A second chance is what Jill Widlits gave “Nina,” a 7-month-old Border Collie who had been adopted and then returned to the Oregon Humane Society in Portland when her owner didn’t have time for her. After a short while at the shelter, Nina failed the temperament test when she snapped at the worker trying to scan her for a microchip. “She was being forced to deal with too much before she was ready,” Widlits says.

Widlits, who runs Border Collie Rescue of Oregon, took Nina to her 51/2-acre farm in nearby Molalla, Ore., to test her away from the commotion at the humane society. “Border collies don’t do well in shelters,” Widlits explains. “To them, shelters are loud and scary. They can go crazy after a few days; they become stressed and then they may not pass the temperament test. Nina was terrified.”
 
In the huge, grassy fenced yard at Widlits’ farm, Nina began to calm down. She joined five resident purebred and mixed-breed Border Collies in soaking up fresh air and sunshine while herding pygmy goats and playing. “This is a breed that has to have a job,” Widlits says. “Border collies are very smart and are an active, high-octane breed. They also are sensitive, soft dogs.”

In her nearly 11 years in rescue, Widlits has placed 250 Border Collies. She’s grown used to receiving calls from cattle and sheep ranchers in the southern part of the state. Proud of their working Border Collies that herd the livestock, they are reluctant to spay or neuter them for fear it may detract from their herding ability. She’s also used to receiving calls from the Oregon Humane Society when a Border Collie needs saved.

A Good Place to Be
For dogs and cats in need of a home, the Oregon Humane Society is a good place to be. More than 97 percent of the dogs and 74 percent of the cats that come through its door are adopted. The shelter takes in from 12,000 to 13,000 animals a year, says Executive Director Sharon Harmon. Considering that about 100,000 dogs and cats are placed annually in shelters statewide but only about 45,000 leave alive, there is “work to be done saving lives in our own back yard,” she says.
 
“We make a commitment to do the best we can to find a home for every animal that arrives here,” Harmon says. “As soon as they come through the door, we make them our own. Conventional wisdom says not to get attached, but we hire people who love animals to be advocates and to help find homes for them.”

A modern, bright facility, the Oregon Humane Society moved to a new $8.2 million, 52,000-square-foot building in 2000, next door to the old shelter. With room for 450 animals, the shelter adopts as many as 60 pets on a busy weekend day. With an active educational program and mobile van that takes adoptable animals into the community, the shelter works hard to “connect the public into the humane society,” Harmon says.
 
Partnerships with more than 230 foster parents and 50 individual rescue volunteers and purebred rescue organizations get much of the credit for the shelter’s success in finding homes for pets. “We share resources and work together,” Harmon says. “It is our great relationship with many people working together that helps us to achieve the shared goal of finding homes for dogs and cats.”

Some breeds of dogs — such as Border Collies, Great Danes, Mastiffs, Old English Sheepdogs, and Afghan Hounds — become overwhelmed in a shelter environment. “They need more than we can offer,” Harmon says. “In these cases, we turn to purebred rescue to take them into their system.”
 
Foster parents are instrumental in caring for sick animals and puppies and kittens. “Sometimes an animal needs intense socialization that can only be gotten in a private home or are just too young to be adopted,” she says. “Our foster families are key to their success. They are trained in caring for the animals and serve as satellite shelters for us. They provide tender loving care in a home environment.”

Satellite Shelters
During kitten season three years ago Michele Cozart of Battle Ground, Wash., fell in love with being a foster parent for cats. “Sometimes I come home with the most downtrodden, pathetic, thin kittens,” she says. “By the time I give them back, they have blossomed into happy, fluffy, awesome cats.”

Cozart began as a cat volunteer at the Oregon Humane Society, but since she lives 30 minutes away, she decided to try fostering so she could provide more direct care and not have to commute. She has cared for pregnant cats and mothers with new litters as well as adult cats with illnesses such as upper respiratory infection.
One emaciated pregnant orange domestic shorthaired cat named “Delphinium” tugged at her heartstrings. “She had her six kittens, although one was stillborn, in one of my closets,” Cozart says. “I thought she had ringworm on her chin, so I took her back to the shelter for treatment. Unfortunately, no one knew she contracted distemper. When she came back, she infected her kittens, and they all died. It can be heartbreaking to be a foster parent sometimes but all I have to do is see another animal in need or remember my past successes to keep me going.” Delphinium now lives at Cozart’s house along with two dogs and four other cats.

Foster parent Diane Rogers of Portland also began as a volunteer at the shelter. During orientation, she learned about the foster care program. That night, “I took home 5-week-old kittens and their mom,” she says. “I remember naming them after Motown singers: ‘Otis,’ ‘Sam’ and ‘Aretha.’”

During the past five years, Rogers has fostered 90 cats and 10 dogs. She’s also had two “foster failures” — animals she decided to keep herself. “Marmalade” was an orange tabby kitten that was born at her house. She kept her longer than the other kittens, and eventually decided to keep her forever. Rogers’ mother adopted “T.C.,” a tortoise-shell colored female cat whom Rogers fostered, but when her mother recently moved, she decided to keep her.

One of the most memorable animals Rogers fostered was a young hound/pointer mix named “Tex.” “He was so sick; there was a chance he wouldn’t make it,” she says. “He had kennel cough that had progressed to pneumonia and couldn’t keep food down. A couple of nights he couldn’t get up, so I sat by him, petting him. He would wag his tail on the floor.” Eventually, she was able to get him to eat, and he survived. 

Memorable Animals
Longtime Great Dane lover Lynne Hemingway remembers the first Dane she transported when she got involved in rescue eight years ago. “Baron was two weeks shy of dying from starvation,” she recalls. “His owners couldn’t afford to feed him. You could put your fingers between his ribs. Though it was heartbreaking, it made me want to help him more.” Ultimately, Baron was adopted and lived to be 10 years old.

Hemingway is part of a small group that makes up Willamette Great Dane Rescue. Founded by Mary Gaffney 20 years ago, the organization places from 30 to 40 Danes a year. Besides Hemingway and Gaffney, two individuals help care for animals, providing input on the ideal home for an individual dog. They work together to fund raise, evaluate incoming Danes, interview prospective owners, and transport animals.
 
“Danes have a funny sense of humor,” Hemingway says. “They are sensitive, emotional, intuitive and gentle.” The adopter of four Dane rescues, she knows firsthand the importance of matching the right owner with a Dane. Her first rescued Dane, “Zeplin,” went into rescue because the young couple who owned him moved to a trailer after having lived in the country. Confined and bored, Zeplin damaged their trailer one day when they were gone.
 
When Hemingway saw the ad for a rescued black male Dane in the newspaper, she felt an overwhelming desire to meet him. As soon as Zeplin saw her, he barked and then came over and sat on her lap. “I thought he’s so beautiful,” she recalls. “We hit it off right away.”

When Hemingway took Zeplin home it was before she became a rescuer herself. “It’s important in rescue to emphasize the positive things you are doing to help dogs.” she says. “Danes are very sensitive. Because of their size, it’s not uncommon for them to be abused; it breaks their hearts. You don’t want to waste energy on who did what, when. You want to solve the problem and move forward.”

No Pug Left Behind
Aine O’Brocken, a middle school teacher in Chelatchie Prairie, Ore., has a soft spot for old, special-need Pugs. She’s the favorite adopter of Pug rescuer Kay Pedisich of Vancouver, Wash., because she can always count on her to take the rejects others have discarded.
 
Among O’Brocken’s pack of 11 Pugs there is “Sweeney,” an energetic, rowdy male who drags his back leg and wears a doggy diaper due to a mild incontinent problem caused by a spinal vertebrae condition. “Wiggins” came as a puppy with damaged bladder muscles and an untreated infection from being left in his crate. “Addie” was thought to be aggressive because she snapped when anyone came near her face due to pain from an ear infection. Fifteen-year-old “Ike” came with an unquenchable love for life despite being overweight and having rotting teeth that desperately needed cleaning. His owners thought he was too old to keep.

With 18 years’ experience, Pedisich concentrates on rescuing Pugs in the southwest part of Washington and all of Oregon. With six or seven foster parents, she says, “Usually a good rescuer doesn’t have all the rescues in his or her own home. It helps to have good homes.” She networks with three other independent Pug rescuers who cover northern Washington and Idaho. “We let each other know when someone is looking for a dog,” she says.
 
Also a breeder of Pugs and Bullmastiffs, Pedisich believes that doing rescue helps to “fulfill our responsibility as breeders. If you’re going to breed, you’ve got to do rescue. We need to take care of the rejects. When you do rescue, you work to figure out a dog’s individual needs by assessing their health and behavior. You love them and let them them find out who they are.”

The gratification of rescue work, Pedisich says, is “taking an animal from a situation where they don’t know what’s going on in their life. They’ve been taken from their home and have no idea why. You give them a second chance. It’s about giving them a second chance at a better life.” 

Pet Friendly & Proud

As the third most pet friendly city in the country, according to the Purina Pet Institute, Portland, Ore., abounds with parks for pets, pet specialty shops, grooming salons, pet photographers, and dog and cat sitting services. Portland pet owners consider their pets as family members and frequently take them along for a jog in the park, a day trip to the coast, or to dinner at the Lucky Lab restaurant in the city’s Hawthorne District.
 
Portland’s passion for pets carries over to health care with more owners taking their animals for routine vaccination visits than in any other city in the survey conducted by the Purina Pet Institute. Additionally Portland has more accredited American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) affiliated veterinary professionals per capita than any other city in the report.
 
Also scoring highest for its animal anti-cruelty legislation. Portland’s history of animal protection goes back to 1868 when Dr. Thomas Lamb Eliott, the founder of the Oregon Humane Society, was instrumental in getting the legislature to pass animal protection laws. At this time, the city was in charge of dog control and the humane society was responsible for services such as sanding the streets so the horses wouldn’t slip. Interestingly the same laws that protected animals provided for child welfare.

With an open heart for pets and a natural love of the outdoors, it’s no surprise that Portland boasts over 10,000 acres of parkland in 200 parks — 34 in which dogs are allowed to play off-leash, 10 more than in New York City. Deborah Wood, “Pet Talk” columnist for The Oregonian, says, “The city of Portland opened its first park in 1872 while people were still coming over the Oregon Trail in covered wagons! Whether it’s an indoor kitty or a dog that goes hiking and camping, animals help to bridge the stress and frustrations of the human world and the natural world.”