Turkish golden retrievers rescued
Golden retrievers were once a status symbol in Turkey. Everyone had to have one.
But then everyone there did have one, and now the long-haired animals aren’t as special. Many of the dogs are on the streets, fending for themselves, which is difficult for this breed because they aren’t fighters.
Now, it’s rare in Turkey for a golden retriever to live more than five or six years.
But thanks to a Boynton Beach-based nonprofit, 20 goldens were rescued from Istanbul, Turkey, and are now in Palm Beach County, waiting to be adopted by families.
“It was so important for us to get them out of there,” said Kendra Demme, the events coordinator of the Everglades Golden Retriever Rescue.
Demme managed this rescue, which is the second for the organization. The first one was in January.
The dogs arrived late Sunday. They flew from Istanbul to Luxembourg, where they spent one night in a topnotch facility. And then flew from Luxembourg to Miami. The organization brought the dogs to the Clint Moore Animal Hospital in suburban Boca Raton, where most of them will stay for about two weeks as they get acclimated.
Six dogs went to a rescue group in Jacksonville. One of those — 10-year-old Denver — was the 700th golden to come from Turkey to America. Two will go to a rescue group in Tampa. Twelve will stay here to be adopted.
Besides Denver, the dogs range in age from 2 to 5 years. The organization used American history as a theme to come up with names for the dogs. There’s Abe, Betsy, Hamilton and Franklin.
Some of the dogs were abused. The organization’s volunteers learned that people put out their cigarettes on one of the dogs — now named Sam. He has scars on the top of his head.
The rescues started with an organization in Atlanta, Georgia, and that group has reached out to other organizations, like Everglades Golden Retriever Rescue, to do the same. The nonprofit used donations and grants to rescue the dogs. It can cost Alexandra Seltzer about $2,500 to bring one dog over and for initial testing.
On Monday, many of the dogs played fetch for the first time, they ran around outside, and they scratched their backs on the grass. While the others were outside, Martha went inside and took a snooze in the air conditioning. Volunteers thought maybe that was her first time to experience the luxury.
Marlene Goldman, the co-founder of the nonprofit, sat and watched as the dogs played.
“This is amazing,” she said.