Shelter Shiver: Crazy Fundraising Event!

Oh, it's no secret that we're crazy about our Project Rescue Chicago pups. We gladly dedicate our days, evenings and weekends to finding them in the various city in-take facilities; getting to know them so we can begin the search for their perfect families; sharing their ups when they fall in love with someone and their downs when it sometimes just doesn't work out. We teach them manners if no one else has done so. We learn their play style so we can ensure they find homes that match their energy level. We celebrate their virtues and help them learn to minimize their less desirable behaviors. We give them everything we've got.

What we didn't know until just a year ago is that we're not just crazy for our PRC pups, we're downright crazy in general! A year ago we participated in our first Shelter Shiver to raise much-needed funds for Project Rescue. We turned in late on New Year's Eve 2010. We woke up early on New Year's Day. We headed down to the shores of Lake Michigan—and then we went in. Yep, in January. In Chicago. When it's guaranteed to be fridgid and windy and snowy. And it worked! We raised over $6,500, which went a long way toward ensuring that we would continue the good work we committed to when we founded Project Rescue Chicago.

And now we're asking for your commitment, too. Not to us, of course, but to the dogs in our program that we're crazy about and the dogs you've met through us who captured your attention (and maybe your heart). We're asking you to join our Shelter Shiver team in one of three ways:

• Stone Cold Chilla: Join us for every crazy step of it (this is the one where you put your head under!)
• Shiver me Timbers: A nice introduction for new-comers—legs only
• Warm and Dry Barfly: A perfect way to be part of our team if you're traveling or just can't bear the thought of Lake Michigan in January (we won't hold it against you!)

And if you need a little motivation, meet some of the crazy-good inspiration we use to make jumping in Lake Michigan in January seem like a perfectly sane idea:

Jubilee

Jubilee is one of those dogs we thought would be with us for a minute, find her forever home right away and have her happy ending. Her gentle demeanor, her love of play, her sweet manners, her affection for everyone big and small, her whip-smart mind—they all said "incredibly adoptable" to us. And yet, after nearly six months in our program, Jubilee is still waiting patiently for her forever family to find her.

We jump for Jubilee and our other dogs like her, who remind us that even when you have everything going in your favor, sometimes your happy ending is a little slow in coming.

Leah
Leah will always hold a special place in our hearts. Leah was living the life we try to give all of our dogs: She had a comfortable home. She had a family who loved her, a warm bed, plenty to eat—she had it made. Then one day she waited at the door as her mom went down the driveway to get the mail from the mailbox. As Leah watched, a driver sped through the cul-de-sac, struck her mom and then raced away. She broke down the door to try to help her mom. She stood watch over her and howled for help until a neighbor came home from work. Unfortunately, her mom did not survive the impact and Leah came into our program. We posted her profile online and immediately heard from a woman who had been looking for an adult mastiff. Nikki came to meet Leah and it was love at first sight. Leah now lives with Nikki and has a labrador brother, Gator. She is happy and safe.

We jump for Leah, for your dogs and even for our own dogs, in the hopes that if tragedy strikes, Project Rescue will be there to soften the blow.

Quinn

Quinn's story is a true rags-to-riches one. Quinn, pregnant and emaciated, was tossed over a fence and into the yard of an abandoned house. As crazy luck would have it, the house was right next to Animal Welfare League's Wabash facility. Someone saw poor Quinn and took her in out of the 100 degree weather and into the shelter. But there was more work to be done. Quinn had likely never known an act of kindness in her life. She didn’t know how to take treats, snuggle into our laps or smile. But we knew there was a happy dog in there waiting to be introduced to the world. First through her time with us and then through the love and attention of her foster mom, Pam (who would soon become her forever mom), Quinn has blossomed into the happy, loved and loving, confident dog she deserves to be.

We jump for Quinn and other dogs like her—those in our program now and those we will surely meet in the coming year—who are just one lucky break away from escaping a lonely and undeserved death without ever knowing love.

Martha

Martha is a doll and we loved having her in our prgram, but she is one of those "thanks for the memories" kind of girls. Martha put her best self out there, met her forever family right away and headed out the door without a backwards glance. Of course, we couldn't be happier for her! We jump for all of the Marthas in our program who really just need a little help in getting to the right place at the right time in order to meet the people who will call them family.

In memory of Annie and her puppies

Annie was supposed to be one of our success stories. Annie arrived at Animal Welfare League's (AWL's) Wabash facility underweight and very, very pregnant. We don't often take puppies into our program, but something special about Annie prompted us to make an exception and we agreed that when she and her puppies were ready to make the move, they would come into the Project Rescue program. Annie and the pups were set to come "home" with us the same day we hosted a volunteer event at AWL. As our volunteers excercised dogs, cuddled with them, folded laundry and sorted donations of food, Bridgid checked in our new recruits—only to find several of the puppies showing signs of parvovirus. Extremely contagious, parvovirus has an over 90 percent fatality rate when left untreated. Unfortunately, treatment is lengthy, expensive, intense and has a low success rate. It quickly became clear that the entire family was infected. With heavy hearts, the obvious decision to euthanize this young family was made. We were forced to say good-bye to this spunky little lady and her puppies before we'd even finished saying hello.

And so, for Annie, her puppies and all of the dogs who miss their lucky break by an inch or a mile, we say, "Yes! We will jump into Lake Michigan in January—gladly!"

We hope you're feeling inspired, too, and invite you to join our Shelter Shiver team, either literally at the lake front or in spirit through a donation. Your participation will allow us to tell more stories with happy endings—there's nothing crazy about that!

It all starts somewhere

As you probably know, we would not be able to do nearly as much on behalf of Chicagoland dogs were it not for the people who are willing to offer a temporary home to our dogs in need of fostering. These homes provide a stable, calm environment for the dogs in our program. They offer an opportunity for our pups to learn manners, tricks and the essential characteristics of being a good companion. Our foster parents make our work possible because in addition to helping the pup in their home, they also open a spot for a new dog to come into our program, get through its basic vetting, introduce himself to us and begin his own journey on the road to his forever family.

But before the pups make it to PRC, they have to make it into a rescue system. Many of our dogs come from right here in Chicago. In addition to our regular networking, we spend a lot of time at both Chicago Animal Care and Control (CACC) as well as Animal Welfare League (AWL). The dogs that are taken to both facilities come in all sorts of manner (family relinquish, strays picked up by city officials, strays picked up by a person kind enough to care, etc.), all sorts of conditions (loved and cared for; pregnant; injured or wounded; with and without fleas, heartworm or worse; etc.) and with as many unique personalities as there are dogs in the system (happy, frightened, angry, concerned, hopeful). The volunteers and staff at these organizations do the very best they can with not enough help, not enough money and not enough resources.

With this in mind, PRC decided to participate in AWL's volunteer day. A small group of PRC supporters met other volunteers from other rescue groups at 10 AM this past Sunday for a facility tour, an overview on safety and smarts—and then we went to work. Some of us lent a hand with general work (food sorting, folding towels and more). A few helped bathe and groom dogs to give them a little comfort and dignity in an otherwise rough situation. And many of us jumped at the chance to shower the pups with treats and TLC while we took them outside for fresh air and exercise. Most of the pups were ecstatic for the attention, rolling over for belly rubs, taking treats and generally wagging their tails in appreciation. A few dogs that day had a harder time of it, probably due to mistreatment in their past. We did what we could to show them that things could get better in the short time we had with them.

Of course, the best part is that we didn't leave empty-handed! We're very pleased to introduce you to three of PRC's future alumni who joined us that day:

This is Cooper. He's about 10 months old, a mix of hound and terrier (maybe). He's a heart-stealer!

Say hi to Harry. Harry is a four-year-old Jack Russel/Westie mix with a fantastic sense of humor!

Handsome Shadow is a one-year-old German Shepherd mix who is going to rock someone's world!

And we want to thank the volutneers who made such a difference on Sunday to so many pups: Samantha, Eric, Anne, Julie and Joe. We'll plan these volunteer days with AWL monthly—it's hard to resist events that make such a difference to the people and the pups involved—so keep be sure to Like us on Facebook so you get the information for the next volunteer day!