 We recently posted a positive, happy update on alum Allie however we’ve just received devastating news that she has passed away shortly before the end of the year. From her mom Karen:
“Allie was 2.5 when we adopted her from Southeast GSP Rescue through foster mom Lorrin. She was rescued from a puppy mill where she had at least 2 litters and seemed to have experienced little outside of a kennel. She was scared of EVERYTHING. Some fears/anxieties remained throughout the 9.5 years she was with us but she settled into life as a pet more and more over time. She would play fetch until the thrower was worn out and still beg for more. She loved running off leash in the woods, checking in with her people frequently to make sure they were nearby. She stood vigilant squirrel watch in the backyard (and brought me “presents” on occasion). She was always a good sister to Riley, then Fern, then Winnie, but mostly loved her people. She became especially attached to me the first week we got her, and I’ve never had a creature need me more. She was super active and seemingly healthy only a few weeks ago before a sudden and rapid onset of lymphoma. We thank you and foster mom Lorrin Brown for sharing her with us. We had nearly 10 sweet years together! Rest easy, sweet pup.” “No time on earth is long enough to share with the animals we love, or prepare our hearts to say goodbye.” Unknown  In memory of our 2009 alumnus Ripley who passed away on August 17, 2021…
Ripley was fostered by our longtime volunteers Michael and Amy. He had epilepsy but sometimes the most challenging dogs steal your heart the fastest and sure enough, Tiffany and Blake fell in love and adopted him on May 2, 2009. From Tiffany, “Ripley was found and turned into a shelter in TN twice in 2009. The woman who eventually saved him volunteered with the shelter and knew him because his owners lived next-door to her mother. She realized that he wasn't going to be taken care of and contacted rescue. I'm still in contact with her, and I call her Ripley's fairy godmother. He had uncontrolled epilepsy, and the rescue knew he would be a hard adoption. He was listed on the website and Blake saw him. He sent me an email and said, "let's go get Ripley - we know how to deal with this." We had Mabel who was an epileptic dog as well. So on May 2, 2009, my mom, Mabel, and I drove to Murfreesboro, TN and adopted him. His epilepsy was hard to get under control but eventually we did, using three different meds. He was so drugged for the first few months while adjusting his meds that he peed and pooped in my kitchen every day. Sometimes he would just sit and stare, and I told Blake that I thought he might not be that smart. Blake said, on the contrary, he is a genius, and Blake gave him the “Professor’s Voice” to show it. I would walk in, and Ripley would just be staring, and I would ask “What are you doing Ripley?” And Ripley (i.e., Blake doing the Ripley Professor Voice) would say, “Nothing much Mother. Just contemplating the nature of the physical universe and the implications of quantum mechanics on Newtonian physics. You know, just running through some mathematical equations in my head.” “Oh, that sounds interesting, please tell me more” I would say. And Ripley would say, “Mother, I’m afraid this is well beyond your understanding. But I love you.” After we got his meds calibrated, he stopped using the kitchen as his personal bathroom, but he continued to be a genius and a handful as well. We had to move the trash can and the dog food outside because he never stopped breaking into either at any chance. He was a master counter surfer, and he perfected the standing-up-sideways-neck turn to reach into the bottom of the sink and grab anything remotely edible. That was nothing, though, compared to the love he gave. I've always said he was my soul mate. How we got lucky enough to have this dog in our lives, I'll never know. He turned out to be the sweetest, most mellow boy you could meet. He loved all people, all dogs, and all cats. He went on every vacation with me because he was so easy and he loved traveling. He was the best snuggler and the best lap dog. He had to be touching one of his humans at all times and we welcomed it. He snored a lot but no one cared. That dog was the best sleeping partner ever. He loved his doggie and kitty brothers and sisters and loved lounging in the sun. In fact, I never saw his tail wag for his humans, but if he saw a dog, his tiny tail wagged nonstop. He loved the outdoors, but if you took him on a walk, he would stop after about a mile, and you might end up carrying him back home. He was such an odd ball because of the meds but also such a typical crazy GSP. We'll never meet another weirdo like my boy. He is one of a kind.” “I’m not telling you it’s going to be easy. I’m telling you it’s going to be worth it.” Art Williams  We are so sad to announce that Bo (formerly Tyler from FL), our 2020 SEGSP Alum, passed away peacefully Sunday night. He was our Volunteer Coordinator, Amanda’s first foster dog.
From Amanda, “Bo solidified my commitment to SEGSP. When he came into rescue, he was clearly malnourished and acted as if he had never known love from a human. No eye contact and zero reaction when you went to pet him. After a few weeks, he started to come out of his shell and slowly warmed up to people and would actually come up to strangers to be petted. We had every intention of being foster fails as we had fallen in love with him. Unfortunately, he absolutely despised our younger GSP. As fosters, we struggled - it wasn't easy, but a huge thank you to the FL Volunteer Coordinators Gail and Manasi who continued to encourage us and give us hints on how to manage the situation. We stuck it out and things worked out exactly as they were supposed to. Once Bo was ready to find his forever home, I worried that it would be difficult to find him the perfect home. Along came Nicole - I'll never forget our first conversation. She told me he was hers. She hadn't even told her husband yet. I was hesitant (to say the least) since she told me they had other dogs. I wasn't sure how he would do in a home with other dogs. We scheduled our meet and greet with their pack and we all agreed it just felt RIGHT. A couple of weeks later, Bo was on his way to his forever home. While we were excited for Bo, it hurt leaving him. My husband and I could barely even speak on the way home - We almost decided to never foster again. Then...Nicole sent us updates - wonderful updates! Bo was doing so well, going on adventures, learning to play more, and even sharing a bed with his fur brothers! We knew he was home and living his best life. Thank you to Nicole and her family for taking in this sweet lug and showing him how great life could be. It isn't always easy taking in a senior dog, but it sure is worth the effort. Rest in peace sweet Bo. You'll always have a very special place in our hearts.” Bo, at age 9, had been dumped at a NC shelter and Amanda drove all the way from FL to NC to pick him up. Bo was a very lucky boy with such dedicated foster parents and he was so happy and thrived with the Hemmerly family. And they promised him unlimited cheese treats over the rainbow bridge. We don’t know what the first 9 years of Bo’s life were like, but we do know he was very much loved in his last 15 months…  Miller |
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