Blog  >  Week Two Get Your Licks on Route 66® Cross-Country Pet Adoption Tour Road Journal

Week Two Get Your Licks on Route 66® Cross-Country Pet Adoption Tour Road Journal

Susan Sims

Publisher

FIDO Friendly magazine

We are on a roll down America’s Favorite Highway. All four of us, both two and four legged, are having a great time supporting shelters during adoption events from Los Angeles to Chicago.

First stop: Albuquerque, New Mexico. Our good friend Jill Lane and her furry best friend, Traveling Jack, invited us on their radio show the morning of the Watermelon Ranch adoption event. We were delighted to share the mission of Get Your Licks on Route 66® and encouraged listeners to come out to adopt. We set up outside in front of Petsmart and many people arrived and many pets were adopted that sunny day. Jill and Traveling Jack came out to give the prize-laden wheel a spin or two and I think Traveling Jack was a good luck charm as Jill took home an armful of great prizes!

The next day we set up for the Santa Fe Animal Shelter outside again in front of another Petsmart. We had folks standing in line before we could complete our set up but we scrambled to retrieve prizes as we continued to set up. People love donating their $2.00+ to spin and win! One couple comes out each year to buy our t-shirt. The husband took his turn on the wheel and landed on bike tow leash. Since he did not bike with his dog, he chose the bike tow leash hat and happily left our event wearing his hat and sporting the new Get Your Licks on Route 66® t-shirt.

We have been able to stop for a couple of photo ops on Route 66. One of our favorite stops is at the historic Conoco station in Shamrock, Texas. The Tower Station and U-Drop Inn Café is located along historic Route 66 in Shamrock.  Built in 1936 by J. M. Tindall and R. C. Lewis at the cost of $23,000, this gem of a building got its start in the dust when John Nunn drew his idea for the station on the ground with an old nail. 

Directors of Barketing Junior and Jake posed at the iconic landmark where a visitor center is now located and then off we drove to our next event in Amarillo, Texas.

Working with the Amarillo SPCA, we set up at Tripp’s Harley Davidson. Local TV crews came out to film and spokesperson Patti Amador for the Amarillo SPCA, did a stellar job explaining about Get Your Licks on Route 66® pet adoption tour and showcasing all the great animals available for adoption.

One touching story occurred when a couple adopted a dog recounting how they had lost their dog earlier in the year and thought they were finally ready for a new forever friend. Another gentleman had his eye on two Miniature Schnauzers but his apartment did not allow dogs. Fast-forward a few weeks where his job offered him a transfer and his opportunity for a home with a yard. He came back to the shelter on his lunch break hoping the two fur-babies were still there and as fate would have it, they were.

My husband Greg was smitten with a puppy who looked to be part terrier and big part Irish wolfhound. At eight weeks old, he is about the size of our five-year old boxer, perhaps even larger. Although Greg could hold him in his arms, I was certain and many volunteers concurred, he wouldn’t be able to do that much longer. With our dogs playing at Pet Paradise in Rio Rancho, it is easy to imagine adding to the pack until we looked inside our Mercedes Sprinter provided by SprinterRentals; two empty crates stare back at us without room for one more. It’s the blessing and curse of this tour year after year. We could come home with several dogs and cats if we had the room!

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Host Hotel: Hotel Cascada

Host Doggy Daycare: Pet Paradise, Rio Rancho

 

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Host Hotel: Buffalo Thunder

Host Doggy Daycare: Pet Paradise, Rio Rancho

 

Amarillo, Texas

Host Hotel: La Quinta

Host Doggy Daycare: Le Chateau Pet Resort, Spa & Boutique

 

Next stop: The City of Oklahoma City Animal Welfare. Held at the shelter, two radio stations were broadcasting, TV crews came out and to add to the festivities, a bouncy house was set up along with a shaved ice vendor. It was WARM so shaved ice sounded good to me all day. Several dogs were adopted and one special story was revealed of the woman who adopted a five-year-old black Lab. She said she had not planned on adopting, did not even have a leash with her, but when she saw the dog, she was smitten and felt the puppies would all be adopted while an older dog would have a more difficult time finding a new forever home. Add to this the fact the dog had been owner surrender as the former owners could no longer afford to keep her, it was in the stars for her to get her second chance. Thanks to Kurgo, we were able to provide her with a harness and lead and captured a photo of her and her new best friend out of the kennel and ready for home.

 

Host hotel: Homewood Suites

Host hotel: Embassy Suites

Host doggy daycare: Pawparazzi Lounge

 

Last event of the week was with Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF). This event is held at the Woodland Hills Mall in Tulsa each year. We know many of the volunteers and it’s like visiting family. Our visits are short and sweet because once the spinning wheel is set up, the line to donate money and spin the wheel never stops for four hours. ARF accepts applications for their dogs, conducts home visits and then determines the best match for their dogs. One dog stood out, Mr. Peabody. A black and white puppy being held by his foster mom was clearly a crowd favorite. We want to thank volunteer Kayla who made our jobs much easier that day by stuffing goodie bags provided by Petcurean and obtaining a photo release from as many people as we could get to pose with their winnings.

After wrapping up for the afternoon, we picked up our dogs at Woodland West Pet Resort to spend a well-deserved good night’s sleep at the LaQuinta Inns & Suites.

The next morning while preparing to leave for Springfield, we heard on the news that a local Great Pyrenees Rescue group had their car broken in to and recently purchased food and toys were stolen. We called the group to drive out to our hotel as we had product from or sponsors we felt certain they would not mind us donating on their behalf.

The volunteers arrived and a few minutes later, they drove off with bags of Petcurean pet food and Zeus Dog Toys. We also had a box of Fresh Scent sachets that would make their cars and kennels smell great.

We felt tired but happy as we drove off with two rested dogs and although our car was a little lighter in product, our hearts were full as we felt as if our adoption tour was proving to be so much more than helping to find new forever homes for shelter pets, but to lend a paw a hand, whenever we could.

 

Host hotel: LaQuinta

Host doggy daycare: Woodland West Pet Resort

 

Next stop: Humane Society of Southwest Missouri.

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