New Leash on Life : Agency Finds Homes for Abandoned Purebred Dogs

Lady is having as much trouble as the Tramp staying out of the pound these days.

In a transient, divorce-prone society, purebred dogs are nearly as likely to be abandoned, neglected and mistreated as their mongrel cousins, say caretakers of the pampered and well-to-do of the canine set.

Not only common breeds such as German shepherds and cocker spaniels, but afghans, salukis, and even borzois, or Russian wolfhounds, can be found in the pound with 72-hour death sentences over their heads.

“You wouldn’t think you’d see that kind of dog in an animal shelter,” said Nancy Phillips, who owns three dogs, two cats and a parakeet.

But Phillips and her co-workers at Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue Inc. see it all the time. Since February, 1987, the nonprofit organization has been placing unwanted and abandoned purebreds with new owners in California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska.

It’s the second such adoption referral agency in the nation. The first is the Purebred Dog Rescue of St. Louis.

Both were founded by Dixie Tenny Lehmann, who moved from St. Louis to Seattle in 1985. Lehmann set up the original dog rescue program in 1984 after a friend who helped place abandoned bull terriers told her that he regularly came across valuable dogs of all breeds in shelters.

“I thought, let’s set up some kind of clearinghouse for all breeds,” said Lehmann, who handles Welsh terriers and a half-dozen other terrier breeds for the dog rescue agency.

The common reason dogs are given up is that the owner has no time for the pet. Others often cite a divorce or a move, Lehmann said.

At the five Seattle-area shelters, between 25,000 and 30,000 dogs, or between 70% and 85% of all dogs received, were euthanized last year, the Progressive Animal Welfare Society said.

About 20% of them were purebreds, said Scott Henry, shelter supervisor of the society.

The dog rescue agency tries to hook up animals from shelters or that still are in their owner’s homes with people who call the organization looking for a particular breed.

In its first year, the agency placed 334 dogs from 71 breeds into new homes. In 1988, they found new homes for more than 700 dogs, or up to a third of the dogs they listed, Phillips said.

A dog adopted through the rescue agency usually costs about $40 to $70, far less than the price of many purebred puppies.

Rescue agency officials said they recognize there also is a need to place mongrel dogs in loving homes, but say there is a specialized need for their service.