Operation Christmas Spirit

As Christmas approached, all of THDR's volunteers were holding their breath...maybe this Christmas Season would be different. No such luck. On November 30th, we received an e-mail about two smooth-coated, CKC-registered,  intact male Saint Bernards. The Boys were owner-surrenders at the Moncton SPCA. The nearest Saint Rescue group was FULL, FULL, FULL. A rescue contact from Fredericton, NB contacted Trinity Of Hope Dog Rescue...could we help?

From our vantage point 1600 kms (1000 miles) away, helping The Boys first appeared an impossible task. We already had one CKC-registered smoothie in foster care and no foster homes for The Boys. We contacted Joanne, the rescue chair for New England Saint Bernard Club, Inc. The NESBC offered to pay to neuter The Boys and bring them up to date on their shots. Even if they could not be moved from the Moncton SPCA, at least they would be adopted altered, instead of intact and with CKC-registration papers.

We then contacted a Saint breeder in Ontario who provided two names of Saint breeders in Nova Scotia. One of those breeders offered the name of a couple that might be willing to foster The Boys over the Christmas holidays. Things were definitely looking brighter.

Once The Boys were neutered, the shelter director, Carolyn Thorn, drove The Boys from Moncton to Fredericton. She spent 4 hours with the foster family...time that was above and beyond her job description. The Boys stayed in Fredericton with Annette and Byron for 19 days until a Newfoundland breeder who lives outside of Quebec City was able to transport them from Fredericton to his home. Even though Michel and France had a litter of puppies on the ground, they were willing to let The Boys stay overnight until they could be brought to the Montreal area. From the Montreal area, they moved to their next temporary foster home. A Rhodesian Ridgeback Rescue person assisted us with exercising The Boys during their 10-day stay in Ontario until they could travel, compliments of the Canine Underground Railroad (CUR) to Connecticut (CT). 

When the total was added up...from the Boxer Rescue person who took pictures of The Boys while they were still in Moncton to the woman who made them collars to the person who drove them from Montreal to Ottawa to those who drove The Boys to CT, 36 people made Operation Christmas Spirit happen over a period of 40 days...It would be impossible to thank each and every one of the people who made a difference in the difficult task of moving two Saint Bernards from New Brunswick to Connecticut...each person is treasured in our hearts as a person who cares about the fate of unwanted animals. For their willingness to help with moving The Boys over 1600 kms, our hearts are touched and our faith in mankind's willingness to become involved is restored. 

This was truly Operation Christmas Spirit...we know that every time a bell rang, one of The Boys' angels received his or her wings and each person is now an honourary Saint, at least in our eyes and those of The Boys.