Comfort Kennels had already closed for the day, but remained available to receive the dogs from Isabel, and to make certain they were properly cared for and crated for the night. Staff and volunteers would return the following morning at 5am to help load the dogs into the car for the first leg of the ground transport. Through perseverance and amazingly,
the kindness of strangers, the dogs finally arrived at On The Wings of Angels. What took a couple of weeks to organize in August was completed in less than 24 hours — from their MDAS release to their destination in Tampa.
they all came in pretty sick and weak from malnutrition and various other mal- adies.
Buddy arrived with a severe case of
kidney stones. The sanctuary’s veterinari- an and staff did all that they could for him. He passed away quietly on October 13, with those who had grown to love and care for him in the short time he was there. “He was very sick when he came to us,” said Susan. Tommy, an unaltered male German
Shepherd Dog (GSD), is about five years old. He was extremely emaciated when he arrived at the sanctuary. A hematoma
luxury of time with these
“We know we’ve been given the
dogs because of Helen’s dedication.”
–Susan Lueth, Director, On the Wings of Angels
Loba, a nine-year-old, one of the Miami 5. In November, we visited On The
Wings of Angels to meet three of the Miami 5. Susan Lueth, director of the sanctuary met with us. “The first thing we noticed when
the dogs arrived, was how skinny they all were,” she told us. Yet, in spite of what they had been through, the dogs all arrived in good spirits. They were placed in a kennel area away from all of the other dogs already at the sanctuary. “We wanted the dogs to decompress. We did- n’t want to place any additional pressure on them,” said Susan. As per usual with new arrivals, some-
one would spend several nights with the dogs, observing them; watching for any behavioral issues. Eventually, the dogs would all need to be spayed or neutered. First their health needs were addressed, as
www.TheNewBarker.com Cail, a three-year-old, one of the Miami 5.
in his ear was taken care of right away. He was playful and very sociable when we met him. Cail, an unaltered female GSD mix
is about three years old. She is a high- energy girl, who is working on putting on some pounds as well. She loved chas- ing after a toy in the yard. Loba is a nine-year-old GSD mix
who was also pretty sick when she arrived. Erin, who works on the medical team, remained with Loba at the veteri- nary hospital until 3am the first night. Gaining her strength back slowly, she is doing much better now, letting us know with her appreciative licks. We did not have an opportunity to
meet Fufu, the 13-week-old puppy who had hitched a ride at the last minute. He is a black and tan Terrier mix with a
animal advocate and philanthropist Helen Rich, whose property houses OWAR. Dogs who are fortunate enough to
have made their way to OWAR are nursed back to health. After evaluations, a plan to rehabilitate and train is produced and followed. Adjustments are made as needed. All of the dogs are trained in basic obedience, socialized through play, structure and confidence building. They are also crate-trained. The dogs live in rooms designed to emulate a home to help prepare them for adoption. Once the dogs are ready to be adopted, their profiles and photos or videos are posted on social media. While all of the processes are
designed to ensure the dog’s success, not every dog is a candidate for adoption.
Continued.g Winter 2017 THE NEW BARKER 27
touch of GSD in him. Fufu is now Benito, and has been adopted by a family who already adopted two other dogs from OWAR (story, following page). The sanctuary’s mission is to save
dogs that otherwise would have no chance. The Miami 5 had run out of road. But one email turned their lives around. The commitment OWAR makes to a dog is to ensure its health and well- being. There are no time limits. The sanc- tuary does not foster dogs. It’s more like a dormitory — however long it takes, the dog has a safe haven there. The facility is fortunate in that they have the support of
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