Meet Fizzgig, one of the young Schipperkes rescued in Eagle Point, Oregon on January 6 of this year. Many people had to step in to help in this rescue. Jim Hamilton, Eagle Point Chief of Police, contacted Midwest Schipperke Rescue in Illinois for help, and veterinarians, techs, and other volunteers were organized in just a few days. Fifty eight live dogs were seized from a hoarding situation and were taken to the Jackson County Animal Shelter. The youngest dogs and their mother were soon taken in by a local volunteer*, and those dogs have all gone to permanent homes. One of them is Fizzgig, the beautiful little guy in the photos. His adopter flew to Medford, rented a car, met our Oregon foster volunteer, adopted Fizzgig and drove more than 1200 miles, an 18 hour drive, to take him home.
As remarkable as this rescue operation was, it is not over. There are still about forty young adult dogs who will be adopted over the next several weeks. Every adoption will be made by good folks who step up to make a trip to help a dog. We have applicants from coast to coast, and volunteers will be transporting dogs east. Adopters will then have to travel to a central location to get their Schipperke. It is an unusual situation for a little regional rescue organization, but so far, things have been falling into place, and the adoptions so far have been successful.
*God Bless our volunteers out west. The family who took in those pups has made countless trips to their veterinarian with numerous problems, and has had to coordinate with adopters to meet at a remote location for meet, greet, and adopt, plus handle the paperwork for Midwest Schipperke Rescue. The breeders who are handling the newborn pups are doing hard work, too. The dogs that came out of the hoarding house all had health issues such as worms, giardia and coccidiosis. Many people would have given up on the pups and watched them die one by one, but the pups are thriving now.
A court decision gave the dogs in the county shelter to Midwest Schipperke Rescue. The dogs have been moved from the county shelter to Dogs For Better Lives, a service dog training facility in Medford Oregon. From Michele Kasten: "Midwest Schipperke Rescue has given the trainers at Dogs for Better Lives the green light to assess any of these dogs that may fit into their service dog training program! Dogs for Better Lives trains hearing assistance dogs, autism assistance dogs and facility dogs that help physicians, teachers, counselors, police officers and child advocates. The organization trains shelter dogs as well as purpose-bred dogs to become service dogs. A Hearing Dog is a career that schipperkes could be well suited for and also allows clients that prefer a smaller dog the chance for one that fits their home better than a large breed dog. We are hopeful that one or more of these dogs has this unique opportunity, it would be a win-win!"
Many thanks to Fizzgig's new Mom for sharing his photos. You can see more of Fizzgig on Schipperke Country on Facebook.
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