GRRAND Tails Rest of the Story May 2023
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Volunteer Spotlight: GRRAND Phone Duty Team
Volunteer Spotlight: GRRAND Phone Duty Team
This month, we’d like to say a special thank-you to our Phone Duty Team! Anne Lyons, Pam Sherman, Carol Hartmann (whose late GRRAND dog Patches is shown above at left), Margo Fleming, Jolynn Edwards, Sondra Marshall (shown above at right), and Mary Rose Beyerle (shown above at center with GRRAND dog Dottie) play a crucial role here at GRRAND, often serving as the first point of contact for a lost dog, adoption, or surrender.Â
Each team member is assigned one day per week, checking the phone line around every hour from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. or later. Normally, the team will receive on average 20 calls per week, but after the rescue of several Amish puppy mill dogs this past winter, the team had a huge increase in calls, with a couple of volunteers answering 30 or more messages in a single day. In December, January, and February alone, the team received a total of 441 messages.
“The team we have now is an exceptional group of women who love what they are doing,” said Anne Lyons, Phone Duty Coordinator.Â
While they’ve been busy in recent months, the team is proud of the role they play in helping connect GRRAND dogs with their current and potential families.Â
“The most satisfying calls for me are when someone finds a lost GRRAND dog and calls in to let us know,” Anne said. “Using the dog tag number, we are able to find the owners quickly and get the lost pup back to his or her family.”
The team also helps dogs like Max, who they received a call about in January. Max had been rescued from a situation in which he had been living outdoors on a chain, and his rescuers needed a place to take him. The Phone Duty Team not only made the necessary calls to get Max into the kennel, but they also stayed in contact with his rescuers until he was adopted.Â
Mary Rose Beyerle shared that one of her favorite parts about phone duty was, after helping a person surrender their dog to GRRAND, finding out that that dog had been adopted. “Sometimes I almost cry,” Mary Rose said. “It’s great to see the dogs get a home!”Â
“It is an enriching experience,” Carol Hartmann said, “to know you helped facilitate finding loving homes for our deserving furry, faithful friends.”Â
Sondra Marshall added, “I think my favorite part of my experience with GRRAND has been getting to talk to the many giving, caring people who want to do everything they can to save these wonderful dogs…For the love of Goldens and all needy animals everywhere, thank God GRRAND continues to rescue and adopt golden retrievers and other needy dogs to great families in the adoption areas.”Â
Thanks again to our entire Phone Duty Team for the incredible difference they’ve made, and continue to make, in the lives of the dogs here at GRRAND!Â
Interested in joining our GRRAND volunteer team?Â
Trainer Spotlight – Alicia Noshang
When asked about her favorite dog that she has trained, Alicia responded that they have all been her favorites, but there was one dog, Alfie, that stood out in her mind.
Alfie is a doodle that has just recently been placed in his forever home. At his previous family, he had bit the family members multiple times and was scheduled to be euthanized on a Monday. Just the day before Alfie was scheduled to be euthanized, Alicia heard of Alfie and insisted that she could help rehabilitate him. When she went to get Alfie from his previous owner that same day, his fur was matted, he was covered in feces, and he had double ear infections. Alicia took Alfie to her home after struggling to get him in the car without getting herself injured, and she immediately made appointments for him to be shaved.
Alfie spent the next two months in rehab training, and after medical training was done he lived with Alicia for 2 months. For the past 6 months, Alfie has been living with a family with 2 other dogs and 2 kids, and they couldn’t love him more! Below is a testimony from Alfie’s family:
“As soon as we saw Alfie’s photo online, we knew he was the dog for us. We were so nervous to meet him, hoping our other dogs would love him too. Alicia made us feel so comfortable at the first meeting and gave us great advice throughout the next few months. She cares about her job and her dogs so much. She helped us feel confident and now Alfie feels like he has always been a part of our family. He is so sweet and playful. It’s hard to believe all that he went through before coming to us. We are so thankful for her and the work GRRAND does!”
I Found Love – Adoption and Fostering Stories
Jill, Apollo, and Athena have been living their best lives since being adopted by Johnny and Leigh Nuckols! Below are their thoughts on GRRAND and the 3 pups!
How did you choose to adopt Jill, Apollo, and Athena?
We first adopted Jill in February 2022 as a chill senior lady who made a great companion while I worked from home. She quickly became queen of the castle! She is perfect for us – walks well on a leash, house trained, and loves to snuggle on the couch. Months later, we purchased a small farm in the country and Johnny said that Jill needed a friend to roam the fields with. Since we have a HUGE backyard, we found a pair of brothers that we thought would make a great addition to our furry family, and decided to meet them. Jill quickly thought otherwise and let us know they were a bit much for her old lady ways. While we were at GRRAND meeting those dogs, Jane thought of two other siblings that might be Jill-approved. Luckily for us, Apollo and Athena’s foster moms (the siblings were living apart) were nearby and brought them to meet Jill. They were very respectful of Jill and were glad to be reunited. The rest is history!
Tell us about your GRRAND rescues!
The cutest thing is when Jill is lying down, she will cross her paws. She also adores all humans and isn’t afraid to ask for attention. Jill has also been known to take her “baby” (a beat up hedgehog squeaky toy) with her on walks.
Athena snores louder than any human or animal I’ve ever heard. She is also as soft as a stuffed animal and loves to sunbathe. Athena has recently discovered our retired racehorses will race her up and down the fence lines and has a new favorite hobby to get out her zoomies.
Apollo has befriended one of two horses (although he is still very scared of strange humans). We’ve only had the horses on the farm since the beginning of April, but Apollo and Camo have a unique friendship and make sure to greet each other by booping noses whenever we go visit their pasture.
Why did you choose to adopt from GRRAND?
GRRAND makes sure to find the right dog(s) for a great lifetime commitment! We had other dogs we were interested in, but the GRRAND team matched us with our three dogs and we couldn’t be happier! They really get to know the humans and the dogs for a match made in doggy heaven.
How was your experience with the adoption process?
Everyone in the adoption process was amazing! They all want to do anything they can (including troubleshooting a tracking collar) to make sure it’s a smooth process. Jane and Judy got to know us and guided us into adopting Jill. Athena’s foster mom, Sue, gave us lots of notes to make sure she transitioned seamlessly into our home. Apollo’s awesome foster mom, Natalie, even came to watch all three dogs while we went on vacation!