It all started with Polo
In 2002, 9 year old Polo was taken to a Tallahassee animal hospital. He had glaucoma in one eye and a severe infection in the other, the infected eye needing to be removed. His owner did not want to pay for the eye to be removed so requested he be euthanized. Fortunately for Polo, the clinic’s manager saw what a sweet dog he was and that he would have excellent quality of life once the eye was removed, so she convinced the owner to surrender him to rescue. I received a call that day, asking if I would be willing to foster Polo, and with my introduction to him my love and commitment for senior dogs was born.
I adopted Polo shortly after, and he was a part of my life for 8 years, eventually losing his other eye to glaucoma. Despite his eventual complete blindness, he was always a perfectly sweet gentlemen, quickly winning over everyone he met. When he passed in 2010 after a battle with lymphoma, he left an enormous hole in my heart.
In 2011, Crossroads Shih Tzu Rescue was given the opportunity to compete for a $25,000 grant from the Pepsi Refresh Project, and to our amazement, we won. Our proposal for building and establishing a retirement home for senior dogs was accepted, approved, and in February 2012 construction began on what would become Polo’s Refuge Senior Dog Retirement Home.
The program’s doors opened on July 15, 2012, and we moved 12 small dogs in as the first residents. Since then it has been home to 12 dogs at a time, and as of December 31, 2017, has been home to a total of 48 seniors. These dogs come to Polo’s Refuge from animal shelters, commercial breeding facilities, etc., often because they have been deemed “unadoptable” for a variety of reasons including health, behavior, and sometimes simply because of their ages. For whatever reason, they were facing euthanasia and had nowhere to go until Polo’s Refuge stepped in.
The dogs stay in the Polo’s Refuge program for the duration of their lives, however long or short. They receive needed veterinary care and medications, are groomed regularly, have access to a large fenced yard, and are given daily love and attention from a team of volunteers.
With the addition of our second building in Fall 2018, the program was expanded so that it can accommodate even more seniors. The smaller building is used for quarantine, when needed, or as a smaller retirement home for any dogs who struggle with the larger number of dogs in the big building.
This truly is a labor of love, and it isn’t possible without the daily help of our wonderful volunteers, board members and supporters. Thank you for helping Polo’s Refuge continue to make a difference in the lives of senior dogs who would have no other hope. We are completely dependent upon donations and have no paid staff. If you can help by making a donation, please visit our Donate page.
Leann Lund
Polo’s Refuge/Crossroads Shih Tzu Rescue
President/Founder
For more information visit: https://polosrefuge.org/
