Feature Article November 27, 2002
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Bell Rock Breeder Joins in Hound RescueKathy and Ivan Van Leeuwen of Bell Rock have joined with nine other hunting dog enthusiasts throughout eastern Ontario to set up emergency shelters for dogs lost during the recent deer hunting season.
The Van Leeuwens, who breed Walker hounds at their home near Bell Rock, heard about the emergency shelters through their association with the Sporting Dog Association. The shelters are managed by a group called the Ontario Deer Hounds Association, which is based near Bancroft.
Kathy Van Leeuwen says The Deer Hound Association has provided everything we need to care for the animals we have received. They provided the shelters, chains, food. All we have to provide is the property, and we have to do the work.
The shelters are only open during the deer hunting season, and on November 30 the seven dogs that have been boarding at the Van Leeuwens will join the unclaimed dogs from the other eight shelters at the central shelter in Millbridge, which is near Bannockburn in Hastings County.
At the Millbridge shelter, which is a no kill shelter, the hounds will be put up for adoption. All the other shelters are much closer to Millbridge than ours is, so they have already sent their dogs over. Most of those have already been spoken for, and if no one arrives to claim them before the 30th, they will be adopted immediately.
Van Leeuwen was not certain, but she estimates there are around 25 unclaimed dogs that will go up for adoption this Saturday.
All of the dogs received at the shelters are referred through the animal control officers in the regions. At the Bell Rock location, the Van Leeuwens have been working with animal control officers from Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Counties. The dogs have come from a wide-ranging area, from Westport to the east, Tamworth to the west and north to Sharbot Lake.
There is a perception out there that hunters chain their dogs and thats it. A dog cant possibly run without being well kept and conditioned. Hunters generally keep them well maintained and well fed. Hounds are a part of a hunters family," said Kathy
As breeders, the Van Leeuwens have 30 dogs of their own at the present time, and Kathy believes that hunting dogs are bred to run, and are happiest when they are running.
This is the final week for the operation of the Van Leeuwen shelter. If anyone is missing a hunting dog, they should phone 374-1078 before Saturday.
