Through the Blizzard - Remington's Rescue Relay

Ever since our deaf puppy Shadowfax arrived to us from Waco, Texas via a marathon relay of volunteer rescue drivers, Alycia and I have been anxious to try to repay the karmic debt and help others dogs in need.  We volunteered our services as rescue dog transporters with the local Humane Society (the Circle of Friends Humane Society in Grand Forks) and waited for our call to action.

The only problem is that living in North Dakota means that you're fairly well out of the way of well, everyone.  Not many folks are ever going to or from Grand Forks, or passing through your area.  After a couple of transport attempts that fell through, Alycia and I finally got our chance on Sunday to participate in a rescue dog transport.

This is Remington (photos were taken days prior to the transport), our passenger from Grand Forks, North Dakota to the Canadian Border.  Remington is a 1 year old Brittany Spaniel, and a very sweet and handsome pup.  He was rescued from a shelter in Michigan by a Brittany Spaniel Rescue Organization and was being transported to his forever home in Ontario, Canada, somewhere north of Winnipeg (I believe the town was Dryden, ON). 

The only potential snag in our plans to help Remington was the Winter Storm (not a full blown blizzard, but close) that was raging outside.  We were slated to pick him up Sunday morning at 10:00am, this was contingent upon the diver leaving Fargo (about 75 miles south of us), being able to navigate the highway through the storm, and ensuring that the next leg of the transport (scheduled to meet us at the Canadian border) was also able to make the drive.

This is Remington during his overnight sleepover in Fargo.  The snow was coming down thickly as we set out on our journey, there were some occasional moderate wind gusts, and visibility was well below average, but still acceptable.  Were it not for our special doggy errand, we certainly wouldn't have normally been out on the roads on a day like this, but our yearning to do some good for this pup gave us purpose and steeled our nerves against the snow and wind.

We met Remington at a gas station in Grand Forks with his driver Patty, who handed him off to us.  She had spent some time strolling around to give him an opportunity to do some business before we arrived.  Remington was such a sweet puppy, he hopped right up on both Alycia and I and gave us plenty of kisses. We got the requisite paperwork, said our goodbyes to Patty and got on the road, headed for the parking lot of the duty free shop near the Canadian border where we were set to meet Karen, the next leg of the Remington Relay.

Remington was a terrific traveler.  He curled up in his crate after just a few minutes, and with the exception of one odoriferous emanation midway through the journey, he was a perfect car companion. 

The road conditions, while not the worst I've ever driven in, were pretty bad.  There were advisories recommending no travel in both North Dakota and Minnesota (which we calmly ignored).  We moseyed along at a safe speed and got to Pembina, North Dakota, which is just south of the Canadian border, and met Karen and her daughter.

Remington hopped out of the car and doled out some kisses and hugs to his new friends, but you could tell he really wanted to go play in the snow.

So Alycia took him for a gallop through the snow banks and gave him an opportunity to relieve himself.  Then we gave him a goodbye pet, told him he was a good boy, and said our goodbyes to the folks who would take him up north into Canada, and his forever home. Alycia and I quietly drove home through the snow.  It was a different way to spend a Sunday and we'd do it again in a second.