A Big Day!

Today Scout and Molly are leaving the shelter. This marks the official beginning of their journey, though they don't yet know or understand the happiness that will bring.

Alicia will be picking them up this morning, and she and her husband will drive more than 4 hours to deliver the pups to Vicky, who's waiting in Atlanta. Vicky will drive 2 more hours north, and Marcie will be waiting to bring Scout & Molly home.

Marcie emailed this morning and she's got everything prepared for Scout & Molly. They'll have their own room (lucky ducks!), as well as crates, new toys, food, water and a fenced-in yard for sniffing! They'll also have two new playmates, as Marcie & Matt have two pups of their own. What more could a dog ask for?!

Tomorrow Scout & Molly will be taken to the vet to be spayed and neutered. The vet also has a fantastic eye specialist on staff, which is great news for Molly! If her eye requires any post-surgery care, she will surely be in good hands.

Alicia, Vicky and Marcie are excited to meet Scout & Molly, and all have promised pictures of the journey along the way. Good luck to all the transporters today!

Scout & Molly - be sure to rest on your long car ride. This is the beginning of the rest of your happy lives!

Getting from There to Here
Great Dog Rescue New England has succcessfully placed over 3000 dogs in their forever homes since its beginnings in September of 2003. Each month, the rescue transports dozens of surrendered or abandoned dogs from shelters in the South to foster and forever homes in the New England area. Great Dog Rescue's USDA-licensed transport travels through Tennessee, heading north to the group's isolation facility in Harvard, MA. There was just one problem: Scout and Molly were in Southern Georgia and their temporary foster home was almost 6 hours away.

Marcie and Matt, well-versed in rescue and fostering, agreed to offer a temporary home for Scout and Molly while Molly regained her strength, and the two were prepared for their travels to New England. Marcie happily offered to drive a few hours to pick up both dogs, but a 12 hour hike to retrieve them wasn't possible on such short notice, and as Jane had stated clearly, the two needed out of the shelter quickly.

Most of yesterday was spent on the phone, sending emails, and waiting patiently. Finally, news came that fellow volunteer and dog-lover Alicia, along with her husband, was headed from Florida up to vacation in Tennessee - and she was happy to help! Alicia would be leaving Florida Sunday morning, and had plans to stop over in Atlanta for the night. Enter Vicky: also well-versed in rescue and a fellow dog-lover. Vicky would happily retrieve Scout and Molly from Alicia, and transport them further north to Marcie and Matt.

So tomorrow is a big day for Scout & Molly! They will be officially starting their journey to happiness. Fingers and paws crossed!

Meet Scout & Molly!

These beagle pups were dumped at the Okefenokee Humane Society in Waycross, GA, with no tags, and nowhere to turn. Humane Society workers Jane and Lori arrived to work one morning to find them tied to the front gate, each suffering from severe eye infections. Estimated to be about 6 years old, and possibly brother and sister, Jane and Lori knew they couldn't let these pups stay at the shelter.

Jane sent an emotional plea to Beagles to the Rescue in Chesapeake, VA, a non-profit, 501c3 organization. Volunteers scraped together enough funds to have Scout and Molly seen by a local Georgia vet. Scout was treated for his eye infection, and rebounded quickly from his treatment. Back at the shelter he soon began to show his true colors. Scout is a happy, excitable boy who loves his people and wags endlessly for pets and snuggles. But there was something missing from his life back at the shelter...his sister, Molly.

Upon closer examination, it became clear that Molly didn't just suffer from an eye infection...she also tested Heartworm positive. On top of that, Molly's eyes had become so severly infected that she required surgery to remove her right eye. As a result of her surgery, as well as the treatment required for her heartworms, Molly needed to remain at the vet.

Soon after Beagles to the Rescue listed Scout & Molly on their website, the news of these poor beagles' fate began to spread. Great Dog Rescue New England volunteer Tracey Johnson found the listing. Having two rescued beagles of her own, she knew she needed to help. Tracey and her husband donated to Beagles to the Rescue to help cover some of Scout & Molly's medical expenses. After she didn't see an update on the dogs' condition, Tracey contacted Jane to inquire about them. Although Scout & Molly were receiving medical care, they were not yet out of the woods. They needed to be moved out of the shelter as quickly as possible, and Beagles to the Rescue did not have room immediately.

Dissapointed and worried about the fate of Scout & Molly, Tracey sent a plea out to her fellow volunteers at Great Dog Rescue. Director Joanna Reck emailed back almost immediately and said "We'll take em!". And so began Scout & Molly's journey to happiness.