A desperate situation: dogs in kill shelters in the U.S. had adoptive families waiting for them in the Maritimes when the COVID-19 restrictions tightened up borders in March.
“It was a nerve-wracking time for sure,” said Nicole Doria, founder of Fly With Me, a Halifax non-profit that rescues kill-shelter dogs from around the world and brings them to families in N.B., N.S. and P.E.I.
International trips were halted but there was hope for American rescues. Doria said one of their kill shelter partners in the U.S. said they couldn’t keep the dogs for long because more were flooding in. As people lost their jobs, many dogs were left behind as strays.
After no small amount of scrambling, Doria worked it out that the dogs could continue to move through the U.S.-Canada border because commercial traffic like theirs was still allowed.
“There have been more regulations in place and obviously we have more strict safety precautions and procedures in place for our transport and our hand off as well,” she said.
They were able to bring in a shipment of dogs in late March, then another on Sunday, May 10.
It involves a lot more work but it’s worth it, she said.
“We’re just trying to do the best we can during this time and hopefully it’s making a difference that at least the dogs we can save are going to homes and that allows the new dogs to be saved and not euthanized.”
The volunteer travel companions who bring the dogs across are replaced by fresh volunteers for the handoff to the families.
In Halifax, families waited in their cars (some for hours) at the Barrington Street Superstore until they were called one by one to drive to nearby Halifax Dog. There, they picked up their new pets with as little contact as possible.
Doria, who travelled with the dogs in the latest rescue, had to go directly to quarantine and missed her favourite part of the process: the handoff.
“A lot of people are really emotional,” she said. “Sometimes it’s super cute just to see the dogs run toward their families because they know they’re going somewhere good.
Shera
Alyssa Walsh and Casey Jones are big-time foster failures.
For a while now they’ve been following FWM and have friends who have adopted dogs through the non-profit.
When the lockdown started, the Halifax couple had time on their hands and decided to stop wistfully looking at photos and do something about it.
“I filled out their volunteer form to be a foster because I’ve been wanting a dog for quite a while but life gets in the way,” Walsh said.
In late March, a six-year-old energetic Alaskan malamute/shepherd mix (they think) named Shera landed and needed a foster home.
“It was about a week in that we fell in love and didn’t want to give her up,” Walsh said.
“She was a foster. We failed.”
A few months in as dog owners, Walsh said she has discovered pros and cons of getting a dog during the lockdown. On one hand, they have a lot more time to get to know the dog and train her, but on the other, they need to get Shera used to a schedule for when the lockdown is over.
But most of all, their new addition has been a joyous distraction during many dark times in Nova Scotia.
“She’s been through the hardest parts with us and it’s been really nice to have that companionship around ... She’s always there with a smile and a snuggle,” Walsh said.
Sour Cream
It’s not hard to fall for a dog with a name like that.
Sour Cream is a pitbull-shaped sponge of adoration who is now living in the Elmsdale home of Jackie Burgess and her nine-year-old son Phoenix Burgess-Hines.
The six-year-old former stray arrived at a shelter in Georgia in Nov., 2019, and more recently, in Nova Scotia May 10.
“To say we have a perfect fit for our family is an absolute understatement,” Burgess said. “We’re so lucky… He’s been such a good boy. We’re walking every day, he’s great with my son, he’s silly but he also likes to just chill out.”
About a year and a half ago, their pitbull named Snoop passed away and it was a very hard loss to get over, she said.
“I just wasn’t ready for a really long time to get a dog. Recently I got to a place where I thought I’m ready, my son is nine now and he can help.”
It was also a good time since Burgess’s job is on pause and they have the time, and need the distraction, for a dog. Burgess filled out an adoption form and a volunteer helped find a match.
She was looking for a pitbull who was good with cats and kids. They were looking at several dogs before Sour Cream turned up.
Even the odd name didn’t throw her. She has no idea why the brown dog was named Sour Cream by someone at the American shelter.
“At first I was like, ‘Oh my God, this dog’s name is Sour Cream? Are you kidding me?’ But now I couldn’t imagine him as anything else. We call him Cream, Creamy or McCreamy,” she said.
“It’s just him. He’s special, he came into our lives in a special way so we thought we would keep his name.”
Kip
An annoying intruder has broken the peace in Schnitzel’s domain.
The elderly cat used to have Elmsdale couple Robyn Brown and Sam Donaldson all to herself, until a couple of weeks ago. Until the dog arrived.
“He’s been trying so hard since he came home to befriend the cat,” said Brown. “She’s neutral with dogs but if they try to connect with her, she’ll hiss at them. She’s just kind of cranky.”
Kip, a hound who was rescued from an American kill shelter, has nothing but curiosity and enthusiasm for his new feline roommate.
They sent in forms to FWM asking for a young adult hound, under 50 lbs.
“They sent us a picture and said ‘what do you think of this guy’ and we said ‘he is everything we’ve ever wanted.’”
He arrived May 10.
“It was very exciting, I think I woke up at 5 a.m. that morning which was not helpful because we didn’t get him until 9:30 p.m.”
They waited in the car for about four hours by the time they were called over to pick up their new dog.
“It was really sweet. He jumped up into my arms and was so excited and he was ready to go,” she said.
They took him home, had a big dinner, followed by a walk and a bath.
“We climbed into bed for our first night and we have just been so in love ever since,” she said. “All the waiting was worth it.”
Donaldson said he grew up with dogs that were not adopted and was a bit wary about rescues at first, but now he would highly recommend it.
Added Robyn: “I think a lot of people think they’re not worth it, that they’re too much trouble than they are worth, but I genuinely never met a rescue dog that I haven’t liked and I really don’t think I ever will,” she said.
“There’s something special about them and I really think people need to give them a chance.”
Dewey
Dewey punches way over his weight in the cuteness and personality departments.
The little Chihuahua/corgi mix is tiny, but has made a big change for Brody Llewellyn and Dylan Timmons.
The Halifax couple fell for Dewey right from his photograph.
“He has this one ear that flops down, one ear sticks straight up. He’s adorable. He definitely pulled on our heartstrings right away,” Llewellyn said.
Llewellyn’s job at Jollytails is on hold, but they decided long before they were getting a dog this spring.
“Dewey just hit all the right spots for us and with COVID going on, I wanted to get any dog out of the States as much as possible,” Llewellyn said.
He said he’s heard stories and is concerned about American kill shelters having to clear out all the animals if staff are unable to work given the COVID-19 restrictions.
Llewellyn and Timmons also had a four-hour wait in the car before picking up Dewey on May 10, but they didn’t mind. Llewellyn said they were very impressed how well FWM volunteers followed public health guidelines.
They’ve had a few weeks with Dewey now and are finding new elements of his personality emerge every day.
“He’s a pretty spunky fella. He likes to nap … he’s charismatic but he’s quiet, too,” Llewellyn said.
And there’s a bit of a competition going on to see who will become Dewey’s preferred human.
“He hasn’t picked a favourite yet but we’re still trying.”
More Fly With Me dogs rescued in May:
