The Story of Rowdy Retriever Ranch

Todd Hollingshead

DAILY HERALD

Every year, thousands of healthy, stable and well-mannered dogs and cats are euthanized in animal shelters across Utah simply because there is no room for them.

This year alone, officials estimate more than 30,000 will be killed to make room for new strays in the overcrowded shelters. Dog-lover Terri Smith has had enough, and she's doing something about it.

"It's a shame that communities in Utah spend hundreds of thousands of tax dollars to kill and dispose of so many dogs and cats each year," Smith said. "Money that could be going to education or roads but instead is used to kill healthy adoptable animals because people want to sell puppies and kittens."

This May, in an attempt to help alleviate the needless euthanization, Smith and her husband, John Horn, started the Rowdy Retriever Ranch, a rescue kennel near West Mountain that's giving adoptable dogs another chance at life.

Since May, they have adopted out 29 healthy retrievers -- dogs that might not have made it if Smith and her husband hadn't pitched in -- to excited new owners.

"It's really rewarding hooking a dog up with a family," said Smith, who balances her nonprofit dog work with a full-time job at Novell. "We meet really great people. One woman adopted a dog knowing it had cancer."

Smith houses the dogs as a part of Companion Golden Retrievers Rescue, a rescue group based in West Jordan that gets retrievers from owners and limited space shelters that can no longer care for the animals.

She said animal shelters are set up to concentrate on stray animals, so when new strays come in, there is often no space for those that have become "adoptable."

When the space is gone and there are no owners for the dogs, shelters are forced to euthanize the healthy animals, said Lt. Grant Ferre of the Utah County Animal Shelter.

"We want so badly to have them adopted out," said Ferre. "They are big, beautiful, wonderful dogs, but the majority of people don't want the full-sized dogs."

Ferre said so far this year, Utah County Animal Shelter workers have euthanized 759 dogs and 1,333 cats. Last year they killed 1,135 dogs and 2,581 cats.

Multiply that by the dozens of animal shelters in Utah, and Ferre said more than 30,000 animals are killed every year.

That's where the rescue services of Smith and her Rowdy Retriever Ranch come in.

The two-building -- and growing -- facility includes room for nine dogs to be fed, cared for, played with and pampered for as long as they're there. One building, still under construction, will become a "getting-to-know-you area" where people interested in adopting can meet dogs once they qualify to own the pets.

"I thought Terri was great at finding the right dog for the right family," said Luciana Monsen, who adopted a 2-year old golden retriever named Malachi last month. "I don't think they want to place whatever dog they have with anyone. They want to make sure the dogs are going to go to a good family."

Smith, who owns three dogs herself, projects that she will adopt out 225 golden retrievers this year. All the dogs that come through her hands are spayed, neutered, microchipped and tested for heartworm.

Right now, the ranch is under continual construction, but Smith hopes to open up the place for future retrievers. Eagle Scouts helped build doggie doors for their seven indoor-outdoor dog runs, but there is still plenty to do to make the complex efficient.

Plans to open up the six-acre property for the dogs to roam free is also in the works, but Smith said it's a costly effort, especially since the county requires double fences on all dog areas.

"We have to pay for all of this out of our pockets," she said. "My husband and I spend 60 hours a week taking care of dogs and we're not going to be able to do that forever."

The overcrowding of stray golden retrievers and labs in county shelters isn't going away any time soon. Smith said many people unknowingly breed their purebreds thinking they're doing the right thing, but then end up with a litter of dogs they can't care for.

Ferre said one resolution to the problem would be increased spaying and neutering, which the county is hoping to improve with a proposed low-cost spay and neuter clinic.

But it's going to take time and money.

In the meantime, Smith will continue to play an active role in rescuing the retrievers, getting them healthy and making them available to prospective dog owners.

"That would be totally okay with me if that building sat empty," Smith said, pointing to her large concrete-walled dog house. "That would mean the dogs have homes and there's not too many."

º Todd Hollingshead can be reached at 344-2524 or thollingshead@heraldextra.com

Volunteers, foster homes and donations used to find homes for homeless goldens and labs are always in need.

If you're interested in helping or adopting, contact Terri Smith at 801-794-1642 or tlsmith@rowdyretrieverranch.com