Holland rocks! Alphabet Puppies will soon follow Jorja and Ipo to new Dutch lives
Alphabet Puppy – pretty girl Beta / Photo: Katerina Lorenzatos Makris
PLEASE NOTE: The author no longer endorses Dog Rescue Greece and Arnolda Meisel-Westerduin.
The bad news is that just hours after vowing to my husband that I would do no more animal rescue while here in Greece (because animal rescue has already delayed my return home by several months) I did more animal rescue.
My Greek Alphabet Puppies – all four of their sweet little selves
Four puppies had been dumped at the local Alpha Beta supermarket here on the Greek island of Kefalonia. Barely eight weeks old and so small that drivers couldn’t see them under their tires, they were gamboling amidst traffic in the parking lot.
What can I say? The “Alphabet Puppies” followed me home.
The good news is that just hours after I broke that solemn spousal vow, a friend rescued me from myself. Again.
Because the friend contacted Dog Rescue Greece to plead on behalf of the puppies and me, that Dutch group offered not only to accept the four Alphabet Puppies into their rehoming program, but also to… drum roll… pay their veterinary and airline transport fees… and… send… me… the… travel crates! (Those galldang travel crates are hard to come by here on the Greek island of Kefalonia, and pricey too.) PLEASE NOTE: The author no longer endorses Dog Rescue Greece and Arnolda Meisel-Westerduin.
A friend visiting Animal Rescue Kefalonia (ARK) / Photo: Katerina Lorenzatos Makris
Granger (formerly named Princess Jorja Specklestockings) hangs out on the sofa with new best friend Tidings in their Dutch castle / Photo: Granger’s new mommy Alinda
This was not the first time that my friend had gone to bat for me and for the animals. It is because of her that my previous foster girls Jorja (now named Granger) and Ipo are now living the high life with fabulous forever families in Holland.
For those two pooches, my friend contacted the ladies of Stichting Animal Association International (AAI), who kindly took the two Greek girls under their wings and found them loving homes.
Ipo making herself at home… in Holland! / Photo: Ipo’s new parents
I have no doubt that the Alphabet Puppies will enjoy the same fates thanks to my friend and Dutch group Dog Rescue Greece. PLEASE NOTE: The author no longer endorses Dog Rescue Greece and Arnolda Meisel-Westerduin.
The big trip
In further good news, there are now nonstop flights Kefalonia to Amsterdam, so this time it won’t be necessary to schlepp a bunch of animals all the way to the Athens airport—a seven-hour, complicated, expensive journey over land and sea.
I managed to find a not too terrible price for a ticket soon for the puppies to make their big trip to their new lives. And they’ll take me along as their flight partner. (The cost of airline transport for animals is much lower if they are accompanied by a human passenger.)
Adding to the joy, during a short stay in Holland I’ll get to visit my foster girls Jorja and Ipo and meet their new families.
PLEASE NOTE: The author no longer endorses Dog Rescue Greece and Arnolda Meisel-Westerduin.
More friends make the plan work
One problem with this whole plan was where to leave my other foster boy, Agapi, during
Volunteer extraordinaire Melissa Beamish with a blind friend at ARK / Photo: Katerina Lorenzatos Makris
my absence. Thank heavens his Auntie Melissa Beamish is on the island again, volunteering astonishingly long hours at Animal Rescue Kefalonia (ARK), but she kindly agreed to make her days even longer by doggy sitting for Agapi while I’m gone.
It is not easy to pry Melissa away from her dedication to the shelter animals, so she won’t be able to spend a lot of time at home with Agapi. Thus another friend and local animal hero, Keith Preston, who frequently bails me and many others out of animal-related trouble, will be helping Melissa take care of Agapi. And it’s possible that yet another rescuer friend will come to take over from Melissa after a few days.
The hard part right now is fostering the Alphabet Pups. Since the afternoon they came home with me, I’ve done little except care for them. It takes between four and five hours a day.
Before that, for the first few days, it took even more time, because 1) I didn’t have a proper space for them and had to create one on the double, and 2) they were full of worms, feeling poorly, and had goshawful diarrhea.
Cinder blocks to prevent contact with sharp points on bottom edge of fencing / Photo: Katerina Lorenzatos Makris
Then there’s the fact that they are growing and developing so quickly that it’s hard to stabilize the situation. They are always a step ahead of me in thinking up trouble to get themselves into, so I have to stay constantly vigilant, and make frequent changes to their little habitat to keep them safe and healthy.
Somehow in between all this I still have to get our embarrassingly messy and dysfunctional house (problems with plumbing, electrical, you name it) ready for my pooch sitter friends so they won’t be totally grossed out while they’re here, or even run away screaming upon first sight of it.
Wish me luck. I’ll need plenty. Just a few more days to get everything done and keep the puppies in good shape too. I want them to be glossy and perky when they set off into their bright futures.
Oh… and there will be someone else tagging along with us on our journey. Yet another little friend flying off to his new life. More about him in the next post, coming up soon…
For more about the Alphabet Puppies please check in with Spicy Stories Saves Lives again soon.
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Please note: Spicy Stories Save Lives is proudly providing part sponsorship for several Kefalonian animals including Viktor and Violetta and their mom Vaso (if/when we find her).
Meanwhile, Kefalonia Animal Trust (KATs) provides free spay/neuter for hundreds of animals per year here. Please give to KATs via PayPal or bank transfer. Spay/neuter and education are the animals’ best hope for a better future.
Also please consider Animal Rescue Kefalonia (ARK), another group on the island that runs a shelter and works miracles with terribly few resources.
Spicy Stories Save Lives and the author of this article have no affiliation with KATs and ARK other than as a friend, volunteer, and donor.
The Alphabet Puppies: Abandoned in supermarket parking lot on Greek island
Rescued dogs Jorja and Ipo headed to bright new lives in Holland tonight
‘Don’t leave without me!’: Puppy Ipo will follow foster sister Jorja to a new life
Have tiara, will travel: Greek (canine) princess to emigrate for new throne
Heart marking on puppy’s face symbolizes her loving nature, waiting to give it all to you
Puppy on a chain will never be chained again
Traumatized puppy Violetta now safe thanks to Greek islanders’ teamwork
Terrified feral puppy, please let me catch and save you
Small but spunky animal rescue group on Greek island launches push to spay/neuter 100 dogs
Questions about animal care? Ask Spicy! Email us at youradopteddogATyahooDOTcom.
Seen our book? Your Adopted Dog: Everything You Need to Know About Rescuing and Caring for a Best Friend in Need, by Shelley Frost and Katerina Lorenzatos Makris, available through Amazon.com.
Katerina Lorenzatos Makris is a career journalist, author, and editor. Her fiction includes 17 novels for Simon and Schuster, E.P. Dutton, Avon, and other major publishers (under the name Kathryn Makris), as well as a teleplay for CBS-TV, and a short story for The Bark magazine. She has written hundreds of articles for regional wire services and for outlets such as National Geographic Traveler, The San Francisco Chronicle, Travelers’ Tales, NBC’s Petside.com, Animal Issues Reporter.org, and Examiner.com (Animal Policy Examiner).
