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and place them in “forever homes.” Along with All American Dachshund Rescue, Hirtle also works with Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue based in Jacobus, Pa. to help rescue and place dogs with adoption homes. “I’m just glad to do what I can,” Hirtle said. “I just don’t know how anyone can abuse one of these little guys.” Hirtle currently has two miniature daschunds of his own, a 10year-old wire haired dog named Fred and a 2-year-old long haired dog named Emma. Squatting on the floor between the two, Hirtle spoke about how the family acquired Emma after their last dog Fritz passed away from a brain tumor. “After Fritz died, Fred went into a deep depression and refused to eat,” Hirtle said. “He was circling the drain, as they say.” So, Kathy and David took Fred to a breeder in Vermont to pick out a new housemate. When they arrived, 8-week-old Emma strolled over, took Fred by the leash and began walking him around. The couple knew they had found the newest addition to their family. “It saved his life,” David said. “Never underestimate how socially bonded dogs become with one another.” The Hirtles use that bond to help acclimate their foster dogs with their household, and help ready the dogs for their permanent homes that also may already have pets. On average, foster dogs spend about a month with their temporary households “until the right family comes
Kathy Hirtle shows how affectionate little Zelda can be. Zelda was rescued from a Missouri puppy mill. Photo by John Gereau
66 NORTH COUNTRY LIVING
along.” They make a trip to the veterinarian where they receive any needed shots, are spayed or neutered and are microchipped. When adopted, they often come with a crate, collar and toys. The adoption fee — usually around $300 — just covers the cost of the rescue organization. The foster families conduct a thorough screening of those who apply for adoption, do background checks, speak to veterinarians that may have dealt with the perspective adoptee and then conduct site visits at the family’s home. “These dogs have had enough trauma,” David said. “We want them to go to a forever home. We don’t want to see them returned.” And, it is often heart wrenching to give the foster dogs up, David said. “They become a part of the family,” he said. “It is so hard to let go, so it becomes very important that we are comfortable with where they are going.” Kathy, arriving home from her job at Gunnison’s Orchard, sat in another arm chair and Zelda immediately leaped into her lap, looking up longingly for a kind pat on the head. Kathy took her in her arms. “She is such a sweetie,” Kathy said. “She really needs another small dog that she can hang out with.” If it were up to David, they’d have three dachshunds. “And that would be the third,” he said, motioning to Zelda. Diane Irwin, president of All American Dachshund Rescue, said her organization places between 300-350 dachshunds a year in new homes, nearly 90 percent of which come from southern states like Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee, where puppy mills flourish and the statistics of spaying and neutering are much lower. “Dachshunds are literally raining out of the sky down here,” Irwin said. “We get 5-10 requests a day to take dogs in and there is absolutely no way we can handle that many, so they die.” Irwin said breeders will attend flea markets and sell puppies for as little as $100 apiece. Then, new owners find out that the breed comes with its own unique set of challenges. Dachshunds can be very stubborn, can sometimes nip and bark and can be hard to housebreak. “So, rather than take the time to understand the breed and teach them through consistency and reward, they dump them at a shelter,” Irwin said. Irwin praised the volunteers who open their homes to foster the dogs as well as those who offer their time, vehicle and gas to help transport the dogs from the south to the north where they are much more apt to be adopted. “If it were not for these generous people, a lot more of these loving little dogs would die down here, and they are not paid, they do it out of the goodness of their hearts,” she said. There are any number of ways to help save the unwanted dogs from being put down, Irwin said. People can volunteer to take in foster dogs, can help deliver the dogs or can just donate a small monetary amount each month to help defray costs. Learn more by emailing Irwin at aadrpresident@gmail.com or visit allamericandachshundrescue.org or c2cdr.org. Hirtle said the dachshund rescue has a simple motto when it comes to saving unwanted dogs. “Until there are none,” he said.