Update 7/19/09

What an exciting and emotional weekend! 

Every pet featured on this page found a new home. Our volunteers were exhausted but elated. So we'll definitely be heading back north again soon. With so many pets needing homes, how could we not?

Consider sponsoring a dog for a future trip. We'll send you the photo and story of your very own rescued pup.

Many thanks for supporting the animals in this endeavor!

                                                 SUCCESS!!!



Our recent trip to Connecticut was tremendously rewarding. We transported 125 dogs and 15 cats by van, truck and trailer, to North Haven, Connecticut, hoping new families awaited all of them. The adoption event, sponsored by the SPCA of Connecticut, featured nearly 400 animals.

Excited adopters waited in line for hours to adopt these lucky pets. In the end, 136 lucky Walton County animals were placed in loving homes. A total of 350 pets were adopted during the weekend - animals from both Georgia and Connecticut rescues. Our few remaining dogs returned with us and are back to their Georgia foster homes. We believe their new homes will come soon.  


As the saying goes, success comes at a price. Rescuing hundreds of dogs is a financial challenge. But we also believe the hearts of animal lovers are large.
 
Your generosity starts an animal on their way to a new home and family, whether your donation is $1, $5 or $20. A gift of $100 saves their life.  Please help us with this journey.
 
Donate via PayPal or send your donations to WAG, PO Box 169, Monroe, GA  30655. WAG is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and your donations are tax-deductible. Specify your donation to "Operation Homeward Bound."

                                                   

 
In case you're wondering..


Why take the dogs to Connecticut?  Unlike Georgia, Connecticut and other northeastern states have mandatory animal registration laws and strong spay/neuter compliance. Stray dogs and unwanted litters of puppies are not as common as in our state. Because of the lack of puppies and certain types of dogs, many humane agencies in northern states have started partnering with their southern counterparts to bring animals for special adoption promotions. 

The public has responded enthusiastically to these events. People wait in line several hours for the opportunity to adopt these fortunate pets. While that's hard for us to imagine, it's a stroke of luck for our homeless dogs. Prospective owners spend weeks eyeing the pet photos on websites and cross their fingers in hope of adopting that one special dog.

Both Georgia and Connecticut homeless pets benefit from these highly publicized events. Heavy television and media coverage brings the public out in large numbers, giving all the featured animals a better chance of adoption.  

Can't we find homes for them here?  Unfortunately, not in these numbers. In the first six months of 2008 we rescued 42 animals from the shelter. This year during the same time period we rescued over 145 dogs and cats. Clearly, participation greatly increases our ability to save Walton's homeless pets. 





                                   Here's Another Reason We Do This.

                                   

Schatzi, a bouncy Sharpei mix, was turned into the Walton County shelter in September, 2008. We thought she was cute—surely she would find a home quickly. We were wrong.

Schatzi spent several months post-rescue battling a stomach bug. When she finally recuperated and went to adoption events, nobody noticed. She sat quietly in the pens watching people pass by her. Nobody asked to see her or expressed any interest in this sweet girl.

Months went by and Schatzi lived alone in her kennel. Lots of rescued dogs came and went on to new homes, but not Schatzi. So we decided to take her to the Connecticut adoption event. Maybe she’d finally find her own someone special to love.

But Day One at the Connecticut adoption started the same way. Schatzi wagged her tail hopefully as people passed her cage, but no one stopped. Same thing on Day Two. Our hearts ached for this loving dog.

Then on Day Three it happened. A little boy spotted Schatzi and put his fingers through the pen. She gave him a tentative lick. “She looks like Scooby-Doo,” he squealed. His parents weren’t impressed and tried to interest him in other dogs. But four-year old Dylan knew.

As soon as Schatzi came out of the pen to visit with Dylan, he threw his arms around her. “This is MY dog,” he said proudly to anyone who’d listen. As the happy dog snuggled next to him, the bond was immediate and obvious—even to his parents. A life lesson in love was beginning.

And finally, after ten long months, Schatzi was going HOME.