Get Ready to Strut for FDNLS!

Registration is now open! Join the Family Dogs New Life Pack and represent ‘Team Family Dogs’ today!

Earlybird Special:  Register May 1 – May 19 and get $5 off the registration fee!

You and your dog are invited to join Best Friends Animal Society’s Second Annual Strut Your Mutt in Portland. Thank you for making last year’s event such a huge success! Please come out again to enjoy a tail-wagging day with your dog, while raising funds to help save the lives of shelter pets in the Portland area:

Who: Portlanders two-legged and four who want to “walk the walk” for homeless pets!

What:  A leisurely fundraising dog walk followed by a doggie-themed festival that includes pet contests, photos, treats for your dogs, fun activities, refreshments and more.

Where:  Sellwood Riverfront Park, SE Spokane St. at Oaks Pkwy, Portland, OR 97202

When:   Saturday, September 28, 2013

Why: To raise money for your favorite local animal welfare group (That’s us right? wink wink) or for Best Friends Animal Society, and to help bring about a time when there are No More Homeless Pets®.
(Join Family Dogs New Life Shelter’s Dog Pack www.strutyourmutt.org/team/familydogs to be sure your donation is going to FDNLS!

We are super excited to announce the fourth annual Family Dogs Fun Walk ! This fundraiser will be held on Saturday March 23rd 2013.
The 2 mile walk with begin here at the shelter and head west on the Springwater Corridor, registration begins at 8:00am walk starts at 9:00am- we hope to see you here! We’ve got fun little gift bags for the First 100 people !

You can print your registration & pledge form here: Fun Walk Registration Form 

All participants are encouraged, but not required to collect pledges. For those who are unable to collect pledges, there is a $25.00 entry fee per person.

The top the 3 fundraisers will receive an awesome gift basket, there will also be great prices for the top 3 kids who raise the most dough for the dogs  

Want to support our fundraiser but you’re Not able to make it? Make a $25 donation now and show your support! Donate Now

We get a lot of requests, from all over the country, to help dogs from all kinds of situations with all kinds of stories. Sometimes those situations are beyond belief, those stories are too brutal to bear.
Betty has one of those stories.
A bait dog, who’d been horribly abused, Betty landed at a vet clinic is Mississippi after someone set her on fire.

Indeed, a story to brutal to bear and of course, we just couldn’t say no. A girl as brave as Betty deserved a 2nd chance. A chance to be loved, a chance at a new life. So here she is, safe & sound and getting used to calling herself an Oregonian. Betty has come a long way; her burns have healed nicely and she’s gotten a taste of what it feels like to receive care, love and compassion- but she still has some hurdles to overcome and we feel that a comfy foster home is the best place for this to happen.

This is where we need your help! Are you able to open your heart and your home to Betty? Do you know someone who might? Please contact our foster coordinator Anne at duckbach@aol.com if you are interested in joining the family and becoming a FDNLS foster parent to brave lil Betty.

Read more about Betty’s journey here: www.idablog.org/bettys-journey-from-abuse-to-love-eru/

So fresh and so new, eyes barely open…2 week old babies, how cute are you!

These 2 little boys and their momma just arrived this morning, they’ll be heading off to their foster home shortly so we just had to share their precious little faces!

And of course, in about 6 weeks they’ll be ready for adoption

Amazing to think that only 7 weeks ago Cherry was, well….nude.
Just look at her now, all dressed up in her fancy coat of fur.

It will be a few more weeks before Cherry is ready for adoption, she has one more vet visit at the end of the month, followed by her spay surgery….So for now, she’s all dressed up with no place to go! In the meantime Cherry will continue to hang out here at FDNLS with us, soaking up all the love, all the fun and all the socialization she can stand. So prepare for a little drought of Cherry postings…..this girl will be back online in a few weeks, and she’ll be bringing her A game- Adoption Announcement (and of course, we wouldn’t dare neglect her the opportunity to star in her very own Piteo) .

So here it is…one last plea, the final push…Please ChipIn to help us cover the last of Cherry’s medical expenses.

So of course, we’re a little bias  (and totally smitten)  but we think Cherry is beautiful…from all angles! Don’t you agree?

Another week of steady improvement, another 7 days for us to fall deeper in love with the cheeriest Cherry in town. …another week closer to her adoption announcement!

In the meantime, keep sharing, and if you can please ChipIn… help us clothe Cherry in a coat of healthy, happy skin.

Sure her name is Cherry, but we might as well call her Cheery! Not a lot of changes in Cherry’s skin this week….she just continues to get better and better, and now has beautiful layer of thin little hairs covering her whole body but the really exciting thing to watch is how Cherry’s spirits just continue to rise! We are starting to see a real puppy, a playful puppy, a ball-chasin toy-chewin puppy…a Cheery Cherry!

Next week Cherry has another vet checkup, skin scrapping and refills on any needed meds…this is the time we can use your help- Please keep sharing Cherry’s story  and help us continue to provide her with the care and treatment she needs by Sponsoring Cherry and making a donation today….

Help us clothe Cherry in a coat of healthy, happy skin.

And remember to keep an eye on the Dog Blog for weekly updates on our sweet lil Cherry bomb.

Alright lil Cherry, we know you’re beautiful…with or without fur, but let’s keep this PG ok
It’s been just one week and Cherry is already feeling so much better! We can clearly see an improvement – her skin is smoothing, the redness is decreasing and you can even see a brightness in her eyes that wasn’t there last week….
We think Cherry knows, there are great things ahead for her.

Please help us continue to provide Cherry with the care and treatment she needs by Sponsoring Cherry and making a donation today.
Help us clothe Cherry in a coat of healthy, happy skin.

And remember to keep an eye on the Dog Blog for weekly updates on our sweet lil Cherry bomb.

We are saddened by the loss of a member of the family…
Sweet Millie;  a wonderful mother, supporter, animal lover and FDNLS board member. A truly inspirational and integral part of Family Dogs New Life Shelter.

Thank you Millie. Not only for your love and compassion for dogs and your dedication to our organization but for the support you’ve always given me….your daughter.
Without your encouragement, love and support I may never have had the strength or confidence to follow my dreams.
You were always my biggest fan and never doubted that I could do, and succeed at, anything I put my mind to….even if it was starting a small non-profit saving second chance dogs
So thank you from me, from all of us at Family Dogs New Life and from the thousands of dogs who have been saved, in part, because of you.
You will be deeply missed.

Love Tasha
FDNLS Shelter Director and proud daughter.

(photo of Millie with her Shih Tzu Buffy, adopted from FDNLS in 2006)

                                          Click here for more info about becoming a foster parent for a dog in need

How cool is this…

Our favorite pet id tag company, Fetching Tags, donated (yes we said Donated!) a bundle of these awesome tags to Family Dogs New Life.

All of our adoptable pooches wear FDNL id tags while in our care…safety first! And now thanks to Fetching Tags all of our adorable adoptables will be keeping it safe in style while they wait for their forever families.

A big huge Thank You to Jen and everyone at Fetching Tags.

Just gotta get one of these cool tags for your best buddy? Check them out here: www.fetchingtags.net

Times are tough, that seems to be the case with a lot of folks these days….Although the last couple month have brought many awesome adoptions …including our wonderful Twinkie , overall our adoption rates have been down and so have donations. Needless to say, money is tight around here and we could use a little help. We thought about asking the dogs to go out and fetch a part time job, we could really use the 2^nd income, but alas…their lack of thumbs make it challenging to find decent work…unless they wanna twirl one of those “Furniture Blow Out Sale” signs on SE 82^nd avenue- but that’s a busy road, too dangerous a job for a canine. Besides, we’re here to take care of them so they can just sit back, relax and have a good time until their forever families come along.

So since it doesn’t look like we’ll be writing any canine resumes in the near future we are turning to you for help. Maybe you can spare a Benjamin? A Jackson? Heck, even a George Washington will help!
Please help us help the dogs and make a donation to FDNLS by clicking the donation button below.

Oh, we’ll get by with a little help from our friends…
Mm, gonna try with a little help from our friends.

When we first met Twinkie in October 2007 we knew she was special. Transferred to Family Dogs New Life Shelter from MCAS, she was a shy 1 year old with a personality soooo sweet she earned the name Twinkie. We learned pretty quickly that Twinkie was a timid girl, fearful in new situations and especially sensitive to new men. Early on we didn’t see a lot of improvement in Twinkie’s behavior….she loved all of us, including the men around here but just didn’t ‘take’ to new people. So we decided that Twinkie could just live here with us….until, well, until she was ready to go…. maybe that would be until she grew old and passed on? And so she became one of ‘The Family Dogs’.

Fast forward 4 years, countless staff & volunteer hours, and a few months in foster care- Twinkie’s made amazing progress …her fear turned to curiosity, and she became the brave girl we knew she could be. She began greeting new folks with tail wags and kisses (and of course a few snorts) and the more she experienced all the love that humans could offer her the more confident, affectionate and social she became….even with them scary men! Now everyone was starting to see the Twinkie all of us at FDNLS loved so dearly. The time had come for Twinkie to extend her family, for her to have the chance at finding a home of her own. So from Family Dog to Adoptable Dog Twinkie began her search for a ‘real’ forever family and a real home…..It took just one week for her (and our) wishes to come true.

It is truly bittersweet but we are so very very excited to announce that after 4 long years in our care Twinkie has found a home to call her own!

Congrats Twink, enjoy your new life! It’s been a great 4 years…you’ll always be one of the family.

The 3rd annual Family Dogs Fun Walk was a smashing success…we are very excited to announce that this years Fun Walk raised over $7500 for the dogs!!!

Thank you to everyone who came out and spent the morning with us.
Thank you to everyone who donated and pledged.
Thank you to all the wonderful volunteers who helped make this event possible.
And a very special Thank you to Affordable Auto Wrecking for sponsoring this event.

For those of you who couldn’t make it…here’s a little taste of the fun

Fostering a pup in need…what could be more rewarding than that!

Our Family Dogs Foster Program is in need of big hearted folks to provide short-term (and sometimes longer term) in-home care for needy pooches until they are adopted, or space if available for them at the shelter. Please help us save more lives by becoming a foster parent!
Have you been considering fostering but aren’t quite sure what it’s all about? Have a few questions that need answers?

Q: What is a pet foster parent and what do they do?
A: A foster parent provides temporary, in-home care for friendly puppies and dogs who are in need of a forever home. Foster homes make it possible for us to rescue homeless dogs from a variety of situations by providing these animals with temporary care and shelter until they find their forever homes. Foster homes provide foster animals with plenty of love, adequate food and water, shelter from the elements, and exercise…..and did we mention Love?

Q: Why are pet foster parents needed?
A: We can only rescue as many dogs as we have room and staffing for…Not only do foster parents help us maximize the number of animals rescued, they also help to care for dogs who may struggle in our shelter environment, animals recovering from or in need of minor surgery, or dogs needing one-on-one behavior rehabilitation or a break from the shelter.

Q: Who should foster?
A:Someone who:

• cannot, at the moment, adopt a pet for his or her entire lifetime but still wants to help.
• loves pets and has some room to welcome them while they wait for adoptive homes.

Q: What does it cost?
A: All pre-arranged veterinary costs are paid by FDNLS. We can also provide food, crates, training tools, etc.  if needed…. But of course, any financial donations that the foster home can make towards fostering are greatly appreciated (and tax deductable!)

Q: I already have a dog and a cat. Can I still foster?
A: Yes! Before you bring a foster dog home, you may wish to ask your veterinarian if your pets need any additional vaccinations. Some foster families delegate a spare room for their foster dog so that their own pet isn’t stressed by repeated new animals in their territory. Some foster families live with pets that enjoy the company of the foster dogs, and they give the foster free run of the house. Either way, we will always do a meet & greet to insure that everyone will get along.

Q: Can I adopt the animal I foster?
A: Yes. Foster parents who wish to adopt the animal they foster go through the same screening process as adoption applicants.

Q: I have decided that I want to join the Family Dogs foster program. What’s next?
A:Email our awesome foster coordinator Anne at duckbach@aol.com . We will ask you to submit a foster application. Once we have received your application, we will review it with you and chat further over the phone. After you have been approved you will be matched with a particular pooch in need, based on the pet’s needs and compatibility with you, your lifestyle and your exciting pets.

Q: I still have questions about fostering. Who should I contact?
A:Please contact Anne at duckbach@aol.com

Thank you so much for considering fostering….we hope you’ll join the family!

This collection of photos, all past FDNLS foster dogs, taken by Lisa Teso Photography.

We’re turning 8 years old today, and in honor of our big day we’ve decided to give ourselves a little present…the gift of love, the gift of loyalty, the gift of Gretsch! That’s right, on this special day we’ve decided to invite our lil rock star Gretsch to become the newest member of The Family Dogs!

Gretsch came here to FDNLS in December of 2010 with a long history of being quite the guardian gladiator. We had hoped that Gretsch would find a suitable person of his own to protect, but over the months we learned that, even at just 15 pounds, his guard dog skills are a bit more then the average adopter can handle. Gretsch has had plenty of time to bond to all of us, and we think that he’s decided that this should be his forever home. Here he has a job to do…keeping everyone safe from unforeseen danger. Gretsch loves that, and we love Gretsch so we’ve decided to welcome him as one of our own- don’t tell Gretch, but the truth is, we know that here is where he’ll be kept safe We believe that Gretsch deserves to live a long and happy life, and so he becomes one of The Family Dogs.

If you would like to sponsor Gretsch and  help us continue to provide him with a wonderful environment, or if you’d just like to give of us a little birthday present , please make a donation the the shelter on his behalf.

Guess what!?! We are celebrating our 100th Piteo…starring the handsome Dino!
That’s not only entertainment for your enjoyment 100 times over, but that’s 100 Pitties who have found their way to a new life….
Watch, Share, Enjoy!

You can have your very own special edition LOVE FDNL tee

Stop in today and get yours for just $20 bucks.

Remember you can watch all of Piteos right here on the Family Dogs website Piteo Programming page.
Or check them out on our very own YouTube channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/fdnewlife

Whole Foods Market downtown in the Pearl has selected Family Dogs as one of the recipients of their bag donation program from now until April 8th!

Just bring your reusable bag and when you checkout choose Family Dogs New Life to donate to. It’s as easy as organic pie (or whatever other tasty natural Whole Foods goodies you fancy).