Richmond Boxer Rescue BlogRichmond Boxer Rescue Blog
RIP Finnegan
Last Updated on Monday, 17 August 2009 01:08 Written by Sarah Osborne Thursday, 06 August 2009 18:53
RIP FINNEGANFinnegan (aka Rufus) came to Richmond Boxer Rescue in 2007 from a kill shelter in southwestern VA. He was a sweet boy with goofy cropped ears and a personality to match. He got along great with everyone in his foster home and was an instant hit with everyone he met. Finnegan completed treatment for heartworms and found a wonderful home in northern VA.
At the young age of around 5, Finnegan was diagnosed with a brain tumor. His dad went above and beyond to take care of Finnegan and to make sure that he was always comfortable. Finnegan lost his battle on 8/5/09. Finnegan will be greatly missed by all of his RBR family but especially by his dad, Patrick. RIP Finnegan.
Diary of a puppy mill dog Night 1
Last Updated on Monday, 17 August 2009 01:09 Written by Sarah Osborne Thursday, 30 July 2009 18:49
This blog is written by Oliver's foster mom, Janet, and will be updated regularly. The blog is to give you an idea about the amount of work that goes into rehabilitating a puppy mill dog. Donations can be made by clicking the link below. You may mail checks to RBR, PO Box 14754, Richmond VA 23221 or to PAL (one of our vet hospitals) - www.preventalitter.org.
Oliver, the puppy mill stud.
July 29, 2009
Oliver came late at night. He had quite an adventure and was very upset. Many very generous, kind people helped him get to me that night. His owner, the puppy mill breeder turned him over to one of our volunteers because he was no longer good enough to breed. He volunteered to have him groomed as he was filthy and matted. During the grooming process with mattes to his skin he was nicked in several places, one place had to have stitches. After that scary process, another volunteer met him up with him at a rest stop to further transport him. She was also transporting two other dogs, a boxer, Riley and toy poodle, Amber. Poor Oliver didn't even have a name as he only had one purpose....breeding. But I guess lucky for Oliver, he was too big for a Yorkie at 10lbs. He is one of the lucky ones to get out of the puppy mill and have a family that loves him, he left 23 other dogs behind to stay outside in the heat and cold without a nice person to love him. Most of those dogs probably also have heartworms and will die prematurely because they are untreated.
At Richmond Boxer Rescue (RBR) headquarters he received the first of his distemper shots. Then blood was drawn to see if he was heartworm positive. It is like a pregnancy test, if a line shows up it is positive. Cheryl was watching and broke the bad news, it was positive. We drew blood again to double check and again it was positive. Through all of this poking, Oliver never ever cried out or snapped at all. We all were devastated as RBR doesn't have the financial resources to have Oliver go thru heartworm treatment. Heartworms are very easily prevented with a monthly treatment, however can cost almost a $1000 and the treatment can lead to death. Sarah said we can find another rescue for him that can help him. I really didn't want to take him then, as it was going to break my heart to send him to another foster parent as he was so upset.
When we got back to Cheryl's, he wouldn't even stand upright. I placed him on the ground to see if he needed to go to the bathroom and he wouldn't even stand and walk outside. I placed him inside a crate and worried even if with all the stress he would be alive in the morning and what would happen.
When purchasing a dog from a pet store or puppy mill you are not rescuing the puppy but enabling the mother to spend her entire life in a cage without touching the grass or having a loving pet. These are the true victims of puppy mills and often these dogs are never given an opportunity.
Boycott stores that sell puppies
Last Updated on Tuesday, 22 December 2009 17:59 Written by Sarah Osborne Saturday, 18 July 2009 11:25
While most of RBR's friends know not to buy puppies from pet stores, how many of you still buy your dog food and supplies from these stores because it's convenient??
Remember - stay away from these stores! Do NOT support them in any way. Below is a list of some of the stores in Richmond and surrounding areas that sell puppies. We encourage you to stay away from these places at all costs!
Pauley's Pups (this one only sells puppies but is probably the WORST offender in the area) in Ashland. I've personally seen MANY poorly bred dogs from this shop with liver shunts, luxating patellas, intestinal parasites, etc.
Fin and Feather in Lakeside (I believe they have a second location now as well. Not sure if the 2nd location sells puppies but DO NOT SUPPORT either until they stop selling puppies at BOTH locations.) You can see pictures of their sickly dogs on their website. Notice the weepy eyes and running noses?
http://www.fin-feather.com/puppy.htm
Perfect Pets of Richmond (also affiliated with Perfect Pups which has now gone out of business). Sells sickly puppies just like every other pet store. A google search turns up some sad stories of the people who didn't do their research and ended up with a sick puppy.
Pet Safari in Colonial Heights. They offer financing for military families to encourage more people to buy their sickly puppies. Known parvo outbreaks at this store (just google).
Fish Tales on S. Laburnam (East End of Richmond). Box cages with plexi-glass fronts, poorly bred, oversized toy breeds and "designer" mutts. Advertise CKC registered dogs.
Phil and Lucy Dodson of Orange, VA (and TN). These puppy millers are working out of VA and TN and, because their adult dogs are kept in TN, they are able to avoid VA laws and taxes. They have been investigated by animal control many times but they keep their dogs (other than puppies for sale) in TN so nothing can be done here in VA. They list the owner as the wife, Lucy Dodson, and the wife's address as TN to avoid VA laws. The boxers are not even close to breed standard and they are breeding white boxers. They keep the dogs in outdoor pens and do no health testing. They have also started breeding boston terriers. The breeder admitted to breeding over 2000 puppies in the last 20 years! Phil Dodson's email address is This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and he advertises in the Richmond Times Dispatch.
So, where do you buy your pet supplies??
Well, you always have the big chain stores like PetSmart and PetCo. Those of us that prefer premium dog foods have limited options, though!
In Richmond:
PJ Petts Huge selection! Innova, Orijen, Nature's Variety, Chicken Soup. Big selection of collars, leashes, treats and toys plus grooming services.
3536 West Cary Street
Richmond, VA 23221
(804) 359-3445
Crittertown Bathouse They are located in Forest Hill. It is a pet supply and do-it-yourself dog bathing and grooming. Very nice people. They do not sell puppies or other small animals
http://www.crittertown.com/
Stratford Hills Shopping Center
2819 Hathaway Road
Richmond, Virginia... Read More
804-320-1096
Another great option is to order your supplies online. Try www.petfooddirect.com. Hint: Sign up for the "win free dog food for a year" contest at the top of the screen and allow them to send you emails. They will ONLY send you coupons. Their prices are cheap and, when you get the coupons for 17% or more off, it cancels out the cost of shipping! It often ends up being cheaper to have food shipped directly to your door than it is to go to the store to buy it!
If you know of another pet supply to store recommend (or another store that sells puppies to warn against!), please reply to this post or email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Mary Jane's Television Debut
Last Updated on Thursday, 07 May 2009 13:41 Written by Sarah Osborne Friday, 01 May 2009 16:41
MJ made her television debut on WWBT Channel 12. Nothing wrong with her (well, nothing related to the segment!) but they needed a dog for Dr. Howard to check out while he was talking.
She'll be making local appearances and signing autographs but says she's charging for pictures. Such a diva.
Nutrition
Last Updated on Thursday, 07 May 2009 13:42 Written by Sarah Osborne Wednesday, 29 April 2009 19:13
If you've adopted a dog from RBR, you've probably been on the receiving end of my nutrition lecture! I'm a bit of a stickler when it comes to this subject. I'm a huge fan of frozen pizza and ramen noodles myself but my dogs only get the best!
How to choose a dog food.....
There is no one food that is best for every dog. Many will tell you "____ is THE best" but that's just not true. There are dozens of premium kibbles to choose from and you need to keep your dog's needs in mind when choosing.
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