A West suburban pet store is forging a new partnership as it moves forward to adopt out dogs and puppies instead of selling them. Annie's Little Angels Humane Education & Small Breed Dog Rescue has stepped to the forefront and joined forces with Dog Patch Pet and Feed.
“We are working with Greg Gordon, the owner of Dog Patch, to help pull dogs and puppies from animal control for him to adopt out of his store,” says Brandy Gergescz, founder of the Plainfield-based rescue. “We had pulled two smaller dogs from Animal Care and Control in Chicago and transferred the dogs to him. He has had one adoption already.”
Gergescz’s organization vetted the first two dogs in the program. Dogs are now being signed over to Gordon as he gets his program up and running. He is working with his network of veterinarians to get the animals spayed and neutered, vaccinated and micro-chipped to prepare them for adoption.
“I expect to fill my kennels with numbers based on availability, needs of the animals in house and the like,” says Gordon. “Brandy and I have been working this out as we go. It's all about getting the animals and Brandy can teach me how to get them and assist in the process. We have been helping each other.”
Since the beginning of the year, Gordon has adopted out 30 dogs, four of them in the past week. During the week, he’s taken in a flat-coated retriever from Indiana and four more with Gergescz’s help – a Lhasa, a Boston mix that may be pregnant, a skittish Shih Tzu and an American Eskimo that also is very frightened.
“We are helping him pull the dogs and then we transfer them to Greg for adoption purposes,” says Gergescz’s. “We’ve always wanted to save more animals but have lacked space as a small foster home-based rescue organization. We are now able to save more lives working with Greg and increasing exposure for Annie’s Little Angels as well.”
Gergescz’s organization pulls dogs from Chicago Animal Care and Control, Aurora Animal Control and Romeoville. Her group also saves dogs from puppy mills. Gordon says that he has been contacted by other rescues and he believes they are all waiting to see how the program progresses. He says that he and Gergescz have become a good team in a short period of time and have learned to trust each other on this program. He will stop selling puppies all together by the end of January.
‘I am more sure of this decision every day,” says Gordon. “The crazy support is starting to die down and my regulars have begun to chime in. Most all of them are excited about the change. I hope that folks that have posted on my Facebook page and written me in support will follow through with their promise to shop here. I am going to need the new customer base.”
He adds that some long-time customers have asked about where to purchase pure breed puppies. He’ll keep a directory so that those customers may contact breeders directly. In the meantime, Gordon has also heard from other independent pet store owners that would like to make the same move in the future and are watching to see what he does to make the switch and how it goes for the long term.
“It’s been two weeks and I'm convinced that I am doing the right thing,” says Gordon. “I have been asked, bullied, pressed, pushed and begged to make this change. I am thrilled to be doing it. I believe that I have to do it the way I see it. I know there will be those that will want it done differently. That's OK. The main thing is to get animals that have run out of chances a chance to live a full and happy life.”
Dog Patch Pet and Feed is located at 1108 East Ogden Avenue in Naperville. The shop has also been adopting out cats and kittens from the Northwoods Humane Society in Wisconsin for 30 years. Learn more online and by following them on Facebook. Learn more about Annie's Little Angels Humane Education & Small Breed Dog Rescue online or follow them on Facebook.
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