attempt to adopt or have issues with

Older Pets make Great Companions!

If you're looking for a pet who's already housetrained, quiet, docile, and able to be alone while you or your family is out of the house at work or school, please consider one of our older pets. These mostly aged 6-9 year old pets make excellent companions, yet they are often overlooked by folks who are considering adopting. They ask so very little of their person, but give so very much of themselves when they realize they've got a great thing going (after a sometimes not so very good life).

Top 10 reasons to adopt a senior dog:

They're housetrained.
They won't chew up your furniture or clothes.
They can focus well.
They know what NO means.
They'll settle in easily.
They are great at giving love.
What you see is what you get.
They are instant companions.
They leave you time for yourself.
They'll let you get a good night's sleep!

From: The Senior Dogs Project

Our Featured Adoptable Pets

Real Good Dog Rescue's Great News

Please visit our blog, where we're posting all the great news (and photos) about our adoptions. Stories prior to us having the blog can be viewed here.

Some of our Adoptable Pets - see pictures and read their stories here

Do I have to submit an application just to see a dog?

Please realize we are all volunteers with jobs, and in order to take the time to show a pet, we would like to know you are someone who will be an approved adopter. Please submit an adoption application by copying, pasting and answering the following questions by email addressed to ltrenthem@gmail.com. You may, instead, download a Microsoft Word version of the application here and complete it and send it as an email attachment. Unless noted otherwise on the dog's bio page, adoption fees are $150.

Adopter's name
Adopter's address
Phone #
email
Other pets (type of pet and names)
Children/ages
Do you live in an apartment or house?
Do you own or rent? (if renting, I need landlord's contact info)
Describe where the pet will be kept day and night. How many hours will the pet be unattended (alone)?
Do you have a fenced yard?
Can you afford an adoption fee, the cost of monthly preventatives, and annual vet visits (~$300 annually)?
What behavior traits would absolutely NOT be acceptable to you and would cause you to return a dog?
Do you or family members have allergies?
Please provide the name of a veterinary reference
Please provide the name of a personal reference

Surrendering your pet or found dog

I will on occasion take an owner surrendered pet. Most of my adopters prefer smaller dogs. It is very helpful if you can foster the dog till an adopter is found but not a necessity if the dog is truly in need.

Please realize that space must be found to house your found or surrendered dog and you must be patient. It is very frustrating to deal with someone who is more interested in finding a place to dump the dog THAT day than to work with me on finding a permanent home for a living creature who depends on you for their safety.

If calling to surrender a pet, please leave your name, the breed/size of dog in need and clearly leave a phone number.

Visiting our pets

Please be aware this rescue is operated entirely by volunteers who have other jobs. I would LOVE to arrange an appt. with you to see a dog. I answer phone calls in the evening when I am NOT at work. I can return a call the same day but I cannot act immediately to show a dog.The dogs are in private foster homes, but visits are arranged to your home to insure compatibility and safety of the new dog with every creature in the household. Look for posted adoption days also.

Health disclaimer: I continue to adopt dogs from Memphis Animal Shelter when I can. The shelter has an 83% euthanasia rate, one of the highest in the country. Unfortunately, any dog coming from Memphis Animal Shelter, and most other shelters for that matter, will have been in contact with contagious illness. Even though the dogs have been in foster care and appear to be in good health, they may become stressed when changing environments and exhibit signs and symptoms of illness. If you have other pets, they need to be up to date on vaccines before bringing a shelter dog into your home. I will take the adopted animal back, but I am not responsible for your other animal's vet care. I always disclose where the dogs have come from. Please ask for any information about the dogs and exercise due caution if you have immunocompromised animals.

Links to Helpful Information

Canine Heartworm Disease - note specifically how the infected larvae are not detectable for up to 6 months or more after entering the dog.

Spay-Neuter Information - this document provides details about the spay-neuter locations used by Good Dog Rescue. It's important to spay or neuter our dogs - and GDR has a commitment to doing this for all our animals who are being fostered or up for adoption.

Heartworm Prevention - great website comparing the different types of heartworm preventative medications on the market. Includes a brief overview of topical (applied to skin) and oral (taken by mouth) medications with some cost comparisons.

Do you need assistance with training ... for yourself or your new pup/dog family member? Here are some links that you might find helpful - we use them ourselves here at Good Dog Rescue:

Talk to the Paw - a Memphis/Shelby County resource; information about classes, fees, and registration
Shelby County Obedience Club - another local resource; you may need to email for a list of current classes
For Pet's Sake - Memphis Agility; they do agility and one-on-one obedience training

Donate to Good Dog Rescue so we can continue helping these and other great pets!

www.flickr.com

This is a Flickr badge showing items in a set called Real Good Dog Rescue Adoptable Dogs and Puppies August 2009. Make your own badge here.

URGENT!!!

More Foster Help Needed!

Click here for our current list and pictures of puppies and dogs needing foster homes.

Call 901-276-7751 or email ltrenthem@gmail.com if you can open your home and foster a dog or puppy.

If you foster, you would:

keep the dog in your home as an adopted pet
assist in getting the dog to adoption events
provide important information on the dog's personality, strengths, and weaknesses

Real Good Dog Rescue would maintain financial responsibility for the dog.

You can always choose to adopt your fostered dog rather than placing the pet in another home.

Come Adopt a New Friend!

In between adoption events, we are happy to show pets by mutually agreeable appointment locations and times. If you see one you are interested in adopting, please contact the individual listed as contact person to arrange a meeting.

Saturday, November 21, 2009
11am - 3pm
Hollywood Feed Store
2013 Union Avenue
Memphis, TN
(901) 591-1795
View Map

Sunday, November 22, 2009
1pm - 4pm
Cordova Hollywood Feed
1001 N. Germantown Parkway
Cordova, TN
View Map

Adoption fees are $150 unless otherwise noted

Click the button above to read stories of some of our adopted dogs and puppies.

Looking for Kid Friendly Furry Friends? We've got 'em!

We've got many adorable puppies and dogs who light up at the very presence of children. If you'd like to introduce your child or children to a forever friend, please consider one of our highly adoptable pets.

Who We Are

We are located in Memphis, TN. Good Dog Rescue adopts dogs from local animal shelters as well as regional shelters in need. Most come from Memphis Animal Shelter. I choose dogs I can foster myself so my pets are under 50 lbs with most being in the 20-35 lb range.

PLEASE NOTE: if you want information regarding a pet or to apply for a pet, I am much better with email ltrenthem@gmail.com than returning phone calls! Returning long distance calls takes dollars that should be used on vet care. It is best to reach me by phone @ 901-276-7751 in the evening.

IMPORTANT: Unless otherwise noted, the adoption fee for our pets is $150.