One Person CAN Make a Difference in the Life of a Dog, a Family, and a Community!

I checked the website today of Salem Animal Rescue League and our pups are on the website ready for adoption! Check them out HERE!

Tomorrow the pups at the Humane Society for Greater Nashua will be posted on their website and will also be ready for adoption! Check them out HERE!

Claire and I arrived home around midnight last night, after departing Charlottesville just before lunch (we had to have a delicious Bodo's Bagel). We slept a full 10+ hours the night before. We felt (and acted) so much better getting on the road and actually talked the whole way home!

It is a wonderful feeling to know that in just 3 days, we helped save the lives of 26 dogs. The lack of sleep, the heavy weight of responsibility that comes along with driving the dogs, and the miscellaneous incidents (i.e. diesel spills!) along the way, are all worth it in the end. The trip not only results in lives saved, but it reminds me of what a big impact one person can make in the life of a dog, the life of a family, and the health of a community. The impact of each saved life is unmeasurable.

A BIG thank you to the volunteers and staff at Shelby Humane who prepare these dogs for the long trip, at Greater Nashua who unloaded and cleaned the van for us (we were tired drivers), and at Salem for welcoming these pups into their shelters and finding each of them loving homes.

If you are interested in driving a transport, please check out SHS's website for more information.

As we get information about the dogs and their new families, we will update the blog (as I write this, my Shelby Humane dog, Honey Belle, is curled up on her bed beside me)!

Video of the Dogs in Nashua

Here's a quick video of the team at Nashua unloading some of the pups this morning!!

Such Photographic Dogs!

The following photos are of Timmy, Zig, Ed, Nash (all at Nashua) and Ella (at Salem) who participated in the Liberty Day Parade the weekend prior to their arrival in New Hampshire! What great dogs!

If you are interested in adopting Timmy, Ed, Zig or Nash, they will be put up for adoption on Tuesday morning.

TIMMY:

ED:

ZIG:

NASH:

ELLA:

Live Free or Die Part II

WELCOME TO SALEM ANIMAL RESCUE LEAGUE

After leaving Nashua, we delivered 6 more pups over to Salem. Similar to Nashua, we were greeted by volunteers and staff as we pulled into the parking lot! We had a much smaller (and quieter crowd) but stinker group! :) A big thanks to these volunteers who also helped unload the pups.

Part of this special 6 was Ella Bug. You have remembered seeing Ella - she appeared on Fox 6 last Sunday in Birmingham for the Pet of the Week segment. She also made an appearance in Columbiana's Liberty Day Parade last Saturday (to see those pictures, click HERE). Ella Bug is a really good girl and I hope she finds a really special and loving home.

Live Free or Die - They are safe and sound!

[Written four hours ago by Jenny before she passed out!]

We just crossed the New York state line on our way, BACK! Claire just took over the driving after taking a very long and much needed nap. I am back in the passenger seat (again, smelling of diesel) and writing to update everyone on the successful arrival in both Nashua and Salem!

WELCOME TO THE HUMANE SOCIETY OF NASHUA

We delivered 20 pups to Nashua. We were met in the parking lot by Tammy, her staff and wonderful volunteers! We honked our horn and waved as we pulled into the parking lot. They immediately jumped in the van and began unloading the pups for us. The pups were very excited to get out of the van and run around!

The Nashua Shelter was eager for their new pups to arrive and had already made space especially for them:

Early Morning Ramblings - As Promised!

Jenny is carrying us safely through Pennsylvania in the wee hours of the morning. I just woke up from a nice, long nap to the musical stylings of Tanya Tucker singing a duet with Ms. Jenny Miller! She is going strong, I can assure you. =)

Since Jenny is playing favorites with Crim, let me tell you about my favorite - NASH! I had my eye on Nash even before we walked in the Liberty Day parade last weekend. I was thrilled when we got the email with the parade dogs and he was one of the dogs we were "showcasing." When I got to the shelter last weekend, he was just as wonderful as he looks in his pictures - goofy, kind, loyal, and a little mischievous. When he and I first met, one of the Shelby Humane Society workers was walking him through the kennels at the shelter. He stopped to bark at EVERY single dog - even the puppies!!!!!! Mishcievous I tell you! Before the parade started, we were sitting in the shade together and I noticed that he was leaning up against me. Once he became more comfortable with me, he rolled over on his back, all four legs up in the air, begging me for a belly rub. I almost cried I wanted this dog so badly. Needless to say, when I went home last Saturday, I was plotting ways I could adopt Nash. Sadly, it kept coming back to the fact that I can't have dogs at my new apartment.


Yesterday Jenny sent me a text message telling me Nash was going to become a New Hampshirite. I am so excited to know that he will have a safe, caring home within a matter of weeks! Someone sure is going to be lucky to have Nash in his or her family!

Sidenote: Jenny might have told you that we were driving from Virginia into Pennsylvania. However, if you happened to look at map (of course, we didn't!), you have probably already realized that we had to go through West Virginia and Maryland first!

Playing Favorites

Meet Honey Belle Miller. She joined our family (my husband, dog Baxter, and me) in October, 2008. She was adopted from Shelby Humane.

NOW, look at the photo of our of our passengers, Crim.

Clearly, Crim has become my "favorite" of this trip. Crim is sitting rather closely to the driver seats, so we can keep a good eye on her. What a precious girl. She will make a great dog for a very lucky family in NH.

STILL in Virginia

We DID find the infamous Jimmy Johns/Starbucks duo for dinner. Now with our bellies full and our caffeine levels back up to "alert" levels, we are hoping to be leaving this "lovely" state (Claire claims we have only 1 hour left in Virginia) soon and entering the great state of Pennsylvania - which happens to be the home state of my mother.

I suspect the next post will either be very early morning ramblings or just after our first drop off - with some great photos and maybe a video. That's right, first. We will be dropping off some of these lucky pups in Nashua and another bunch in Salem, NH. The two shelters are about thirty minutes from one another.

Did anyone see us on Fox 6 today? Please tell us!

Good night everyone! We'll still be driving when you wake in the morning ...

(I'm going to try and get some sleep before my next shift at the wheel, as Claire sings along to Jewel)

Virginia is for Lovers

Welcome to Virginia!

After driving through dense Knoxville traffic, we reached Virginia and made a pit stop. When we were refilling the dogs' water bowls we had a woman and her daughter stop their car to come look at the pups. I think the lady thought we might actually give her a dog on the spot - she told me they were looking for a new dog. She also told me they had a pot belly pig at home!!!! I told her these guys were all New Hampshire bound!

Jenny is back in the driver's seat and we're going to try to find a Jimmy Johns and Starbucks for dinner (she claims there is an exit with both, but we have no clue where!). The dogs bark CONSTANTLY whenever we slow down or stop, but once we start moving steadily on the interstate, they quiet down and sleep. The van is not nearly as smelly as I expected! I might change my mind about that come the middle of the night - it's only been 8 hours after all!

Sidenote: we only saw two cops the entire trip until we reached Virginia. We are only 84 miles in and I have seen five, two of whom had people pulled over. Don't speed in Virginia!

4 Hours Down, 20 More to Go!

We are about 50 miles into Tennessee. Claire has taken over the driving responsibilities after I successfully spilled Diesel on my clothing, body and shoes! Nothing is worse than the smell of gasoline while driving - especially for 24 hours! Or, having to wash your shoes and body in a gas station sink.

We had some delicious tofurkey sandwiches topped off with some delicious tomatoes home grown by the one and only, DeWayne Wood a/k/a "Poppa." Thanks! We also had a very scrumptious snack of pimpento cheese made by the expert chef, Debby Woodall! What wonderful parents we have. They not only supported our trip (and financially so, thanks Tom) but also provided us with some good eats!

We had a short delay in Chattanooga and was stuck behind our favorite vehicle of the day thus far, ROYAL RESTROOMS: "A Regal Portable Restroom Experience."

The pups are doing great! They have quieted down and are resting peacefully --- for the time being!