Pets on Wheels of Scottsdale

Update

July, 2019 #116

July Meeting There is no July meeting.

October Meeting When: Sunday October 20 1-4 pm Where: McCormick Railroad Park, 7301 E. Indian Bend Rd., Scottsdale What: Picnic (POW provides food & beverage) Awards Who: Volunteers, immediate family, and pet volunteers Coordinated by: Ellen Baker & Christina Shorall

April Meeting

Volunteers with non-profit Help a Dog Smile (Help) were our April meeting guests. Help's mission is to turn homeless dogs into Happy Dogs by finding loving homes for strays, dogs on the euthanasia list or from hoarding situations.

Help doesn't have a shelter which means that every life saved depends on a foster home. Volunteers who open their homes to animals in need are the backbone of the organization. Public and corporate donations provide most of the funding for Help.

Every dog receives a veterinary check up,

vaccinations, and usually a spay or neuter surgery.

Once the animal is healthy, Help seeks a loving

home where he or she can live out their life in happiness. POW volunteer Christina Shorall adopted her chihuahua Wendy Wu from HELP .

Guest volunteer teams at the meeting: Peggy Eischen & Mason, Lisa Levey & Scout, Mary Lewkowitz & Teddy, Lisa Spero & Everest. Their photos appear later in the newsletter.

Many thanks to the "helpers" at this meeting. Sign in table: Julie Bronstein, Elaine Goldenthal, Marsha Usdane Refreshments & Door Prize: Ellen Baker, Christina Shorall T-tshirts: Glenn Zellmer Photos: Barbara Digges Set-up/Take Down: Glenn Zellmer 50/50 Raffle winner: Diane Bykowski

Door Prize winner: Ann Hammersly

In lieu of the annual awards meeting and pet parade that we have traditionally held in October, Pets on Wheels will be hosting a picnic and awards presentation for volunteers, immediate family, and pet volunteers. The date is Sunday, October 20th from 1 to 4 pm at the McCormick Railroad Park. POW will provide all food, beverages, and dessert. The main course will likely be burgers and hotdogs, with traditional sides. We will also serve vegan alternatives. We'll be using one of the ramadas at the park, thus picnic tables and benches are provided. However, you may want to bring your own lawn chairs and/ or blanket. We'll have water available for the dogs, but we suggest that you bring a water dish, poop bag, and perhaps a chew for your dog. We won't be doing a pet parade this year, so costumes are not encouraged. As in the past, The POW board will hand out awards that recognize volunteers for visits, years, and special contributions. We also will have both the POW dog trading cards and leashes for you. We'll be sending out a follow-up email with more details and asking you to RSVP. For now, we ask that you Save the Date. We look forward to seeing you and your volunteer partner at the picnic.

We had the opportunity to meet several of the HELP dogs are at our meeting!

UPCOMING EVENTS General Meetings: No July meeting

October meeting, see above

President's Message

President’s Message July 2019

Our pack is in mourning. We had to make the most

difficult decision pet owners ever have to make. Our

always healthy, 12 yr old Australian Cattle Dog (Clover)

developed a cough. The vet hoped that it might be

Valley Fever, but no. It was fast growing lymphoma.

We were gently told by our vet that Clover might last for

two weeks.

We could not ask her to stay for us, sedated or

coughing all the time. So last week, as we cuddled her,

she quietly crossed the Rainbow Bridge. No more

hacking cough for her.

Both Mason and Boone seem to be lost without Clover.

I have had to take over some of her jobs. When I would

go to bed, she herded all dogs into the bedroom,

because all were napping. Without her, they didn’t

move into the bedroom until the wee hours of the

morning. Now I have to pet them, so they are reminded

to move to the bedroom.

Mason goes out into the yard, then barks. He suddenly

realizes his Clover isn’t barking with him, so he hurries

back into the house. Both dogs are quieter and expect

me or Glenn to take Clover’s place in their play.

Although, they have grown closer to each other and

definitely stick closer to me and Glenn. Animals grieve,

just like us.

The Rainbow Bridge story always brings me comfort, I

have a large pack frolicking, as they wait for me.

Peggy Eischen

NEW VISITING TEAMS

Two new volunteer teams started their visits during April thru June. Welcome!!

Life Care Brian Hankes with Baby, a Beagle mix Shea Parc Laura Baker with Chessie, a King Charles Cavalier. They also visit Amber Creek.

TOP VISITORS

These are the volunteer teams with 13 or more visits for April, May, and June 2018.

Diane Bykowski, Mia & Zoe 79

John Grizzard & Cooper 60

Ellen Baker & Chanel 34

Christina Shorall, CoCo & 33

Wendy Wu

Carl Gross & Posey 33

Barbara Digges & Maxine 20

Peggy Eischen & Mason 18

Jenny Lidback & Abby 15

Nancy Maurer, Max & Rosie 15

Marsha Usdane & Munchkin 15

Chris Barnes & Lilly 14

Charleen Haveron & Joey 13

Sunshine

Jeannie Pearce & Duke 13

David Rosen & Charlie 13

TOP VISITORS Volunteers having the most visits during the months of October through December: Kathy Sins & Grayson, Winston, Bentley 79 Diane Bykowski & Zoe 65 Ivan Smith & Ozzie 36 Penny Wagge & Alfie 24 Warren Clark & Pepper 22 John Grizzard & Cooper 21 Ellen Baker & Chanel 20 Christina Shorall & Coco 20 Peter Baxter & Dodger 19 Kathy Homes & Missy 17 Barbara Digges & Maxine 14 Julie Bronstein & Darmok , Jilad 13

Marsha Usdane & Munchkin 13

Pets on Wheels is participating in Arizona Gives Day 2016

April 5, 2017

We'd LOVE a photo of your dog or cat at a Care Center!

Email:

petsonwheelsaz@gmail.com

Thanks to Diane Bykowski, Barbara Digges, Peggy Eischen, Denise Forsman, Barbara Gutman, Joan Langdon, and Deanna Taylor for their photo contributions.

Clover, Boone, and Mason at Papago Park

Pets on Wheels in Action

Many thanks to our volunteer teams who attended special events this past quarter and to Diane Bykowski for coordinating events and sharing event photos. Events included pet parades at Maravilla Enliven, Stressbuster sessions at Scottsdale Community College & Arizona Christian University, and the National Cancer Survivors celebration at the Piper Cancer Center. For more event photos, please check our Facebook page PetsOnWheelsOfScottsdale

Dale Bates & AJ Diane Bykowski, Zoe & Mia Peggy Eischen & Mason Denise Forsman & Ferris Tom Foye & Butters David Gill & Roscoe John Grizzard & Cooper Carl Gross & Posey Gail Gundling & Maggie

Barbara Gutman & Parker Terri Harrington & Cesar Lisa Levey & Scout Jenny Lidback & Abby Nancy Maurer & Max Jeannie Pearce & Duke Charles Oldham & Frosty Susan Pack & Chloe Sharon Philips & Tallulah

Karen Scharf & Hudson Ann Schatzman & Charlie Sheryl Socoloff & Lucky Kim Spangler & Tilly Lisa Spero & Everest Deanna Taylor & Martes John Toman & Lexi Marsha Usdane & Munchkin Denise Villalon & Monte Glenn Zellmer & Mason

These teams of POW stressbusters helped students at Scottsdale Comm & Az Christian conquer their finals

.

Maravilla Pet Parades Our volunteer teams shared smiles, hugs and joy at the Maravilla pet parades. Residents loved that the

April event was held outdoors.

AJ & Dale Bates Tilly & Kim Spangler Abby & Jenny Lidback

Peggy Eischen, Lisa Levey,

Mason, Scout, Zoe, & Mia

John Grizzard, Glenn Zellmer,

Cooper

National Cancer Survivors Day is

a celebration for those who have

survived, an inspiration for those

recently diagnosed, a gathering

of support for families, and

an outreach to the community.

Our volunteers were honored to attend the event at the Virginia G Piper Cancer Center.

When you hear the name Ferris Forsman, it may bring to mind a stodgy accountant or a famous movie star. But nope, Ferris Forsman (usually just "Ferris") is one of our most dedicated Pets on Wheels volunteers, along with his human partner Denise.

Ferris was the first pet for the Forsman family. The two Forsman children had been asking for a dog for a long time. Finally, when they were 13 and 15, Denise and her husband agreed. They chose the Shih Tzu breed because they are hypoallergenic, don’t shed, and have a great temperament. The Shih Tzu is a recommended breed for first time dog owners. The kids named the new puppy Ferris after Ferris Bueller.

Ferris loves going for walks, racking up a couple of miles every day. He's very stubborn about walking in his direction and will hunker down until he gets his way. His favorite toy is his wiffle ball which he loves to push under the couch for Denise to retrieve. When a puppy, Ferris learned to drink from a suspended water bottle and, to this day, he continues bottle drinking., which is less messy than drinking from a bowl.

Denise and Ferris joined Pets on Wheels three years ago. They visit weekly at Vi @ Silverstone. With his outgoing personality and snuggleability, Ferris is a favorite at POW events- Sky Kids, Botanical Gardens, college campus-de-stressing, Maravella Enliven Pet Parades, among others. When not visiting, Denise and Ferris enjoy hiking and taking snapchat pictures together to send to the kids, who are both off at college on the east coast.

Denise shared a couple of touching moments from Ferris' visits. I am amazed at all the smiles and verbal responses that Ferris brings out of people. One time a resident’s wife was flabbergasted at her husband’s response to Ferris. He suffered from Parkinson’s and had minimal control of his arms / hands. He was bare handed at the time. Smiling at Ferris, he proceeded to steadily lift his hand up to pet and stroke Ferris’s ear. His wife was misty eyed and so thankful for Ferris’s visit.

On a couple of other occasions, residents that we had been visiting for many months were nearing the end of their lives in Hospice care. After making sure it was

okay to visit, I brought Ferris near their beds. It was clear on their faces that they knew he was there to say goodbye. Those occasions made me misty eyed.

Denise retired from Motorola/Nokia several years ago as a computer scientist/project manager ---working on projects from airborne radar to cellular networks. Her husband is a computer engineer. Her older daughter will start medical school at Brown University in the fall while her younger son attends Cornell. Denise enjoys yoga and reading historical fiction in her spare time.

Denise thinks, if Ferris could talk, he would likely announce, " I don’t like it when you leave me home alone. It’s boring. I would rather be visiting." We hope for many more visits from Denise and Ferris!!

Ferris loves being the center of a kids' "group pet."

Meet Denise and Ferris

Ferris snuggles with one of his favorite

residents at Vi.

Welcome New Evaluator Dale Bates successfully completed her first new therapy team evaluation in July. She will be doing future evaluations at Westminster Village, where she and AJ are regular visitors. On leave Pearl, a Standard Poodle and Kaye Heineman are taking a leave of absence, because their partner Fred Heineman took a fall. He is recuperating and will let us know when they can return to visiting at Westminster.

Posey, a Labradoodle, is taking time off as Carl Gross, her team partner, had knee surgery in June. She will be back on the job, as soon as Carl can resume visiting.

Az Gives

POW brought in slightly more than $6000 in donations and prize money from the AZ Gives campaign in April. Once again, our volunteers donated generously and helped us win an additional $750 in prize money by making prescheduled donations. Diane, Peggy, Barb and Mia attended the awards celebration where the Big Checks were handed out.

News and Notes

Retirement Gracie, a domestic short-haired cat, retired in June, 2019. She will be doing a lot of traveling with her partner, Barbara Bannister. They started visiting Tempe Friendship Village in September 2017. Gracie was very popular and will be missed by all she visited.

Rainbow Bridge

Sadly, we report these good dogs recently crossed the Rainbow Bridge.

Reagan, dear partner and friend to Pat Hood, crossed the Rainbow Bridge in May. Reagan was an 11 year old Standard Poodle who began volunteering in 2017. Reagan and Pat made more than 50 visits. They visited at Barton House where Reagan was very gentle with memory care residents.

Ella, nearly 13, a Golden Retriever, joined Pets on Wheels with her partner Jill Neitzke, in 2015. They visited Life Care Center and attended college stress buster events. Ella had cataracts at the young age of three. She had artificial lenses which gave her many years of sight. It was a good conversation starter with some of the older folks she visited because they could relate. Even as her eyesight failed, she was confident and did excellent maneuvering around beds and wheelchairs. Ella is dearly missed by her family, which includes Jake, a Cavalier King Charles who also visits with POW.

Clover, Australian Cattle Dog For 12 yrs, Clover supported the Eischen POW teams. This included Peggy and Glenn with Chester, Boone and Mason. Clover did not want to visit, but she sent her teams off to each visit. She enthusiastically welcomed them back home, and proceeded to herd them back into her home routine. Her dedicated guidance is sorely missed by her pack.

Thank You

Marsha Usdane and Munchkin recently received this thoughtful note from a resident they visited for several months.

Hi there. It is me, Terry from Osborne. Thanks so much for all that you and precious little Munchkin do. You not only brightened up my days but have truly brightened up my life.

Leashes & Cards Our new 4 foot leashes have arrived. They are red with a silver ribbon that displays Pets on Wheels name and logo. They will be distributed at the October picnic.

And we are continuing to process new trading cards for our volunteers. The steps to create your card have been communicated by email. If you need more info on the cards, please email Barbara Digges petsonwheelstradingcards@gmail.com The cards will also be available at the picnic. We will arrange to get these items to you if you are unable to attend the picnic.

RIP Clover

Peggy Sins Pase, sister of beloved volunteer Kathy

Sins, presented Pets on Wheels with a generous

check from Kathy's estate at our April meeting.

Peggy spoke of Kathy's legacy with Pets on Wheels.

In March 2018 we lost a generous and loving person when my sister Kathy Sins lost her battle with cancer and left this earth. Those of you who knew her know how much she loved her dogs. Grayson, Winston and Bentley are doing well in their new forever home with us in Goodyear.

In 1996 Kathy met a representative of Pets of Wheels at an event at the Franciscan Renewal Center, and after talking with them about your mission, she was hooked. Kathy loved volunteering with Pets on Wheels, as evidenced by over 6000 visits that she made with 7 dogs over a 21 year period. In her trust, she assigned a percentage of her assets to Pets on Wheels of Scottsdale, which

was her way of leaving a legacy that would help guarantee its continuation. Now that bills and taxes are finished for her estate, I would like to finalize Kathy’s wishes. I am confident that her gift will help sustain an organization that brings so much joy to others. My brother Ken and I thank you for the wonderful work that you do. As Kathy’s executor, I am happy to present to Pets on Wheels a check for $19,032.90.

more News and Notes

Peggy Pase presents check to Peggy

Eischen

AKC Therapy Dog Program Did you know that your therapy dog, either pure or mixed breed, can earn AKC Therapy Dog Titles based on the number of visits you have made. Because Pets on Wheels of Scottsdale is a recognized therapy organization, your dog would qualify. The more visits, the more titles you can earn.

These titles start at 10 visits (Novice), all the way up

to 400 visits (Distinguished). In addition, if you choose, your dog would also qualify for his/her Canine Good Citizenship title without having to take the test.

When you’re ready to apply for an AKC Therapy Dog title, complete these steps:

1. Apply for an AKC number for your dog if she/he does not already have one. This can be done on line at https://www.akc.org/register/dog/ You'll get the number via email very quickly. There's a fee for this.

2. Request/obtain a certification letter from Peggy Eischen @ petonwheelsscottsdale@gmail.com. This letter will "certify" the number of visits that you and your dog have made. You do not need to complete or submit your own log of visits. 3. Complete AKC Therapy Dog Title Application (obtain on line) and mail the app, POW certification letter, and payment info to the AKC address shown on the application with a $20 recording fee. There's an additional application /fee if you request the Canine Good Citizen title.

Read more about it at https://www.akc.org/sports/title-recognition-program/therapy-dog-program/apply-for-an-akc-therapy-dog-title/. If you have questions, you can call Diane Bykowski at 602 380 6510. POW dogs that have earned AKC Therapy Dog titles include Cooper (John Grizzard), Ferris (Denise Forsman), Mason (Peggy Eischen), Mia & Zoe (Diane Bykowski), Munchkin (Marsha Usdane)

Our Benefactors

Gifts during the months of January-June 2019

Patrons: $400 plus Estate of Kathy Sins United Way Donors Choice

Supporters: $25 - $99 Amazon Smile American Express donor John & Shirley Blount

Contributors: $100 - $399 Benevity Bonnie & Dave Duncanson Give with Liberty Kroger (Fry's) Alice & Charles Palmer

Dogs at Work

Can't tell who enjoys snuggling

more, Darby (Joan Langdon) or his

lady friend.

The Doctor is IN and happy to

greet Martes (Deanna Taylor).

Parker and Barbara Gutman

help this Piper patient make the

best of a long day.

Guest Dogs at April Meeting

We welcome the volunteer teams and guests who attended our April

meeting.

Lisa Levey & Scout Mary Lewkowitz & Teddy Peggy Eischen & Mason

Lisa Spero & Everest Peggy Pase, Winston & Grayson

Pets on Wheels of Scottsdale 1700 N Granite Reef Scottsdale, AZ 85357 PETS ON WHEELS BOARD OF DIRECTORS President & CEO Peggy Eischen Vice President Elaine Goldenthal Secretary Marsha Usdane Treasurer, Statutory Agent Andrew Mark Director Diane Bykowski Director Barbara Digges Director John Grizzard Director Nancy Maurer

QUARTERLY MEETING

Picnic & Awards

Sunday October 20, 2019 1-4 pm

McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park 7301 E Indian Bend Rd

Scottsdale, AZ

Editor, Barbara Digges

We've all saved the date for the Pets on Wheels picnic on

October 20th. Have you??