Gatekeeper K9 Rescue

04/04/2026

I've thought about what to say in this post over a month now and just cannot find the words... I wasn't ready.

January 8, 2020 a Golden Retriever named Ginger was newly adopted and quickly jumped her fence. She put miles on quickly traveling all over O Hill, Fairmount, Camillus, Warners before finally being captured in Camillus Park on January 30, 2020.

Ginger is the reason this organization exists.

After loosing my first Ginger of 13 years I felt compelled to help this Ginger. When I went out in that snowstorm that first night looking for her I had no idea the impact she would have on me or so many others.... or the absolutely insane amount of work, frustration, and exhaustion every lost dog recovery is.

February 23 I had to say goodbye to Ginger after an unexpected and highly aggressive case of mast cell cancer. In 3 short weeks she was gone.

I still haven't processed it yet. I always thought I'd have more time for walks and cuddles.

Ginger was always accepting of anyone 2 or 4 legged. Always patient with Arnie bumping into her..... I like to think he is able to see her now.

Annie who just joined us absolutely loved Ginger. Every time I let her smell Ginger's collar her tail practically wags right off. A testament to the impact Gingers quiet, calm and stoic energy had on everyone around her.

Thanks to Stillwater Vet Services Ginger was able to pass peacefully right in her spot on the couch allowing everyone to say goodbye and understand where she went. Watching Annie grieve was the worst part of the entire process.... Dogs are amazing.

Ginger lived for snow and I was so grateful she spent her last 30 minutes on Earth in the snow. It was a beautiful book end to her story after first rescuing her in the cold and snow 6 years ago.

I'm sorry it ended this way Ging. Thank you for trusting me. I hope you now understand where I was so many hours away from home, helping dogs just like you. Take care of Arnie for me,I miss you both profoundly.

Here is a link to Ginger's page I created when she was out on her first adventure 6 years ago... before I learned all I have about lost dog recovery. I spent some time reminiscing today.

https://www.facebook.com/share/19WTz3UH8K/

I love you Ging.

01/04/2026

Necessity is the mother of all invention.

In March of 2020 I ventured out on my very first dumped dog in Constantia NY. A blue heeler now named Jake testing my patience on a daily basis. He wouldn't entertain any trap but this one. Since then it's brought about a dozen more dogs to safety.

In late October I was contacted by a wonderful husband and wife team (Dave and Joanne) doing big things in Herkimer County area. They had been working on a lost dog for months and wondered what other ideas I may have. After hearing the details I felt the drop trap was the way to go. So I dusted off my custom built drop trap and hit the thruway to set things up and condition this sweet boy which normally takes 5-7 days.

He loved his marrow bones from the butcher so everyday he got one on every visit thanks to Joanne keeping him fed and supplied.

Generally, the longer a dog is out and the more experiences they have the harder they get to trap. Not always, but often. Walker was no different but his bone obsession would be his demise.

This trap runs on an electric magnet which releases when the laser beam is broken. (Sim to a garage door safety sensor).

In walkers case the reflector was attached to his beloved bone. He was at his most vulnerable when grabbing his bone. As he lifts his bone the laser beam is broken, the magnet releases and the trap falls.

After at least 3 months on his own he was finally safe again, and so thankful to be.

Walkers story as we know it is that he was purchased from PA to be a hunting dog and upon arriving to NY bolted in fear. His new owner had no interest in taking him back as is so often the case.

Thank you to Herkimer County Humane Society for taking this sweet boy in and finding him a perfect home.

Thank you Dave and Joanne for never giving up. Walker is a loved family member thanks to you.

Stop treating pets as a commodity. They can still have a job and be loved and cared for properly.

May you forever be Walker.

Always remember

12/07/2025

Grief is the price we pay for love.

Anyone who has ever had to say goodbye to a dog that loves them will tell you the pain is like nothing else.

November 8th I said goodbye to my boy Arnie after almost exactly 8 years. I love all dogs unconditionally but I never understood the term soul dog until Arnie. I was his eyes and he was my purpose. We had a bond that words will never touch.

While trying to be home as much as possible to spend my final weeks and days with him i was in contact with Syracuse Dog Control regarding Annie who had immediately escaped following a private rehome situation.

One day I saw a sighting post of her and the resemblance to Arnie hit me so hard. I thought to myself, I think she's supposed to be with me.

A few days later she was fast asleep in a warm crate decompressing in the same house that had protected Arnie for the past 8 years.

My existing pack of misfits welcomed her home and just like that I'm back to 4.

The supply of unwanted dogs is only getting worse. Please help us continue bringing these lost souls to safety.

Please visit our website for other donation options in addition to FB.

https://www.gatekeeperk9rescue.org/donate

I love you buddy and I'll see you when I get there.

Arnie and Annie will both be forever ..... just in different ways.

11/23/2025

Peaches ....

I think often about what it must be like to want help so incredibly bad, and instinctively know that safety is found near humans, but also instinctively avoiding the same humans.

At the end of September posts began circulating about a dog spending time on a front porch off 370 in Baldwinsville. This peaked my interest being only a few minutes from home.

By Monday morning I had recieved a help request from Makenzie after she spent the weekend trying to catch this scared girl.

I had taken Monday off for a doctor appt so that afternoon I made contact with makenzie and a short time later this sweet young girl was safe, probably for the first time in her life.

To everyone's surprise she was chipped to someone in Syracuse and marked as missing 3 months prior. Messages were left but no one ever came forward.

Peaches is now a loved member of Makenzie's family.

My educated guess is she was given away online and lost immediately upon arriving to her new home in Baldwinsville. The first owner notified the chip company she was lost and that's where the recovery efforts stopped. I have seen this exact scenario so many times.

I hear "I would know if a dog was around here" often and I can absolutely assure you, you won't.

The very thing that makes my job so incredibly hard sometimes is also part of what makes these amazing animals like nothing else. They move around with a level of stealth that's hard to match.

I'm tired. I am one person. Everyone in rescue is tired. Stop getting dogs you don't want. Since peaches rescue I have helped 3 more from the exact same set of circumstances. Be responsible. Just stop.

I am so happy you're now Peaches. IMO both you and your family won the lottery on this one.

Thank you Makenzie for everything you and your family did and is doing for peaches. Its people like you that keep us going.

Have the best life Peaches !

10/28/2025

I know its been quiet here lately but that's not for lack of dogs needing help.

Last month I was contacted to help Layla after a car accident. Following the crash, her Dad crawled out the rear passenger door at which time she fled the car.

Over the course of the following 3 weeks I worked tirelessly to bring her to safety. In just 36 hours she had found my feeding station.

Typically dogs will return to the feeding station within 24 hours to find a trap and its over.

Not Layla. She would spend the next 3 weeks popping out in a new spot daily..... sometimes as much as 5 miles away. Ultimately she was hand caught by Oswego dog control and is home now.

The point I want to make is :

Every subset of lost dog has typical behaviors that are somewhat predictable to a degree.

IME car accident scenarios are some of the hardest to recover. These dogs are instantly in survival mode from the accident and this seems to effect their decision making process as opposed to other scenarios where the change to survival is more gradual.

Add to that Injured owners who are frantic to find their family member and the public who desperately wants to help reunite dog and family after the unfortunate circumstance of a car accident.

All of it can be avoided by tethering your dog to the vehicle. Even the smallest fender benders can send a dog running.

Please tether your dog to your car when traveling. ESPECIALLY if you just adopted your dog.

to keep your dogs .

10/20/2025

A few days ago I recieved a text from a number I didn't have saved but scrolling up I was able to figure out who it was.

The text, was the link below. It's long but IMO worth reading. Its the story of a long time Syracuse landmark and the impact dogs had on it and the people who visit.

One of my own dogs is at the point in his journey where he has more days behind him than he does in front of him. I'm doing what I can for him but will never let him suffer. As his time draws near I prioritize time with him while reflecting on all the hours I've been away making the timing of this text perfect.

In so many cases my last memory of your dogs is scared, dirty, thin, exhausted, and shut down innocent souls. So stories such as this are amazing for me to see.

I am so glad to see Yukon doing so well John. Best of luck on whatever is next for you all. And thank you for giving two deserving dogs a loving home.

More rescue stories to come when I get a minute.....

The owner of a legendary business, beloved for the dogs that roam the aisles, will play a role in a brand-new downtown operation.

09/08/2025

TJ (now Rigby)

"I haven't seen it like this since the 80's"

A comment made to me not long ago by a long time dog control officer. He's now retired.

TJ is part of a trio dumped in Brewerton NY in early August. As the days went on one of his sisters would be captured, and then one more, but he had other plans.

Sightings in the original location became more and more scarce before then starting up along the offramp from 81 N to Bartel rd.

Soon thereafter he was seen a mile south on the side of 81 N with a significant limp.

The Brewerton community had great concern for TJ and many were trying their best to help him. If you've been here any length of time you've heard me use the word counterintuitive when describing the process of recovering a lost dog. So in an effort to quiet things down I posted on the local community page with some requests including a direct private contact to me with any sightings rather than posting them publicly.

Monday morning I recieved an email from Trish who lived on Ladd rd extension. She had just seen him in her front yard for the second time.

The day before I had placed feeding stations nearby. One being about 50 feet from where she had seen him. A few hours later he had found it. I also asked her to leave some food out as she headed out that afternoon.

Monday evening I checked her food which had been eaten. So I placed the trap In her front yard. Just 5 minutes after leaving TJ made his first appearance just passing thru. By midnight he had not returned and experience told me he needed to be conditioned so I latched the trap open and went home for a couple hours sleep before my work day started.

1:30 am he visited but only danced around.

5:00 am he returned and after about 15 minutes had worked his way completely in the trap.

So the trap was reset about 3pm and just a few hours later he was safe again.

The significant limp turned out to be a dangling broken leg. Sadly due to the length of time the break was left untreated he had to have his right back leg amputated.

He is still recovering at CNY SPCA and will need an understanding home filled with love very soon. His two sisters are also looking for their forever homes.

Thank you Trish for your kind heart and hospitality.

Thank you Katie for helping TJ get patched up.

Thank you CNY SPCA for giving TJ a chance.

Chatting in the parking lot that night, Katie said to me; "you will never be able to do enough, so you have to find a balance somehow".

While I know she's correct, I dont know how to do that.

All day long every single day dogs are left to fend for themselves right here in CNY.

TJ, now Rigby, my greatest wish for you is that you'll be the rest of your days.

Always remember,

Until next time....

08/17/2025

River

If there was ever a textbook new adoption escape and rescue story, this would be it. The lessons are many from River's time on the run and my biggest wish is that someone can learn from these stories and help the next.

In mid March 5 Cane Corso puppies were dumped in the middle of the night on Route 80 right on the Nedrow / city line. River was captured a few hours later after finding herself stuck in a pond on a nearby property. I would later capture 3 of her sister's on that property while her last sister would be found along Onondaga creek on the Southside of Syracuse. I never posted their story.

Fast forward to mid July and River found her forever home. She went home on a Saturday and to gramma's house on Monday where she was let out into the yard alone by a family member and promptly found a week point in the stockade fence and siezed her opportunity.

A few sightings came in Monday evening and then she vanished until Friday afternoon where she popped out on a nearby property I had been eyeing on the map.

Unfortunately, she was immediately pursued off that property setting in motion a continuous 24 hours of travel, sightings, chasing, two visits on Route 81, more chasing and finally returning to the original property from Friday. All in 100 deg temps.

Anticipating her return I had a feeding station waiting for her.

My first suggestion is always food at point of escape. I see and hear, "not familiar with the area" daily. I can understand that thought process, however it's irrelevant to an animal. The point of escape is the most familiar location to the dog.

In River's case, when she reappeared 5 days later her collar was gone. It's my belief she spent a couple days hung up on something delaying her return that I would have expected the first 24 hours.

Throughout River's ordeal I always felt home base was our best plan. She had even returned there Friday in her travels.

The importance of food... food changes behavior. How well do you think and process stress when you are hungry ? It's no different for a dog. After finding her meal Saturday evening she was out of sight until Sunday afternoon when she immediately headed back for home base.

Every time she would visit home there was interference of some kind so we had a trap awaiting her which she was more than happy to walk right into.

I have to thank River's new family for putting in the work 24 hours a day to bring her home. I am confident is River's future.

Newly adopted dogs need time and patience. Imo the first 3 months should be spent at home only. These poor dogs have been thru so much and the amount of overstimulation they are dealing with cannot be ignored.

River's 3 sisters, Aqua, Brooke, and Marina are still awaiting their forever at CNY SPCA. They are small Cane Corsos at about 60 pounds and such sweet souls if you have a place on your bed for some dog hair.

Always remember :

06/23/2025

A Martingale Collar Could Save Your Dog's Life

06/23/2025

06/22/2025

Dog free to good home....

A sentence that makes anyone in rescue cringe. Private rehomes are one of the most common scenarios in which dogs become missing.... I've lost track how many I've helped.

Maya, as her new dad has named her, had been seen in the Fayetteville NY area for approximately a month. She had claimed a couple vacant homes as hers on Lynacres Blvd that backed up to a golf course.

An amazing nieghbor across the street began leaving food for Maya at the vacant home.

As luck would have it, that house was being painted..... by Maya's new dad. He had an immediate connection with her and decided he would find a way to help her. A friend of his had a connection with Cuse Pit Crew, who's founder Stefanie reached out to me. Sometimes it's a long convoluted path to help for these lost souls.

It was determined that Maya had been given away recently and promptly fled from her new unknown people...... who then made no attempts to look for or help her. After making contact with both niether her original or new owners wanted her back. An all too familiar story on this page, and many others.

The unwanted animal crises we are in all comes down to responsibility. We need people to be responsible with their decisions to get a pet.

Maya has settled in nicely with her new Dad Sean. I wish the same for every dog left to fend for themselves by those who should have protected them.

Thank you to the nieghbors of Lynacres Blvd. For your cooperation in helping this girl.

Huge thank you to Chyanne's Pet Palace for fitting Maya in on a Sunday last minute to groom her. I know she felt better getting cleaned up and detangled.