After some R&R, the dogs and cats flown here from California kill shelters are ready for adoption, except those too young or not sterilized. Local dogs also need homes, like Landen, a black Lab stigmatized because of his color.
About those 1,000 dogs and 100 cats from California kill shelters that were flown to the Pacific Northwest last week.
“My California pup is absolutely wonderful! Adopted from PAWS in Lynnwood. The consensus seem to be he is part Jack Russell terrier and dachshund,” writes Tracy Felix, of Edmonds.
“After posting his picture on Facebook, my friends had about 100 name suggestions for me. He is now ‘Pippen!’ ”
A number of you have contacted the Puget Sound area agencies that took a portion of them for adoption. They arrived here through Wings of Rescue, a nonprofit run by pilots who ferry dogs.
For whatever reason, maybe prospective owners who live in apartments, there has been a demand for the smaller dogs.
“We have a waiting line. We tell people, ‘Please, don’t fret. Simmer down. Hopefully we’ll have enough dogs,’ ” says Janine Ceja, director of the Humane Society of Skagit County in Burlington.
A number of dogs are being held for observation for kennel cough, a kind of cold that develops from being in closer quarters with many other dogs. It soon clears up.
Some of the animals are less than 8 weeks old, and too young to be adopted and too young to be neutered or spayed.
For those particularly looking for the California kill-shelter dogs, the NOAH Center in Stanwood has put a little “Wings of Rescue” icon on its website by the California dogs.
Of course, the shelters have local-area dogs for adoption, and certain dogs in particular need a home.
Ceja has Landen, whom nobody wants. He is a black dog and people don’t adopt black dogs.
Petfinder says that black-dog syndrome may be due to “size,” “unclear facial features,” “dimly lit kennels,” “the ‘genericness’ of black pets” and “negative portrayals of black pets in books, movies and other popular media.”
Says Petfinder, “A big, frightening black dog can be seen in ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’, the Harry Potter series, both movie versions of ‘The Omen,’ and even on the common ‘Beware of Dog’ sign.”
Landen is thought to be a Labrador retriever/Shar Pei mix.
The shelter writes about him:
“Landen was found in the Concrete area, on the side of the freeway! A very kind man pulled over to try and coax Landen to safety and Landen jumped into his car without hesitation. Now that he is safe, we are working on getting to know him and getting him into his forever home. He was initially a bit hesitant with us, but has since become a very sweet young man. We have guessed that he is about 3 years old. He still needs his temperament evaluation, but if you are interested in him please call or come visit!”
Just take a look at Landen’s mug shot. He needs to be keeping you company on the couch.