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For Roxie, a sweet, freckled black-and-white American Staffordshire Terrier mix at Newhall's New Leash on Life, the list would be short and sweet: A home of my own.
Local pet sitters LaVaida Olsen of Happy Paws, Lisa Hurdiss of Lisa's Lucky Dogs, and Keri Goodwin of Walk N Wags are striving to help rescues and the animals they serve by taking part in the national Wishbone for Pets campaign to benefit New Leash on Life, Villalobos Rescue Center, and The Brittany Foundation.
Designed for pet sitters to collect and distribute funds and goods for pet shelters and agencies in their area, Wishbones for Pets encourages the Santa Clarita Valley community to participate via collection barrels placed in businesses and through private donations through Nov. 30.
"It's really in the spirit of Thanksgiving, kind of like a Toys for Tots for homeless animals," Olsen said. "We need to bring more awareness that there are a lot of shelters in need, especially in these tough economic times."
New Leash on Life has been hit particularly hard. They have lost the lease to their Placerita Canyon kennel and educational facility and are struggling to keep their doors open long enough to place Roxie and 16 other dogs, such as Mocha, a 1-year-old female chocolate lab mix that loves to lay on the couch almost as much as she enjoys dog biscuits.
"We really need foster and permanent homes or a major benefactor to step in and help us turn things around," said Diane Kinder, nighttime kennel manager. "It means everything to be a part of this effort, it's like gold to us."
Hurdiss, a passionate pit bull owner and advocate who specializes in sitting for the breed, is a long-time volunteer at Villalobos Rescue Center, the nation's largest no-kill pit bull facility that currently houses 250 dogs.
"They lost their food sponsor a while ago and they go through something like 2,000 pounds of dog food a week," Hurdiss said. "I've been bringing bags up whenever I can, but they really need help."
So far response to the Wish Bone campaign has been enthusiastic, with many pet-related businesses immediately agreeing to place barrels in their office, including Saugus Animal Hospital, Pet Supply Santa Clarita, Precious Pets Grooming Salon, Happy Pets Veterinary Pet Center, and Valencia Dog House Grooming & Spaw.
"Within three hours of talking to Santa Clarita Animal Hospital about participating, they already received donations. We hadn't even got their barrel to them yet," Hurdiss said.
If Goodwin had a singular wish, it would be for the community to adopt, rather than shop for a pet this holiday season and forever after.
The pet sitter teared up as she toured New Leash on Life and met the dogs waiting for a home. Some like Reese, a Chesapeake/Rottweiler mix whose coloring resembles a peanut butter cup, has been at the rescue for more than a year.
"It's their eyes," Goodwin said. "I'm really surprised at how many homeless dogs there are in this community. I don't know why. I can't imagine giving up my dog, he's a family member."
Olsen placed an arm around Goodwin to comfort her.
"We want to take them all home," Olsen said. "Since we can't, it's better to do what we can than just stand by and do nothing."
For more information on the Santa Clarita Valley Wishbone campaign, visit www.happypawspetsittingservice.com or call (661) 537-3105. Monetary donations (made payable to New Leash on Life) can be sent to P.O. Box 800771, Santa Clarita, CA, 91380.
