Newsletters – Angies Friends

At Angie's Friends, we like to send out periodical newsletters for our friends,
supporters and folks looking to adopt the animals Angie so graciously supports.

Below you will find links to our newsletters.

Spring 2017 Newsletter (printable)

Angie's Friends Aiding Neglected Dogs Angiesfriends.org Spring 2017 Newsletter

URGENT!! YOUR HELP NEEDED!

We are in desperate need of fosters for several dogs that have attended training classes and have graduated and are now in boarding awaiting their forever family. A foster family will help make the transition to adoption so much easier for them. Because these dogs have received training, they should be model guests in your home.

Hi, my name is Rhonda, but I have also been called Icee. I'm the sweetest girl you'd ever want to meet. I was abandoned by my owner when he was evicted and used to live on a chain. I love everybody! I could go on walks with you or curl up next to you on the couch.

I'm Cash. I used to live on a chain and the only attention I got was when Angie came to feed me. I escaped and was picked up by the city. Angie rescued me, and I have graduated from training. I hav learned manners and new skills. Followup training is available if the foster or forever family desires. I do not like cats, but like most dogs. I'm about 18 months old, neutered, house and crate trained, super sweet and love walks and giving kisses Please help me!

My name is Jake. I'm a year and a half young. Angie found me wandering in west Dallas. I am ready to graduate training. My leash manners and meeting new dogs skills have improved so much! I still do not like cats. I'm friendly and loving, house broken, crate trained and neutered. I have received my vaccinations and take monthly heartworm prevention. I sure would like to show you what a good boy I am.

As you can see, my name is Ziva. I was abandoned near the Trinity River after having puppies. I dearly love people and kids and getting belly rubs and going for walks. I have done very well with some informal training to help me stay calm and avoid stressful situations like meeting new dogs. I will receive formal training very soon and I'm so smart, I know I'll do well. I will need a foster home or forever home when my training is complete (maybe the middle of May). I'm almost 3 years old, crate trained, house broken, spayed, and current on vaccinations. I've had a tough life and I'm so thankful to Angie for rescuing me. I hope you will find a place for me in your heart.

If you think you might be interested in fostering or adopting, you can find an adoption application on the website, angiesfiends.org. If you need more information, you may contact Amanda at 678-665-8571 or Nina at 817-366-5055 or nina.lynn@att.net. Some of you Angie's Friends supporters that do not live in the area but may have family or friends who would be interested in these dogs, please share our need for help.

Update on Angie's Health
Angie had to have quadruple by-pass surgery last July. She did very well and spent two weeks at a friend's house recuperating before she returned home. She was not able to get into rehab for over a month, but was able to care for her dogs and the foster dogs at her home. She was very anxious to get back to caring for the 25+ dogs and numerous cats she tends to in west Dallas. In early December she was able to return to her passion and care for the west Dallas dogs. As you all know, you are the one who cares for your children or pets better than anyone else so she wasn't happy about giving up the responsibility to someone else. I had only helped Angie once a week or so for several years. The good thing is, I knew all of the dogs and they knew me. It is exhausting work. Angie is an amazing lady. I admit I was relieved when she was able to "return to work". My heart aches for these mostly chained dogs whose owners don't seem to care. They are so appreciative of a kind voice, a quick belly rub or ear scratch, clean water, good food, and shelter. Every single one of them would melt your heart.

Angie's most recent doctor visit went well. Her doctor is pleased with her progress and she has no physical restrictions any more—just some dietary limits that she struggles with. The problem is she is so tired when she gets home, she doesn't want to spend any time cooking anything, much less healthy food. She is trying to change her ways though.

ADOPTIONS SINCE LAST SPRING
Our sweet Baby who we thought would never get adopted finally found a wonderful home last August. She has made friends with the family cat and is enjoying the pampered life. Her humans send pictures often and we sure appreciate that. Caramello was fostered by a long- time volunteer for quite a while but found her forever family in July. Her name is now Coco. Boo Boo, now Kuma, is another dog that Angie had fed for a long time and became an owner surrender. He was adopted quickly and his owner recently brought him to visit Angie.

Brock was adopted last October and has two siblings that are Angie's Friends alumni—Dr. Watson who is formerly Kiko and Lexi. Happy family!

Skylar scored a great home with three kids to spoil her in October. Pepi, who had been with Angie for over a year, was adopted by Vera and Archie. Sometimes it just takes a while to find the perfect home. Trevor was very sick when Angie found him and after several months of medical attention, when he attended his first adoption day he found his forever home. Quincy was rescued from under a house in west Dallas and found a nice family in November. He shares the house with 2 other doggies and a kitty.

Lola, Honey and Ruthie are 3 sweet cats that Angie took in. Loia and Honey went to one of the adoption events and stole the heart of two nice young men. Shortly after that Ruthie joined the family as well. They are now named Jolene, Dolly and Raffie. Luka found her forever home this year. In March, Oscar went to live with The Romero family which includes a two year old daughter, an older dog named Elroy, and a young lab mix named Lucy. On April 1st Sandy melted the heart of David and went to live the high life in downtown Dallas.

Rusty was adopted last summer and has a cat friend in his new home. His mom, Gerri, sends pictures from time to time. Daisy found her forever home last summer. Einstein was found by Angie last November after he had been hit by a car. He had such severe leg damage that the leg had to be amputated. He was adopted by a wonderful family later in November.

UPDATES

Coco was adopted last spring and we received a wonderful update picture of her and her doggie friend, Max, in October. Priscilla's parents sent an updated photo in August. Her name is now Missy. Cora’s mom let us know that she lost one of her baby teeth in June. Nugget's family showed off some baby lovin’ in June.

Sonja’s mom adopted her last spring after waiting until she was old enough to be spayed. She shared a pic of beautiful grown-up Sonja in February. Einstein is now Champ and his family shared a new picture recently. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU

HUGE thanks to families that have opened their hearts and homes to foster pups. Bella's family recently welcomed Rudy as a foster. Bella had been adopted in 2015. The couple that adopted Spot (now Scotty) has been fostering Nadia who is a little love with the most beautiful blue eyes. Heidi is still looking for her forever home, but in the meantime is being fostered by Valerie. Rhonda, who you met on page 1, has been fostered by the Gallivans who are not able to continue.

The nice lady who adopted Brody in 2015 is fostering Ziggy who recently had training for leash manners and socialization skills. Belinda was abandoned in a back yard after her owner died. The Stokes family stepped up to take her in and get her much needed medical attention. She is now named Evelyn and goes by Evie. She has put on weight and is looking so much better. She gets along well with the Stokes other dog. She will begin attending adoption events soon. Landon and Louis were accepted at Animal Angels Sanctuary last December. Natalie and Bob have fostered Drake for several years now. Amanda and August continue to foster Jack and Angus and recently took in Penelope. Jack was chained in the same yard as Baby and gets along with everybody. Angus is a one year old and would be good with an active family. Penelope is a 6 month old shy sweetie. Both Angus and Penelope were abandoned in a park.

BIG THANKS to Debbie Ferrell, Fideaux Fundamentals owner, for providing several basic training sessions to help our adoption day volunteers better work with the pups on these hectic days. Thanks as well to any of you who came out to Oak Highlands Brewery to enjoy a Charity beer this past January-March in support of Angie's Friends. OHB will donate 10% of their first quarter sales of Charity to AF. Many thanks from all of us for your support on North Texas Giving Day last September. Thank you to the amazing volunteers who take such great pleasure in showing off the sweet pups that attend adoption events. It's hard work but the love from the pups and seeing them find wonderful homes makes it all worth it. Thanks, Maria, for providing hay for the dog houses this past winter. Thank you, Bob and Bettye for assistance in finding homes for some of the babies Angie finds. Thanks to Tamara for help with finding foster families and to Ryan for keeping our website up-to-date. Thanks to Melanie for fun graphics production and to Tonya for updating our petfinder info. Last, but certainly not least, thanks to all of the wonderful supporters who have helped with monetary donations in the past year. You help keep us afloat and we couldn't do it without you.

DOGGIES WHO STILL NEED HOMES

All of the dogs in foster homes that were previously mentioned still need to find that loving family to adopt them. Here are two more:

Forest is still looking for his forever home. He seems to have some issues with males so possibly an all-female household would be best for him. White Socks is a three year old shepherd mix. He seems to love everybody, even cats! He loves belly rubs and walks.

WE NEED YOU!!!
We need donations for:
-- medical care
-- food
-- heartworm preventative
-- flea/tick prevention.

Also, the flies are already super bad. Angie uses fly spray and applies a special ointment to the dogs ears to keep the flies from eating them. The flies will literally eat a dogs ears leaving them bloody and raw. We also buy fly traps in an effort to ease the dog's suffering. The traps will have to be replaced each month.

We are always looking for volunteers at our adoption events. You can put in as much or as little time as fits in your schedule and the pups will love you for it.

Spread the word! Tell your fellow dog lover friends about us. They might like to volunteer or foster.

Donations may be mailed to Angie's Friends at either 3240 Norcross Lane, Dallas, TX 75229 or 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081.

2014 Spring Newsletter (printable)

Angie’s Friends Aiding Neglected Dogs angiesfriends.org Spring 2014 Newsletter

Upcoming Events
The Chili’s fundraiser is April 9th. You will need to go to the AF website (angiesfriends.org) and print out the coupon found on the upcoming events page. The coupon is only good at the Casa Linda Chili’s at 246 Casa Linda Plaza which is at the southeast corner of N. Buckner and Garland Roads. Just present your coupon when you pay for your meal and Angie’s Friends will receive 10% of your total bill. It’s a delicious way to help Angie and the babies.

Amanda will have some of Angie’s kids that are available for adoption at the Easter in Lee Park and Pooch Parade Event at Lee Park on April 20th. easterinleepark.com

If you have never been to the White Rock Local Market you may want to try it out. Great local produce, a huge variety of other locally made foods, and arts and crafts. It is the second and fourth Saturdays of the month from 8am-1pm at Northcliff and N. Buckner. Amanda often brings some of Angie’s adoptables. whiterocklocalmarket.org

Goodbye Winter
Many thanks to Maria for providing many many bales of straw for Angie to put in the dog houses to help keep the dogs warm over the winter. Quite a few of the dogs brush the straw out of their houses when the weather gets warm and then when we have another cold spell Angie has to put fresh straw in the shelters. These temperature fluctuations happened often this past winter as you all will recall.

On December 7, 2013 we had icy roads. Angie tried to go out to feed the dogs she cares for in west Dallas but after her vehicle slid down a hill she decided to return home. She was very upset about not being able to get to the dogs and called as many of the owners as she could to ask them to feed and check on their dogs. The next day, she had help from Joey, one of the volunteers who helps out at adoption days. She discovered that none of the dogs had been fed. Joey is a young man and he was awestruck by how much our 70+ heroine does every day.

I filled in for Angie in January when she fell and hit her back on a large rock. She was in so much pain that she could not move. She called me and I told her we would have to call the paramedics. She would not do that until I arrived at the house where she was feeding Maxwell. The paramedics took her to the hospital. Thank goodness x-rays showed no broken bones and she was released from the hospital that afternoon. I was able to get all of the dogs fed except one who will not let anybody except Angie and her owner get close to her. Angie was back on her rounds the next day even though I offered to do the feeding for her. She was sore for several weeks but made her rounds as usual.

Adoptions
Three little ones were adopted in December. Lila (who is now Lily) went to live in east Dallas. She has new friends Jake and Ralph. Jake is a much larger dog than Lila, but they have become best friends.

Cindy (who is now Mattie) and Betty (who is now Tillie) were adopted by two ladies who live in Garland. We went to check on them shortly before Christmas and they are being thoroughly spoiled and loved.

Milo was seen at an adoption event in far north Dallas and his new owner, Chase, says that there was an immediate connection. Chase is excited to have a pal that he can exercise with. Chato was taken for a home visit in Ft. Worth but was returned to Angie because of friction with another dog in the house. Another man and his daughter had seen Chato at the adoption event at Highland Park Village in February and emailed just after Chato’s home visit was scheduled. When Chato was returned, Angie was able to offer him to the man who was overjoyed. They live in a high-rise apartment and Chato has gotten used to riding in the elevator and loves his walks in uptown. He was so happy and content when we went to see him in early March.

Health Problems
Ernie, a Sharpei found on a busy street in west Dallas was almost blind due to a condition called entropian. The eyelids turn under and the eyelashes scratch the cornea of the eye. Ernie had surgery on January 18th to correct the condition and has been able to regain much eyesight, but he is still having difficulty and will need another surgery. He is a most handsome boy who is being fostered by a friend of Angie’s.

Dino, one of the dogs that Angie feeds daily, appeared sick as he wouldn’t eat and was very lethargic. I took him to City Vet on March 11th. We thought he might have an intestinal blockage because his owner had fed him chicken bones. (Angie always warns the owners not to feed the dogs any kind of bone but they don’t always listen.) X-rays showed there was no blockage but Dr. Murphy could not find the problem. Dino was treated for an infection and did get better. He is doing well now.

Angie told me that she was going to go ahead and have Brody’s left front leg amputated as it was beginning to turn under and get in his way. I got her to let me take him to my vet to see if there was any other course of action. Dr. Nelson found that it was an injury to the elbow and the major nerve was affected. There was nothing to be done and amputation would avoid any further complications of dragging the foot. Brody had the amputation on March 19. He did very well and is back with Angie recuperating. He is getting around well and is wearing a t-shirt to keep him from licking the wound as he did not react well to wearing an e-collar.

Thank you to Dr. Murphy and the staff at City Vet and to Dr. Nelson and the staff at Parkway Animal Hospital for your loving care of Dino and Brody.

The staff at City Vet tried to save another baby that Angie was given. Sweet little Jenny had a swollen bruised abdomen when she was given to Angie. It appears that she must have been kicked very hard and had a massive abdominal bleed. Once in surgery, it was determined that too much damage had been done to the abdominal wall and she could not be saved. One of the dogs that Angie has had since I met her is Girl. Girl stopped eating and began passing blood. It seems she had developed cancer so Angie and I said goodbye to her on 12-26-13.

Follow-up
In the last newsletter I reported that Angie had climbed a fence to provide dog houses for some very skinny puppies that had no shelter. She continues to care for these babies and they are now healthy although still on chains and neglected by their owner. She has provided them with daily food and water and new collars. They probably would not have made it through the winter if not for Angie. We recently received an update on Henry who is now Ozzie. He was adopted a year ago by a lady who spends winters in Phoenix and summers in Lake Tahoe. Can we all be adopted by her? Ozzie is not showing as many naughty tendencies as he was at first but has matured and is loved “to bits”.

As you may have guessed, the vet bills have been substantial. All of us will appreciate any way that you can help—whether it is by having a meal at Chili’s on April 9th or sending a donation or adopting one of Angie’s adorable babies. Angie feeds 35+ dogs every day in west Dallas and almost as many foster dogs at her house every day. She also goes through two 16 pound bags of cat food each day. If you would like to make a donation of food, flea/tick meds, dog houses or other supplies you can contact us through the website or email me at nina.lynn@att.net.

Thank you ALL for your continued support.

Donations to: Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 or by PayPal at http://www.angiesfriends.org.

Spring 2013 Newsletter (printable)

Angie’s Friends Aiding Neglected Dogs Angiesfriends.org Spring 2013 Newsletter

Many heartfelt thank yous are in order. Thank you to all of you wonderful supporters who have sent in donations. You are, in fact, saving dogs. Your gifts allow Angie to buy dog food and supplies and get medical treatment when needed for her many babies that are available for adoption. Thank you to Amanda for her dedication in taking Angie’s adoptables to many adoption events. Thank you to all of the rescue agencies that have helped Angie when she finds strays or receives owner surrenders that she cannot take in herself. Thank you to Dr. Wood at Mission Clinic and the vets at City Vet who are always helpful. Thank you to Ryan for keeping Angie’s website up-to-date. Thank you to Mary S., Maeleska F., Rekka, Betty B., J.P., Tamara, Jonnie E., Beverly, Bob, Larry, and Karin for all of your help and support. I’m sure I have left someone out—just know that you are all invaluable to Angie. There have been several dogs recently that have needed extensive medical assistance. Some donations have been made directly to City Vet to help Angie.

Rupert is a young Maltese who was attacked by a large dog. He has some broken ribs but seems to be getting well. Gigi was taken to the eye specialist for her bulging and red eye. She has a problem that will never fully heal but the eye has responded very well to drops. Nurca has been receiving treatment for a tumor on her front leg. Jack was diagnosed with glaucoma and has had to have his right eye removed. He will have to have drops in the left eye always in the hope of preventing blindness.

Housekeeping
We would like to offer our supporters the ability to receive emails that let you know about adoption events and fundraisers. Recently, the management at Chipotle (Forest Lane at Hwy 75) offered coupons that could be brought in when purchasing food and part of the proceeds went to Angie’s Friends. We do not have a data base of email addresses so we were not able to let you all know of the opportunity to help Angie. Another fund raiser with Chili’s is in the works. If you would like to be added to a list to receive such updates, please send your name and email address to nina.lynn@att.net. Also let me know if you would prefer to receive the newsletter via email.

Adoptions
Cassidy was adopted by a great family in Mesquite in November. She has a wonderful playmate named Chase. The day we went for the home visit, the two dogs had such fun chasing each other around the back yard. Julie and Timmy were accepted by the SPCA in January. Brandy and Star were taken in by Operation Kindness. On February 2nd at an adoption event held in Highland Park Village, Henry was adopted by a lady who was in town visiting family. Henry went to his new home in Phoenix the next day. Oliver was adopted also as a result of the HPV event. Whiskey and Sparky were adopted together the end of February.

Moose and Frankie
You may remember the story of Zeus who is now Moose. He was adopted by Dr. Sue and she recently sent a wonderful picture from their cabin vacation. Sue reports that Moose now sometimes shares his bed with her cat who he really wanted to chase at first. I bet that is an adorable sight. Frankie was with Angie for quite a long time and we wondered if he would ever be adopted. He was a sweet hefty black lab mix. He is still sweet but not so hefty. His new mom reports,”Frankie is extremely happy with Eric and I! He is quite fancy strolling around Uptown Dallas most days. The big guy runs with me every morning and has a pretty solid 5K time and has lost 13 lbs. Eric and I both work full-time and used to have to crate Frank all day but he is so good we just now let him lounge about the apartment all day so no more cages for Frank. His favorite thing in the entire world is his tennis ball—he likes to rip all of the yellow fuzz off of it until it’s a clean rubber ball. Frankie is also learning quite a few tricks, he didn’t know anything when we got him but now he can sit, stay, lay down, heel, and roll over-he caught on pretty quickly too. Eric, Frankie, and I also went on a road trip for Christmas and went through 12 states and Frankie had his first snow sighting- which he tried to eat (typical) and met several members of my family. Frank-the-Tank as we like to call him, now spends most of his days running early in the morning, lounging, and chewing toys all day, and then playing ball with Eric and sitting next to us at night. He is also starting obedience school next week! We couldn’t imagine our lives without him.” We all love to hear these happy stories of dogs that Angie has rescued that have found their forever homes. Please keep sending your updates!

A day in the life….
Besides feeding over 25 neglected dogs (dogs that have owners who refuse to give them proper care) every day, Angie gets calls from people who have sick or injured dogs or have found a stray. On April 2, 2013, Angie got a call from a friend who had told her about a momma dog and baby. The momma dog was very aggressive to all but the friend as she wanted to protect her baby. The friend was able to catch the momma dog and baby for Angie so that they would not be wandering the streets. Angie has named the baby, a male German shepherd mix, Sampson. He may be fostered soon by another friend who rescues. Also on this day, a man called Angie about two dogs he had that he could not care for any longer. One of the dogs was about to have babies and the other, named Fluffy, was badly in need of grooming as its coat was very matted. Three babies were born that day in the back of Angie’s truck as she made her rounds. Fluffy, the mama dog, and babies were taken in by a rescue group.

More Owner Surrenders
Clara was not being well cared for by her owners and when Angie stated her concerns they said she could just take the dog. Clara was recently adopted from Angie by a loving family. Rocky was given to Angie by a homeless man that Angie saw walking along using a bandana as a collar and tied together plastic bags for a leash for the dog. The man really did not want to give up the dog but realized it would be best. Rocky has gone for a home visit and may be adopted soon.

Sunshine and Trampus
Sunshine and Trampus were also surrendered to Angie by their owner because he was moving and could not take the dogs with him. Both are older dogs and Angie was not told of their health history. Angie called me late one Sunday night to say that Sunshine was ill—coughing blood. She also had not eaten well for several days. A friend and I went to get Sunshine and take her to the emergency clinic. She was dehydrated and had a high white blood cell count. Her liver and kidney enzymes were off as well. The vet was thinking it might be Leptospirosis. Sunshine stayed overnight at the emergency clinic and then I took her to my vet the next day. She was in need of a blood transfusion so I took her to another better equipped 24-hour critical care clinic. As it turned out, Sunshine had severe heartworms and began having respiratory problems. She had to be given oxygen and really was declining quickly. Angie, the doctor and I made the decision to let her go to heaven. In this short span of time, she really did tug on my heart. I was with her giving her as much love as possible when she passed away. We have since found out that her buddy, Trampus, is heartworm positive. It appears that someone is interested in fostering Trampus for Angie and we will see about getting him treated for the heartworms. Trampus is listed on the adoptables page of the website.

Lucy
Lucy is a streetwise dog that Angie helped catch. She had a prolapsed uterus and bladder and her rescuers got her medical help. Unfortunately, Lucy escaped and was on the run for 78 days. A Facebook page was created to let people know about her and to assist in trying to find her. There were many sightings, but the many people who tried to find her had no luck. Finally, she was spotted by a Dallas Police officer who had seen a flyer posted at Starbucks by Love Field. Lucy was sitting in front of a house on Empire Central. The officer and her partner talked to the owner of the house and were told that the dog was a stray that had showed up 2 months previous. Lucy had a collar with a name tag that the officer was able to get close enough to read but then Lucy took off. After a brief foot and car chase and with the help of a couple more officers, they were able to catch Lucy and get her into the squad car. They got in touch with the owner by getting the contact info from Lucy’s Facebook page. Needless to say, the owner, a long time dog rescuer was very thankful. Angie and Beverly have been so relieved that Lucy is safe and back where she belongs! Thank you Dallas Police officers that took the time to care and help!

Goodbye Dear Friends
Since I last wrote, Angie has said sad goodbyes to three dogs she fed daily on her rounds and one that lived with her. Ace was allowed by his owner to eat turkey bones (even though Angie always tells owners not to feed these bones to dogs) and developed a blockage of the intestines. He was the sweetest boy and loved to play ball. Chico was poisoned. Apollo was found by Angie dead in his dog house one morning. We don’t know what happened but think he may have had cancer or heartworms. Cleo was a miniature Pinscher that belonged to a friend of Angies who passed away a couple of years ago. So, Cleo has gone to heaven to be with Mark. She was getting quite old and her kidneys were failing.

More Neglect
On Easter Sunday Angie found a German shepherd not far from Dallas Animal Services. He was lying on a sidewalk and at first, she thought he was dead. Like so many in that part of town, this dog was very skinny, not well, and exhausted. She was able to feed him and lure him into her car and he is now on his way to a good life. Around April 17th Angie noticed a puppy in a back yard whose ears were covered in ticks. She reported the neglect to the city and then on the 20th found the dog roaming the streets. It is her belief that the owners chose to let the dog go rather than face a fine from the city because they could/would not provide the proper care. We have named him Shadow. All of the ticks and fleas are gone and we are hoping to find him a good home. Interested? Two month old male lab mix with no tail! Crystal was spotted by Angie tied to a porch with no water, food or shelter. She is very skinny, medium sized and deserves a good home.

Angie wanted me to tell you about some Chihuahua’s she has taken in recently. Bonita was trapped in the Design district. She had gotten so weak that it wasn’t too hard to trap her. Iris used to walk up and down the sidewalk with her owner. The owner died and Angie saw Iris walking on the sidewalk one day. She had been left to fend for herself so, of course, Angie took her in. She is black and tan so she may have some miniature pinscher in her. Sassy has a bite wound on her thigh that her owners were not able to get medical help for so now Angie is caring for another injured baby. As you can see, it never ends.

From Beverly—Please keep Angie in your good thoughts and prayers. She is the only hope for so many abused, neglected and forgotten animals.

Donations to: Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 or by Paypal at www.angiesfriends.org. Thank you!!!

Spring 2012 Newsletter (printable)

Angie‘s Friends Aiding Neglected Dogs Spring 2012 Newsletter

Oh, I have such good news! I received an answer to my plea for help with the website. One of our long time contributors, Maria Marlow, convinced a man who has done website work for her to volunteer to help us. Ryan Haas has completely redone the Angie‘s Friends website to be more user-friendly and provide more upto-date information. We worked for several months to make changes in the format and get rid of info that was old. I hope that you will visit the new sight—still at www.angiesfriends.org and checkout the improvements. We also had another contributor offer help with the site, Ernest Zolka, but he felt that Ryan had more experience and should proceed with the overhaul. Ernie had a great idea to include testimonials about Angie on the sight. I haven‘t been very successful in getting these—there is one mentioned in this newsletter—so if anyone would like to submit something, there is a contact page on the website where you can do that and we will add your comments to the webpage. I just cannot offer enough thanks and sincere gratitude to Ryan, Maria, Ernie, Bob, Beverly, and Karin for all of their help and support in getting the new website up and running. Let us know what you think!

Recent bad turned good news stories: Angie found Drake (6 months old) in west Dallas with some sort of tubing wrapped around his neck, very skinny and suffering from mange. Bob and Natalie Blankenship, who are long time supporters, took him in and took him to their vet. It was discovered that he had a stomach blockage due to eating disposable diapers while foraging for food. He had a very low white blood count as well. The doctor was not sure if Drake had a chance, but he has made a miraculous turnaround and is thriving in the care of the Blankenship‘s.

Pixie is another sad to happy story. This story is submitted by Beverly Fyfe. Angie received a phone call early one morning from a woman in west Dallas. The woman was very upset because she had been watching children next door to her house abusing a small dog. People in west Dallas frequently call Angie. They do not trust the authorities and will not call them to handle an animal situation but most of them know and trust Angie for everything animal-related. Angie stopped by the address during her rounds that morning and sure enough, a small, frightened dog was in the yard. She found that two young women with six children between them lived at the address. Angie has to be very careful to not offend animal owners because doing that might result in them not allowing her to help their animals. However, she tried to find out about the dog. The two women spoke little English but were able to convey that ―someone‖ had given them the dog. Angie asked them to monitor their children and be sure they did not hurt the dog.

Unfortunately, she received another call a few days later from the same concerned neighbor. This time, when Angie went to the house to check on the dog, she gathered the children together and told them to be very careful with the dog – that it felt pain and fear just like they did. She left feeling she had been able to influence them not to harm the dog.

The next week, the neighbor called to report further abuse – including seeing one boy standing on the porch and dropping the dog to the ground. This time when she got to the house, Angie noted that the little dog was wrapped in some type of heavy fabric even though it was a humid day. One of the parents told her that the dog had been missing for a couple of days but had "come back". Angie picked up the dog to remove the hot fabric and found a very large hernia and wound on its side.

Angie took the dog to a veterinarian who advised her that he felt the little dog had been kicked – hard. He performed surgery and it is hoped that the dog will be alright. Angie asked the owners if they could pay for the treatment for the dog and they refused – instead turning it over to her. It is assumed that after being dropped from the porch to the ground, after being kicked very hard and whatever else this small dog endured, it hid under the house for a few days until it became so hungry that it had to come out again. The women and their children should not have animals – but they no doubt will have another one by sunset and there is nothing to prevent it. A lot of the donations made to Angie‘s Friends are spent on treatment for animals like Pixie. Pixie is currently in Angie‘s care and had to return to the doctor on May 22.

This past winter saw a huge number of dogs being infected with distemper, which is an airborne virus. In November, Angie had to euthanize one of the dogs she fed regularly because of the virus. Charlie lived in the same backyard as Moses, but so far Moses has not been affected. In December, she saw at least four dogs appearing to suffer from distemper and roaming the streets of west Dallas. Another of the dogs that she cares for daily, General, was found dead on 12-17. Towards the end of January Angie began leaving food for a mama dog and her pup that hung out at a park in the Singleton/ Bernal area. On 2-4-12 Angie was able to catch the puppy that was running with its mom. It was very skinny and had mange. The mama dog was not seen that day. On 2/14, Angie noticed that another dog she feeds daily, Smokey, had not been eating all of his food and was not nearly as active as he normally was. Smokey continued to get worse and Angie finally took him to the vet on 2/18. He was diagnosed with distemper. Angie and I went to see him and love on him one last time at the vets before he was euthanized. It was incredible to see what a short time it took for this big healthy very active dog to succumb to the virus.

Zeus
Angie began feeding a beautiful dog she named Zeus in January. There were some days that Angie would look for him and not be able to find him. She was always worried when she could not locate him. He gradually allowed her to get closer to him but never would let Angie pet him. On Feb. 4, Angie noticed that Zeus had a bloody spot on his back. On March 10, one of Angie‘s supporters went to help her try to trap Zeus but they were not successful. Zeus was limping and had a swollen jaw. Finally, on March 18 with lots of help, Angie was able to capture Zeus. Once he was contained, he let Angie pet him and doctor his ears. He never growled at any of his rescuers.

More of his story can be seen on the website at www.angiesfriends.org or on facebook at Angies Friends. Zeus is currently in foster care awaiting his forever family. When Zeus was able to get medical attention, the doctor saw many deep scars on his front legs and indicated that he felt that Zeus might have been used as a bait dog. Despite his possibly cruel past, Zeus doesn‘t seem to have a mean bone in this body. He plays and socializes with four other large dogs at his foster home.

Not only does Angie rescue dogs, she rescues cell phones. One day Angie was feeding Dee Dee for Mr. Th… and he told her he had lost his cell phone. She called the number and was finally able to find out that it had been left at a store. The owner of the store was holding it for him. When Angie went to tell Mr. Th… that his phone was at the store he said, ―I wouldn‘t take a million dollars for her (Angie)‖. Needless to say, Mr. Th.. is one of Angie‘s biggest supporters out in west Dallas.

Coco
It seems like every newsletter has Angie losing another of her long-time dogs. She had Coco when I met her in 2006. Coco‘s playmates were Tigger and Jason (who have since passed on). Coco loved to lick or chew on their ears or anyone‘s hands/fingers. She was a sweetheart. She developed liver problems early this year and Angie and I took her to the doctor to end her pain on Feb 3rd. She was 13. I wish I had a better picture to share with you.

Samson
Samson is a German Shepherd that Angie found in 2010. She found him a wonderful home in late 2010 and recently heard from his owners that he is doing very well. He seems to be quite spoiled—which is how it should be. He has grown into a large handsome boy. Angie LOVES hearing about good adoptions. Thanks to all that have given her babies so much love.

Nurca is a sweet smallish Doberman pinscher who Angie took in because of a broken leg. The leg could not be fixed so it was amputated. This has not slowed Nurca down in the least. She loves to play with Angie‘s smaller dogs—Scarlett, Shelby, Baby and Pixie. Nurca received heartworm treatment thanks to an AF donor. She is available for adoption and will be posted on the website soon.

Angie has taken Scarlett and Baby as hers. Shelby may be adopted by Samson‘s owners or another couple who have adopted from Angie in the past.

Update on Cliff Cliff is one of the dogs featured in the rescue stories tab of the website. His mom recently sent some new pictures. He sure looks happy. Thank you, Charlotte.

Cruelty abounds: In January Angie went to feed Peewee and Blackie. She heard dogs crying in the house next door and the house behind. Next door in a small backyard she found 5 dogs on heavy chains. She went and bought new chains and moved one to get him to a dryer spot in the yard. Even though chaining dogs is against the city ordinance that was passed in 2008, many dog owners in West Dallas ignore it. In order to make the existence of these chained dogs a little easier, Angie tries to get the owners to allow her to at least put the animals on light weight tethers instead of the heavy tow truck chains that weight them down and cripple their spines. The owner of the dogs drove a Mercedes but obviously didn‘t care about his dogs. In the yard behind, Angie found pups with mange in a very dirty yard. The mama dog was in heat again and the man has refused to spay her. Angie found a pup on Canada Street in a basket. The pup seemed to have a broken back as she could not stand. Someone had probably left her there to die. Angie took her to be euthanized. There was a dead pit bull by the railroad tracks wrapped in a beautiful blanket. He had bite wounds. Angie called the city to pick him up.

In February Angie was made aware of some 3-day old pups that were under a house. The owner of the house had closed up the hole where they got in and was going to let them die. Dallas Animal Services talked to the owner and informed him that they would file charges if he did not leave the opening for the mama dog to be able to get to her pups. There is a story about Tyler on the website. Angie had been told not to return to look after him for some reason, but since then the man has asked Angie to start feeding him again. Tyler is alive and well because of Angie.

In March Angie found 3 dogs in horrible conditions. One was on a tow chain and one had a wide gaping wound at his neck. Angie stayed at the house for 3 hours waiting for someone from DAS to come see about the dogs. She has been promised faster service in these emergency cases. In May the new little black dog that lives with Peewee and Blackie was missing. The owner said he was under the house. It is believed that someone tried to steal her and she got lose and ran to hide. Angie ended up crawling under the house to get the dog with not much help from the owner and then when the dog was out safely she didn‘t even get a thank you!

Huge THANKS to donors who paid vet bills for Angie at City Vet and Mission Clinic. What a wonderful and unexpected surprise!!

Donations to: Angie‘s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 or by Paypal at www.angiesfriends.org

Spring 2011 Newsletter (printable)

SPRING 2011

Hello, dear supporters. Bet you are ready for an update of Angie’s adventures over the past few months. Included with your newsletter this time is a flyer made by a new volunteer to remind everyone of a need for all of the dogs Angie cares for this time of year and also some special needs. It appears that Honey does have a nice lady that wants to adopt her, but we still need aid to fund the heartworm treatment which has begun. Wilhelmina went for a home visit last month but that family has decided that they are not quite ready for another dog so she is still looking for her forever home.

Just before Christmas last year, Angie began feeding a beautiful Doberman Pincher she named Suzi. She called me to come see her one afternoon. Sweet Suzi did not want to get close to us but did take food and water from Angie. She then went through some thick bushes to someone’s backyard where it appeared she had been taking shelter in the thick bushes. We were hesitant to leave her as cold weather was due, and we knew she had no dog house. We sat down on the driveway of the house next door and kept calling to Suzi. She came out from the bushes and finally came and sat by us. We kept talking to her and assuring her that we wanted to help. She seemed to get very calm and let us pet her and put a rope around her neck. My vet graciously agreed to board her since I was about to leave town and Angie had a full house. Suzi’s left hind leg would not bend but stuck straight out. She had obviously learned to compensate. The doctor took x-rays and determined that the leg had been that way for years and may have even been a birth defect. There was no way to repair the leg so we were faced with the question of leaving the bum leg or amputating. The decision was made to amputate and Suzi has done very well on three legs.

Suzi’s next hurdle is heartworm treatment. She went in for an evaluation in April and the doctor found some congestion/fluid in her chest. She took meds to try to clear this up and will return for follow-up soon. Angie kept Suzi for about two months after her time at the vet’s and then in late March, I began fostering her. She has gotten along beautifully with my three dogs. She has the most incredible loving spirit. If you love big dogs, she could give you lots of love. She likes to run a little but cannot walk or run far without needing a rest. She does the cutest happy dance at meal times. She can use a dog door. She would get around easiest in a home that has carpet.

Adoptions since I last wrote include Lucas and Alexia. A ferocious little guy that Angie feeds daily went missing for a month last fall. His name is Tiny and he finally reappeared in early December. Angie was ecstatic that he had found his way home. Angie had to take at least two dogs she found wandering the streets to the city shelter in January. She just doesn’t have room for everyone she finds. She did take in Tucker, a black pit bull, in March.

Also in March, Angie was contacted by a man who lives next door to two dogs that she feeds. He said his Chow had gone after his little girl. The beautiful dog, named Kaiser, was provoked by the unattended child and did not do any harm to the child. The man felt he had no choice but to euthanize the dog!!! Sad to say, but Angie deals with many many uninformed animal owners.

Angie wants to send out a special thank you to Bob Walton at Urban Animal for all of his help in placing many puppies with Operation Kindness. Several puppies were found under a house. A dog named Sheba had a litter of 13. One died and then it appears that 2 were stolen or escaped. Angie took the 10 left (with the permission of the owner) and 5 were taken by Bob and 5 were taken by Dr. Erin Schults in Plano. There was also a sweet Dachshund/Chihuahua mix that was bloated with worms that Bob found a place for.

Sheba and Puppies

Angie’s Friends has recently received some help in updating the website. It is our hope that we can better maintain a current list of dogs available for adoption. If you are a facebook user you may like to visit the facebook page at angiesfriends.org. There is another picture of Suzi there.

Thanks so much to all of you for your continuing support. We appreciate all you do for Angie so she can continue to make life easier for so many dogs. There is a fundraiser called Four Legged Fashion which Angie is attending to show off a couple of her rescues. If you would like more information, go to www.fourleggedfashion.org.

As always, don’t forget to consider Angie’s rescues if you or someone you know is looking for a new four legged family member and thank you, thank you for your continued support!

Spring 2010 Newsletter (printable)

Spring Newsletter

A few pages from Angie’s diary:

Thursday, March 25th -- Rescued a sweet Sharpei mix that lived behind Rocco. He had been abandoned for two weeks with no food or water. He was so scared he didn’t want to come out of his dog house. His eyes were full of discharge. I took him to City Vet. They cleaned him up and said he had entropion which is an eye affliction that had caused him to be almost blind. Surgery to correct the problem would be $600.00. I named him Quinn.

Saturday, March 27th -- My friend went to the vet to take pictures and pay for Quinn’s surgery.

Monday, March 29th -- Quinn was to have surgery today but the doctor realized he was in kidney failure so the poor sweet neglected baby was euthanized. I went to check on a 4 month old black lab that had an appointment to be checked at the vet. He was found to have several fractures including a broken pelvis. His bladder was the size of a softball so he had taken him. I am devastated because I had taken care of him for a year and he was looking so healthy. I am so afraid that someone stole him to fight him. The owner got a call from the city saying that they had Tootsie but it was another dog with Tootsie’s collar.

Thursday, April 1st -- I took Rocco back to the vet to have his tumor checked. He is receiving meds to slow/stop the growth and has responded well. The tumor is inoperable. It is on his privates so he may reach a point where he will not be able to urinate.

Saturday, April 3rd – I found one of the cats that I feed near Rocco dead in the street. He was probably hit by a car.

I got a call from a lady I have helped in the past. Her dog, Kally, who is 8 years old got hit by a car and was not doing well. This poor dog had been suffering for five days before the lady called me. She had two broken legs and the bones of her feet were exposed. I took her to my vet and they said the legs would have to be amputated. Since neither the lady or I could afford the surgery and then rehab for a dog with no back legs, we let her go to heaven.

Tuesday, April 20th – I went to feed Rocco and saw that the tumor has grown so that Rocco is in pain and can barely urinate. I guess the medication is not working. I took him to the vet and they confirmed that there is nothing that can be done. My sweet Rocco who I have cared for for several years is now in heaven.

Wednesday, April 21st – One of the dogs that I check on from time to time that is heartworm positive is suffering the end stages of this deadly disease. His owners allowed me to take him to be put out of his misery.

Angie requests that the dogs she finds who must be euthanized be communally cremated when she takes them to her vet. This is the least expensive way for the dog to be humanely taken care of. If it wasn’t for Angie many of these dogs would die painful drawn out deaths because their owners simply do not care and do not recognize the expense they should be ready to take on when owning an animal.

Little Georgie, a female poodle/schnauzer mix puppy was adopted by a couple in Garland. Mason was adopted last fall. Big Walter went for a home visit last October but did not like the family cat so had to return to Angie. Some of the dogs that you have seen pictures of in the past that still need to find homes include Rosie, Ricki, and Priscilla.

Thank you so much to all of you who continue to donate time, food, supplies, and money so that Angie can continue her mission. Special thanks for continuing to donate during these rough financial times.

Please don’t forget to tell anyone you know who is looking for a dog to adopt about Angie. She has 15+ wonderful babies at her home looking for a forever home. She has several lab mix puppies that are adorable.

Donations to: Angies’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081

Fall 2018 Newsletter (printable)

ANGIE’S FRIENDS Aiding Neglected and Abused Dogs
www.Angiesfriends.org
www.Facebook.com/angiesfriendsdallas
September 2018 Newsletter

Hi! We have had several alumni updates and new adoptions since I last wrote. Ziggy, Zoey, and Emily have been adopted. Ziggy will be staying with the wonderful family that fostered him. Zoey went to live with Bianca and her family and Emily who is now Dixie went to live with Danielle.

I failed to include a picture of Jake and Honey that Joan sent prior to the last newsletter. Jake was adopted 7 years ago and Honey was adopted 6 years ago. Sage’s mom sent several new photos and says this beautiful girl is doing well. Kitrina saw the post of Sage and thought she had similar markings to her AF alum, Ike. Baby’s mom and dad sent pictures of Baby playing on the beach but unfortunately I couldn’t get a good copy to share with you.

Christmas’ family sent a new pic and we got to see Allie (formerly Mia) at a recent adoption event. Heather shared a picture of her Roxy who was adopted 2 ½ years ago and was named Sonja. Heather says Roxy sleeps in bed with her, loves the dog park and all of her many toys. She says Roxy is, “my best girl”. I bet lots of you feel this way about your pup(s). And then there is Jax who was formerly Larry—he looks happy riding with his mom.

Thank you for continuing to share your photos and follow us on Facebook. Angie has tried to help a very sick puppy she named Portia who required intensive care and still didn’t live. She was asked to help a sweet pup who was given a pork bone that got stuck in her gum. The pup could not eat or drink as a result and infection had set in by the time Angie was contacted. Angie got the pup help and the sweet baby is recovering nicely. Thank you to all of you who responded to our cries for help in meeting these unusual medical needs.

Special thanks to Margaret Bryant for donating funds from two days of photography sessions. Check out her beautiful and adorable work at www.bryantdogphotography.com. Thank you to Bettye and Jim Baker at Oak Hill Animal Rescue for continuing to help Angie with rescues from time to time. Thank you to Bob Walton, GALT, Greyhounds Unlimited and Operation Kindness for their assistance.

It’s that time of year when your gift can have more impact. For every donation of $25 or more, Angie’s Friends will get bonus funds. Please, if you are thinking about donating, September 20^th is the perfect time to do so.

You can schedule your gift ahead of time beginning September 10^th or you can wait and donate on September 20^th from 6am-12midnight. To donate go to www.northtexasgivingday.org and select the Angie’s Friends page. OR you can use https://www.northtexasgivingday.org/angies-friends. Please remind all of your doggie loving friends who might want to give as well.

We are truly grateful for all of you who donate and support Angie’s Friends!

2014 Fall Newsletter (printable)

Angie’s Friends Aiding Neglected Dogs Angiesfriends.org Fall 2014 Newsletter

Thank You
Angie is helped by so many in her efforts to save dogs and cats. Besides those of you who donate money and food, there are many who assist with adoption events, finding rescue organizations that can help, planning fund raisers, fostering, adopting and even praying. Thank you to all who help and thanks to the wonderful medical personnel that come to the aid of Angie’s rescues.

Adoptions
Boomer who is now named King found his new family at the April event at the Truck Yard. He is very happy and being thoroughly spoiled. Nips found her new home with a family with daughters who, of course, fell in love with Nips at their first meeting. Her new name is Lola.

Scooter went for a home visit in April and was adopted by a very nice lady. His new playmate is Molly. Peanut, Oscar, and Riley have found forever homes. Natasha and Daisy were accepted at Operation Kindness and they were both adopted in June.

Mocha and Tina went to great new country homes south of Waco in July. Sylvia was also adopted in July. She went to live in Portland, Oregon.

Birdie and Sierra were accepted by Operation Kindness last month. They are still available for adoption if you are interested. Both are wonderful sweet girls. Birdie had been with Angie for 4 years and Sierra was a recent owner surrender that Angie had fed for a long time.

Sweet, handsome 3-legged Brody was adopted recently. He lives with a young boy and girl their mom and grandmother. Terrier mix Spike has been adopted and so has Barry White.

Updates (We love updates on adopted babies)
You may remember Blade from last fall’s newsletter. His mom sent the following, “Pacino (aka ‘Pash’ or ‘Pish Pash’) was previously known as Blade, who many may remember due to the large, distinctive scar on his back given to him before he made his way to Angie’s rescue. He came home with us at around 6 months old, and we were a little concerned about introducing him to our already-established female pit rescue. Luckily, with some help from Dan at Dog’s Mind Training, they’ve grown to love each other like siblings and we often catch them snuggling when they think no one is looking. Pash has since grown from 20 lbs to about 80 lbs, but doesn’t know it, and has officially earned his title as resident snuggle pup/ drool master. Favorite activities include lazily galloping around the yard while barking at the world in general, laying on his back on the cool wood floors, and belly rubs all day, everyday.”

Muffin “lived” at a house that also had a bunch of German shepherds. She was not allowed in the yard and slept in an abandoned car on the street. The neighbors fed her some, but she was very malnourished. Animal control was called regarding the condition of the shepherds and the neighbors took Muffin and gave her to Angie in order to get her out of the bad situation. She was with Angie about 10 days and then went to Operation Kindness. She was adopted in August and her name is now Nicki. She has a best friend, a shih tzu named Rocky. Her coat is coming in and she is slowly getting to a healthy weight. She is cuddled all of the time, especially by the 6 year old son who loves to have her lay in his bed while he reads. New mom Lana says, “Thank you for saving her!”

Field Report
One of the dogs that Angie has fed for years, Maxwell, began coughing and having difficulty breathing in early April. Angie got him to the vet and got medication for him. He tested positive for heartworms. Four days after the trip to the vet Angie found him dead. His owner didn’t even realize the poor fellow had died. Joey and Angie had to crawl under a trailer to retrieve the sweet German shepherd’s body.

Sydney is a beautiful girl whose owner would not allow Angie to take her to be spayed. She had her third litter of pups in June and the owner agreed that Angie could have Sydney spayed finally if Angie would leave one of the pups with him. She hates doing this, but at least Sydney will have no more babies and she also has one of her kids for company.

Angie had an appointment to take Titus in to have a growth on his elbow drained, but he is a really big boy and she could not get him to jump up in her car. She could not lift him so she will reschedule when she has some help.

If you follow Angies Friends Dallas on Facebook you may have seen a story about Tyson. He either got loose from his yard or was taken. He was missing for a day or so and then when he returned he would not come out from under the house for Angie. The owners were able to keep him from going back under the house one time when he came out to eat and they found serious wounds on his neck. He had to have surgery but is now healing and doing well. We will probably never know what happened.

Angie feeds six pit bulls at one house and was informed on 9-4 that the people were being evicted. Angie got the owner to surrender two of the dogs, Jack and Baby. They will be available for adoption. One day when Angie was on her rounds she came back to her car and found the cutest little baby waiting in the car for her. Someone must have known that Angie would find the baby a good home. Her name is Tessa and she was adopted on 9-9-14.

Angie found two adorable pups that appear to be brother and sister one day recently near where she feeds some cats. She was able to get them in her car and contacted Duck Team 6 to see if they could help. DT6 was able to take them. They are two of the sweetest well-behaved puppies I have ever seen. If you want to adopt, you can contact Duck Team 6.

What’s Going on at Angie’s House?
On the afternoon of May 14th a tree in the neighbor’s yard fell into Angie’s yard. Sadly, Andy was caught under the tree and did not survive. Tyler was injured but recovered. It took several days to get the tree chopped up and cleared away. The only nice thing to come of this is that Angie’s landlord had a new deck built for her. It is much nicer than the previous one and all of the doggies seem to enjoy it very much.

Angie lost a dog she’d had for a while to old age. Charlie had been found on the streets with a very bad wound. She nursed him back to health but he was never offered for adoption because of his age.

Medical bills have been very high. Some of you may have contributed to a special fund established for Tyson. Spike had to have an eye removed as the result of being attacked by another dog. Gigi has had eye problems and there are others who have needed medical attention. We have a new rescue named Portia that will have to have an echocardiogram to determine how severe her heart murmur is. Angie and the babies will appreciate any donation you can make. If you want your money to go a little farther you may want to donate through the North Texas Giving Day event on September 18, 2014. A flyer is attached.

THANK YOU for your Support!!

Donation can be made to:
- Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, Texas 75281
- PayPal at www.angiesfriends.org
- North Texas Giving Day, September 18, 2014, 6 am – midnight at www.northtexasgivingday.org

You can follow more current news on Facebook at Angies Friends Dallas.

Fall 2013 Newsletter (printable)

Angie’s Friends Aiding Neglected and Abused Dogs Angiesfriends.org

Fall 2013 Newsletter

We got an amazing response from so many of you for the North Texas Giving Day on September 19th. This was our first year to be a part of the Donor Bridge program that adds a bonus on top of what you all contribute. We also added about eight new contributors to our wonderful supporters. THANK YOU ALL!!!!

Our Chili’s fundraiser is planned for next spring. I will keep you posted. It’s a fun way to treat yourself or family to a good meal and help raise money for the doggies.

FOLLOWUP:
I want to bring you up-to-date on some of the babies mentioned in the last letter. Little Jack who had to have one eye removed was adopted in June. Nurca is doing well and is still looking for her forever home. German shepherd mix, Sampson was adopted in May. Trampus has found a wonderful home. He received his heartworm treatment and is doing great. Crystal was taken in at Operation Kindness. Shadow has had some difficulties in his young life. He had to have hip surgery in an effort to save his left hip. He feels so good that he wants to run and chase squirrels with the other dogs, but he has to be on leash for the 8-10 week recovery period. He will go for follow-up x-rays just before Thanksgiving. He has turned into a handsome little boy.

We have heard from Henry’s mom and Frankie’s parents and the lady who adopted Cola months ago. Henry gets to spend his summers in Lake Tahoe and the winter in Phoenix! Frankie has moved to North Carolina and Cola has moved to California. Cola’s mom says,” Cola may have started out hiding behind a coca cola machine…but she is a full blown princess now”.

MORE ADOPTIONS
Thanks to Amanda and her crew of volunteers who take nine or so of Angie’s adoptables to adoption events almost every Saturday and the first Thursday of the month there have been quite a few adoptions. Tigger Tigger was adopted in August. Osa found her forever home with a family in east Dallas. Rebel went to live with his new family at the end of September.

October saw several adoptions as well. Tiny who is now Cinnamon went to live with her new doggie companion Coco and a family in Richardson. We hear all is going well. Blade was adopted and there were problems with acceptance by the other dog in the family, but a trainer has been called in for assistance as Blade’s new parents really want him to be a member of the family. He was recently featured on the AF website as the “Special of the Month”. He is a distinctive little guy because of the burn scar on his back. Juan Pablo, aka JP was adopted. Cute little Chihuahua, Sabrina, was adopted in November. Her family was so excited to get her.

SPOT and STRAYS
Spot is a stray that Angie began feeding in the last few months. He was very sociable and would run to Angie and give her kisses when he saw her arrive at the park where he hung out. Finally, one day he had his paws on the back end of the suv so Angie helped him get in. He started crying so she let him out. Later that day she went back to check on him and when he was helped into the truck; he seemed happy and willing to go with Angie. He is about two years old, has been neutered and micro chipped and is ready for a loving home. Angie says he gets along well with her other dogs.

Spot was caught during a very busy week for Angie. Besides Spot, she rescued 4 other dogs that week. Two of the dogs went to another rescue. A German shepherd puppy was very sick and was taken to the city shelter. A small Chihuahua mix that Angie named Oscar was adopted thanks to his appearance at the White Rock Market on Nov. 9th.

For some reason, Angie has had many calls for help recently. The week of November 11th when we had that cold weather blow in for a couple of days, Angie received a call from a lady who was worried about some dogs in the yard next to her. The owner had not provided shelter for the dogs and they were very skinny. Angie worked until past 7pm and climbed a fence to get the dogs houses to stay warm. She also provided straw for the houses. On November 14th we were contacted via the website about two strays in the Inwood Road/Irving Blvd area. Some workers at a business nearby had seen the extremely emaciated dogs hanging around and had given them some food and water. When they reported the dogs to the city, they were told that Dallas Animal Services is not picking up loose dogs but logs locations of reports and does a sweep of an area to pick up strays. The dogs were said to be very friendly, the female had obviously had pups recently, and the male was missing an ear. Angie went to location even though it was late in the day and she really wanted to go home. She could not find any puppies but was able to get the two dogs to go with her. We don’t know what their fate will be at Dallas Animal Services, but at least they are not starving on the street. Angie really wants to start getting home earlier in the day to give her dogs more attention. She stays tired from all that she does and worries about.

She is always telling me about things she would like to do (go to the zoo, see the Perot museum, tour Cowboy’s stadium) but she never finds time to do them. We went to the state fair several years ago and she had such a good time. Every year since she has said she wanted to go but never found or made the time. This past run of the fair she again indicated a desire to go. We made plans for the last Thursday of the fair and the weekend before she said, “I don’t think I can go. I have too much to do”. I offered to come out and help her feed so she could get done early and she said no because I would have to go back home to check on Shadow who had had hip surgery and then return to pick up Angie to go to the fair. I told her I was going to go whether she went or not so she said, “OK! I’ll get out early to feed so we can go”. It was a beautiful day to be at the fair. She didn’t eat nearly as much of the bad food as I thought she wanted to. I’m always glad when she takes some time for herself and it is rare that she does so.

Angie lost three babies—two that she fed daily and one that she has had for adoption for several years. Ramey was the sweetest tiniest little baby. She died due to owner neglect as did Sheba. Sheba was a rather rambunctious little girl who liked to jump on anyone that got close. She probably would have calmed down if her owner had spent any time at all with her. Ginger received serious bite wounds in a dog fight with the worst being a puncture of the trachea. It was determined that if she could be saved, it would be a lengthy and painful recovery. Angie made the difficult decision to release Ginger from her pain. Ginger’s appearance probably kept her from being adopted all these years that she was with Angie which is sad because she was a sweet, loving little girl. Beverly found this quote that is a very sweet thought and seems appropriate here, “It came to me that every time I lose a dog they take a piece of my heart with them. And every new dog who comes into my life, gifts me with a piece of their heart. If I live long enough, all the components of my heart will be dog, and I will become as generous and loving as they are.”

CHICKENS and CATS Angie has usually been associated with rescuing and caring for abused and neglected dogs. We feel we must let you know that she finds it impossible to not care for any animal that she sees in need. There are a bunch of free roaming chickens near a house where she feeds 3 dogs. Angie gives them some cat food and makes sure they have water to drink. She has also seen many stray cats. She has been able to capture some of them and with the help of a rescue group she has gotten them neutered/spayed. Some of the cats have been elusive so there continue to be unwanted babies. Angie gives them mostly dry cat food but a few get canned food, too, if she has it. There are just so many hungry babies out there and the area that Angie covers is really a very small part of west Dallas. Below are just a few—

Angie and I got straw in all of the dog’s houses Monday, November 11th before the cold weather arrived. Thank you MM for the bales of straw!

Blessings to you all and Happy Holidays! When you give your four legged babies a kiss or scratch or pat, say a little prayer and remember the babies that are starving, cold, mistreated or in pain. Thank you to all who help Angie!!!!

Donations to: Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 or by Paypal at www.angiesfriends.org

Fall 2012 Newsletter (printable)

Angie’s Friends Aiding Neglected Dogs Angiesfriends.org Fall 2012 Newsletter

Hello, cooler weather! Hope everyone is enjoying it. Angie has put straw in all of the dog’s houses that she cares for daily. Thank you to Maria for getting the many bales of straw for Angie’s babies! As the fall and winter go on there will be a continued need for the straw to provide insulation in the dog’s houses.

Updates on previous stories
Pixie was adopted in July by a long time AF supporter. Pixie (now called Maggie) has a new dog friend, Max, and several cat friends. Zeus spent several months in his foster home and then was adopted by a lady in Las Colinas. Angie had been wanting to visit Zeus at his foster home but never seemed to find the time. When Zeus was adopted, his new mom invited us to come see him and meet her. New mom, Sue, even fixed a delicious dinner for us! Zeus seemed happy to see Angie and she was incredibly happy to see him and how well he is doing. He has a sweet female dog friend and a cat friend at his new home.

Shelby, the German Shepherd pup was adopted by a policeman friend of Angie’s.

More Adoptions:
Geno was adopted by a nice young couple in June. They wanted a playmate for their dachshund. Peaches and Walter were taken to adoption day on July 7 and a family took a liking to Walter. On July 15 Walter went to live with his new family in Rockwall. It appears that Walter has issues with men and has not been very friendly to the dad. They are continuing to work with Walter and love him. What a wonderful family to persist in their desire to keep Walter!

Angie has rescued many dogs in the past six months. Some were taken to Dallas Animal Services and others were taken by various rescue groups. Angie still has several of them at her house awaiting adoption. A dog that Angie had fed for a long time, Princess, was relinquished to Angie by her owner because the house she was living in had been sold. Princess’ owner could not take her to the new living situation. Angie found a dog she named Gus who was taken in by Operation Kindness. Unfortunately, a worker at Operation Kindness let Gus get loose while walking him and he was never found. Angie hopes that some nice people took him in and are providing a good home for him.

In early September, Angie got a call about a dog stuck behind a soda vending machine near Kiest and Illinoise Streets. She named the 4 month old Lab mix Cola for obvious reasons. Cola was placed in a foster home which is now her permanent home! A dog you may have hard about on the news was found with a plastic bottle stuck on his head. Angie and others were able to capture him and get him medical attention. He has been taken in by a rescue group. Angie has found two dogs tied up and abandoned by their owners. She is not sure of the fate of the brown dog because he was taken to Animal Services. The German Shepherd was taken in by DAS as well, but Angie has learned that he was adopted and seems very happy in his new home.

Angie had been keeping an eye out for a stray that would not let her get close to him. She always left him food. One day in October she saw him limping. She walked to him and he lay down and let her pet him. She saw blood and his right hind leg was swollen. He had a bite wound that caused the swelling of the leg. She did not have room to take him in but knew that she was going to adopt out a dog the next week. I took him to my vet for treatment and boarding. Angie named him Milo. After a week at the vets, he went to Angie's and then was accepted by Operation Kindness. He was adopted on October 30th. He has a very sweet temperament - just wants to be loved.

Tippy, a female Corgi/Chihuahua mix was adopted by a family in Frisco on 11-10-12. Mona was adopted on 11-12-12 by a retired couple in East Dallas. She has a new friend named Hudson. An English Bull Dog named Cowboy was surrendered to Angie by his owners and has been adopted by Angie’s nephew.

Angie’s Friends received a wonderful donation from the brother of a long time friend of Angie. It is a 2000 Chevy suburban. It has been meticulously maintained and allows her to have a vehicle with a little more room for transporting food, cages, dogs, etc. She still has her other SUV which must have a new battery soon. As long as she can pay the insurance for both vehicles, it will be nice for her to have a backup car.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! to all of the wonderful supporters for all you do to help Angie and the babies. Angie is currently feeding 28 dogs every day. These dogs have owners who refuse to give them the care and attention they need. She also has 30 or so dogs at her home.

Donations to: Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 or by Paypal at www.angiesfriends.org.

Blessings to you all--

Fall 2011 Newsletter (printable)

Fall 2011

Hi, all! Hope you are enjoying this cooler weather. I know Angie and the pups are glad to be done with 100+ temperatures for a while. During the heat spell, Angie was diligent about trying to keep all of the dogs as cool as possible. Besides providing plenty of water some days she would put ice in their water, wet down the ground for them and even wet down some of the dogs who seemed to like it.

Good news first: Not sure why but there have been more adoptions than usual recently. Bosky went to live with a friend of Angie’s. Gray was adopted by a family with 3 girls and another wonderful dog. Wilhelmina found a home in the country where she has lots of room to run and enjoys watching cows. Honey has been adopted into a great home, too. Samantha was adopted by Beverly, our treasurer. She has made a good playmate for Wally. At last report, I was fostering Suzi, but she is now a permanent member of the family. She loves to play with Opie who was also a foster at one time. It’s pretty cute to watch them because there is a huge size difference!

Unfortunately there is sad news, too: One of the dogs that Angie fed daily escaped during a thunderstorm. He was picked up by Dallas Animal Services in very bad shape. It appeared that he had been in a fight and his injuries were so bad that Angie and the owner took him to be put to sleep. Another dog that Angie cared for was let loose by his owner and ran off. We went to look for him at DAS, but he was not there. He has not been found. One of Angie’s personal dogs, Jason, developed a cancer in his chest that was inoperable. Jason used to ride with Angie on her rounds and is sorely missed.

On Labor Day, Angie was making her rounds and noticed a loose guard dog outside a manufacturing business in west Dallas. There was no one around because of the holiday. The dog, a huge Rottweiler, looked hungry and thirsty. Angie was reluctant to get out of her car because she did not know how aggressive the dog might be. However, she did stop and in the process of getting water for the dog saw that someone had left the padlock on the gate to the business unlocked. She was able to get the dog back inside without getting hurt, leaving food and water for it. Beverly reported this to me and wondered who but Angie would take the chance to care for this dog and how many people had driven by and seen it and not stopped or cared to help?

Angie is well known in the neighborhoods where she goes each day to help animals. While she helps chained and neglected animals – she also helps other pets whose owners seek her out when they see her on her daily rounds. She gets requests from people that do not have the resources or interest to take their pet to a veterinarian but who will approach Angie to ask for advice or assistance. Sometimes the owners need shelter for their pet and Angie may be able to provide a used dog house that someone has given her. Some need vaccinations for their dogs and Angie can give anything except rabies [which by law must be administered by a vet]. She can worm pups and give their first set of shots. She tries to determine if an animal is suffering to the point that it must be seen by a veterinarian or if it may be okay with other remedies that she suggests.

Angie is instrumental in getting animals in the West Dallas area spayed or neutered through a free program for people in low income areas. Though it is free, the program does require that an appointment be made and paperwork filled out and signed by the owner. The pet must be picked up very early at its home and transported to a clinic by 7:00 a.m. the day of surgery - then picked up from the clinic late that afternoon to be returned home after surgery. As the spay or neuter would not happen if she did not see to it – Angie is the one that handles all of the above. She does not need more kittens and puppies to take care of and though there is always a steady supply of them, without her efforts it would be even worse.

People at the vet clinics and at Dallas Animal Services see what Angie does – what she is up against and the animals she helps – and they frequently express how much they appreciate her and her work. We appreciate so much the help that supporters send to Angie’s Friends because this enables Angie to continue to help these deserving animals.

The Angie’s Friends website has not received the attention it needs. A lady has offered to assist in keeping it more current but thus far no changes have been made. I guess I need to get some lessons from my nephew and make an attempt to do this. I’m sure it would help with adoptions. I have done these newsletters to try to keep our faithful contributors aware of what’s going on with Angie and efforts to care for and find homes for strays. It seems like there is always so much sad news, but I don’t report nearly as much as I could. Angie deals with horrible situations all of the time. If you have suggestions for how I can make this more appealing or helpful to you, feel free to email me at nina.lynn@att.net or write to the address on the envelope.

Angie faces so many obstacles and atrocities on a weekly basis. As Beverly recently said, “I am just so proud to even know her.” We truly appreciate all of the contributions that keep Angie’s Friends going.

We almost lost our dear Angie recently. She was standing next to her car with the back door open to get food for one of the dogs and someone hit the open door just barely missing her. The car was in the shop for 3 weeks for repairs and the man that hit her had no insurance or driver’s license. Angie’s guardian angel was looking out for her!

As always, there is a hefty vet bill still. Your gifts will continue to allow Angie to buy food and medicine for the babies, and this winter she will be able to buy straw to put in dog houses. Just can’t say thank you enough. The need never ends.

There were inquiries made by two families about Walter (on the left), but he remains available for adoption. In the middle is Scooter who still needs a loving home. There was some interest in Frankie (on the right) but he continues to wait for his forever home. All three of these guys are sweet playful babies who would just love a chance to show you what great companions they can be.

Birdie, a three-year-old Retriever mix and Peaches, a two-year-old terrier mix are very affectionate and also need good homes. Peaches is a much happier dog than she appears in the picture. Donations to: Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 www.angiesfriends.org May you all be blessed.

Fall 2010 Newsletter (printable)

November 2010

Dear Friends, Supporters, and generous Contributors,

The past few months have brought some difficult times for Angie. In July she lost a long time friend to cancer. He had taken in many rescues for Angie and so she had to find homes for 11 dogs that would no longer have a care giver. Angie found homes for all except Reese who is now living with Angie. Reese is a sweet 8 year old Lab mix who prefers being an indoor pooch and is house trained. Unfortunately he gets very jealous of other dogs. If you know of someone who only wants one sweet companion, Angie would still like to place him in a good home.

Katie was one of the dogs who were successfully placed. She is living with a wonderful family in the country in Ennis. She has a lab puppy for a playmate.

Angie lost one of her personal dogs, Tigger, in July. She had raised Tigger from a puppy. He had severe hip problems as the result of being abused prior to coming to live with Angie. This caused him to kind of hop rather than walk. He did not let his disability get him down and had a good life with Angie. Some of you may recognize Tigger as one of the dogs in the picture with Angie that was used when she received the Kindness Award from Operation Kindness.

Some of the recent adoptions that have occurred include Copper, Bailey, Samson, Sonia, Maya, and Duchess. Nicholas, a Border collie mix was adopted last month and lives on a 150 acre farm. He took to his new parents quickly and will have lots of room to run and play. Sassy, a boxer mix, was also adopted the end of October by a lady who has 5 children. Sassy seems quite happy with all of the attention she is getting.

MORE STORIES WITH HAPPY ENDINGS: One day while on her rounds to feed in west Dallas, Angie came upon a black Scottish terrier who was extremely matted. The little guy came to her without hesitation and she took him to her vet to be looked over. As it turns out, the dog was micro chipped. Angie called the phone number she was given and talked to the owner in Oklahoma City. The dog had been missing for 3 years! The man drove immediately to Dallas to get the dog who is a special friend to the man’s daughter. If only the little terrier could talk to us and relate his incredible story.

Ya’ll probably think that Angie only rescues dogs. Well, one day she realized that there was a chicken living in some bushes on a vacant lot across from one of the dogs she tends to. She started feeding the chicken and named her Lucy. Angie contacted a friend who has an animal sanctuary and agreed to take Lucy if Angie could catch her. After a few unsuccessful tries, Lucy was captured in September and taken to her new home.

I talk to Angie at least once a week and she always has another story about some poor dog she has seen roaming the streets. She cannot take them all in. She did rescue Lucas who was dumped by his owner and chased the fleeing truck of the owner for many blocks. She found a Greyhound with a belt for a collar wandering one day and was able to place him with a Greyhound rescue group. I can’t say enough thanks to all of the people who help Angie in her mission to save and care for so many babies. Please have a blessed holiday season and remember Angie’s Friends in your gifts if at all possible. Thank you!

Donations to: Angie’s Friends, 1208 Richland Oaks, Richardson, TX 75081 www.angiesfriends.org