

	'Tude NewsSeptember 2008

Introducing New Rattitude, Inc.
Giving rescued ratties a whole new point of view!

A new national rescue group for Rat Terriers was launched in early August, 2008, to help serve the Rat Terrier community! New Rattitude was incorporated August 4, 2008, as a non-profit charity, and in just a little more than a month has already built a membership of over 50 volunteers, all dedicated to helping desperate dogs find safety, health, and a whole new "Rattitude" toward life.

Our members work collaboratively with others in the rescue community to save abandoned, abused, neglected, sick, or unwanted Rat Terriers (and RT mixes). We provide temporary living environments for them while we seek new and permanent adoptive homes where they will be safe, loved, and properly and humanely cared for the rest of their lives. While in fostercare, these rescued dogs are nurtured, socialized, supported medically, provided with professional veterinary care, and trained to become great, adoptable household pets.

Our website (www.NewRattitude.org) is still in development, as are many of our processes, but we and our members are enthused and eager to share our energy and good spirits with Rat Terrier lovers around the country. We welcome new members! Please email Volunteer@NewRattitude.org to let us know of your interest.

Meet The New Rattitude Dogs!
Click here to see photos and read the stories of each of our dogs.

Image: Courtesy of New Rattitude, Inc. Rat Terrier Rescue

NR Board of Directors
Progress Report

The founding Directors of New Rattitude have been working daily since mid-July, 2008, to get the organization up and running effectively. During July, the focus was on setting up the initial Board of Directors, deciding on a name for the group, and determining a plan of action for how to get ourselves underway.

In early August, our main thrust was on incorporating, including writing and filing the Articles of Incorporation, then finalizing the corporate bylaws, establishing our website domain names, and beginning to assemble the voluminous application for seeking non-profit charity (501(c)3) status. By mid-month we were able to file the 501(c)3 application and then moved on to deciding on some initial policies. We agreed to proceed with a microchip and ID tag program for all of our dogs, and established a toll-free number for a Lost Dog hotline that could be printed on the ID tags. We rented PO boxes for our official mailing addresses, and established a conference calls account for Board meetings. On August 27, we held our first Board meeting via telephone conference call.

In August we also started setting up AdoptAPet (formerly 1800SaveAPet) and Petfinder accounts to enable on-line publicity for the dogs our fosterhomes had started to rescue. Because of the sign-up requirements of those organizations, this has been a lengthy process, but as of mid-September we have established four regional Petfinder sites (Southwest, Northwest, Midwest, and Southeast) as well as AdoptAPet Chapters in the six states where we currently have foster dogs. And none too soon, because by September 9, we have rescued 19 needy dogs!

Finances had been a concern from the beginning, since we had no start-up funds. But four members stepped forward with offers of loans, secured by Promissory Notes, to be repaid in 6-12 months. Other members offered donations. And others began planning for grant-writing and fund-raising efforts. We established accounts for GoodSearch, GoodShop, and IGive to start the fund-raising efforts. Sue Kangas, our Acting Treasurer, set up a checking account and Paypal account to enable us to start receiving funds. And that enabled us to set up "Donate" buttons on our Petfinder and AdoptAPet home pages. Collectively, these steps gave us the seed money needed to confidently proceed with the job of getting established.

To ensure all legal requirements were met, we applied for a Georgia Shelter license through the Georgia Department of Agriculture, which has strict recordkeeping, animal handling, and procedural requirements. Our inspection and approval took place at the beginning of September, so we now have official shelter status, and we expect that municipalities in other states will recognize New Rattitude's Georgia license, making it easier for us to do business around the country.

Throughout, we have continued to build membership. When we learned of people interested in joining our efforts, we communicated with them individually to explain our mission and our dedication to a positive, collaborative approach to Rat Terrier rescue. As the group grew, we began assembling teams for Fund-raising, grant-writing, adoption processing, "Urgent" dogs, etc., and established a State Coordinator Manager and Volunteer Manager to help keep the membership involved and productive.

September has proved to be just as busy and productive as August, if not more so. We settled on a webhost and are actively building the website content. We established email addresses for our various Teams, and also established our logo. A new shelter management software program was evaluated and adopted, and we've begun to personalize it for our specific needs. We have continued to work on policies and on developing forms and files for our various procedures.

Best of all, our Adoption team is hard at work processing several adoption applications for our foster dogs, and we have high hopes that we will soon be posting "ADOPTED!" beside their profiles on our websites.

Over the next months, the Board will continue to work on establishing policies and procedures, publishing a Volunteer Handbook, setting up PetSmart partnerships, finalizing details on our "ReHome" program for owner surrenders, unveiling our fantastic new website, and kicking off a comprehensive fund-raising plan. We also hope to get confirmation soon that our 501(c)3 application has been accepted.

It is truly an exciting time, and we are feeling good from our heads to our toes!

Georgia Puppy Mill Rescue

Late in June when Terry Beale was first contacted by Atlanta's Lifeline Animal Project about four rat terriers saved from a rural Georgia puppy mill, we had nowhere for them to go. Terry assured Lifeline, however, that the four would be placed on "our list" until either we were able to take them in, or they no longer needed a place to go. It took nearly a month and a half, but on August 12, Terry was able to go and evaluate the four...with space to bring one of them home.

"I got to see all four together in the small yard. This was the first time that they were let to have 'free time' with the others, to see their reactions. The four all did really great with each other, but the three boys were all extremely skittish and wary, avoiding humans at all cost. I'd been told one was a fear biter, one was ultra-chicken, and the oldest was completely un-housetrained and un-crate trained. The female was much less scared and skittish, but she was over-the-top hyperactive...not surprising, I guess, since she'd been crated alone for so long and surely just wanted her freedom."

Terry decided to take Jordache, the one described as a fear biter, much to the surprise of the shelter workers because they considered him the most volatile of the four. But something about the way he would run around, then hunker down, staying out of reach of the humans, but not totally as far away as he could get, seemed promising to Terry. "And I liked the way he really looked at me."

So Jordache found his place and chance for a new rattitude, but what of the other three? Per Terry's evaluation, one male dog, Chevy, was quite shy. He didn't run from her, but preferred to be back along the wall and was wary of everything going on around him. Dodge, the other male was also very skittish and had some skin/fur issues, probably from having to lie in his own urine at the puppy mill. The female, Jewel, was active and playful, and had no problem approaching people, even those she didn't know. All three seemed to have potential for socialization and didn't appear to have been abused, just very, very sheltered and neglected. It was hard to leave them behind.

"It was amazing and awesome and totally emotional when Connie (Hendsbee) said to send them all three to her. Getting them to Florida presented some challenges because our new group wasn't really 'in the public eye' yet. But we were able to find another rescue transport going through Atlanta, down most of the way, and we were able to merge the two transports together to help each other."

So Terry, four days later on August 16, went to pull the remaining three puppy mill dogs from Lifeline. She then drove to N. Atlanta to meet with a Papillon transport and took all the dogs down to the south side to meet NR volunteer Patti Jeffries. Patti drove them to LaGrange to meet another NR transporter, Sharon Smith, who drove them to Tifton to meet one of the Papillon transport drivers.

Sharon reported, "It was grand! I love transporting! It's the best warm fuzzy in the world, knowing they're 'riding' to a much better life. I offered everyone bites of organic cookies and Jewel played with hers in her crate for a good 10 minutes before she ate it! It was so cute! The little boy who is just bones acted hungry and ate two cookies. The other boy who's so scared he will not even look at you, wouldn't eat his cookie or even acknowledge it. They are all beautiful dogs, very sweet, and will be just fine with some good food and TLC."

The Papillon transport driver took them to Gainesville and handed the ratties off to a former rat terrier adopter who drove them to meet Connie. Connie drove them home to Sebastian, FL, arriving very late that night.

Connie told us, "I got home at midnight and opened the crates. The boys immediately pooped on the floor and before I could stop her, my granddaughter opened the door to the yard. It took 40 minutes to get the skinny guy back in the house, and we accomplished that by throwing kibble nearer and nearer the door, then inside, then deep inside. We corralled them and got them inside their crates with food and water. The girl is a hoot! She's on overdrive but sweet as can be. Luckily it was a full moon so we could watch them race around (outside). These kids are so non-threatening that even my bossy Daisy didn't get her hair up."

The weeks since these four little refugees have been in their foster homes have offered many learning experiences and challenges for both the dogs and their foster families. Each dog brought with them their own little bundle of troubles, that "baggage" one so often hears mentioned when the subject is rescue dogs. Jordache is afraid to go through doorways. He likes to be in the house, and he likes to be outside, but it's the middle part that's hard. For a week, he wouldn't eat anything if Terry was watching. He wouldn't take the tastiest treat from her hand and if she tossed it to him, he ran from it. Connie's boys also had issues with accepting treats, and all three were still extremely skittish, unwilling to approach a human, and uncomfortable being handled. Jordache seemed to want to come to Terry, but was having trouble getting up his nerve. Dodge, though needing to keep one of Connie's family in sight at all times, still would run if approached. And of Chevy, Connie said, "He seems so withdrawn, as if he's somewhere deep inside himself. He doesn't run from people the way Dodge does, and he doesn't startle easily. He just is not present."

Small successes are being realized however. Small changes that most of us would barely notice with our 'normal' dogs. On September 6, Terry wrote, "Jordache is doing really well. He is still extremely scared of (my husband) Gary, but he does let Gary sit by him on the couch now without running away in fear. And he has made great progress with me. Yesterday he was outside and I called him, and he came bounding across the yard right to me and took a treat from my hand. That is HUGE. It is taking him less and less time to get up the courage to come in the house when everyone else goes in. He loves the other dogs, particularly our personal dog Niki, and he will go to them and sit beside them and lean on them."

Please visit the ImageEvent albums for Jordache, Chevy, Dodge and Jewel to see more photos, read more about them, and to follow their individual journeys as they prepare for a new life in a home of their own.

Adopted!

Yeah! We can say it now...Our first two New Rattitude dogs have gone home! Congratulations to the Dale Kennedy family who have adopted the puppy Remington, and the Jennifer Kallisti family who have adopted Bridgette!

Both families live in Yelm, WA. In fact, both families share the same home, which is divided like a duplex, together, but separate. Jennifer is Dale's fiance. Bridgette and Remington will be able to see lots of each other, although they will have different schedules since Dale works nights and Jennifer works days.

Remington, just 12 weeks old, was rescued from a kill shelter in McKinney, TX when his time was up. Bridgette, a year old, also came from a kill shelter in Cedar Hill, TX, where she was an adoption return for being too hyper and running way. Both were pulled by Jodi Cotner and flown via Alaska Airlines to Washington on August 27. Bridgette was fostered by Mary Kay Jurovcik, and Remington by WA/TX State Coordinator, Kathy Young.

What a happy ending for Bridgette and Remington!

NR Volunteer Spotlight

"Put me to work!" Meet Paula Nowak, one of New Rattitude's most dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers! Paula is the State Coordinator for Georgia, heading up a very strong and effective team of foster moms and dads, shelter surfers and transporters in that state. She is a transport coordinator as well, and a member of the applications team with experience as both application and home visit coordinator. Paula also brings to NR her experience with the PetSmart Adoption Partnership, a wonderful program for raising awareness about our rescue and our dogs, and for raising money too. And of course, Paula is a foster mom.

In her spare time, Paula is sort of the unofficial manager of the NR volunteer "help desk." Got a question? She is usually the first to respond, and usually so fast that her reply appears at the same time as your question! She may be psychic too. Mention the need for a spreadsheet or database, and Paula will have it set up within minutes. Recruiting is another talent. As an active member of most of the online rat terrier forums, her infectious enthusiasm and passion for rescue has inspired many members of those communities to become involved, to volunteer, to help with a home visit or transport, or to chip in when special funds are needed.

Terry B, who has been Paula's friend and mentor throughout her involvement in rescue, says, "She really is amazing. Always so upbeat and enthused. She is truly one of those nice people...She is genuine and you can trust what she says."

Paula and her husband Buddy live in Sugar Hill, Georgia where she works full time as an Admin Manager. They have been fostering rat terriers since the spring of 2007. They also have five personal dogs of their own. New Rattitude is so very fortunate to have Paula on our team...from all of us, and all the ratties, a huge thank you, Paula, for all that you do!

Want To Get Involved?

Volunteer participation is critical to our success and our ability to save dogs. New Rattitude has many volunteer opportunities and ways that you can participate that involve as little or as much time as you wish to contribute: Fostering, either short or long term, transporting, adoption screening and processing, fundraising, organizational tasks, shelter monitoring, public relations, newsletter, special events, recruiting and more. As a member of our team, you will always be treated with respect and your contributions appreciated. Volunteer education and training is ongoing, and support and advice willingly shared.

If you are interested in joining our team, or finding out more about what you can do to help, send us an email to newrattitude@comcast.net. Tell us what your interests are and we will write you back with more info.

We make a living by what we do, but
we make a life by what we give.

~Winston Churchill

Our First NR Fundraiser!

New Rattitude has teamed up with The Uncommon Garden, a web business and also a boutique located in Hermitage TN. You can purchase from their wonderful collection of scented candles, personalized note cards and even personalized dog towels for that pampered pooch in your life! All of your purchases, through our special site, raise funds we will use directly to save dogs!

Use the link below to visit our special website:
New Rattitude Fundraiser
Purchase candles and note cards for your home, or holiday, birthday and thank you gifts, and our foster dogs will benefit! In addition, we have a very special note card available featuring Adam, our group�s first rat terrier foster dog. All the note cards will be personalized with your name, or to use the cards for special occasions, you may choose to have �Happy Birthday� or �Thank you� imprinted.

This fundraiser only runs September 15th through October 13th, so please visit the site as soon as possible and pass this link along to your friends and family! The more people who visit and purchase, the more dogs we can save.

If you have any questions, I would be happy to help: contact Levecke at leveckemas@yahoo.com.
Thank you so much for your support!

Other Ways to Contribute
We appreciate your support!

Our volunteers are working hard to make a difference in the lives of needy Rat Terriers across the country. Unfortunately, our resources don't cover all of the needs that we see on a daily basis. Here are some ways you can help:

Donate

Cash donations go directly to pay for veterinary expenses for our rescued dogs, including vaccinations, heartworm testing and treatment, spay/neuters, antibiotics to fight infections, etc. Since we are an all-volunteer organization with virtually no overhead, 100% of your donation goes directly to care for the dogs. To donate, send check or money order to: New Rattitude, PO Box 14064, Lansing, MI 48901. Or donate via Paypal by sending a payment to: treasurer@newrattitude.org

GoodSearch/GoodShop

What if New Rattitude earned a penny every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our cause? Well, now it can!

GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up! Just go to www.goodsearch.com and be sure to enter New Rattitude as the charity you want to support. And, be sure to spread the word!

GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 37 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you�ll be supporting New Rattitude as your chosen cause.