National Mill Dog Rescue: Kia Pet Adoption Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

We applied in June 2022, shortly after we rescued 27 shiba inu/Welsh corgi mix dogs that a breeder thought would be great but which did not sell and that she wanted to dump.

They were totally unsocialized pups that our behavior manager knew would be difficult to adopt, even with intensive work.

Most of our dogs are adopted within four to six weeks of rehabilitation. By mid-October (14 weeks out), all but five had gone to new homes. That's when we learned we had been awarded this grant.

Therefore, we used the $1,500 to reduce the fees on the five remaining dogs by $300 each. We have used $1,100 so far, because Poppy is still available and Arlo is on hold as of Jan. 12. Poppy was adopted in August but returned a week later for behavior issues. Arlo was returned also. The other three -- Chester, Freya and Logan -- were adopted in November, December, and January.

How many pets did this grant help?

5

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

Freya (first photo) was adopted in December. Her adopter writes: “Freya is a very curious puppy. She wants to be in the mix, but is still very skittish. We are not yet able to pet her unless she is in her kennel, but she follows her humans around.

“When she first came home, she would bolt when you came near her; not so much anymore. Now she just moves a few feet away to see what you are going to do. She looks up to her big sister, Rogue, and is learning a lot about how to dog. Freya uses the dog door and loves to chew her toys in the backyard. She also loves the snow.”

Chester (second photo) now lives with four human adults and has a canine brother named Bear, who is a Pomeranian/husky mix. The two dogs seem to enjoy each other, especially in the morning when they decide that that is the perfect time to play.

Though still somewhat anxious, Chester is doing really well in his new home. His mom says that he is quite vocal, has lots of puppy energy and inhales his food. He also enjoys doing zoomies in his backyard. Because usually one of the adults is home during the day, Chester is not crated, but he does go into his kennel if everyone happens to be out of the house.

“He isn’t quite ready to play with us,” says his mom, “but he loves playing with his toys by himself! He is also a big cuddle-bug. In fact, I have been somewhat tired since we adopted him as he, along with my husband and Bear, sleep in my bed, and Chester is a real bed hog! This guy is really coming around, and everyone in our home loves him!”

Poppy (third photo) is still available for adoption. You can meet her here.