Mexi-Dogs to DC

04/05/2024

Just a quick post to let you see how well Susie is doing. She's the dog who was found in a bag on the highway in Mexico. Now she's living the good life! Thanks Melissa!

22/04/2024

22/04/2024

Hi everyone,

It has been a REALLY long time since I posted, but I promise to do better in the future. In January, I fostered four really beautiful dogs from Buscando in Comonfort and took them to DC. It was a little bit crazy as I got very sick in SMA in late January and then decided to proceed with driving the four dogs to DC myself. (Big mistake). Anyway, Enrique and I drove to Neuvo Laredo at the end of January (it took us 20 hours as the highway closed down for 10 hours). After crossing the border, renting an suv, transferring the dogs, taking the car back across the border to Enrique, and then returning to the suv - the dogs and I started out across Texas.

I'm posting a picture of the four dogs lying quietly in a Motel Six - everyone exhausted. The problem was I got sicker and sicker as the drive proceeded. Joe (my wonderful husband) finally flew into Memphis and helped me drive the last couple of days or I don't think I would have made it - I collapsed with pneumonia when we got home.

Anyway, enough about that. We had four beautiful dogs with us: Susie, Canella (Cinnamon), Maggie, and Polly (Pon). (I gave them more English names to make it easier to post in the US sites.

Canella is a beautiful cinnamon colored girl who was rescued by the shelter with her litter of puppies. All her puppies were adopted at the shelter, but she was not. She is so beautiful and so calm - she would just watch the others racing around the garden and look at me as if to say, "What a bunch of crazies!" She was adopted by a wonderful couple in Pennsylvania who wrote me recently and sent me pictures. Canella (now Pippa) looked so beautiful and so happy. They told me that she is the most beautiful, wonderful, special dog ever! I think it was a great match for both!

Maggie (Pantera) was what I always called a "low key good time girl". What a happy dog! She is a beautiful black and white girl who just seemed so happy - playing with her toys, other dogs, snuggling with humans. Really a great girl. The happiest thing happened when I was interviewing families......a couple came to see one of the other dogs - they were looking for a playmate/sibling for their energetic dog. I suggested that Maggie might be a good match and it was! Maggie and their dog raced around my backyard playing and running and then Maggie would collapse in their laps for a few snuggles. It was great. I think it was the perfect match for Maggie.

Now Susie, ah Susie - a beautiful all black small lab mix. Susie was rescued by Buscando volunteers when they noticed a bag moving on the highway. Someone had taken Susie, tied her in a bag and threw her on the highway to die. Thank goodness they saw her. She has a bent right front leg (either from a prior break or when she was born), but that doesn't stop Susie from running and paying with all the other dogs at full speed. However, Susie was extremely shy with strange humans. She was going to need patience and love to come out of her shell. (Once she got to know you, she just wanted to sit next to you and love you). Melissa was the perfect adopter for her. A high school teacher, she lives alone in her townhouse and basically wanted to just shower Susie with love and attention. She wrote me recently that they are doing great!

Polly, beautiful Polly - she was the last to be adopted and there were very few people wanting to meet her. Then I was able to take the perfect picture of her and all of a sudden, after six weeks, I had three families at once wanting to meet her. She was adopted by an older couple who had lost their dog the year before and were just waiting for the right dog to come along. Their adult children and their families live nearby and Polly is going to have a terrific life with everyone loving and caring for her.

I feel I was extremely fortunate in the matches made for these guys this spring. I'm so happy to have found them such good homes. On to July when I'll be bringing a couple more up!

Tammy (pictures coming along in a little bit)

27/09/2023

Pictures of Kali - Allie pictures coming soon!

27/09/2023

Hi Everyone,

I haven't posted in a while, but now I have great news on both of the dogs we brought up in August.

Kali, the beautiful gray dog who was rescued off the street by our friend Beatriz in SMA, had a huge amount of interest. She was adopted by Sara and her family not long after we came up to DC in mid-August. Sara and her family lives in Harrisburg, PA in a neighborhood close to other dogs, woods and trails, a creek (Kali LOVES water), other family members and lots of other things that Kali loves. It is just the best place possible for Kali and we are so grateful to Sara for giving her such a great home. You'll see from some of the pictures that Kali has "landed in clover"!.

Allie (formerly Alondra) is just the sweeting, cutest puppy and so loving. But she's young and needed some adjusting to learning to live in a home. We were able to help her get ready for her forever family during the 2-3 months we had her first in SMA and then here in DC. Allie comes from Buscando Un Hogar Comonfort - the wonderful rescue group that we are now working with. They gave her such a great start in life and made the sweet dog she is. But she's young - loves to surf the kitchen counter for food, chew on things, etc. So we needed to find just the right home for her.

You may not know that adoptions are VERY slow in DC right now. We had very few inquiries about her until last week when we had three! On Saturday I took Allie to her new home - Bob is retired and lives in Baltimore and plans to basically be with Allie 24/7. Bob is a sweet guy who is very tolerant of "puppy behavior". He's perfect for Allie. And last night we got a great update on her:

She really panicked when you left, and wasn't right for the rest of the day.
But we slept together that night, and she's ok now.
I've never bonded with a dog like this. It's like we've known each other for years!
She is just the sweetest thing, and she already loves me so much.
Everything is going to be just fine.

So happy for both of them!

Tammy

18/08/2023

Hey everyone,

Just wanted you to know that last Sunday Kali, Allie and I flew from Mexico City to New York City's JFF airport. As usual, it was an adventure. One never knows what's going to pop up each time we do this. Enrique and I left San Miguel with the dogs about midnight Saturday night. When we got to the Mexico City airport, Allie (one of the dogs) had thrown up all over the inside of her crate. The Aeromexico staff looked at me sternly and said, "Clean up that cage or she can't go on the plane!". Trust me it took a lot of paper towels in the ladies room!

We landed in New York, made it through customs, etc. and thankfully Joe was right outside waiting for us. It took many hours to get home to DC through August, Sunday afternoon, New York and East Coast traffic. Finally made it home about 10 pm that night.

BUT the good news is Allie and Kali were fine and have settled in beautifully. Kali had many families wanting her and tomorrow, we take her to her new home a couple of hours away in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Kali is such a lovely dog - I know they are going to totally adore her. They own a used bookstore and who knows? Maybe she'll end up being the store mascot.

Allie hasn't had anyone appropriate interested so far, but everyday she is turning from a wild puppy into a nicely behaved companion. We will wait and one of these days.....the perfect family will come along.

We'll keep you posted, but for now, two more US citizens!

Tammy

30/04/2023

Hi everyone,
Sorry I haven’t posted an update in so long. It is high season for tour guiding and I’ve been super busy. BUT I do have great news. First of all Donna, our beautiful border collie mix, was returned by the couple who adopted her because the husband developed allergies. However, that’s fine because I found an even better home for her. Thank you, Joanne and Melissa! Donna has been in her new home (with a beautiful fenced backyard and permission to sleep in human beds) and as far as I can tell things are going fine. She was back with us about a week before we found Joanne and Melissa and was doing really well in conquering a lot of her shyness. Here’s hoping that she’s finally found her “forever” family.
Then there’s Tortilla/Daisy/Mia. Kim and Rick reports that they are daily amused by her antics and her “spoiled teenager” looks. Kim described herself as the world’s happiest Dog Mom. They introduced her to the beach and she is so funny trying to bite the waves as they come in. I’ll try to post the video. Mia was such a funny dog and I’m so glad she found an amazing home. They had her DNA done and turns out she’s mostly Spitz and Shepherd – just what I would have predicted!
And now to some of the best news of the week! Our beautiful, brave Luna was adopted today. I had received almost no interest in her – maybe because of the blindness. But each day she came more and more out of her shell gaining in confidence and sweetness. I was fully prepared to keep her forever and then I found Stephanie! I really can’t imagine a better dog mom for Luna than Stephanie. We took Luna to her house this morning and Luna just hopped up on the sofa and started licking her face. Stephanie even lets Luna nibble her nose! It was hard to part with Luna, but this felt so right.
It’s these kinds of stories that make all the hard part of rescuing dog worth it. Sigh.
Tammy

14/03/2023

Everyone,
I am so so happy to report that Tortilla (now Mia) went to a wonderful home yesterday. Kim and Rick are just the best and I know that she’ll be so very happy there. Mia is one very cute pup who is bright and curious and, like a human adolescent, all over the map. She’s so funny and we had such a good time having her at the house. Kim and Rick were all ready for her when we got there and I delivered her with a bright red bow on her. She is terrible to photograph as she is all black and just fades into the pictures. I was at the local dog park with her a couple of weeks ago and a man there suggested that I put a bandana on her to make the photos better. I did and it helped, but in the end it was her black-and-white photo that I liked the best. Anyway, a very successful ending/beginning for a great dog.
Now Luna – our big, strong, beautiful, sweet girl (who is also blind, but that is not her most important characteristic) is still with us. We love her dearly and, if the perfect home doesn’t come along, we will keep her. She is sweet and happy and wonderful and, if we keep her, will give her the best home in the world (or at least as close to that as we can make it).
I’ll be bringing a couple more dogs up at the end of July. Can’t wait!
Tammy

22/02/2023

I haven't posted in a while with an update. Genesis (Jenny) was adopted a little over a week ago to a wonderful family - mother, father, 10-year-old daughter and grandmother. They have a lovely house with lots of trails and woods around them and welcomed Jenny with open arms. She sleeps every night in bed with their daughter and is much loved. They are working hard to help her settle in and become a bit less shy and more confident. But I really think they're in it for the long haul. Jenny really landed in a lovely family!

We hear that Donna is doing well in her new home and, as with Jenny, they're working hard to overcome her shyness with strangers. But she's doing well and again, I think they're in it for the long term.

Luna is doing beautifully here at the house in DC. She has settled down and just loves to sleep at my feet or next to me on the sofa. She sleeps in bed with us all night long without moving a muscle. She really is an inspiration - despite her blindness, Luna does just about everything any dog who could see can do. She's probably one of the smartest dogs I've had in a long time. Thanks so much to Kathi Hamblett and her work with Luna in San Miguel, Luna is becoming a really great "house dog"! We love her very much and I'm looking for just the right home for her. So far, there's been no interest in her, but I'll keep going!

Daisy (previously named Tortilla) is doing great at the house too as we wait for her forever home. She keeps us in stitches with her funny expressions and her drama queen personality. She's bright and curious and sweet. I've been taking her to the local dog park to help her get over her fear of strange people. Yesterday, she let two people pet her! She gets better every time I take her.

Adoptions are way down right now. I was talking to a woman at the dog park yesterday and she said the organization she works with has almost no applications. But that's ok - Daisy and Luna are happy and safe here at the house and we'll wait as long as it takes! More later! Tammy

06/02/2023

Pictures to go along with the last post!

06/02/2023

What a week it was! Enrique and I left for the border about 10:30 pm last Tuesday night. It was a long trip – took us more than 13 hours mostly due to several traffic tie-ups we came across. At one point, the traffic just stopped for almost two hours! We never did find out what happened. All I know is that we were surrounded by huge trucks and at some point one of them started honking (very loudly). Turns out the traffic was moving again, but the drivers in front of us had fallen asleep! 😊
Anyway, at this point we were getting really nervous about me crossing the border with the dogs and getting them to San Antonio by the 4 pm dropoff. If we missed the transport, we weren’t sure what to do. I was prepared to drive the van all the way to Washington, DC myself, but it wasn’t a pleasant prospect. Turns out the border crossing was quick and I started toward San Antonio in good time. THEN, I stopped at a rest stop to go to the bathroom. I took only my car key into the bathroom with me. When I came out, the electronic key wouldn’t open the car door. I didn’t even have my phone! And the dogs were all inside the car. I was panicked. A wonderful handyman at the rest area was working to help me break into the car when I tried, for about the fortieth time, to click the key and it worked! I was so relieved! I hopped in the car and hoped the delay hadn’t made me late to the transport.
Thankfully, we pulled into the Texas Chihuahua Rescue Ranch at 3:30 pm! They run the transport up the East Coast into Canada and take along non-chihuahuas to help them make their expenses. Such wonderful people. Our pups were all really well behaved and the transport people fell in love with Luna.
I beat it back to the border, transferred the van to Enrique, walked back across the border and was in my motel room by 8 pm. I flew out the next morning; arrived in DC mid-afternoon, and the dogs arrived about midnight that night. It was chaos at home, but then it always is. It turned out that Donna was the star of the group this time. She was adopted by a lovely couple on Saturday and, from all reports, is settling in just fine. She has a fenced backyard to run in, her people love to walk and hike and I’m sure she’s going to have a great life.
The other three haven’t found their forever homes yet, but we’re working hard on it. I will send news of them as things evolve. But they’re here, they’re happy, and they’re safe!

30/01/2023

Some pictures of the pups. All black and all female. :)

30/01/2023

Everyone,
We are about to start another adventure (actually we’ve already begun). We currently have at the house here in San Miguel four gorgeous perras and tomorrow night we will being the long trip to the border. We arrived here on December 28th and shortly thereafter went to our wonderful partners at the rescue in Comonfort and picked up the big, strong, beautiful Luna!

Luna is strong and sweet and an all round wonderful dog…..and she is blind. But that sure doesn’t stop her – after about an hour in our garden, she knew her way around almost perfectly – where the steps were, the walls, the furniture, etc. It’s really inspirational. She’s just like a seeing dog, with a few quirks (but who doesn’t have some). I saw Luna at the shelter last August and was determined to bring her to DC. She will require a family who is experienced, probably, with dogs, but she is going to be great for some family!

Then 2-3 weeks ago, we went back to Comonfort to pick up Genesis, a lovely black and white girl, who is just gentle and sweet and wants to be right next to her “people”. She is such an easy dog and so beautiful. She very quickly learned that living in a house and sleeping with humans in a bed is a great life. As I write this, she is running and running through the garden with a couple of the other dogs. Such a happy girl.

Last Tuesday, we went back to Comonfort to pick up Tortilla. Let me just stop and say that Amira and her group at Buscando Un Hogar Comonfort are some of the best people I have ever worked with. They are so kind and loving toward the dogs and there are tears every time I take one from there. In addition, the dogs are happy and really not damaged at all by their time in the shelter because of the love and attention they receive. Anyway, Tortilla, it turns out looks like a black wolf (in a good way). She’s just a happy young dog who immediately settled in with everyone else. More on her later.

And last, but not least, on Saturday a family brought us the last dog – Perrita Donna. Unfortunately, they cannot keep her and there were many tears when they brought her to me. But she is a gorgeous border collie mix who is used to living with a family (and a cat!) and just as sweet as can be. She is going to make some family very happy.

So, Enrique and I will begin our journey to the border tomorrow night. It will be a long 2-3. I’ll keep you posted and please keep us in your thoughts. I’ll post some pictures as soon as this post goes through.

Tammy

22/10/2022

Here are the pictures!

22/10/2022

Hi Everyone, I recently received great reports on Laika (now Ruby), Kiki, and Scooby. I just posted recently about how well Dolly (now Lola) is doing. Anyway, Laika/Ruby is having a great time with Jim. She runs and plays in his backyard and clearly adores him. But then, he clearly adores her too! What a pair! :) Ruby is all "puppy".

Kiki is doing great and is VERY healthy. His last blood test showed great results. Jovanni and Erica are taking good care of him and he's even made a couple of friends. He looks really happy in his new life.

Scooby (whom I brought up in April) is still the same goofy little guy he always was. He recently had a birthday and this is what Audrey posted:

There’s a 1 year old in the house!!!
Year one for Scooby- aka dobby, aka little man
-rescued by a great lady, Mrs Tamara
-flew on an airplane from Mexico to DC
-adopted by a pretty cool couple
-mastered “kennel up”
-chicken jerky strip treats are my fav
-who knew how COOL squeaky toys were
-fuzzy blankets and naps are life
-squirrels: uh ya
-zoomies are fun with friends!
-went on car rides to some cool places
-big dogs smell weird and they eat grass!
-learning to swim
-not a fan of baths…but give me turbo speed
-I even get to sleep in the bed!

I just wanted to share all this with you. The pictures will come in the post immediately after this!

Tammy

11/10/2022

Everyone,

I wanted to update you on our pups. Dolly (now Lola) is settling in beautifully to her new home and looks great in her Halloween costume. Take a look at the picture - she has pickles and lettuce. :) She's adapting to her new home more everyday and they love her dearly. I'm so happy for her.

And you'll remember Scooby, the first dog on this page that I brought up in April? Well, he's just the happiest dog. I'm sharing with this post a couple of photos I recently received. Turns out Scooby loves to splash around in the creek. He also met Audrey's horse and it went well. Of course, he was completely confused by this giant "dog"!

And Laika (Lily) is doing great with Jim. I don't have any new pictures to share, but I talked with him and she's a happy dog. He loves her so much and giving her a great home. I'll post pictures when I get them.

I'm working hard on finding a temporary place for Luna, the blind dog whom I hope to take in after Christmas. More on her later!

Tammy

27/09/2022

OK - I promise this is my last post for a while (unless I get some really cute pictures from our adopters). I have finally figured out the new FB "page" experience. As you can see, I shared some of my September posts with you so you can catch up on things. BUT they are, of course, in reverse date order. The good news is that from now on I think I'm set and you will see the posts as they appear and in the order they should be seen. I apologize for all the back and forth recently and thanks for your patience! Tammy

26/09/2022

Hey everyone,
I am about to lose my mind between pages/profiles/business pages, etc. I cannot seem to figure out how to post just to Mexi-Dogs. Anyway, while I am working on this, I realize that most of you haven't seen my most recent posts (all the ones in September). I tell about the trip to DC and also how all three dogs are now adopted. BUT they ended up on my personal page and I can't figure out how to move them over. GRRRRRRR. Anyway, just search FB for Tamara Belden and you'll see all these posts and find out what happened to these great dogs! Sorry about all the confusion! Tammy

25/08/2022

24/08/2022

Hey everyone,
We took Kiki back to the training program (La Manada) on Monday morning where he’s finishing his last week of training. Friday night, we go to pick him and his diploma up! He’ll join the growing pack here at the house.
On Sunday morning, Enrique and I went to the rescue with whom I am now working in a small town about 20 miles from here. This rescue is called Buscando Un Hogar (Looking for a Home) Comonfort. It is run by a group of young Mexicans who are super sweet and love these dogs very, very much. They have dogs of all sizes, ages and kinds, many of them running around together having a wonderful time. They have entrusted us with two of their beloved “teenager” dogs: Laika and Dolly.
Laika is a beautiful lab mix who is just incredibly sweet and loving. She’s not shy and seems very comfortable living in a house for the first time. As you will see from my pictures, she’s a big fan of sleeping in bed! Dolly is super skinny and just as loving as can be. She’s a big more shy than Laika, but seem to be very happy and settling in nicely. We lovingly call her “bag of bones Dolly” because she’s so thin. However, I think that’s just her body build.
There are going to be a couple of very lucky families in DC!

24/08/2022

Hi Everyone,
I posted on August 20th about our new adventure, but it seems I inadvertently posted it on my personal FB page. I'm about to do an update to that, but for those of you who didn't see it, here is my original post (I apologze for the duplication for those of you have already seen this):

Hey everyone,
Well, we're in San Miguel and will be taking three dogs back with us on September 4th. Kiki is our first dog and what a dog he is! Three wonderful women (Diane and Beatriz and Beatriz' daughter) saved Kiki when he was sick and abandoned several months ago. He was at the kill shelter here and Beatriz' daughter saved his life by taking him home. I'll tell you all about it in my next post, but the thing is: he's healthy and happy AND has spent the past month at a boarding facility here being trained. Wow - I've never taken a dog up before who is trained!!! We have him at the house here in SMA for the weekend and then he'll go back on Monday for his last week or training. But he's beautiful and sweet and perfectly behaved already.
Tomorrow, Enrique and I will go to the rescue in Comonfort and pick up the other two pups: Dolly and Laika. So - lots of news tomorrow. But just look at how beautiful Kiki is, for now. Follow this link (hope it works): https://share.icloud.com/photos/06dfD8Smtpu7Q_M6ujC0CHDUw

10 Photos, expires Sep 19, 2022

13/06/2022

Hey Everyone,

Just a quick note to tell you Scooby has landed in the best home ever! What a great time he is having with his new family....going to dog parks, breweries, to meet people at the hospital where Audrey works, and on and on. He is one lucky pup!

Also, I couldn't resist telling you that I have found, after a six-week search, a terrific home for a very special dog that I was fostering here in DC. Sometimes, good people just come forward when you most need them. I'm feeling so good about this placement too!!!!! Couldn't resist letting you all know. More dogs in August!

Tammy

24/05/2022

Hey Everyone,

Just wanted you to know that Scooby, our inaugural dog in the new project, is now adopted to a great home! Audrey and Matthew adopted him yesterday and I think it will be a GREAT match. He already looks settled in in the pictures they sent today. Yea!! We're off to a great start.

Tammy

02/05/2022

Welcome everyone to our brand new Mexi-Dogs to DC page!

Many of you will know me from SPA Dogs to DC - our former FB page when we were working with the San Miguel de Allende shelter: Sociedad Proctectora de Animales (SPA).

I am very excited about our new project continuing to help the dogs of San Miguel and its environs find new home here in the Washington, DC area.

I hope this summer to work with a wonderful group of young Mexicans who have a small rescue and shelter near San Miguel. They very much need all kinds of help and assistance. So if any of you are so inclined, let me know and I'll be happy to give you their FB page address. They are truly a nice, dedicated wonderful group of young people.

Our cover picture is one of the first dogs in this new project - Scooby! What a great start with this guy - 10 months old, loving, sweet and issue-free! Scooby was rescued by a wonderful woman in San Miguel from a man who liked to let his two bigger, older dogs harrass this puppy. I brought him up last Wednesday from Mexico. So if anyone knows anyone looking for a truly great young dog - be sure to have them check out Scooby!

I will be posting more as we go along. Please know that we're starting out with no money. All the funds which I had raised had to go to the SPA under our agreement. So if anyone is so inclined, we're going to be needing funds to bring these dogs up.

It's going to be a great ride and I welcome all who want to come along.

Tammy

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