Free Massage for Adopters

TAGS will lighten your mood!
CC image courtesy of Denis Savard on Flickr

Has all this snow and cold slowed you down, too? 

We know the feeling, so one of our volunteers, Elaine Brien, decided to organize a yearlong contest for our adopters.
 
Elaine is a registered massage therapist working in a Whitby massage salon. Starting in February, she will draw one name a month from among our adopters in 2013, and the winner will be entitled to a free massage!
 
If you're lucky, you can enjoy relaxing massage therapy—either one hourlong session or two half-hour massages—at CalmingFX. The draws will take place at the end of each month through December 2013. The winners will be notified by email or phone.

Good luck!

Learn Your Mutt's Breeds!

Even though you love your dog no matter his or her breed, it’s a lot of fun—and not at all expensive—to find out what breeds make up your dog.

Knowing your dog’s breeds can also help you and your veterinarian anticipate and, in some cases, prevent breed-specific health problems—or, at the very least, help you save some money by purchasing insurance against them. (In my case, if I had done DNA testing earlier, I would have saved a bundle by insuring one of my dogs for hip dysplasia, which all five of the breeds he has in him are prone to and which he was diagnosed with just past the age of one year.)

But not only can DNA-testing your dog satisfy your curiosity and give you valuable health information about your pet; your purchase of a kit can also help out TAGS! We are selling DNA testing kits from Mars Veterinary, an American DNA testing lab, for just $55! This is cheaper than any of the three DNA kits I recently bought for my dogs (before TAGS had kits available, of course!), and the best part is that $10 of your purchase price stays with TAGS!

Getting your dog’s DNA sample is easy:

1. Insert one of the provided swabs (they look like long Q-Tips) into your dog’s mouth between the cheek and the gums and, using a circular motion, rub the swab against the cheek. I found it best to do this first thing in the morning before my dogs ate, drank, interacted with one another, or played with toys—activities that could sabotage the integrity of the test.
2. Put the swab in the provided envelope.
3. Repeat the process with the second provided swab.
4. Fill out the provided form or register your DNA kit online. (By registering it online, you can check for updates on the testing process.)
5. Mail the kit to the testing lab. The test kit includes a postage-paid envelope; however, it’s American postage, so you will have to buy the postage to send it to the United States. (I think it cost me less than $3.)

That’s it! It’s easy, and it’s really a whole lot of fun learning your dog's ancestry and investigating his or her various breeds!

To get your kit, email TAGS at tagsinfo@animalguardian.org.

(If you’re interested in learning about the surprises I was in for and my thoughts on the DNA tests we did, go to www.wordwitlox.com/dogblog to see Cora’s, Dusty’s, and Hogan’s DNA test results!)

Wordless Wednesday: All Played Out!

Rocky is soooo tired! He's up for adoption, too.

 To read more about our adoptable dog Rocky, click here.

This is a blog hop. Don't forget to check out the other participating blogs, too!

TAGS Dogs at PetSmart Oshawa

We love to showcase our dogs around the community at various outreach events so that people can find out more about us and maybe even find a new family member.

You may already know that we can be found in the Whitby PetSmart every weekend, but did you also know that we've started setting up shop in the Oshawa location as well? Every Saturday from 12:00-4:00 p.m., we are there to share information about our adoptable dogs, the adoption process and volunteer opportunities.

Yesterday, Shelly, Sam and Jennifer were the volunteers on duty, and Balin and Rocky were there with tails wagging to meet and greet visitors.

Rocky and Shelly pose at the TAGS booth.

Rocky's eager to play. Balin watches from the background. 

Balin sits pretty, eagerly waiting for a treat. 

See you again next weekend!

January Adoptions!

Whew. Hard to believe it's already February!

TAGS has been having a busy but wonderful 2013 so far. When we weren't hosting a Pub Night fundraiser or sending our adoptable dogs to college, our volunteers were taking two lucky dogs and their new families through the TAGS adoption process. 

Click on the image to view a larger version. 

Azrial, also known as Zee-Zee, is a ten-month-old sweetheart. TAGS rescued this border collie mix in September from a high-kill shelter in Kentucky. Azrial's long legs make her a great runner, and although they cause her to look a bit awkward sometimes, they just add to her charm. Last fall, her littermates, Chappie and Blossum, were adopted, and we are so happy that Zee-Zee has found a home now too.

Zee-Zee at the TAGS dog park on her adoption day.
She fits right in with her new family! 

Clover is a Maltese mix and her age is estimated to be around four. Clover catches the eye of everyone she meets because she is small, spunky and adorable! Clover was rescued from a puppy mill, where she was used as a breeding dog. Now that she's been happily placed in her fur-ever home, she can spend her time playing and snuggling instead of tending to pups. 

Congratulations, ladies!