Dunwoody mourns loss of dog rescue volunteer

By ALEXANDER POPP alex@appenmedia.com

DUNWOODY, Ga. — To nearly all who knew or met her, Dunwoody resident Rosemary Rutland was an unrelenting force of selflessness, generosity and positivity.

Friends and family said Rutland dedicated herself to supporting and caring for animals in the community for decades, helping countless dogs find forever homes with loving families in the process.

Rutland died Jan. 23 at the age of 64 after a protracted battle with pancreatic cancer, but those who knew her best said her legacy will live on through the lives of people and animals her work affected.

“She is going to be a tremendous loss,” Rutland’s longtime friend Lisa Johnson said.

Johnson, who founded Ruff Dog Rescue in Milton, said Rutland was a master at seeing, “the extraordinary out of the ordinary” and loved helping the most difficult dogs, no matter what type of care they needed.

Rutland made a habit of rescuing dogs who had truly been left behind, Johnson said.

“She never went for the easy dogs,” she said. “She didn’t go for the little cute little fluffy dog that everyone ponders over, she would literally go and look at the longest residents there.”

But throughout her years working at animal shelters and rescue programs in the community, Rutland’s husband Tracy said his wife’s greatest gift was her ability to engage with people and help them find the right dog.

“So many people in dog rescue are more focused on getting the dogs treated and healthy and everything else, but they don’t necessarily know how to do the people part of it,” Tracy Rutland said. And she was really good at that.”

Rosemary would often continue checking in with families for years after they adopted a dog, he said, sometimes getting them to adopt another animal years later.

In some cases, like with Johnson, those check-ins turned into a lifelong friendship.

“Our first encounter was at one of the local county animal shelters, and I was looking at dogs to rescue,” Johnson said. “She could obviously tell what I was doing and she goes, ‘take that one’ and that’s just kind of how she was, she always put herself out there to engage and get to know people.”

In time, Rutland even became one of Johnson’s best volunteers at Ruff Dog Rescue.

“Having a pet rescue, a lot of volunteers come and go throughout the years,” she said. “But there was a period of time that Rosemary was what I would consider the heart and soul of the rescue.”

Rosemary and Tracy Rutland got involved in the north Georgia dog rescue community when they moved back to Dunwoody from overseas in 2001. Over the years, the couple did everything from pulling dogs out of kill shelters to running adoption events in the community.

Eventually, Rosemary became known as the “dog lady” in their area of Dunwoody, Tracy Rutland said.

In recent years, she focused her work on the Georgia Jack Russell Terrier Rescue and the BarkVille Dog Rescue in Jasper. She also was heavily involved in efforts to improve the conditions of rural dogs in winter, visiting rural communities and talking to dog owners about bringing their pets inside when the weather gets cold.

Another longtime friend, Jody Joyce, said she was inspired to get involved with the rescue community after meeting Rutland at an adoption event back in 2012.

“She taught me so much, about not just about rescuing dogs, but rehabbing and rehoming,” Joyce said. “She really was one of the kindest and most generous and amazing women I’ve ever come across in my entire life.”

JODY JOYCE

Joyce, who now serves as the adult dog coordinator for Ruff Dog Rescue, said it was easy to see Rutland’s impact on the community by the sheer number of people who came to visit her in hospice.

On some days, as many as 68 people visited her, Jyce said.

“The Earth needs more Rosemarys,” she said. “It would definitely be a better place if we had more people like Rosemary.”

A celebration of life ceremony for Rutland has been scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 26. It will be held at Buckhead Church, 3336 Peachtree Road NE in Atlanta, with a greeting and gathering from 1:45 p.m.-2:30 p.m. and a celebration of life from 2:30 p.m.-4 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, Rutland has asked for donations to go to her favorite nonprofits, the Georgia Jack Russell Rescue & Adoption, and the BarkVille Dog Rescue.