By WENDEE BRUNISH and KERSTI ROCK
Breezy and cool conditions greeted all of the runners and walkers and their eager dogs for the 17th Annual Dog Jog April 26.
This year’s Dog Jog raised more than $12,000 for Friends of the Shelter. Friends of the Shelter (FOS) is a nonprofit organization that provides assistance to abandoned animals, and to pets and their owners in northern New Mexico.
Our catastrophic care program pays for veterinary care for sick or injured animals that have no owners or whose owners cannot afford the treatment. Our spay/neuter program provides grants to our partner organizations, including the Espanola Valley Humane Society and the McKinley County Animal Shelter so that they can provide low or no-cost spay/neuter services to their clients. FOS also encourages responsible pet ownership and promotes adoption of shelter animals through education and outreach.
We would like to thank our top sponsors this year, Los Alamos National Bank and Pet Pangaea, and our other major sponsors, Animal Clinic of Los Alamos, Ridgeview Veterinary Hospital, Lou Santoro State Farm Insurance, the Blue Window, and Hartway & Breshears CPA for making our event possible.
We would also like to thank Plateau Property Management, Terranear PMC, Los Alamos Medical Center, Stewart Central Title, Sage Integrated Health, Arthur B. Montoya, Jr., DDS, and The Finishing Touch for their donations. Prizes were generously provided by Pet Pangaea, The Running Hub of Santa Fe, Los Alamos Fitness, Yours Truly Diana’s, Nancy Parker Hairstylist and the Los Alamos Cooperative Market.
We are grateful to all the individuals and families who made a donation in order to have a dedication or memorial to friends or furry companions included on our t-shirt. And a special “thank you” to fifth-grader Katie Laintz who designed this year’s Dog Jog logo.
We would like to thank Drs. Bob and Susie Fuselier, DVM of Animal Clinic of Los Alamos for doing the microchip implantations, Santa Fe Sports and Images for t-shirt design and printing, and Aspen Copies for providing services and supplies. We would also like to thank the Los Alamos Police Department and Los Alamos Fire Department for providing race safety and support.
A very special thanks goes to the White Rock United Methodist Church who hosted the Dog Jog this year when our regular venue was unavailable. Jane and others at WRUMC were wonderfully welcoming and helpful and easy to work with – thank you so much!
Finally, we would like to thank everyone who participated in our 17th Annual Dog Jog. Thank you for running or walking, thanks for bringing friends, family, kids, and dogs.Special thanks to the walkers and runner who ‘rented’ a shelter dog and allowed them to participate in the fun; they had a blast. Thanks for joining in our post-race prize ceremony and thanks for supporting Friends of the Shelter and our efforts to make life better for our less fortunate animal friends. We hope to see you again next year!
