Page 8 - Demo

Sunday, April 27, 2025 | Special Advertising Section8%u201cThen, I train their people (fosters and adopters) how to speak dog so they can continue to have a well-balanced pet.%u201dWith the trainer%u2019s attention diverted elsewhere, Robbers seeks his attention. First, she plants herself in front of the trainer, meeting his gaze. When that doesn%u2019t work, she offers a paw. Her final move is to present her furry white belly.%u201cThis is not submissive behavior by Rob at all,%u201d Garry MacDonald says as he strokes the dog%u2019s neck and jawline, massaging the vagus nerve. %u201cShe is simply manipulating me.%u201dWhen she%u2019s not manipulating her trainer into giving her a massage, Robbers (named after a song by The 1975) is the pack leader on campus, supervising a crew that includes Eva, a 4-year-old husky mix who was nearly shot because she was mistaken for a wolf on Whidbey Island. Then, there%u2019s Ryan Reynolds, an unspecified mixed breed who was one of only two survivors after his mother attacked the litter. Ryan Reynolds is 7 years old but still behaves like a puppy and gets stressed when overstimulated, showing all the signs of canine autism.Kelsea Ballerini is a baby ChihuahuaPomeranian mix who was displaced with her family by the recent wildfires in California. Tito%u2019s Handmade Vodka is a young beagle-pit bull mix who came here via the Yakima Valley Pet Rescue.And Ned, a 3-year-old Mexican street dog who makes friends easily, but was traumatized by an owner who insisted on taking him to a dog park against all advice and despite obvious distress.%u201cThat%u2019s an example of someone blaming the dog for not being what she wanted,%u201d Garry MacDonald said. %u201cWhat people want is not always what they need.%u201dLife at Motley Zoo is a nonstop churn of playing, feeding, training, grooming, poop-scooping, trips to the vet and the screening of prospective adopters. The 5-acre compound near Monroe also offers kennel services and training classes to help defray some of the operating costs. The rescue depends on declining donations to sustain itself.The organization currently has about 40 dogs and 15 cats. The population is about half of what it was a few years ago, owing to reduced interest in fostering, a decline in adoptions, a drop-off in donations and spiraling veterinary costs, all of which affect capacity. Some of the animals stay in kennels, and others are temporarily fostered to homes.%u201cNot only do they get more attention there, but we can get to know them really well in a home setting just like an adopter might have %u2014 so we can test-drive their personality, behaviors, etc. and make better matches,%u201d Thomas said.Careful matchmaking is why 99% of adoptions from Motley Zoo become permanent, and why Michi Guenther of Redmond became a volunteer after adopting a Chihuahua mix (Lucy) a year ago. She now makes regular visits with carloads of pet supplies donated by nearby shops.%u201cLucy is 100% a changed dog since we first we met,%u201d Guenther said. %u201cShe used to be shy and afraid of everything, and today she%u2019s happy, playful, mischievous.%u201dBekah Burdick and her partner adopted a husky mix named Carole Bradshaw (also a %u201cTop Gun%u201d character) in May 2023, and then a husky companion named Max 6 months later.Burdick said Motley Zoo%u2019s careful vetting process yielded fantastic results, and that when the time comes for another dog in the family, they%u2019ll be back.%u201cThere are so many animals in need of a home, it feels right for our family to adopt from a vetted animal rescue organization,%u201d Burdick said.The one-time adoption donation at Motley Zoo, recently raised to $700, is a fraction of what the organization spends on each animal. Because Motley Zoo won%u2019t release any dogs that haven%u2019t been neutered, the organization%u2019s initial veterinary expense per animal is close to $1,000, to say nothing of follow-up visits, dental work, surgeries, care and feeding that can continue for a year or more, Thomas said.Motley Zoo Director Jme Thomas holds baby Chihuahua-Pomeranian mix, who was displaced with her family by recent wildfires in California.A husky-malamute-German shepherd mix named Robbers consents to a neck rub from her trainer, Garry MacDonald.She said organizations that rescue animals are now at a %u201ccrisis point%u201d that began when the pandemic created a shortage of pets.%u201cAnimal welfare organizations kind of ran out of animals, so people turned to buying from breeders,%u201d Thomas said. %u201cOnce the breeders got the business, they started pumping animals out and still have not stopped.%u201dShe said that in her experience, some dog owners experience buyer%u2019s remorse after about a year because they bought an animal they thought they wanted instead of one that matched their needs.%u201cSo, they keep dumping these animals they paid thousands for because they%u2019ve become too much responsibility,%u201d Thomas said. %u201cThis is the primary reason dogs are being surrendered en masse now %u2026 mostly because these people did nothing to train or socialize those dogs when they were young.%u201dDonations may be trending downward, but the work continues. Rescued animals arrive, are rehabilitated and then eventually depart as new adoptees, with new owners. It can be a bittersweet cycle for the staff.%u201cIt%u2019s especially hard for Pate and Garry when long-timers leave, but they know it%u2019s [for the] best and are glad,%u201d Thomas said. %u201cUltimately, being in a home where they can get more one-on-one attention and love is our goal because living with us is supposed to be temporary.%u201d%u201cDogs%u2019 hearts are big,%u201d said Pate MacDonald. %u201cAnd while they love me when they%u2019re with me, they open up and encompass their new families. I%u2019m more like an aunt in that regard!%u201d Continued from page 7