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| A Wolfdog Rescue Story |
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Two weeks ago, $1000 of our Bingo fund was used to initiate the rescue of 24 wolf dogs from a breeder in Michigan. The process of rescuing these animals began May 12th, Wednesday morning when we went in to seize a total of 40 wolfdogs. For those of you unfamiliar with wolf dogs, 4 years ago, Michigan banned the ownership and breeding of wolf dogs. A person in possession of a wolf dog could be grandfathered in if they followed the necessary steps to obtain a permit or if they became an accredited sanctuary. The West Michigan SPCA became a TAOS accredited sanctuary. Although illegal, a lady in Michigan continued to produce litter after litter of wolf dog pups and attempted to sell them for anywhere from $200-$1500 each. These animals were living in deplorable conditions - small dirty pens, untreated medical issues, lack of sunlight and they did not consistently receive food or water. Most of the wolf dogs lived in small pens inside a large barn year around, next to pens of dogs, and pens of cats. Yes, cats lived in pens next to wolf dog pens. She bred cats, too. The only sunlight most of them saw was what came in from the open doors on both ends of the barn. One wolf dog lived in a pitch black shed for at least 2 years. It was rare to see a food or water dish and even more rare to see any food or water in those dishes. Many of the animals were totally unsocialized. It was common to see pens full of unsold litters of pups who had reached their teenage stage and were almost impossible to place at that point. Here is how the rescue unfolded: On April 23rd, I was informed that the officials were planning to seize the illegally owned wolf dogs. However, nothing was set in stone as the owner had an upcoming trial on May 3 in which she would try to convince the Judge to let her keep the animals. We didn’t feel she would win in court, however, we could not take photos of the animals until the case was over. This threw a monkeywrench in our efforts to find homes and raise funds for these animals. We needed the photos as proof. Throughout my conversations with the Michigan Department of Agriculture, it was stated that the Animal Control facilities that would be assisting with the seizure would hold the wolf dogs until we could quickly raise the necessary funds to purchase kennel panels and erect the pens at our place until permanent homes could be found for these animals. There just wasn’t enough time otherwise. 5/4/04 - I was notified that the Animal Control facilities would not hold the wolfdogs. I went to Bingo that evening and all I could think about was those poor wolf dogs. I was expected to participate in the seizure the following morning but didn’t really know why I was going - we weren’t going to be able to save anybody. My intentions were to photograph and catalog all of the animals to post to the wolf dog e-mail lists in hopes of finding adopters. As fate would have it, we had an excellent turn out at Bingo and raised $1,000 to put towards the rescue of these animals. It was inspiring. I wasn’t about to give up at that point. I had money now I just needed to convince them to give me a little time. 5/5/04 - I headed for Manton at 6:30 a.m. to assist with the wolf dog removal from the Tibbet's place. I didn't know why I was going at that point because I was basically told that no animal control facility would house these animals and if I couldn't take them home with me that day, they would be euthanized. As we sat at the briefing, the talk centered around tranqualizing, transporting, and euthanizing the animals. Suzie and myself then spoke up on behalf of the animals and told them we needed a few days. I made a promise to them that if anybody would step up to the plate to house them, I would have them out of there no later than Monday. AC officers starting speaking up and saying, I can take 5, I can take 3, I can take 2, and I can take 2. That was a total of 12 animals that could be saved. Somebody was watching over us because there was then a reason for us to be there and there was light at the end of the dark tunnel. By the time we were partially through the dark barn, I had temporary placement for 17 animals---things were looking up! Then I seen the 3 cages of youngsters who didn't even look a year old. They were housed 4 and 6 to a pen. I went to a favorite AC officer and asked if he would double some of the pups so we could save even more. In the end, we were able to save 24. I felt really good about that. Although, 16 were not saved, I can guarantee you that they are in a better place now. They will never want for food, water, or room to exercise. It totally disgusted me to see animals without water. I would say of the 70 (40 wolf dogs/30 dogs) animals there, 5-10 may have had some water - dirty water. I do not recall seeing any food in the kennels. As the officers attempted to dart the animals, it was difficult at times because there wasn't much fat to inject into. There are, however, some animals who appear to be well taken care of in the sense that they looked like they were fed on a regular basis. Many of these animals have lived their entire lives housed in pairs in 10' x 10' cages with a house in the middle. However, some of the cages are approximately 10' x 40' and there was one that I believe to be about 30 x 30 inside the barn. Though e-mailing and talking with wolf dog and animal lovers, we were able to raise another $1500. These donors include our very own Joanie and Barb and Dick Barr. Our fundraising efforts raised enough money to build temporary pens for all 24 of the wolf dogs. Volunteers showed up in the rain to help us erect the new kennels. On Mothers Day, Jim and I spent 9 hours on the road collecting 12 of the wolf dogs to bring back to our place. On our way home, there was a double rainbow. One was dim, the other bright. I feel the dim rainbow represent those who are no longer with us but still in a better place than they were before. The bright rainbow represents those that have bright futures ahead of them. Of the 24 wolf dogs we were able to save, Two left our place last Tuesday and are living a great life in Colorado and three went to a sanctuary/education facility in Canada. The remaining 19 will remain with us until placement can be found for them. It is wonderful to see some of these animals come alive and play in their new pens and a joy to know that some day they will all have their very own places to run and play. If you are interesting in adopting one of these animals and live in a state where they are legal, please contact me at spca@detours.net Financial support is still needed to heartworm test and spay/neuter these animals. We would also like to purchase small black rubber type pools ($25 each) for each pen and to pay for health certificates for the animals traveling to Canada. I will soon be posting photos of these animals in their new temporary enclosures at the West Michigan SPCA. We at the SPCA would like to again thank the volunteers who gave there time and donations in the rescue of these wonderful animals. We would also like to thank the Honest Kitchen for donating 60 buckets of Verve food for the wolf dogs we just took in. |