From the owners of Gomez and Tina (now Gomer and Willa)
We adopted Gomer on February 16, 2012. Fred described him perfectly, as he was definitely a kid trapped in a grown-ups body! We thought it appropriate to re-christen him "Gomer", as while he did often wreak havoc, he was sweet and had a good heart and really never meant any harm. He was our first dog, and the first few months with him were definitely challenging! But as we learned to become better "dog parents" and redirect his energy, he settled down and has become a great friend and companion! He even earned a spot on our wedding invitations!
We adopted Willa after seeing Molly on the blog and visiting her at TAS with Gomer. Unfortunately, Gomer and Molly didn't jive. James asked us to hold on, as he had another dog he wanted us to see. Down the stairs he came with this baby puggle who swarmed us both with kisses on our first meeting. Who could resist?! We adopted her the next day and our doggy odd-couple was born!
Gomer and Willa have been great friends to one another, and we are so happy to have them in our family. We can't imagine our lives without them now, and we must thank James at TAS especially for spending a lot of time with us and for giving us the confidence and reassurance that we could be good dog owners! James you are the best!
Friday, November 15, 2013
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A request
The reason for this blog is to help get specific dogs adopted from TAS but equally important is to try to normalize the idea of shelter dogs being just as good and just as desirable as any other dogs including those which are regularly merchandised by backyard breeders, puppy millers and those few remaining pet store owners who still feel a need to sell live animals. The single greatest stigma shelter animals still face is the belief that shelter animals are substandard animals. Anyone who has had enough experience with shelter animals knows this is untrue but the general public hasn't had the same experiences you've had. They see a nice dog photo in a glossy magazine and too many of them would never think of associating that dog with a dog from a shelter. After all, no one abandons perfectly good dogs, right? Unfortunately, as we all know, perfectly good dogs are abandoned all the time.
The public still too often associates shelter dogs with images of beat up, sick, dirty, severely traumatized animals and while we definitely sometimes see victims such as these, they are certainly not the majority and, regardless, even the most abused animals can very often be saved and made whole again.
Pound Dogs sometimes discusses the sad histories some of the dogs have suffered. For the most part, though, it tries to present the dogs not as victims but as great potential family members. The goal is to raise the profiles of animals in adoption centers so that a potential pet owner sees them as the best choice, not just as the charity choice.
So, here's the favour I'm asking. Whenever you see a dog picture on these pages you think is decent enough, I'd like you to consider sharing it on Facebook or any other social media sites you're using (I know many of you do this already and thank you for that). And when you share it, please mention that the dog in the photo is a shelter dog like so many other shelter dogs waiting for a home. If we can get even five percent of the pet buying public to see shelter dogs differently, to see how beautiful they are and how wonderful they are, and to consider shelter dogs as their first choice for a new family member, we can end the suffering of homeless pets in this country.
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The public still too often associates shelter dogs with images of beat up, sick, dirty, severely traumatized animals and while we definitely sometimes see victims such as these, they are certainly not the majority and, regardless, even the most abused animals can very often be saved and made whole again.
Pound Dogs sometimes discusses the sad histories some of the dogs have suffered. For the most part, though, it tries to present the dogs not as victims but as great potential family members. The goal is to raise the profiles of animals in adoption centers so that a potential pet owner sees them as the best choice, not just as the charity choice.
So, here's the favour I'm asking. Whenever you see a dog picture on these pages you think is decent enough, I'd like you to consider sharing it on Facebook or any other social media sites you're using (I know many of you do this already and thank you for that). And when you share it, please mention that the dog in the photo is a shelter dog like so many other shelter dogs waiting for a home. If we can get even five percent of the pet buying public to see shelter dogs differently, to see how beautiful they are and how wonderful they are, and to consider shelter dogs as their first choice for a new family member, we can end the suffering of homeless pets in this country.
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Search this blog
Toronto area animal shelters
TAS South on facebook
My other blogs
Animal rescue blogs
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What's That?5 years ago
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Late Night Musings: Clearing the Shelters5 years ago
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Simon Loves the Snow!7 years ago
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Love these updates. Many thanks to their new family.
Lovely update. And love all the photos, they look like they are having the best life!
what wonderful photos, there is no doubt that you have become the perfect dog parents! Gomer and Willa look as if they have found a life of bliss with you and each other. Thank you for giving them a loving home and for the happy ending update. It warms the hearts of all of us who worry about the dogs needing homes to know that some do find perfect homes like lucky Willa and Gomer
Lovely photos and lovely story. Thank you for sharing it. It's always great to hear there are "happily ever afters" for most of the dogs.
The bottom photo is the greatest - it captures what shelter dogs really are....just dogs waiting to be as happy as this!