Colorado welcomes canine refugees

Families will care for dogs that fled California wildfires

By Hector Gutierrez, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Somewhere in Southern California this fall, Sonny and Cher brought a pup into the world.

The birth to the two mixed papillons occurred just before last month's wildfires devoured much of the southern part of the state.

Their owners, like so many others who were devastated and heartbroken by the loss of their homes, surrendered their pets to animal shelters because they were no longer able to care for them or were not allowed to bring them to their temporary homes.

Rescue groups in Colorado and elsewhere quickly responded to a cry for help from Southern California animal shelters.

Animal House Rescue in Fort Collins and Denkai Animal Sanctuary in Carr, which is just a few miles south of the Wyoming line, went to work with MuttShack, a California-based animal rescue group, to relocate to Colorado Sonny and Cher, their puppy and 63 other dogs.

The same groups had come through with help after Hurricane Katrina.

The animals arrived this weekend in a 16-seat passenger van after their bus broke down.

On Monday, volunteers set up a temporary shelter at a Loveland warehouse where "foster" families could pick up the dogs.

After the dogs had been stuck in kennels for more than 20 hours, most volunteers and the public could excuse the excited barking. Some dogs appeared emaciated, and others had touches of kennel cough, an upper respiratory ailment that generally isn't serious if treated.

Shanel Cass, an Animal House volunteer, said the rescue organizations wanted to place the dogs under foster care before putting them up for adoption to see how well they adapt after the stress of the last month.

"That's why they're going into foster care so they'll get that tender loving care that they need," Cass said.

As of late Monday, 26 dogs had found temporary homes, said Ali Eccleston, Animal House shelter manager.

Among the foster parents were Steven and Cheryl Littlefield and their 11-year-old son, Joshua. The family agreed to take in an Australian shepherd mix, which will join their yellow Labrador.

"I'm a sucker," Steven Littlefield said. "They've all been cooped up for who knows how long since those fires."

Dhipanee and Randy Mayes and their three children decided to take custody of Sonny. They were aware they would be separating a tight-knit family; Cher is Sonny's sister, making the puppy both his offspring and nephew.

But everyone is confident all 66 dogs will find new families.

Needing a foster home

SUNNY, TERRIER MIX

* Age: About a year and a half old

* His story: He was placed in an animal shelter after a wildfire in San Diego destroyed his owner's home. The owner, a single mother, could no longer provide a home for her dog, volunteers said.

NO NAME PROVIDED, PAPILLON MIX

* A.K.A.: Known by volunteers as the "Son of Sonny and Cher," a pair of dogs also relocated to Colorado for adoption.

* Age: About 6 weeks old

* His story: Volunteers think the trio may have been left in an East Los Angeles shelter prior to the fires and were squeezed out when other animals arrived and overwhelmed the facility.

NO NAME PROVIDED, ST. BERNARD MIX

* Age: About 12 weeks old

* Her story: Her owner placed her in an animal shelter south of Los Angeles with her entire litter during the fires.

To help To provide foster care call the Animal House at 970-224-3647 or the Denkai Animal Sanctuary at 970-897-3122. Photographs of the dogs should appear soon on rescue group Web sites: animalhousehelp.org and denkaisanctuary.org.