Our dogs come from animal control facilities, high kill humane societies, dog pounds, and rural areas! These are the areas that work towards their desire to save animals! We also work with Anti Cruelty Society, CACAC, Waukegan Animal Care and Control, Niles Animal Care and Control, DuPage Animal Care and Control! Our paperwork is clear and concise, so STOP the BADMOUTHING due to envy and jelousy! This message goes out to surrounding businesses and people! We take in dogs that have been abused and neglected! and dogs that have been part of a CRUELTY CASE! That is our mission, and we are successful at it. Education is the key, and if you need it the ASPCA and the HSUS has many articles!
Free at last!
“S. Il. and Joliet Underdog WiggleVan Transport”
The experience of running a shelter tends to make us believe that we are alone in our belief that every homeless pet has the right to live, no matter if that right poses an inconvenience to society.
“We believe that if we just worked a little harder, and gave the animals more time, we could do much better for them. But greed, selfishness, jelousy and lack of compassion in some humans has proven the fact that we are almost alone in this mission. And with the economical downturn, we are looked at, as fools, for spending time and money on these poor S Il. animals and rural dog pound rescues! We as a group have been called bad names, displaced people(coming from other countries since our rescue is run by a multicultural variety of people, and just like the multicultural variety of dogs we get in from the Dog Pounds in the US, we strongly believe in that!), etc. etc. We have never met so many GREAT dogs in our lives, and so many LACKING individuals in our lives, at the same time! that have come and have gone!
We need a movement of people who feel the same way we do, together with the best people that makes this happen! Many people live in denial, and many times we hear "oh don't even tell me, I do not want to know", or " oh I cannot look at this dog"...while doing nothing about it! These are the same people that will not buy a crate, will not buy a treat, will not take the dog to the veterinary clinic that charges the least and is the best, nor will they sponsor a dog! The people will readily complain, to create any damage they can imagine, called distructive good in their minds! They will complain and complain and complain, while dog pound animals die in misery and filth since noone will consider them, except the rescues that do save dogs directly from the animal control facilities which we do. These animals need immediate veterinary help, GOOD veterinary help, good nutrition and consistency! WE DO NOT RECEIVE FREE VETERINARY CARE! We pay just like anyone else! We also do not get government grants, any other grants or any major corporate sponsorships! We also do not have a fund raising committee! 200+ dollars from our adoption fees, cover the veterinary cost, and if we have a sick animal(HW+, Broken Leg, Broken Pelvis) the cost for veterinary care will be between 600-1500. Our RENT is 2167/month not including expenses, and we have very few people which donate. Since we house animals, our facility admins will find any loop hole to raise the rent EVEN AFTER 6 MONTHS, at the expense of the ANIMALS.
Also, being a NFP organization will attract many short term opportunity people, people that mean bad for an organization that is doing something good! We are not only saving animals, but we are making a difference in the lives of so many people! A business that is not NFP, and is solely counting on their product, is always going to think bad and possibly DO bad for an organization that is community based, and that is doing nothing but GOOD as a result, of a loop hole in our society and our system! To allow animals to breed, and finally to kill them, is obviously a huge loop hole. Jobs are being created at the expense of these animals, education is lacking because it promotes killing of healthy animals, and ultimately the euthanasia medicine is produced ,and sold together with the services and as a result it is a money making endeavor! People or other businesses that slander NFP rescues, do so, because of the reasons above! We are taking away from those that make money on euthanizing healthy animals, just because the owner simply got tired of them! We do not accept owner surrenders, because humans do not tell the truth at times, and we do not promote this behaviour(animals being disposable)and because the rural areas need the most HELP! It is definately more cost effective to take in owner surrenders, as the dog will come from a home environment, it will most likely be healthy, it will be vetted, and there is an owner surrender fee. What better way to make money! Killing day in and day out, makes a person dangerous in our society and as a result our society is at risk! And yet:
The story is about a network of people involved in rescuing animals from areas where there are a concentration of homeless pets and transporting them to another part of the country, where there isn’t such a concentration, where there is much greater chance of them being adopted. These people are working harder, and are giving animals more time. They are the initial piece of our rescue effort! Not only do these people, initiate their first attempt to get pictures of these helpless dogs that end up in a dark corner, not being seen by anyone, not even a ray of light! Once the pictures of dogs laying in feces, urine, on the cold cement floors, what is called a dog run full of bacteria(bleach does not eliminate cement bacteria), are taken, another set of volunteers sends the pictures to the Sally Underdog, and on to a list of approved rescue groups and humane organizations! We have a limited amount of time to respond, because the animals have a limited time!
Volunteer animal transport, composed of "Several Legs", a list of very special people, spending sometimes their only assets just to save animals! Sometimes with 5 dollars in their pockets to pay for gas! They drive their own cars, sometimes cars that need new tires and maintenance! We are appaled at the comments and insults that we have been subject to, our kids that volunteer at the Fox Lake Shelter, and the slandering comments from some neighboring and so called "volunteers" that tried to have some good in their lives!
To the left, you will meet Bini(in her happy home now) and her two pups(also in their new homes), and Marie, which have been saved just hours from being put down from an animal control facility from GA! These same "so called animal benefacturers" have gone so far to complain, that we are rescuing dogs from GA! while many BIG organizations take pride in rescuing animals from disasters, such as Katrina, now GA, Ohio(struck by the foreclosure rates)! These are the same people, that will look at their pocket book only, for themselves only, and will complain about a poor soul that lives on the streets of Chicago, without a job...and they will pass along as if they did not exist! These are the same people that will probably call the police, thinking that they should be collected so that they are not subject to such misery! Pffffffff, and life is a Puffffffff for such sheltered people.
A volunteer drives a leg of a hundred or so miles and meets with another volunteer, who drives the next leg of a similar distance. And on it goes until the dog arrives at his new home. One volunteer calls these transports “the underdog railroad.”
“The transport system makes it possible to move animals around the map and be loved all along the way:
“Several Legs” couches animal transport in the greater movement to transform the U.S. into a no-kill nation, where we no longer abide euthanizing homeless pets out of convenience or expediency. “It’s not if we can achieve a no-kill nation, it’s when, and obviously these individuals were not part of our movement!
Given that the human population in the U.S. outnumbers the homeless pet population to such an extent that we could easily accommodate those animals, if only we made the concerted effort (as those in animal transport) to do so.
“When looking at the population of America, which is about 300 million, and the number of pets euthanized every year, which is, depending on whom you talk to, between four and 12 million, we don’t see why [no-kill] can’t work out.”
Hi,
Remember me, I got adopted last Sunday the 19th.
My new parents love me so much, I know I'm going to like it here. There's toys everywhere.
For some reason they named me Canarble (my big sister is named Schnebley), humans???
My big sister is very patience with me, we love to wrestle and chase each other. She even taught me how to use the doggie door!!
My doctor said I'm part lab and basset hound - I won't be tall but I'll get to be about 30 lbs.
Thanks for taking care of me.
Hugs & wet kisses,
Canarble Ohm
(Ron & Carol)
I am Bini's pup in my new home, rescued just in time! I want to let the people that complained about GA dogs and the fact that we need to be saved as well! that I am happy as can be, and maybe they should learn the value of life! This is my new sister, and isn't she pretty?
Suggested Reading
The narrator of Garth Stein's latest work of fiction, THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN, is Enzo --- a lab terrier mix impatiently awaiting the end of his life as a dog so he can be reborn in his next life as a man. In this interview, Stein describes what inspired the idiosyncratic premise for the novel and explains how his enthusiasm for race car driving doubled as research. He also talks about his desire to change readers' perspectives on their pets and shares what he hopes they will take away from this four-legged philosopher.
Question: Where did the idea for the book come from?
Garth Stein: The first seed for this book was planted in my mind about ten years ago. I was no longer working in documentary films, but a friend asked me to consult on the U.S. distribution of a film he knew about from Mongolia, called State of Dogs. I took a look at the film and the press material they had on it. I didn't end up getting involved with the film, but the idea really stuck with me. In Mongolia, there is a belief that the next incarnation for a dog is as a man. I thought this was a cool concept and I tucked it away thinking I might some day do something with it.
Then, in 2004, I saw Billy Collins speak at Seattle Arts and Lectures. He's a great poet and a terrific reader. He read a poem, "The Revenant," which is told from the point of view of a recently euthanized dog as he addresses his former master from heaven. The poem begins, "I am the dog you put to sleep...come back to tell you one simple thing: I never liked you --- not one bit." I loved this poem. When Billy Collins finished reading, I knew I had to write a story from the point of view of a dog. And my dog would know the truth: that in his next incarnation, he would return to earth as a man.
So I had the character and the goal, but I still needed the framework of a story. A close friend of mine, who is a semi-professional race car driver but who supplements his racing by working behind the counter at an upscale automotive repair shop, was going through some personal difficulties. His plight wasn't Denny's, but it gave me some ideas about what happens to families when one member suddenly passes away. I developed a story that would really put my main character, Denny, through his paces, and then it was all there for me.
Q: What inspired you to tell the story from a dog's point of view?
GS: Using a dog as a narrator has limitations and it has advantages. The limitations are that a dog cannot speak. A dog has no thumbs. A dog can't communicate his thoughts except with gestures. Dogs are not allowed in certain places. The advantages are that a dog has special access: people will say things in front of dogs because it is assumed that a dog doesn't understand. Dogs are allowed to witness certain things because they aren't people and have no judgment.
I was able to work with this idea a lot in terms of giving the reader a unique viewpoint into the action of the book. Enzo goes off with Zoë, and while Denny, her father, doesn't know what happens, we see through Enzo's eyes and so we do know. In that sense, it was a lot of fun playing with this "fly on the wall" point of view. Especially since the "fly" in our case, is Enzo, who has very keen powers of observation.
Q: Is there any significance to the name Enzo?
GS: Yes! Denny's dog, Enzo, is named after Enzo Ferrari, who built one of the greatest car trademarks in the world. Ferrari automobiles are famous everywhere. And Ferrari is a dominant player in the world of Formula One racing.
But I have a funny story about how I arrived at Enzo's name....
When I first started writing this novel, Enzo was not named Enzo. He was named Juan Pablo, after Juan Pablo Montoya, the race car driver. When my wife read the first few pages, she said that she loved what I was writing, but the name of the dog wasn't quite right.
"How about Enzo?" she asked.
We had two sons already, and were expecting our third. I had always wanted to name one of my boys Enzo. I thought it was the ultimate cool name: Enzo Stein. But my wife very much disagreed. "We have a lot of different nationalities in our combined backgrounds," she reasoned. "Russian, German, Austrian, Tlingit Indian, Irish, English...but we have no Italian."
"But then we won't be able to name the baby Enzo," I said.
"I thought of that," she said, nodding slowly.
"I really wanted to name him Enzo," I said.
"Enzo, the dog, is your new baby," she replied. "And when our new baby comes, we'll find the right name for him."
(For those of you who are interested: We named our son Dashiell.)
Q: Are you a dog owner yourself?
GS: Yes. Our dog, Comet, is a Lab/poodle mix. She's goofy and silly and sweet.
Q: What kind of study, if any, did you do to get inside the mind and body of a dog?
GS: Um....study? The reason I write fiction is that I hate research. I don't have the attention span for it. My philosophy is to write first, ask questions later.
Q: Do you believe dogs have an evolved inner life like Enzo has?
GS: Those who are ready ...
Q: Do you think people will look at their own dogs differently after reading this book?
GS: I hope so. Anyone who has a dog knows that they have some very deep thoughts, that they have moods and emotions, they get their feelings hurt. It's not a far reach to give them opinions and values and long-term desires.
Q: Americans love dogs and cars. Was this a conscious decision on your part to interweave these two national passions, or did it happen organically?
GS: Actually, when I started writing this I had some detractors --- fellow writers and people in the publishing industry who told me that, first, nobody reads books about racing and, second, nobody will read a book narrated by a dog. And yet, as I mentioned earlier, the story did grow organically, and therefore, is perhaps more "true" than some more carefully constructed fiction and as a result, I think, appeals to people in a very personal way. Q: The racing scenes deliver a real adrenaline rush and a feel for the intricacies of the sport. Is this seemingly expert knowledge based on personal experience or extensive research?
GS: Okay, when I said I hate research, I meant book research ...
When I moved back to Seattle in 2001, I got involved in "high performance driver education," which is a fancy way of saying I learned to drive a car really fast on a race track. That soon led to my getting my racing license with the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). While I did fairly well as a driver (I won the points championship in the NW region Spec Miata class in 2003), I didn't really have the skill as a mechanic or the time and money needed to really excel. When I crashed my car pretty badly --- ironically, while racing in the rain --- I decided to semi-retire from racing, and now I only race enough to keep my license current.
The funny thing is that while I love cars, I never really thought of myself as a "car guy." When I finished the draft of this book, my wife said, "So that's why you were racing. You were doing research!" I guess, on a subconscious level, that's what I was doing.
Q: The custody battle between the widower Denny and the parents of his late wife is ugly and horrible, with the latter trying to manipulate the outcome by any means necessary. Is this over-the-top portrayal meant to be colored by Enzo's strong feelings of loyalty?
GS: Any narrative point of view is biased --- the narrator has his opinions --- and Enzo is extremely biased toward all things Denny and family. So what Enzo relates to us is filtered through a couple of things: first, being a dog, he's limited in what he is allowed to see; second, being so devoted to his master, his opinions are all highly skewed.
That being said, I have spoken with attorneys who have assured me that in custody and visitation battles, especially ones involving grandparents, things can get extremely ruthless, and it is not inconceivable that, for instance, one side might try to drag things out in order to put the other party into extreme economic distress.
Q: What lessons can we all learn from Enzo?
GS: I'm not sure that's for me to judge. But I would say the important things for me are twofold.
First, Enzo's mantra: "That which you manifest is before you." I think it's very important to take charge of your life, not to feel like you're a victim of circumstance or fate, but that you are an active participant in your future. It's not a new idea: "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make" (Lennon/McCartney). Where I focus my energy always matches what comes back to me in my life.
Secondly, Enzo's epiphany --- the thing he learns at the end of his life --- is that his assumption that race car drivers have to be selfish to be successful, is incorrect. In fact, he determines, in order to be successful, a race car driver has to be completely selfless. He must cease looking at himself as the brightest star in the solar system, and begin to see himself as simply a unique aspect of the universe around him --- and, most importantly, as an extension of the universe around him. In this way, a race car driver sheds his ego; his actions become pure and as powerful as the entire universe. Which, in turn, leads to success.
All athletes speak about the mental element of athletics, and it usually boils down to the same thing: if you can remove your ego from the game, you can function with much more clarity and you are more likely to succeed. Wouldn't it be interesting if we all began speaking about the mental element of our lives in this way? How would our lives change if we did?
