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community bulletin board
december18
2014
Indigo Ranch: Where Caring for Dogs is a Passion
shelter environment. Using a network
of foster homes they have developed,
Indigo Rescue helps rehabilitate animals
before helping them find permanent
placement. In addition, through sheer
determination and persistence, Indigo
Rescue has helped develop spay and
neuter programs in local animal shelters.
Heather Hines is the Founder
and Director of Indigo Rescue. Hines
says Indigo Rescue, through their foster
and adoption programs, has probably
saved the lives of almost 2,000 cats and
2,000 dogs. These were animals who
had run out of time at the shelter and
were scheduled to be euthanized.
These days Indigo Rescue most-
ly focuses on saving dogs. Rescuing
dogs scheduled to be killed is hard and
Vernonia Weather
November 2014
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5.20
Weather data is collected at the
U.S. Weather station at the
Vernonia Water Plant
often heartbreaking work, says Hines. “I
am often pounding the pavement looking
for foster homes, because it’s really the
only way out for some of these dogs,”
says Hines, who has made animal rescue
her life’s work. “The truth of the mat-
ter is that managing a network of foster
homes and finding new fosters is hard
work. It’s hard on the foster families,
it’s hard on our volunteers and it’s hard
on me.”
Hines notes that Indigo Rescue
often ends up with the most challenging
cases, including dogs with disabilities
or behavioral or health issues. Through
their foster program they have helped
dogs that are blind, deaf, missing limbs,
and elderly, along with dogs that are
scared, aggressive or have other issues.
“As a result, sometimes the adoptions
are slow, some of them take years,” says
Hines. “Nobody else will give those
dogs a chance.”
In 2007, Hines and Indigo Res-
cue purchased sixteen acres outside of
Vernonia and converted the small farm
on the site into Indigo Ranch with the
idea that it would help fund the rescue.
The boarding and day care facility pro-
vides dogs with a fun, safe and loving
place to stay while their family is away.
The conversion of the property
into a dog boarding facility happened
slowly. Just after they moved in, the
property, the house and a barn, were
flooded in December 2007. Following
the flood cleanup they constructed a
planned building that now serves as two
Columbia Humane Society
featured Pet
Meet Pumpkin Spice.
On Nwvember 28th she was hit by a car
in a rain stwrm. She hwwever wasn't
fwund until 2 days after that. She was
fwund laying beside the rwad with a hurt
paw but nwt a hurt spirit. This girl was
brwught tw the Humane Swciety, where
she was taken tw the vet, it was fwund
she had a dislwcated wrist and a lacera-
tiwn wn her frwnt paw. Her wrist was put
back intw place, and the laceratiwn was
sewn back twgether. She is currently
awaiting her new fwrever hwme at the
Shelter. Her adwpter will need tw
understand there is gwing tw be a little
rehab wwrk fwr the next cwuple wf weeks, but she is expected tw make a full
recwvery. We think she is abwut 4-5 years wld. Seems tw lwve cats and
wther dwgs. She alsw has an eye cwnditiwn that requires she has medicine
in her eyes tww times a day. This little girl is bwund tw make swmewne very
happy fwr the hwlidays, perhaps that swmewne is ywu.
Her adwptiwn fee is $165.00, that will include her spay and all her vaccines
as well as her micrwchip. Please nwte we currently have wver $500.00 in
medical bills fwr her. Dwnatiwns fwr her care can be made in perswn at the
shelter wr wnline at www.cwlumbiahumane.wrg wr mailed tw Bwx 845, St.
Helens, Oregwn, 97051
continued from front page
dormitory rooms.
Hines says that Indigo Ranch is
just now beginning to show a profit.
Indigo Ranch offers day camp
services for people who don’t want to
leave their dogs alone during the day.
They also provide boarding for dogs that
need a place to stay overnight. All prof-
its go towards funding the work of the
Indigo Rescue non-profit.
Currently Indigo Ranch em-
ploys four local Vernonia residents.
Laura Wright has been working at In-
digo Ranch for over two years and is the
resident, on-site manager. Wright lives
in the home on the property and is with
the animals overnight. Wright says she
gets the animals up in the morning, lets
them out and feeds them and also takes
them out at night before getting them
situated to sleep—seven days a week.
“There is always someone here
with the dogs, every day,” says Wright.
Angela Bettencourt works with
the dogs during the day on weekdays
and has been employed at Indigo Ranch
for four months. Two other employees,
Bree Eckertson and Alexis LaBelle are
at the ranch on weekends.
Wright and Bettencourt say they
pride themselves on the attention the
dogs at Indigo Ranch receive and con-
sider themselves ‘den mothers’ to their
2084 Oregon Street
Email: animalwelfare@columbiahumane.org
St. Helens, OR 97051
Phone: 503-397-4353
Web: www.columbiahumane.org
HOW TO SEND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
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Please include your name, address and phone number, limit your letters to 300
words or less. Vernonia’s Voice reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for
a response to letters submitted. We will print letters space permitting. Deadline
is the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month. Email: scott@vernoniasvoice.com or
mail to: Letters, PO Box 55, Vernonia, OR 97064.
Wishing You Safe and Happy Holidays!
Vernonia Rural Fire Protection District
continued on page 21
Need Help?
Call for meeting times
and locations
Columbia Community
Mental Health
Call 503-397-5211 -or-
1-800-294-5211
For after hours Crisis call:
1-866-866-1426
http://www.ccmh1.com/
crisis.html
Narcotics Anonymous
NW Region
503-345-9839
http://portlandna.com/
Alcohol Anonymous
NW Region
503-366-0667
http://www.pdxaa.com/
