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 August 2019  
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The Dog Days of Summer!

We Are Available For Adoption

❤️ Miss Allie ❤️

Allie has worked so hard to lose almost 20 pounds and is ready for her furever happily after

Meet Miss Lucy
Meet Miss Ruby
Meet Miss Theia
Meet Miss Asha ❤️
Other Ways To Donate to Shepherds Without Borders

Upcoming Event:
Willamette Valley Hospice "Walk-n-Wag"

Saturday, September 14th, 2019

9:00 am – 12:00 pm

Minto Brown Island Park, Salem, OR

Shepherds Without Borders volunteers will occupy a vendor booth at this worthwhile event. Please join us in supporting the Willamette Valley Hospice! 

For those of you who wish to bring your dogs and participate in the "Walk-n-Wag" portion of this event, details follow below:

$10 online registration ends 9/12/2019. Register at the event for $15.
 Children 12 years and under are free. Goodie bags are guaranteed to the first 250 participants.

Register today to save: http://bit.ly/2ITcGXF

There is a special bond between hospice patients and their beloved animal companions. This family-friendly, pet-centered event raises funds to help care for these “best friends” of hospice patients, and to assist with finding a new forever home for pets, when needed.

Willamette Valley Hospice is a local partner of the national PET PEACE OF MIND® program.

Donate to Shepherds Without Borders HERE (via PayPal, Amazon Smile, Benevity, Facebook Fundraisers)

Camping Canines

Traveling Tips from Kya & Zephyr as barked to Bob Garcia


Here we go again. Kya and Zephyr are entering their second year of traveling in the 5th wheel with mom & dad. Quite honestly, mom & dad are also fairly new to the world of trailering. The four of us have collectively learned a lot to this point and continue to gain more knowledge each time we venture out. Kya & Zephie tried to type this article on their own but kept ”fat-pawing” the keyboard. After several attempts they caved in and asked me to type their words of wisdom to share with their SWB friends.

For many years, we traveled quite a bit in the pre-trailering era. Our previous GSD, Kayla, was thankfully restful in the boarding facilities we employed at the time, but the costs were excessive. Not surprisingly we always opted for the private suites, the web cameras, and brought her food and toys from home. No matter how well-settled Kayla might be, mom and dad would constantly deal with guilt and angst until we were able to pick her up. Those days are behind us.

We decided that in order for us to travel free from any parental guilt moving forward, we would need to buy and start using an RV. Our list of criteria for the home on wheels sounds simple but after some trailering experience became necessary features in order to be comfortable for people and dogs alike. Number one on our list was a king-size bed. Kya is an all-night bed sleeper and Zephyr is a part-timer. Throw Linda and me into the mix and things can become very tight. Our original queen-size bed had us trying to sleep with mermaid's legs. Not good. The king-size bed has been a leg-saver for sure.

Number two on the must-have list was living space. We do not spend 100% of our camping time outdoors. The unpredictability of the weather in different places dictates whether we are inside the trailer or not. When we are inside, it is so helpful to have extra space and furniture for the four of us. Having multiple slide-outs provides much useful space in which to spread out. Additionally, more than one type of seating allows for some flexibility, especially where Kya and Zeph are involved. Room to move around, room to sit, and room for the dogs to lay down are all things to consider.

Third on the list for us are what I would call the trailer ”environmentals”. By that I mean adequate airflow/air conditioning, heating, refrigeration, etc. Once again the weather can determine where you and the dogs spend your day. For example, we are currently in Declo, Idaho where the temperature is sitting around 85 degrees but there is high humidity as well. We take Kya and Zephyr out for early walks around the RV park, then get them back inside for a spell. Both air conditioners are running and the inside temps are pleasant. The flip-side is true when it gets very cold, at which point we use the forced air heat.

Beyond the RV/trailer essentials, destination becomes the focus. Bet you're not surprised that on the top of our destination requirements is pet-friendliness. We find that many of the older RV parks rely on outdated pet ”rules & restrictions” in their posted policies. You will see restrictions on specific breeds, restrictions on quantity, restrictions on size, etc. We also have seen a shift in the newer parks where they promote how pet-friendly they are; a likely reaction to more and more campers taking their family dogs along for the journey. Foremost suggestion is to call the RV park directly to have them clarify and/or confirm their pet policy regardless of what is posted online or in print.

More specifically related to pet policies are pet facilities within a given RV park. Zeph and Kya always ask us to find a spot that includes a fenced dog run area. They simply love running off-leash after a day of travel in the truck. We have been fortunate to stay at several parks with wonderful fenced dog runs. Some with grass, some with grass and pea gravel, others with pea gravel only. Most have pet waste stations, some have water spigots. Where no fenced dog runs are found, always then best to have large areas of green space on which to stretch the legs. So far on this current trip, we have stayed at a couple of parks with really good dog amenities: fenced, grassy dog runs; a dog laundry; dog wash areas. For us these seemingly small perks to the undogged eye are like gold.

Bringing home with you. A final important segment for trailering with your dogs related to making them feel like home away from home. Always pack enough of your doggies' normal foods! We bring enough of their kibble and wet food to last our entire trip plus five extra days. Same goes for their favorite treats. The last thing you want to do is change their diet several hundred miles from home. Additionally, if they are going to be due for flea and tick meds or heartworm treatments, carry those along also. Set them in your calendar as an alarm-too easy to forget while traveling. Linda and I also built a doggy first aid kit that remains in our trailer at all times.

One final final reminder from Kya and Zephyr: always bring some favorite toys along also! As I stated initially, we are no trailering experts by any means, but all four of us wanted to share some of our thoughts and experiences with you. Feel free to email us with any thoughts, questions, or tips to share!
Interested in Volunteering?

Who We Are

Shepherds Without Borders is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and is 100% volunteer/donation driven. We are based in the Pacific Northwest of the United States; currently active in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Northern California.

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