Free to Be Dog Haven

06/01/2026

05/30/2026

🫶🏽

A humane study of how artists have captured our canine companions becomes a meditation on sympathy, trust, and the virtues we have bred them to display.

05/29/2026

🤍🤍🤍

05/29/2026

😍 *Adopted!*

Meet Seraphina, a gentle young shepherd mix with soulful eyes and a quiet, tender heart. Though she may be timid at first, behind her shy nature is a sweet and loving companion just waiting to feel safe. Seraphina enjoys peaceful moments, soft cuddles, and staying close to the people she trusts most. With patience, kindness, and love, her loyal and affectionate personality blossoms beautifully, making her a truly special girl ready to find her forever home ❤️

05/26/2026

Throwback dump to when we fostered Bean

05/25/2026

Visited my old pal big Beanie baby—what a sweetheart! 🥰

05/22/2026

We visited our friend Billy at his “Place”! 📷: .itsjustlife

05/20/2026

🥰🥰🥰

05/19/2026

Yes!

I remember the first time I saw a Rez dog.

I was 11 years old, at our summer cabin at Delaronde Lake , Pickerel Point Resort. My family and I were having lunch at the store, and my golden retriever was tied up outside.
I was sitting with him when I saw a pack of four big dogs coming from the reserve across the creek.

They weren’t rushing. They weren’t threatening. They were just moving down the road together, playing, relaxed, like they belonged exactly where they were.

My dad rushed me and my dog inside.

“Don’t touch them. They’ll hurt you. They’re full of disease.”
But I remember looking at them and thinking… they don’t look scary. They don’t look mean. They looked happy.

The next time I saw those same dogs, they were following two kids on bikes. Not chasing them. Not biting at them. Just following them to the store.

The kids went inside to buy candy, and the dogs waited outside for them.

I was standing there with my dog on a leash. The dogs came over, sniffed him, and then moved on. They didn’t attack. They didn’t seem sick. They seemed social, connected, and calm.
When the kids came back out, I
asked, “Are those your dogs?”
They said,

“They’re everyone’s dogs.”

At 11 years old, I couldn’t wrap my head around what that meant. I remember thinking how lucky they were to have more than one dog.
I am Indigenous. I am a Métis woman. But I did not grow up on reserve, and this way of life was new to me.

The beauty of reserve dogs stayed with me into adulthood.

Many reserve dogs are deeply loved. They are cared for by community members, and especially by the children. They are part of the community, part of the rhythm, part of the life there.

Are there dogs who shouldn’t be free roaming? Absolutely.

Are there safety concerns that need to be addressed? Yes.

But the answer is not always removal.

Sometimes the best thing we can do for these dogs is support the community members who already love them.

Reduce barriers.
Provide food.
Provide vet care.
Provide spay and neuter access.
Listen before acting.

Taking a dog away from the only life they have ever known is not always rescue.

These dogs have their own way of life, and unless you have spoken to the community, listened to the people, and understood the situation, you have no business deciding that dog does not belong there.
Support the community members.
Reduce barriers.

Respect the dogs, the people, and the life they share

05/17/2026

(Not diminishing drug addiction!)