Agnes, reflections on what might have been!

Thank you to all who left comments and messages of support following the passing of Agnes. Your best wishes are well received and were needed by us. In reflecting on Agnes and her brief stay here, we wanted to share some thoughts with our readers. We realize that most of the readers are already rescue workers and volunteers, but just in case you are not a rescue volunteer, please read on.

Agnes was picked up in Pueblo, Colorado, wandering free, dirty and matted, with no tags or collar. No tags or collar usually means an "on purpose stray", one who was set lose on the edge of town because it was sick and there was no room in the owners lives for an old, sick dog, even after 10 years together.

Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies was notified that an older, ill Golden Retriever was available at the pound in Pueblo. A volunteer driving team made a trip of 200 miles to bring her to the rescue in Golden Colorado. They said they had never seen a more matted, dirty dog in their lives. Once at the rescue she saw the groomer and the vet. She tested heart worm positive and she had to be treated for heart worm which is no easy battle for an older dog (10+), especially where she had gone untreated for some time. Agnes also had issues with her rear hips and legs, she was not walking well and tried not to get up and down more than she had to. She was put on several med's to help her hip pain and to help her weather the heart worm treatment. The rest of the story you have already read in the blog.

The real hero's in her life are the volunteers that rescued her from the pound in Pueblo, groomed her, took her to the vet and helped her along the way. They gave us the chance to foster her and to provide some comfort to her in her final weeks. We are grateful to all the team that helped her on her journey. It may not have been as long of a journey as we had hoped for, but it was a journey that made her life better in her last days.

We continue to have nightmares of might have happened if the rescue and its volunteers had not intervened. She could have died alone on a concrete floor in a chain link run. What keeps the rescue workers going is the knowledge that there are hundreds more lost dogs that we still need to reach, we need to transport and groom, give them medical care and a warm home while they seek new homes. Hundreds more sleeping on concrete floors with chain link for walls, but even worse for a Golden, no human hand to give head pats, no human voice to give comfort.

We only fostered Agnes for weeks, someone else had her for over 10 years, and let her down. We hope we let her know that humans do care, a dogs love and loyalty is not wasted.

Our thanks go out to all the volunteers that work in rescues all across the country. If you don't volunteer at a rescue, take time today to use your Internet connection to search and find a rescue near you.

Donate time and money to help another Agnes find a warm home, help another Agnes die with dignity.

Thanks for all you do.
Mogley G. Retriever