the rescue of cherry                                                              march  2011

Cherry's cries were heard at last by someone who cared

Someone who went day after day to befriend and comfort her.  Someone who was there for her when she was left behind. Someone who kept her out of a pound prison cell to be sold to anyone who paid for her, someone who kept her from being taken to an SPCA where she would be  “adopted” out with  very little screening, no home checks, and no follow-up.  Someone who feared all that for her and made sure that never again would Nova be at the mercy of an abuser.  Dog-lovers owe a large debt of gratitude to rescuers who make sure dogs don’t end up in cells at a pound or SPCA where they can be killed if they are deemed—by the pound or by the SPCA—as “unadoptable” and killed. 

A moment before the photo of Cherry on her back was taken, she was  grinning from ear to ear and galloping up to the kind person who had heard her crying so many times, night and day, winter and summer and had come to touch her and tell her what a  dear girl she is. She was suddenly jerked onto her back when her tether ran out. "UNCHAIN OUR FRIENDS" is the AAS letters and video campaign that showed many dogs who the SPCA had ignored — or worse — had actually given instructions to owners that the dog continue to be chained!  That successful AAS campaign was quickly followed by the BC SPCA issuing a press release,  printed in many BC newspapers, which sounded to many people that the SPCA  meant it was going to finally use the law it's had for twenty years, to take action for yard dogs - those poor dogs who live helpless lives of miserable neglect, cruelty, and (illegal) distress all over BC, who AAS is told of so often. The SPCA made that announcement in September 2009 in Prince George BC within weeks of the release of AAS's campaign and video.  Yet to this date, AAS continues to get reports of sick, cold, lonely chained dogs from all over BC and even from Prince George. Like Cherry.  That campaign’s video, photos, and amazing letters from animal-lovers is at animaladvocates.com/unchain.

 Cherry was rescued, her eye operated on and found a family who loved her as dogs deserve to be loved.