The KOTA Project

06/25/2024

Hi everyone! I know it's been a while since I've posted anything. I've been quite busy since we got back from our trip.
It was a hard trip to be honest with so many ups and downs, mostly downs because I didn't have enough time to do a lot of the things I went there for.
The worst part of the trip was how my heart was broken into a million pieces when we weren't able to adopt and bring back little Chancho with us.
I think about him all the time and I just hope he's doing ok.
We are planning on going back down there again though, and this time, with A LOT more time to see the project through.

In the meantime I won't be posting much on this page for a while and my website is offline until we have a set date on our return.

Thank you everyone for all of your support throughout my journey with The Kota Project ❤️

04/22/2024

If you're considering adding a dog to your family, please consider adopting. Rescue organizations are full of "unwanted" dogs that desperately need loving homes.
Buying your dog from a breeder, whether it be a puppy mill or otherwise, means the "unwanted" dogs will either stay in the shelter for months, sometimes years until someone wants them or be euthanized because the shelter needs to make room for others.
Help SAVE a life... Not pay someone to "make" more. Pets are family members... Not products to be bought and sold.
Please read Teddy's story.. 💔

APRIL 22- 6:20 PM- APPLICATIONS CLOSED!! Thank you from all of us at TEAM Dog Rescue! Little Teddy has recieved hundreds of applications and email inquiries and our volunteers need time to sift through it all thank you so much for your support!

SPECIAL NEEDS – FOR ADOPTION: My heart was broken as a victim of being born into a puppy mill. Then TEAM Dog Rescue saved me only to find out I do have a broken heart.

Let me explain.

Hi, my name is Teddy.
I am only 13 weeks old.
TEAM Dog Rescue works with a large coalition of other rescue organizations that help move dogs out of Ontario puppy mills into safety.
I was not lucky to be born into a puppy mill, but I know how lucky I am to be saved from one.

When I joined foster care 3 weeks ago, everyone could not stop cooing over me. You see, I am a Golden Retriever, and am an absolutely stunning little happy puppy.
My first stop after meeting my foster family was the veterinarian, me being as delightful as I am gorgeous, loved meeting everyone in sight at the clinic.
Then came the examination.
The doctor was rubbing my chin and just relishing how cute and playful I was.
They put on their stethoscope and listened to my chest.
Their smiles turned serious.
The atmosphere changed in a second and all the adults were whispering and looking very concerned.
The looks I was receiving; the touches on my head and kisses I received during this exam… I understand now to be sympathy.
I heard pieces of the conversation but didn’t understand the seriousness of it and only caught a few words….heart murmur….Grade 5 out of 6…..bad….tragic….so young…just a baby…it was a puzzle I couldn’t quite solve and I was brought to another doctor. This was a special one, a cardiologist, and she was going to listen to my chest too and do some more tests to understand why everyone was so concerned.

The cardiologist said I have something called Sub Aortic Stenosis.
Which means the valve that pumps my heart is too small.
As a result the left side of my heart is working a lot and the right side isn’t.
They are going to put me on a medication to help not overwork my heart.
But the prognosis is very sad.

Now we know why the puppy mill didn’t want to sell me.

Because I was born with a broken heart.

We asked how much time I have and the answer was devastating….I only have 1.5 years to live.

TEAM Dog Rescue would like the balance of my short life expectancy to be memorable, not to be in foster care, but to be with a family of my very own.
They would like to adopt me out to a family who will provide me with my utopia, TEAM in turn will continue to pay for the heart medications (its called Atenolol) prescribed to me for the duration of my life in return.

I wish I had more time on this earth.
I wish I wasn’t a product of greed and exploitation and born into a puppy mill.

But what I do know is today? I am still an adorable little playful puppy, I love people, fun, and anything else a 13 week old puppy enjoys and I deserve a family of my own.
Its a tall order, knowing you are adopting a young puppy who looks perfect on the outside, but has a broken heart on the inside, and on borrowed time, but I know they are out there.

Thank you!

Love
Teddy
Xoxo

04/15/2024

** Please share**

DEAR DOG LOVERS: We are approaching unprecedented times. Infact, the homeless dog crisis is the equivalent of a state of emergency within the province of Ontario.

I'm not sure if people believe us anymore. We, and dozens of other rescues have been setting the alarm since 2022 that we are in crisis, that the province's shelter system is officially inundated by local surrenders. It is now no longer out of the realm of possibility that when those shelters ask owners to wait for a week or more to bring their pet to them due to lack of space, those same dogs are then found as strays, or left and tied to the shelters front doors, abandoned in their lobbies, abandoned in parks, abandoned, over and over and over again.

Our shelter system will look similar to what the USA has been enduring.
Including all the same themes of an urgency of dogs with timelines in shelters, the horrors of an overcrowded shelter with not a kennel to spare, the lack of resources to help these dogs in dire need of help.
We are now no different.
Our shelters are just as overwhelmed.
There is no longer a wait for the bough to break in our over population of homeless dogs, the bough, has broken.

The cause of the overpopulation of dogs:

1. The Covid lockdown and the return to office mandate: There was a huge spike in pet ownership – especially dog ownership – in 2020. Whether these new dog owners believed they would be working remotely for good, or whether they simply were not thinking in the long term, many had a rude awakening in 2021-2022 when they had to return to work. They no longer have time to care for the pets they brought home in 2020. These are the dogs being surrendered more often then not.

2. Opportunistic breeding: The huge spike in pet ownership in 2020 attracted plenty of attention from folks who saw an opportunity to make some cash. Backyard breeding went through the roof. So not only are we inundated with surrenders from owners who bought but can no longer care for their dogs; not only are we dealing with a community in which there are just way more dogs across the board to try and find homes for; we’re also having to directly clean up the mess made by irresponsible breeders.

Why is there a decrease in adoptions?

1. Inflation : Everything is far more expensive today than it was two years ago, and that has priced a whole segment of potential adopters out of pet ownership. An entire population of potential adopters has been lost.

2. Covid dogs : So many of the dogs coming in now were raised in lockdown conditions, often by inexperienced owners. They are unsocialized, untrained, and many suffer from separation anxiety in varying degrees of severity. These dogs would be challenging to place in a normal adoption climate; in an extremely slow adoption climate, they can expect to wait months or sadly, even years.

There are things you can do:

You enjoy walks? Apply to be a volunteer dog walker at your local shelter to help these dogs get the exercise they need.
Have some space and patience to spare? Apply to foster for any shelter or rescue within the province.
Have room in your heart for more? Consider being a multi dog household, there is no shortage of dogs.
You have time to spare? Apply to volunteer, some roles are done by phone or computer and doesn't involve any travel.

But most importantly?
Speak out.
So few people are even aware that dog rescues and shelters are struggling.
Almost no one understands how bad it is right now.
Encourage your friends and family to get their pets fixed.
Discourage them from buying from irresponsible breeders.
Remind them how many pets are becoming homeless, and that so few are adopting.

Thank you

04/11/2024

*PLEASE SHARE* Hopefully someone will see this and be able to help this poor dog .. 💔

03/26/2024

Remember, if you see a dog like this, REPORT IT!!

03/19/2024

I just can't 🥰🥰🥰🥰

03/19/2024

While we were eating at this restaurant, a staff member's dog was there and it was so moving how he was just listening to the music like that 🥰

02/15/2024

This dog was run over by a car yesterday and needs urgent care. It happens all the time here but they can't keep up.

***Please please please help with the vet bill so they won't have to stop rescuing dogs. They need us! **** 💔💔😢

Y como decir no 🥹💔😭 habíamos parado de rescatar por la enorme deuda ...pero ...

De camino para la veterinaria
Sinpe 84394912
Paypal [email protected]
Directamente en la veterinaria Arroyo y Solano

02/14/2024

I'm sorry. I couldn't resist 😂

02/10/2024

Simon got adopted today!! 🥰🥰🥰
We hope you have the life you deserve, Simon! ❤️

02/10/2024

Oh come on! If this isn't the cutest thing you've ever seen, I don't know what is! 🥰🥰🥰
Want to see more adorable little kitties in bow ties? Stop by and meet some of the cutest cats ready for adoption at , Talamanca's only cat rescue.

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