Page 224 - BOXFORD

Numbers of wild animals encountered, euthanized or dealt with involving Rabies were
significantly reduced this year. This does not diminish the caveat I annually repeat to check and
renew any applicable vaccinations to all domestic pets, critters, and/or livestock for both human
and animal safety and health. I would also like to encourage the use of microchipping and
proper registration of the chip information with the appropriate supplier.

Taken as a whole, ordinarily this town is positively bucolic with few really serious dog
incidences. This year Boxford experienced an uncommon event. We encountered the necessity
of re-homing and rescuing two dogs at once. In late summer of 2015 neighbors on a quiet cul-
de-sac noticed a Shepherd mix dog coming and going among their houses taking food left out for
her but not allowing anyone to approach or secure her. Worried about her health and with fall
weather encroaching, a major effort was made to capture and help her. A highly active rescue
group, Missing Dogs Massachusetts, was contacted by one of the concerned neighbors and
personnel stepped in to help with 24 hour surveillance and soon secured her in a cooperative
effort with Boxford. She was briefly housed in Best Friends Kennel, our provider, and given a
brief physical for safety. She was shortly re-located and fortunately speedily adopted through a
Scituate, MA shelter, thanks to Missing Dogs rescue; a rather happy end to her story!

Our second dog challenge occurred shortly after and was the result of a local domestic
disturbance. We were requested by the police to take possession of a large German Shepherd
male dog as neither owner was equipped to provide him a home as a result of a break-up. This
began our acquaintance with the highly technical world of dog rescue as practiced today.
Initially, we brought him to Best Friends for housing during a thorough veterinary workup and
neutering while we evaluated strategies for securing his optimum placement in a new home. It
became obvious immediately that due to his large rugged size and weight and specific
personality, we knew we were seeking a dog-savvy owner who understood and was capable of
handling this type of dog with his high intelligence and drive, needing variety yet demonstrating
an obvious yearning for bonded, dedicated closeness to a specific owner. Our very helpful
associates at Best Friends were impressed with this dog and enjoyed him, but he required more
than they had available for him. Enter One Tail at a Time Rescue, another local well-recognized
dedicated group with its lead representative Kate Whitney, an experienced, astute, and connected
social media practitioner. She was also instrumental in introducing us to a new resource, a
boarding venue for our shepherd, a knowledgeable pleasant dog specialist named Marc
Bernhardt of the cleverly trademarked “Hydrant Regency” dog care and training facility
currently located in Topsfield. Marc sized the dog up immediately and volunteered to house him
for us until we placed him. What luck! With our media manager and our physical requirements
for the dog all in place, it was time to assess the in-coming flow of highly detailed stringent
applications flooding in to Kate Whitney.

I became more familiar with the depth of the placement requirements set out by Kate and her
organization as application flooded in. She also made me aware of some of the nastier statistical
numbers associated with rescues, shelters, and re-homing groups who are truly shoveling against
the tides to keep these dispossessed animals alive and gain them new “forever” homes. Some
stats provided to me by One Tail at a Time Rescue are as follows:It has been a relatively quiet
year in Animal Control with several administrative regulatory changes from the Mass Dept. of
Agricultural Resources and changes in MGL 140.

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