January Transport from Murcia to California!

G.R.I.N. is happy to announce that arrangements have been made with Tina Solerna of Galgos del Sol and Char del Rio of 112carlotagalgos to bring these two little beauties to the U.S. January 2012. Thanks to Char who will make the journey with the girls they now have a life of love and care forever. Adopters Darla and Stephanie of California are anxiously awaiting the two. Telma and Mike Shaw along with the adopters, will be meeting the girls at the San Diego airport to welcome them all to the U.S. We are so happy that their lives were saved from the pain of abuse and abandonement. Zoe was featured on a recent GRIN article as the Mamma Galga with Pups and Luna the little Podenca pup was recently rescued from some cruel people. She had her eye gouged out. She is better now but is still fighting the trauma and is fearful of being outside of the foster home for good reason. She is making progress each day in Tinas care. Thank you Tina and Char for helping these two into their forever home together!  

UPDATE: Here's a video showing more of Zoe's story!

Emergency Assistance Fund Helps Reka

 

 Reka the galga has been rescued by Association Gran Familia in Sevilla. She was found wandering in a lamentable state with open festering wounds, internal hemorage and bodily injuries. She was ready to give up. Luckily she was brought to the shelter in time. G.R.I.N. has donated our November E.A.F. (Emergency Assitance Fund) to help Reka's recovery. She is one of many who need our help, and we thank our donors for their contributions that help us help a shelter that needs the funds for her surgeries, and post operative care.  They say that even with all the pain she has suffered, she is a love of a galga and wags her tail at the smallest affection and loves her bed and blankies. We wish Reka all the luck in the world and hope someone will open their heart to her in the near future. Donations are still needed..thank you.

 

Reserved for Spring 2012! Nando, Yuri, Katy and Zoe

GRIN is moving forward on our Spring 2012 Transport and thanks to our volunteer MaryLou Hecht of New England, GRIN will be able to facilitate the rehoming of these four beautiful and needy hounds! We will be working for the first time to bring three galgos to the U.S. with Galgos del Sol in Murcia and also with Ibizen Hound Rescue and one Podenca from Galgo Connection Spain. We are excited for all four and especially for little Katy who is blind and has found the perfect home in New Jersey. We are so happy for all four and we are anxiously awaiting their arrival sometime in April! Update of their arrival will be posted, so, stay tuned..

The Journey Home -Rigo, Rufo, Zeus and Churrita

Update: After waiting almost a year Rigo and his companion Rufo have made it from the rigors of life in Spain to the good life  in the U.S.  See original story. http://galgorescue.org/2011/09/rigo-rufo-and-zeus-coming-to-the-u-s-a/

Nov 2, 2011  We want to thank Fern Sinclair  her friend Amy Christopher  from Ohio for completeing their mission to fly to Spain, meet up with Sandra Baas of Association Baas Galgo  in Cordoba, pick up Fern's galgo Zeus as well as another galgo named Churrita from the shelter, then head back to Madrid airport to meet our G.R.I.N  galgos Rufo and Rigo coming from Galgo Connection Spain. All the dogs did exceptionally well on the trip and are transitioning into their new lives in the U.S. A special thanks to Sandra Baas for helping  with transport  and hospitality and to Galgo Connection Spain's volunteer Vicente who drives the dogs to Madrid for Silvia.  Fern's determination to adopt Zeus who she saw on Sandra's Face Book page was fantastic! Within one month she had arranged a fundraiser to help defray the costs for the rescue , succeed at bringing back four galgos for the first time and her happy ending with Zeus in his forever home  is truly a wonderful and heartwarming story!  Thank you to everyone involved and to our donors who without your help, Rufo and Rigo would not have had the opportunity to be rescued!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Momma Galga & Pups Saved

Galgo Pups Home

Thanks to the efforts of Galgo del Sol in Murcia a galga mom and her five pups have been rescued from living under this heap of field brush.

A Closer Look At the Pups

The mother Galga looked on during the rescue.

Mamma Looking On

Momma Finally Caught in Field

The beginning of a new life for Mamma Zoe and her five pups

Finally, Zoe, in a warm soft place!

Feeding Time for Gill, Pedro, Sara, Lidia and Trinity!!

Its always a challenge to rescue a galgo but now there are 6 that need your help! Medical care, vaccinations, blood work and daily care. Please help us help Mamma Zoe and her pups by donating for their care. Tina of Galgos del Sol who rescued her would so appreciate your help. Use our PayPal donate button and send us an email that it is for Zoe and we will make sure Tina gets your help.

Thanks Tina for all your work to help these sweet galgos!

Also if anyone is interested in adoption, contact us or Tina. Seems like the pups are 100% galgo as their has been a male galgo in the area near the mom and pups. Hopefully he will be rescued also..Thank You.

Ken's Story

It is important to tell certain stories of dogs that have a will to live and of the people who help them to a life of love, care and dignity.

This is Ken's story.

Dedicated to Silvia Bordetas Gil and Tina Solerna

February 9, 2011 - Ken is a galgo who was abandoned in the south of Spain. Roaming the streets their lives are at risk constantly. Ken was another victim of a hit and run. How a person can hit a dog and run is beyond us, but it happens a lot in Spain, and Ken laid in the street with a broken back.  Somehow Ken's predicament was reported to Tina Solerna of Galgos del Sol in Murcia  and she rescued him and brought him to the vet. She would not give up on Ken. Surgery was needed as he had spinal injuries. He was attended to immediately.

Weeks passed and from here, Tina knew he would need some specialized care and rehabilitation, and she asked our friend Silva  of Galgo Connection Spain for help. Ken was not in any pain, he had a bit of movement in one hind leg and he had the will to live and a joy for his life. Ken was a fighter, and he would live to have a dignified life.

Ken was driven to  Valencia to meet his 24 hour care giver, Silvia Bordetas Gil.  Once with Silvia he began rehab, which included water therapy.

Ken received water therapy and other types of therapy as well for many months. He also was fitted with a wheel chair that was donated to him. Progress was slow but everything was being done for the special boy who loved life!

Ken's needs were constant. His health condition before his accident was compromised so his healing took time as well. He developed some ulcerations that were very diffucult to heal, but Silvia immaculately cleaned him three  or four times a day, dressed his wounds, changed his bedding every time he needed it, picked him up and carried him to potty and almost broke her own back in the process. She never complained and Ken's look of love at her is all she needed to continue nursing this very special boy back to the best health he could have.

As time passed, Ken's personality emerged. He learned to scoot himself to his food bowl, and would tell Silvia when it was dinner time or potty time. He would scooty himself to the patio door and look at her saying "Hey mom, I want to go outside and lay in the sun!" Months passed and one day Ken's greatest dream came true. A family was asking for him! A family who had lots of experience with special needs dogs and former foster parents of Silvias.. they had watched his evolution and wanted to adopt him!

What could be better than the laughter of children, a huge garden for him to run with his wheel chair, a family who would love and cherish a poor galgo that only wanted to live and please as he could. Ken was on his way home!

August 2011 would be the beginning of a new and happy life for Ken!

There is nothing else we can say as we think this story speaks for itself. Unconditional love is given by the dogs we help and in this case by those who cared for him. Our best goes out to Ken we are so happy for you!

Thanks to your donations, we were able to help GCS during Ken's months of  rehabilitation. Your donations make a huge difference!

Rigo, Rufo and Zeus Coming to the U.S.A.

G.R.I.N. is happy to announce that plans are in the works to bring three lucky galgos to the states November 2011 with the help of volunteer Fern Sinclair and her friend Amy Christopher who are picking up Fern's galgo at Sandra Baas's shelter in Cordoba. The three now have a secure and safe life to look forward to. Rigo has been waiting  for his forever home since Dec. 2010 when he was rescued from Jerez kill station and has been under the care of Galgo Conneciton Spain ever since. Rigo was found abandoned on the streets of Sevilla, a mere one year old with an eye infection so bad he could not even open his eyes, but  he was saved by wonderful volunteers in Sevilla and sent to GCS for treatment. Both boys are going to live together in VA.  Zeus, a beautiful white galgo who was found by some veterinarians near Cordoba was rescued and he has been at Sandra Baas's shelter just waiting for his lucky moment,  until Fern saw him on FB and immediately knew he was her boy!  We are looking forward to their safe journey home! Updates to follow.

 

 

Baby Mina the Podenquita

 

Rocky Waits To Be Rescued

G.R.I.N. would like to thank everyone involved in the rescue of Rocky one of many Jerez Galgos that were saved from the kill station in December 2010 through the efforts of Maribel in Jerez de la Frontera and Silvia of Galgo Connection Spain in Valencia.  His journey began in Jerez and eight months later he is now in his forever home in upstate New York!  Want to thank Greytfirends of GA, Dee Hansen and Kay Renfroe who provided his escort from Spain to the U.S.  and took him in as a foster and to Chris Plaskett of G.R.I.N. for transporting him from GA to New York and last but not least to his new family, previous G.R.I.N. adopters  Maxine and Keith Verne who opened  their hearts to this very special boy. Rockys journey is now complete! We are so happy for him.

MyKah A Beautiful Boy Needs a Home

 

We want to introduce you to a special boy named MyKah. He is under the protection of Asociacion  Protectora Argos in Sevilla . Founder and G.R.I.N. friend, Beatriz Sanchez-Elvira Ribas, has written to us about the special boy. He has been waiting since January for his forever home. If Mykah speaks to your soul, as he has touched ours, and you would like to consider adoption, please contact Beatriz at:  beamascotas@yahoo.es  Donations are also welcome for his boarding expenses until he finds his forever home. Donate through G.R.I.N. PayPal for MyKah.

 Here you have the story of MyKah.

MyKah was rescued last january from a galguero settlement in Sevilla, where they had been abandoned. Barbara Legfranc, a lady from a French association (Le Bulletin des Lévriers) received an email with a urgent help call to take dogs from that awful place. She got in touch with me and asked me to take the two more in need, so I first took an old galgo with serious artritis problems on his legs (we called him Karma and he is already in France), and a young wounded and skinny galgo that had been badly abused and was ill. The poor dog was deeple scared of people too.That was MyKah.

MyKah had erlichia and we were told by some neighbour of the galgero settlement that his former owner used to beat him mostly everyday, no wonder he was so scared of people. He also had his tear-duct popped out and a lump full of blood under his neck, due to a dog bite. He needed an operation on his eye. 

Barbara asked me to take them but knowing we have little resources and too many dogs, she has been sending the money to pay for their dog hotel from the begining.

Poor MyKah is still at the dog hotel waiting for an adoption. He is healthy now and he has become a very affectionate dog. He is still shy when he is in his kennel and you go to him, but he follows you everywhere, looking for caresses when he is out in the garden, and he is also very docil and obedient on the leash. But his adoption is being difficult because he is not compatible with cats.. and also maybe because first impressions are important and people think he is still that scared dog we first rescued. 

MyKah is the name the Barbara chose for him, it is hebrew and means "who resembles God". 

Right now he is a beautiful strong young galgo, very special too. It is very touching  to see him fight his fears and become more trusting and affectionate every week.

 Hugs,

Beatriz