2011 in Review

Looking back on 2011.....

 We fostered three dogs for Pet Haven. Tug took 9 months to find his forever home but he finally did!!

 Angelica came to us from Red Lake Rosie's Rescue. She was adopted in about two weeks.

 Ash was also a RLRR dog. He was so energetic-the opposite of Angelica. He was adopted a couple of weeks ago Happy new lives to all. Looking forward to getting a new foster dog soon.

 In June we had a family reunion to celebrate Walker's graduation. It was fabulous to have everyone together.

 Walker graduated with honors and went on to study at the U of M. He has finished his first semester and is interested in continuing his studies in anthropology. He has a band and is writing lots of music.

 Rescue Buddy Boarding & Beyond had many guests through the year. We had 'old timers' like Toby and

 Mister visit often.

And some new tails too like Edna and Captain.

                                                                            .

We are saddened by the passing of one of our guests, Jack, who crossed the rainbow bridge this past year. Jack, you were loved and are still missed every day.

As we reflect  on 2011 we are grateful for our family, friends and for all the furry kids that come to visit. Here's to some big changes in 2012! Stay tuned. Happy Peaceful New Year to all!

Velvet Bear Mosaics has a new foster dog.

Velvet Bear Mosaics welcomed a new Pet Haven foster dog into their home/studio.Here is what they had to say about Millie.


"We picked up Millie from the Red Lake Transport on Sunday. Her original name was Jane but we needed to change it as we have a german shepherd named Jayne. Very shy and unsure we got her into the car and off we went. She rode great in the car. Good girl! When we got home we introduced her to our dogs one at a time. They all did well. You could see that our dogs were thinking "oh, another dog. Ok when's dinner?" New name for this girl, we came up with Millie. She was not familiar with stairs so we worked on that first. My daughter Elanor is a pro at getting new dogs used to them, and within the day Millie was up and down, no problems. Millie is 8 months old and 30 lbs and all puppy. We are working on the potty training and she already knows to go in her crate for bedtime. As her personality unfolds I will post. So far she is sweet and is very curious about all and any activity. We have a vet appointment today and then hopefully a bath."

Millie will be at the Pet Haven adoption event this Saturday at the Richfield Petco from 10-12. If you would like more information please email dogs@pethavenmn.org.


And check out Velvet Bear Mosaics for creative personalized leash holders.

Fun in the Orlando Sun!

It is chilly outside but the sunshine feels so good. The dogs had some playtime in the snow. Orlando is not sure what to do when you through a ball. And if it goes too far into the snow he can not find it.

He would rather play with the milk jug. Hey free toys. Gotta love that.

Orlando has had lots of visitors. Most say he is bigger than they expected. My Buddy is 40lb. He looks like midget compared to Orlando.

Look at the size of his paws. Orlando is a big boy. But he is so calm that he does not seem to take up all that much space.

Orlando is trying new things everyday. Remember when he would not come out of the kitchen. Well now he makes himself quite comfy on the couch. If you are interested in sharing your couch with sunny Orlando check out his Red Lake Rosie's bio.

Look at Clarence Now!

Last night I was able to finally meet the little puppy that almost froze to death last time I was at Red Lake Rosie's Rescue. Clarence had strayed away from his littermates on a 30 below zero night. Thanks to the loving care of Karen Good he made a complete recovery and is like every other puppy playing nonstop with whatever he can find to put in his mouth. He had my glove and boot before I even took my coat off. All I could do was giggle at how cute he was running the other way carrying my big winter shoe.

Clarence did let me put a Vikings sweater on him for photographs. Mom knit the sweater and I embellished it with the Vikings touches. He is trying out to be a cheerleader for the Twin City Puppy Bowl put on by Pampered Pooch Playground, Sarahbeth Photography, FetchDelivers, and Sidewalk Dog. I am like stage mom sending multiple emails to show how perfect he would be for the role. Does it hurt to be pushy to get a family for this deserving boy or some press for Red lake Rosie's Rescue? Here is his bio if you are interested.

Clarence taught me that it does not matter where you come from or what your start in life is like, you can become whatever your spirit wills you to be. He has a fund set up in his name to raise money to hire someone to help Red lake Rosie's founder and his rescuer, Karen Good. So far he has raised $820. Way to go little guy. Here is the blog that was posted earlier explaining how to donate.

A Year in Review

As I look back on the journey of this past year I am amazed at the trip it has been. The year started with me deciding to take a year off from the art fair circuit to pursue my love of beaded sculptures.

This was a risky financial decision but one I had dreamed about for quite some time. I did have one commissioned piece to create so I knew there would be money coming in. Queen Mary Cometh was completed on time and the client was thrilled.

All along I continued to volunteer with Pet Haven and Red Lake Rosie's fostering dogs. By about April I started to realize that my passion for art was waning or at least taking a backseat to rescuing homeless dogs. I kept asking myself if there was someway I could stay home with the dogs and still feed my son?

Not being one to put too much energy into money-I think that gives it too much power-I decided to start a new home business boarding dogs. In June Rescue Buddy Boarding & Beyond was officially born. Mister was already occasionally staying at the house along with sometimes three fosters dogs at once so I knew what I was getting into.

From then on many dogs have come to stay, some several times. Thank you to all who have supported this new venture. Foster dogs are always welcome too. Paden is our 28th one and she has a good applicant coming to look at her on Saturday.

This year I was able to take three trips to Red Lake Rosie's Rescue. Getting to know founder Karen Good has been inspirational and a definite highlight of my year. For all of you yet to go up north please make a date on your new calendar to do so. You will be changed forever.

My mom is even getting involved. Since July 4th she has been knitting sweaters for the dogs at Rosie's because the winters are so harsh. I think she is up to about 40 so far. She can not be stopped.

Here is Simon in the bumblebee style.

As the old year is passing my mom and I are looking forward to a new venture. We are excited to be asked to sell the sweaters in a store in downtown Minneapolis. Proceeds of course going to Karen for hiring someone to help her with the endless daily chores. Thanks to Charm a frequent visitor to Rescue Buddy Boarding and her mother who made the connection for us. Charm was shopping in this store while modeling her new sweater that "Santa" brought her when she stayed with over Christmas.

As for my artistic expressions for the new year, well I have gotten the knitting bug too. Yes I am on my first sweater. Of course I do not want to stop knitting so I think my first one will be for a snake instead of a dog.

To the two loves of my life, thank you for being so patient with all the dogs coming and going.

May the new year find you following your dreams.

Winter in Red Lake

Winter has come to Red Lake Rosie's. And it has arrived with a vengeance. Temperatures fell to 13 below zero. Chores are done mostly in the dark wearing so many layers it is hard to even move. Water freezes in the dog pails in no time. Short haired dogs shiver to keep their body temps up. They walk on three legs because the snow stings their paws. Calls come in daily telling of more dear ones left at the dump, thrown away like last night's pizza boxes. Kennels are full to overflowing with dogs and puppies fighting to stay alive through the frigid night.

One pup, Clarence, almost did not make it. He strayed away from his littermates during the night and old man winter grabbed him. His still cold body was found at dawn and was rushed to the warmth of the cat house where he was given warm water to get his blood circulating again. Somehow that little guy fought back with all he had left and is now on a slow recovery back to health. That was my first eye opening glimpse into what winter is like on the rez. And it broke my heart. My tears frozen to my cheek. But there is no time for sorrow or pity. Emotions are pushed aside because there is so much work to be done in order to save the rest.

How does Karen Good do all that she does to help every animal that comes into the shelter? She, like little Clarence, is in survival mode. She is fighting with everything she has to keep going day after day to rescue as many animals as she possibly can. It is neverending back breaking work in brutal weather. Karen is a saint among us and to tell you the truth I am not sure how long she can continue to go on without our help.

Please do one thing right now to help.

Foster a Red Lake dog or puppy for Red lake Rosie's foster group, Pet Haven, All Dog, Act V,
Minnesota Pit Bull Rescue or other rescue that takes dogs from Red lake Rosie's. This is the most important piece needed to get the dogs out of the cold. Pass this message around to five other people and ask them to do the same. We will be stronger in numbers.

One of the adult dogs that needs to get out immediately because of her short hair is Abbey a beagle pit mix. She runs free now with all the other dogs. Here she is trying to get in an igloo with some black puppies to warm up.


Make a donation to Red Lake Rosie's Rescue to help pay for an employee to work at the shelter. Karen is also working three days a week teaching so those days are 16 hour days for her. If she had help at the shelter even a few days a week she would be able to gain some of her energy back.

Take a trip to RLRR to help out with chores and transport animals to the cities. It is only a five hour drive. The trip can easily be taken over a weekend. And the thrill of seeing suffering animals transferred to loving arms on this end makes it all worthwhile.

Please, please do something to help. Winter has just begun. While you are sitting at your computer all warm and toasty remember the puppies huddled together fighting for their lives. Do something to help them! Email me at laura.leonard55@gmail.com to find out more. Thank you from all the animals from Red Lake Rosie's Rescue.

Red Lake Rosie's Revisited

This past weekend my new friend Anne and I were fortunate enough to visit Karen Good founder of Red Lake Rosie's Rescue in northern Minnesota. The weather was glorious-sunny, no wind, and 35 ABOVE zero. Not a fan of the cold I prepared myself with many layers of clothing. To my surprise I was actually hot and spent most of the time without gloves or a hat. And it was lovely not to have to fight off mosquitoes and ticks.


We finished putting tarps around the kennels to protect the dogs from the bitter winds. We fed, watered, walked, and loved up the dogs and tended to the cats.

Anne fell for a boy named Elbert, a terrier mix puppy with no hair. He was lucky enough to spend his time up at Karen's house. I think Anne may even foster this boy when he is well enough to come to the cities in a couple of weeks.

There was one dog I was especially drawn to. Her name is Carly. She was a very sick little puppy that spent the weekend in the cat house. The first night she could not even drink water. Karen gave her a syringe full and we prayed through the night she would pull through. Much to our delight the next morning as I opened the cat house door I was thrilled to hear barking. And I was never as excited to see poop that was not red. Carly was able to drink a little rice water that Karen made for her. Later that day she gobbled down turkey from Karen's Thanksgiving meal. She continued to improve throughout the weekend. Carly will soon be ready for her a foster home if anyone is interested.

Then there was the German shorthaired pointer, Cheetah, that I would have taken home in a second but she already had a foster home waiting for her. Since she had short hair we put one of my mom's new dog sweaters on her. She wore it all weekend and was very proud of it. Karen asked if we could send it with her to her new life. I said of course. When I opened the kennel to let her out after our long transport ride I found that Cheetah had taken the sweater off and was laying her head on it. It was like a piece of her old life taken to her new life.

Three days are not enough to spend at Karen's. I would encourage everyone to make a trip to this magical place at least once. Karen's spirit transfers to the dogs she rescues. Below is a photo of the pack dogs that are residents at the shelter, Ginger-top, Mama, and Grandpa-front. The little girl in the left center snuggling up to Mama is Daisy now a Pet Haven dog. The rest of the pack accepted her right away.

If you can not travel then consider fostering for one of the rescues that supports Red Lake Rosie's Rescue. My experience is with Red Lake Rosie's foster group and Pet Haven. The more fosters we have the more dogs and cats we can save. Karen has yet to say 'no' to a dog or a cat but the rescues are filling up and adoptions are slowing down. Please help if you can.

Heading Back To Red Lake Rosie's

Along with three other women that I have yet to meet, this Friday I will be heading back to Red Lake Rosie's Rescue for a weekend of fun and hard work. We will be preparing the kennels for the brutal winter that has yet to show up-thank goodness, feeding and walking dogs, and changing litter boxes.

I am excited to catch up with Karen and to meet all the new dogs that have arrived at the shelter. On my last trip I ended up falling in love with an Aussie mix, Dusty, that I soon fostered and rehomed.

If anyone has supplies that need to be returned/delivered to Red Lake please let me know. They can be dropped off by my garage anytime before 9am on Friday. I live in Ne Minneapolis. Email for address. Karen has an overabundance of linens so if you have any of these items please find someone else that can use them.

Karen has had more animals surrendered to the shelter than ever before. If you know anyone who would like to become a foster and save a life please let me know. On Sunday we will be bringing many of these dogs and cats to the cities to start their new lives. Here is a photo of one of the pups that needs help. Can you provide a home for Carley?