Bring Jake Home- a rescue story with a happy new beginning

Toby the dog here!

I'm a dog with a blog on a mission to change the world through kindness.

And here is a totally pawsome story about a rescue dog Jake, who has a new beginning because of the kindness of others.

You can listen to the update on Jake's happy beginning story here:
 http://www.blogtalkradio.com/teamtoby/2015/04/14/bring-jake-the-dog-home-update-collaboration-at-its-finest-for-pet-rescue

Today's guest blog post is from my friend Lisa Litwinski. 

 thanks Lisa for sharing Jakes' story with us.

Jake’s amazing  story involves  a community of some of the most incredibly caring & dedicated people in Canada & the USA  who pulled together in a magnificent collaboration to bring this wonderful  rescue dog home to Alberta & give him the best second chance possible.  

 Lisa Litwinski deeply loves animals and has been devoted to animal rescue her whole life. She heard about an Alberta Black Lab dog who got lost,  ended up in an Imlay Shelter, and launched Bring Jake Home to Alberta.  (Jake did not have a tattoo or microchip. With extensive efforts in Canada & the US we were not able to locate his family.) Lisa partnered with Aimee Orn at Lapeer County Animal Control, Wendy Yax at Lapeer’s Adoptable Animal Rescue in Imlay, Michigan & April Oakes at Infinite WOOFS Rescue in Edmonton, Alberta so that Jake could journey home to a loving foster home while we help him to settle in & find his new forever family. (His Foster Mom Megan volunteered before we had our Alberta rescue in place. 

 Wonderful people stepped up to join Jake’s team & community of support. )Jake’s story is one of LOVE, hope, & kindness, & the positive difference we can make.  It is an honour to have worked with so many caring, thoughtful people who have collaborated to help Jake. Thank you profiles of our Jake team & family members are on Jake’s Facebook page: Bring Jake Home to Alberta, with more to come. Please stop by and get to know these wonderful people.

Our boy JAKE IS HOME & settling in very well! Thanks to everyone for caring, sharing, & helping us to help give Jake the fabulous second chance he deserves. He is one incredibly wonderful dog and everyone who meets him falls in love with him. Jake is a happy and affectionate boy who is part Lap Dog. J He loves to snuggle time, snack time, play time with his tennis ball, and truck rides.

We are fundraising to cover additional care & vet expenses for Jake in Alberta. Jake has an approved Charity ATB Financial Community Spirit bank account: Bring Jake Home. Contact: BringJakeHometoAlberta@shaw.ca for ways to donate or private message Jake’s page. We accept Pay Pal to a friend & transfer.  Check out Jake’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/bringjakehometoalberta or Twitter: @BringJakeHomeAB  #BringJakeHometoAlberta    Jake’s profile is on the wonderful: InfiniteWOOFS.org 

Lisa is a Facilitative Trainer, Professional Speaker, & Mentor Coach who specializes in collaborative Team Building, Leadership Development, & Life Leadership/Empowerment. She is a Certified True Colors Facilitator who loves to work with people to focus on their strengths.  Lisa works with organizations & teams to Create Leaders at Every Level  & is the creator of Today, I Choose™ daily inspirational cards for consciously choosing successful thoughts, feelings, & actions.

Bring Jake the Dog Home- collaboration to bring a lost dog back home

It's me again... a dog with a blog

Mom always say "animals connect people!"

Gotta say.... she's right!

Check out this amazing story of how people are coming together to bring a dog named Jake back home to Canada.

Photo Credit: Bring Jake Home Facebook page

Jake’s unusual story has a community of people in Canada & the USA collaborating to bring this rescue dog home & give him the best second chance possible. 

Jake is a Lab cross with an out of service # Drayton Valley, Alberta tag who ended up lost and in an Imlay, Michigan Shelter.  Lisa Litwinski is working with the USA Shelter in Imlay & an Edmonton Rescue: Infinite WOOFS making plans for Jake to journey home to a loving foster home while we help him to find his new forever family. Jake has a Charity ATB Financial Community Spirit bank account, Facebook page, & a twitter account. Things are moving up in the world for this boy! We are fundraising to cover the cost of expenses to bring this dog home. Contact: BringJakeHometoAlberta@shaw.ca for ways to donate. Check out Jake’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/bringjakehometoalberta or Twitter: @BringJakeHomeAB #BringJakeHometoAlberta

Thank you for your caring, sharing and support. Let’s bring this dog home!

Here's some info that Lisa provided mom... with all the pawsome details and backstory:

Fundraiser to Help Bring Jake the Rescue Dog Home to Alberta

Jake is a Lab cross with an out of service # Drayton Valley, Alberta tag who ended up lost and in an Imlay, Michigan Shelter.  Lisa contacted the Shelter to explore how to help Jake in the event that his family was not located.  The Shelter was very open to working together to bring Jake home to Alberta & the initiative formally launched.  Jake has a Charity ATB Financial bank account, Facebook page, & a twitter account. Things are moving up in the world for this boy!

Hundreds of people shared Jake’s posts in efforts to reunite him with his family. We did not find them. Any inquiries about Jake came from Canadians as a result of this collaborative initiative. No one locally called or came in to look for Jake. The USA Shelter did their due diligence with the legal hold period to find the family.  Jake has been pulled by the Imlay rescue and they are working with us to bring Jake home. Lisa found a fabulous Alberta foster home for Jake and a wonderful no kill, foster home based, Edmonton rescue for Jake to help oversee the process of finding Jake his new forever home. www.InfiniteWOOFS.org. Lisa is excited about helping Jake to find his new family. Jake is a happy and affectionate dog who loves to run and play with his tennis ball. We are so excited to bring this boy home to have an amazing second chance!!

We have an approved ATB Financial Community Spirit Account set up for Jake. 100% of all donations go directly to covering our expenses to bring him home.  Income Tax receipts are available for donations over $20.00.  There are three ways to donate: 1) Pay Pal to a friend – search for BringJakeHometoAlberta@shaw.ca. Select immediate transfer.  2) E-transfer to BringJakeHometoAlberta@shaw.ca 3) Go to any ATB Financial and deposit directly to “Bring Jake Home” Community Spirit Account in Edmonton.  Please include your name, email address, & mailing address so that we can get a tax receipt to you. 

We are raising funds to cover the expenses related to bringing Jake home: pull fee from the shelter, vet exam, vaccinations & health certificate, travel crate & supplies, travel & plane fare, & further vet care upon arrival to Edmonton. Many of the expenses are in US dollars.

 Jake is now vet approved to travel and up to date on his vaccinations. We are working on finalizing some of the legal documents and travel arrangements. 

Thousands of people have been moved by Jake’s story.  There is a community of people in Canada & the USA collaborating to bring Jake home. Thank you to those who have donated & reached out to support Jake in so many ways. If you have questions please contact Lisa at: BringJakeHometoAlberta@shaw.ca

 Let's Rally together to bring this pawsome dog back home!!  Mom and I donated to this cause because we want to help this awesome dog get back to Alberta.  Hope you will too!

HUGS and Big Tail Wags of Support,

Toby...

xo

For people who love travelling, please check out canadiantraveller.com for awesome destinations, travel tips, bucket-list adventures and so much more.  Canadian Traveller is one of our amazing partners on our recent PAWs Across Canada tour, and, our upcoming Million Acts of Kindness Tour.

A dog labelled as "unadoptable" becomes therapy dog and star of her book

Peek-a-boo!

It's me Toby

Yup!

A dog with a blog!

Mom meets the most pawsome people and pets on our PAWsitive Radio show.

She just interviewed Peachy the dog's mom.

Gabriela Duran is the author of the book Peachy the Warrior Princess.

Peachy was a dog that Gabriela adopted, and who had survived living in a puppy mill. With great care, patience and love, Gabriela and her family helped Peachy overcome the trauma of living in a puppy mill.  Gabriela was told in the beginning that Peachy was not adoptable.  Perhaps Peachy had other plans including proving the doubters wrong.  Peachy overcame her fears, and became a therapy dog that helped many people.  She also became the inspiration behind Gabriela's mission of preventing puppy mills and educating people about responsible loving pet care. 

How can you help Gabriela with Peachy's legacy and prevent puppy mills?

To learn more and hear Peachy's story, please listen to pawsitive radio here:

Check Out Pets Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with PAWsitive Radio on BlogTalkRadio

The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, emotions and Friendship

Animals are great teachers of kindness, acceptance and respect. 

Guest, Dr. Marc Bekoff is renowned for making the rapidly changing science and policy around animal intelligence and emotions accessible for a mass audience.
 

He is professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has worked alongside leading writers and activists including Jane Goodall, Peter Singer, and PETA cofounder Ingrid Newkirk.

His new book Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed is filled with amazing stories about the empathy, grief, and love we can observe in both wild and domestic animals.

Marc talked about animals impact humans through their ability to be non judgmental,  which he describes as being different from unconditional. Marc explained that dogs can be a great judge of character, when they show hesitance, Marc pays attention.  Marc has studied animals around the world, including their rituals and habits, and how they communicate with each other and with humans. His work has helped people understand how to co-exist peacefully based on what animals teach us about this. If people were to apply the 3 P's: positive, passion, and polite, the impact globally would be quite impressive.

What lessons have animals taught you?

You can listen to the interview with Marc Bekoff at:

 http://www.blogtalkradio.com/teamtoby/2014/01/08/the-fascinating-science-of-animal-intelligence-emotions-friendship

How have animals taught you about kindness? There is much to learn from our animal friends.

To order a copy of Toby’s books, or find out more about Charmaine and Team Toby, visit his website at: www.TheOriginalTeamtoby.com 

Come and find us on social media:

https://www.facebook.com/TheOriginalTeamToby
Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/teamtoby1
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TeamToby2

Share your favorite story about how an animal taught you a life lesson...We want to hear how your pets have inspired you!

Choosing the righ Pet Sitter for your pet...

You are going away on holidays... your dog really does better in his/her home environment.... Who do you call?

A pet sitter!

Where do you find a pet sitter?

What about an organization like Pet Sitters International?

Beth Stultz- PAWsitive Radio Guest  (photo credit Beth Stultz)

Beth Stultz was a guest on PAWsitive Radio talking about Pet Sitters International and provide some great tips for pet families when planning to be away and how to choose the right pet sitter. Beth is the Marketing & Communication Manager for Pet Sitters International.  She has worked int he pet industry for close to ten years.  Pet Sitters International is the world's largest educational association for professional pet sitters and represents more than 7,000 pet sitters in the US, Canada and abroad.

You can listen to Beth's tips here:


http://www.blogtalkradio.com/teamtoby/2013/12/31/pet-sitters-international-and-setting-goals-for-the-workplace 

Here's the highlight of Beth's tips for pet parents:

1. When researching a pet sitter, make sure that there is a good fit between your pet and the pet sitter.
2. Meet the pet sitter ahead of time.
3. Ask about the pet sitter's training and what associations he/she is a member of.
4. Ask if the pet sitter is bonded and has insurance.
5. Ensure proof of clear criminal record.
6. Ask for a service contract (details are important!)
7. Notify the pet sitter of any medical needs  your pet may have or concerns you have

Want to hear some more tips?  Listen to Beth's conversation at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/teamtoby/2013/12/31/pet-sitters-international-and-setting-goals-for-the-workplace 

Remember to visit Team Toby on social media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TeamToby2

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheOriginalTeamToby

Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/teamtoby1

 Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/charmainehammond

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/On-Tobys-Terms/209331272432608?ref=ts&fref=ts

 Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hammond-International-Inc/161986823865485?ref=ts&fref=ts

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GPSYourBestLife?ref=ts&fref=ts

https://twitter.com/hammondgroupbiz

Stop Chasing Your Own Tail- our dogs, our friends, our teachers

Mom is interviewing a pawesome guest November 12 on PAWsitive Radio,  Jeanne E Sexson will be talking about her website Stop Chasing Your OwnTail- our dogs, our friends, our teachers. 

Jeanne Sexson- national motivational speaker, creator of Stop Chasing Your Own Tail website and our show guest. Photo credit: JE Sexson and www.stopchasingyourowntail.com

They are going to barking out stories about how #dogs connect people (mom is always going on about how I connect her to so many people. I can't help it! People think I'm adorable and stop to meet me!). And I can't wait for Jeanne to share stories about the Furry 5.

Did you know that dogs can be pawsome teachers?  Look at everything I have taught my pet parents....

1) That if I look adorable with my head resting on the deck and my kong sitting close by and then I turn my head between them and the Kong guess what happens?  They come throw the Kong (after talking about how adorable I am and snapping more pictures), and then I look like this. Have I got them trained on my routine or what!

Photo Credit The OriginalTeamToby.com

 2)  We also teach about the pawprints you leave in life.  I think everyone should show up as their best version of themselves and, make your moments matter.  Leave a big pawprint on life!

Photo Credit-TheOriginalTeamToby.com

And on November 12, Jeanne will share some other great stories and lessons from dogs.  Just so you know, here's a bit about Jeanne:  Jeanne is a  national motivational speaker and author who combines her love and respect for animals and a fascination with how they respond to their experiences. She has found this gratifying to note how the quality of her life has been enhanced by the lessons they have taught, and continue to teach, her.  As a sculptor, she created the Best Friends Collection – small sculptures capturing those irresistible moments of joy when we allow ourselves to simply live in the moment and feel the unconditional love of our furry buddies.

Here's the link to join our PAWSome conversation.... http://www.blogtalkradio.com/teamtoby/2013/11/13/stop-chasing-your-own-tail-our-dogs-our-friends-our-teacher

Until next week, let's be kind to one another.

Team Toby- improving lives by teaching kindness, acceptance and respect. www.TheOriginalTeamToby.com