June 3, 2023

If your GRRAND pup found its forever home in 2022, GRRAND wants YOU to come celebrate! Join us for our annual Have-a-Heart celebration, where you can share your pup's adoption story and compete in a hot dog relay and marshmallow toss. Winners will receive a prize, and every GRRAND pup in attendance will receive a toy and treat bag.

When: Saturday, June 3 from 1-4 p.m.

Where: Competitive Edge - 4600 Shepherdsville Rd, Louisville, KY 40218

How to Sign Up: Contact Carol Shipp by May 28th by email at [email protected] or by phone at 502-876-7943. Please include your dog's name and the number of guests that plan to attend. 

*Due to space limitations, we ask that only GRRAND dogs adopted in 2022 attend. Guests are encouraged to bring chairs. Leashes are required except during the games.

Rescue Report - April 2023

We are overwhelmed, again!

As of the end of April, GRRAND had 61 dogs stashed in every conceivable place to keep them safe until we can place them. Our kennel is full, many are at Sharon Gretsinger’s kennel, we have some coming in from other locations in Kentucky, and over 21 owner surrender dogs are staying in the owner’s home until they are either placed or kennel space opens up for them.

This Tails writer is at an absolute loss for words. The number of dogs whose lives are on the line in our region, state, and country is horrific and showing no signs of improvement. GRRAND is bursting at the seams to fulfill our mission and yet more and more dogs continue to be presented to us for rescue. Owner turn-in dogs is on the rise to the point that we get surrender requests almost daily. Puppy mills are flourishing and illegally profiting from inhumane breeding and sadly people support that repulsive business by purchasing their dogs. When I see GRRAND wrestling to be the hero for these poor dogs, it inspires me, but it also saddens me that many (not all) of these dogs are in such a miserable state of despair and without our help will die.

Simply put:

• We need ADOPTION APPLICATIONS (View FAQ page for adoption qualifiers)
• We need ADOPTERS
• We need FOSTER APPLICATIONS (View FAQ page for foster qualifiers)
• We need VOLUNTEERS
• We need FINANCIAL SUPPORT
• We need ENCOURAGEMENT
• We need to SPREAD THE WORD

But know this:

• We are DETERMINED to save these dogs no matter the obstacles.
• We know you have that same determination.
• We will not allow anything to hinder our mission to rescue dogs in need.

Please consider the situation GRRAND is experiencing and see if there is anything you can do to facilitate our rescue operation, no matter how small. If you have time to offer, have a look at our volunteer opportunities page and see what might interest you. Share this publication with your family and friends who appreciate and love dogs. You can use the Facebook, Twitter, or Email share buttons in the footer at the bottom of this page.

If you can help, click on the buttons below. As always, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued support and encouragement!

Trainer Spotlight - Alicia Noshang

Alicia Noshang is an extremely accomplished dog trainer, known for handling euthanasia and bite cases with a 99% success rate. She started off her career working with dogs at a doggy daycare and now owns her own company, Don’t Stop Retrieving. Alicia also volunteers at multiple nonprofits, and she has volunteered at GRRAND for around 8 years where she teaches others trainers her techniques, and handles euthanasia and bite cases for around 25 rescues. Her career has sent her to Russia, Spain, and Puerto Rico where she has picked up new techniques to create a hodge-podge of training approaches.

Alicia’s top tips for selecting a dog and finding the right trainer:

• Consider how much your personal profile changes, and make sure that the dog you get will still be the right fit 5 years from now. For example, if you run marathons and are looking for a dog to run with you, ask yourself how often do you really run and participate in marathons, and if you were to stop running would you still be able to give that dog the exercise that it needs. 

• Don’t buy a dog just for its looks!

• When looking for a trainer, ask for before and after documentation of dogs that they have worked with, and ask if you can reach out to past clients to understand what their opinions and situation was when working with the trainer. Any trainer that you seek to work with should want to be a perfect fit for you as well, and if a trainer can’t tell you about a bad experience that they have had it is a red flag!

Alicia is located in Cincinnati, Ohio and she hosts two free public classes every week for reactive dogs, as she knows how challenging it can be to afford and schedule individual training lessons - her classes have saved over 216 dogs from being put into shelters!

Thank you Alicia for all that you have done for GRRAND and for the community! Click here to read about Alicia's favorite and most recent rehabilitation case!

I Found Love - Adoption and Fostering Stories

Jill, Apollo, and Athena have been living the life since being adopted by Johnny and Leigh Nuckols! Below are their thoughts on their 3 furry-friends.

Why did you choose to adopt Jill, Apollo, and Athena?

We first adopted Jill in February 2022 as a chill senior lady who made a great companion while I worked from home. She quickly became queen of the castle! She is perfect for us - walks well on a leash, house trained, and loves to snuggle on the couch. Months later, we purchased a small farm in the country and Johnny said that Jill needed a friend to roam the fields with. Since we have a HUGE backyard, we found a pair of brothers that we thought would make a great addition to our furry family and decided to meet them. Jill quickly thought otherwise and let us know they were a bit much for her old lady ways. While we were at GRRAND meeting those dogs, Jane thought of two other siblings that might be Jill-approved. Luckily for us, Apollo and Athena’s foster moms (the siblings were living apart) were nearby and brought them to meet Jill. They were very respectful of Jill and were glad to be reunited. The rest is history!

Continue reading about Jill, Apollo, and Athena by clicking on this link!