A registered non-profit 501 (c)(3) charitable organization Published monthly by Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies July 2013 Phoebe's Place Open House, Bridge and Memorial Dedication by Pat Dinkey On June 16th Phoebe s Place was open to the public. A lot of people came out to see the property and to see what has been completed. While some were members and volunteers, others were people from the neighborhood who were interested in seeing the property and understanding what we do as a rescue. GRRR has been so fortunate to become part of the neighborhood. Our footprint has been a positive one. Thanks to a gift from Cathy and Russ Jones, GRRR s bridge became a reality, and our property is now joined from the front acreage to the back. For GRRR members, the bridge represents the things GRRR has accomplished since its inception in 1996 and the path into our future. Most importantly, for Cathy and Russ this bridge is a permanent memorial to all their Goldens, both past and present. Brock and Louise were with Cathy and Russ when they cut the ribbon opening the bridge to the future, but I also know that each one of their pups was standing by the rainbow bridge window celebrating this very important tribute to them. It has always been our plan to build a memorial garden where our members can relax under the trees and enjoy a quiet moment, brush a dog, or just enjoy the camaraderie of other volunteers. With the loss of long time volunteer Joyce Morganfield this past March, we were all inspired to complete this beautiful memorial garden. I know her spirit lingers under the trees waiting to comfort you or just share a smile. Our wonderful friends from Great West Life along with our volunteers completed this project the beginning of June. Steve Morganfield cut the ribbon, opening the garden for all to enjoy. Future plans for the garden include a brick memorial path around the outside of the garden where you will be able to purchase and engrave bricks for your beloved Goldens or celebrate the life of someone dear to you. There are some planters with flowers there now, but if you would like to donate a half barrel filled with flowers, we will be happy to place it in the garden to beautify and make the area even more enjoyable. It is very rewarding to go out to Phoebe s Place and see the progress to-date of our property. All of you should be proud to know you had a small part in making this property a home for the future of GRRR. All the dogs that come into rescue can enjoy a wonderful life, and celebrate with us what GRRR has to offer them while waiting for their forever homes. Thank you for all you do for GRRR. Cathy & Russ jones with Brock and Louise at the new bridge
Phoebe's Place Open House Bob Jorgensen with cake Charley Dinkey, Pat DInkey, Deb Kneale, Steve Morganfield and Chelsea in front of the new Memorial Garden Scott Rogers and Mary Kenton Cathy & Russ jones Cutting the Ribbon Mary Kenton and friends Pat Dinkey with pettipoint of the GRRR logo
You re Invited to Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies 3rd ANNUAL Gala Saturday, July 20, 2013 6:00 10:00 pm The Cable Center on the Campus of the University of Denver 2000 Buchtel Boulevard, Denver, CO 80210 Cocktails Dinner Silent Auction Live Auction Entertainment by Dueling Pianos Road Show For more information please visit www.goldenrescue.com
23rd Annual Fire Hydrant 5K Walk-Run & Pet Expo by Roberta Miller We had a great time at the 23rd Annual Fire Hydrant 5K Walk-Run & Pet Expo in Fort Collins on June 8th. Over 60 vendors were set up at the Expo, with over 500 participants. It is a must-attend event for Northern Colorado pet lovers. Our GRRR booth was set up with lots of brochures and newsletters. The volunteers shared information with the crowd about our commitment to find the right home for each Golden. It was a wonderful opportunity to communicate to the public what GRRR is all about Rescue, Rehabilitate, and Re-home. A couple of the volunteers were able to bring their adopted GRRR dogs, and, of course, as always, our sweet Goldens were the stars of the booth! Thanks to all of the GRRR members and friends who volunteered to help with this event: Roberta Miller, Irene Gerty- Gomez, Sharon Koll, Susan Williams, Linda Lickert, Donna Winship, Addy Benson, Sandra Rector...and their dogs! Photos by Donna Winship and Linda Lickert
GRRR Training Update by Kelli Clark On Saturday June 8th we held a Volunteer Training for new members in the morning and after some hot dogs off the grill, a filling lunch and some cool refreshments, we then held a Foster Training for new potential foster parents. A busy day to say the least! Pat Dinkey, our GRRR Board President, facilitated the New Volunteer Orientation for our newest members. We reviewed and discussed GRRR s history, its policies and procedures, how to represent GRRR while in public and at GRRR sponsored events. We talked about the adoption process and she reviewed the A-Z intake process for the dogs. The main discussion was clarifying some of the daily dog and volunteer etiquette uncertainties that most new volunteers have. It was really helpful, well received and was the chance for some new volunteers to jump in and get going! The second half of the day was facilitated by Mary Kenton, GRRR s on-site Director of Animal Operations. Mary presented the background of fostering for GRRR as well as the stipulations to becoming a GRRR foster parent. The large group reviewed the protocol and the policies and procedures for becoming a foster. GRRR s own Carol McMurry with PeeBody Dog Training then came and spoke with the interested foster parents. Carol discussed potential behavioral issues that foster dogs might present and provided ways to assist the dogs through challenges such as separation anxiety, food aggression, resistance to crate training and the like. Our sweet little Tex was the demo dog and of course was an angel for us all and proved to us that all it takes with any dog is one college try and they ve got it down...not! It was a great demonstration of how being a foster parent to any dog requires daily vigilance to consistent training with positive reinforcement. That s the Golden ticket! VIP walkers and fosters parents are encouraged to contact Carol McMurry directly @ 720-979-4535 with any training questions or concerns they may be having. Carol will be on site 3 days a week, her hours change weekly but will be posted in the kennel on the board by the clock. Saturday concluded with Dr. Carpenter from Arvada West speaking to the group. Our GRRR Golden expert veterinarian spoke to the group about common ailments of Goldens and what to look for when taking in a new foster. The Dr. went over what constituted an emergency and what are common ailments that can be treated with home remedies and care. Everyone was encouraged to call Mary if they have questions or concerns and are just not sure what to do. The group had a lot of questions for Dr. Carpenter and responded well to the expert advice. On Sunday June 9th, we continued with training and orienting when Ted Terroux came in to conduct a VIP Walking Team orientation. Ted demonstrated, to all of our shock and amazement, many new and sound ways to walk the dogs housed in the kennels for the day. The VIP team are our front runners in helping to provide consistency and stability for the dogs and Ted showed us how we can be even better at doing this! Ted used two of our more head strong pups and within minutes had them sitting before leaving the kennel, walking without pulling, no fence fighting and best of all friendly meet and greets with other dogs. It was a great learning experience for us all and one that will surely benefit the dogs! The two days of training resulted in some great ideas for the kennels and we hope to implement them soon! Things to look for in the future are: 1. New feedback forms for the VIP walkers in the kennels to help all of us be more consistent on how we are interacting with each dog 2. A board in the kennel with the top 10 ten commands we will consistently reinforce with each of the dogs so we are helping to train and create a sense of stability for the dogs before they leave us and enter their forever homes 3. Quarterly Volunteer, Foster Parent and VIP Training! Look for updates in this in your GRRR newsletters please! Overall, the two days were a huge success and we thank each of you who was able to attend. We look forward to seeing more of you at the next training and, as always, truly do always appreciate feedback and suggestions so keep them coming! From GRRR s Goldens, thank you SO much Volunteers for all that you each do in your own way!
VIP Update by Sukie McMaster Welcome to all our new volunteers. The dogs are getting out daily and having lots of cuddles. We held our first training session at Phoebe's Place on a beautiful, warm day last month. Ted showed us how to work with the dogs in the kennel runs and how to work on on-leash behavior. Our next training will be at Phoebe's in the fall. I highly recommend attending. We learn valuable insights into dog behavior and tips to help socialize the dogs, which, in turn, make them more adoptable. Our summer hours are now in effect. Please begin at 10 a.m. and finish with your visit by 7 p.m. When the daylight diminishes, as we move into fall, the end time will be cut back accordingly. In the heat of the day, take advantage of the lovely new seating area under the cottonwood trees and shorter walks. The back field is being fenced and is also available for walking and playing with the dogs. On a sad note, we lost Deb Dawson, a dedicated volunteer who passed away suddenly in June. The GRRR family both human and canine will miss her. She enjoyed spending time with the dogs each week, especially all the puppies we have had during the past year. Our thoughts are with her partner, Roxanne Sabin, who is also a dedicated member of the VIP Team. Deb Dawson with her beloved Golden Moose's Hallmark Card Moose is a GRRR dog who weighed well over 130 lbs and now is svelt! He was adopted by Dr. Carpenter and is the official "Office Mascot" at Arvada West. Leslie Brown submitted a photo of Moose and it was chosen to be on a Hallmark card and sold in Hallmark stores across the country starting June 20th! Moose will be making a personal appearance at Stacy's Hallmark Shop at 5111 Kipling Street in Arvada to promote his card on July 13th from 10am til noon. Stop by to purchase a card and get a photo with Moose! The winning entry
GRRR Work Day by Deb Kneale What a difference 30 people can make! It was perfect weather for outdoor projects at Phoebe s Place on June 1st and an amazing transformation took place over a six-hour period of time. In the memorial garden the crew moved sand, mulch, and pea gravel to fill in the walled space built by Great West Life employees at an earlier work party. Two handsome flagstone benches are now in the memorial garden so visitors can sit and linger in the shade of the cottonwood trees and listen to the rushing water in the canal. Large planters and comfortable patio chairs are coming soon. Over the bridge and down in the meadow, a trio took down the old barbed-wire fencing in anticipation of Barco (really that s the name of the company) coming back to enclose the back two acres. The meadow was mowed by a 1938 tractor manned by a delightful operator who kept on mowing between multiple tractor malfunctions. A walking path around the mowed field is on the docket soon for the VIP walkers. The windows in the hut and the kennel look crystal clear after a lot of elbow grease by an ambitious duo. Another duo whipped through fence staining and a third tacked down computer wiring in the hut. Mundane tasks? Maybe but lots more fun with friends and family, like the family of three who weeded behind the kennels. Two shifts of volunteers under the direction of the purger, the shelf erector, and the dumpster diver, had the shed organized to please even the fussiest HGTV personality. Not to be outdone in the art of organizing, we have a new reigning trailer queen who will respectfully request that we keep it tidy (the t-shirts are hung in size order and the trailer is easy to shop with nothing on the floor). Then there was the Bobcat! A skilled operator moved tons of rock out of the front play-yard to make it safe for the dogs. That project will still require some manual rock-moving, but we appreciate our volunteer who gets us the use of the Bobcat. No GRRR work day would be complete without hot dogs, salads, brownies, chips, and watermelon. Thanks go out to our grillers and clean-up crew. To everyone who contributes time, we thank you. Phoebe s Place requires lots of volunteer hours to maintain the grounds, kennels, and residence, but most important is the time we all spend with the Goldens.
Dog Training with Carole McMurry of PeeBody Dog Training Carole McMurry, Dog Trainer and owner of PeeBody Dog Training will hold Puppy Classes, Basic Obedience and Canine Good Citizen Classes at discounted rates are for all GRRR adopters and their dogs (Goldens, and if you have another breed, she'll train those too). Basic and CGC Classes will start June 29th, July 6th & 13th and will be held at Phoebe's Place. For GRRR Foster Parents, she is also offering "The Dog Trainer's In" Drop-In Clinic on a Saturday morning (when not holding Puppy Classes) to address/work-on any behavioral problems. These classes are free for our foster families. Carole is instrumental in training GRRR dogs to make them more adoptable. We're excited that she is able to offer her training for your dogs as well. Her philosophy is that every dog has a unique personality and disposition. Because of this, every dog needs to be trained differently. This requires a unique trainer with a wide range of experience and a wealth of knowledge. Here's where to sign up: http://www.peebodydogtraining.info Check Carole out at: www.peebodydogtraining.com or call Carole at 720-979-4535 2013 Events Annual Gala: Saturday, July 20 at the Cable Center in Denver Reunion Picnic: Saturday, September 7 at the Boulder Reservoir Halloween Party: Saturday, October 26 at Phoebe's Place Colorado Gives Day: Tuesday, December 10 See website for details
Welcome New Volunteers...who will all be listed in the August issue! Event Coordinator Pat Rogers: wintersetranch@q.com Team Leaders Transport Coordinator Ron Sommer: rsommer1512@comcast.net Animal Care Mary Kenton: mkenton25@gmail.com Golden Growl Quarterly Newsletter Debbie Davis: grrr.volunteer@gmail.com Volunteer Newsletter Leigh Gannan: leighlumse@yahoo.com Adoption Follow-up Mary Fischbeck: mfischbeck@outdrs.net Placement Darla Henderson: darlasbb@aol.com Application Advocate Gloria LeFree: glefree@comcast.net Grant Writing Judi Servoss: jaservoss@gmail.com Interim Executive Director Deb Kneale: debkneale@gmail.com Webmaster Steve Stewart: stewart2411@gmail.com VIP-Volunteer Interaction Program Coordinator Sukie McMaster: sukie.mcmaster@gmail.com 303-530-1655