2016 Holiday Letter
“If dogs don’t go to heaven, I want to go where they go.” – Will Rogers
Dear Golden Bond Rescue Supporters,
Now that the turmoil of the Presidential election is finally over, we can get down to what’s really important: saving dogs, specifically golden retrievers and golden mixes; and, unlike politicians, you know the adoration and love seen in a golden’s eyes can be taken to the bank!
Your very generous 2015 donations allowed GBR to rescue all the “local” goldens who came our way (51) but also 31 goldens from Taiwan and another 36 goldens from China. Although this Holiday Letter will not focus on the China dogs, we do want to tell you that 100% of the 36 China goldens were rescued from various dog meat slaughterhouses or from restaurants serving dog meat. Overall, the per dog expense average remained around $600, although this figure does not include the few high expense dogs, e.g., orthopedic surgery, eye surgery, allergy care, etc.
To date, this year has seen a huge upswing in senior (8+ years old) goldens being relinquished by their owners or rescued from the streets as strays. The reasons for the owner surrenders ranged from “…moving and can’t take the dog with us” to “our golden has severe health issues and we can’t pay for it.” GBR’s rescue mission mandates that we will never turn a golden down because of its age or health. A golden in-need is a golden in-need whether it’s 4 months old or 14 years old, whether it only needs a distemper booster or needs supportive end-of-life care.
As in past years’ letters, we have a few stories to share with you, and though this year’s letter is primarily dedicated to our senior goldens, we do want you to know the story of a rescue who’s at the other end of the age spectrum – remarkable Jane, a two-month old golden found as a stray. We’re also going to share with you the stories of three of the many, many seniors we took in this past year: Jameson, Shilo and Toby.
“Now onto our Seniors!”
The main purpose of our annual Holiday Letter comes down simply to this: if you value golden retrievers and the work that Golden Bond Rescue does in putting them right and finding the families that will be their forever homes, please be as generous as you can. As you consider our request, please ponder these wise words uttered by Groucho Marx: “Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read.” As true today as it was back then!
We thank you so much in advance for your continued support, and as always, we remain convinced that golden retriever lovers, especially supporters of Golden Bond Rescue, are among the very best people that humankind has to offer.
Have a happy and safe holiday season and remember: your special dog friends deserve a visit from Santa as well.
Golden Bond Rescue
How you can donate:
- You can send us a check using this printable donation form: click here for Holiday Letter Donation Form. Our address is: P.O. Box 25391, Portland, OR 97298. The mailing address is on the form as well.
- Use our Donate Now button located on our Home page or use this link: DONATE NOW. With this link you may use either PayPal or your credit card.