Please help save these 12 Golden Retrievers from China
Please read updates below.
We try not to solicit donations for specific causes too often but we have a very big ask of all of our wonderful members and followers right now. We are in a bit of a tough situation with our International rescue efforts. The CDC recently announced that they plan to put a stop to bringing dogs in from other countries. They believe there’s risk that dogs arecoming over with rabies which is nearly impossible as we (and all reputable rescues) follow all of the FDA guidelines which include all vaccinations. So, because of a few bad actors, all dogs who are struggling to stay alive in situations we can barely imagine will most likely die at the hands of the meat market vendors and operators.
We have been given an opportunity to partner with another rescue to bring 24 Goldens over before the CDC ban goes into effect. We will take 12 and the other rescue will take 12.
We are literally these dogs' last hope at life!
This is where we need your help. The costs to bring a dog over from China is over $2,000 per dog (flights, getting them all up to date on vaccinations, and making sure they’re medically clear to fly, etc).
Will you help us save these 12 Golden lives? If not for us, they will likely end up dead. We believe a Golden in need anywhere is still a Golden in need and we must try to save them!
The photo below shows the 12 Goldens we can save together with your help.
Any donation helps. Thank you.
The Rescue A Golden Board of Directors
Update--
Together we raised enough to save the 12 Golden Retrievers you see here! Because of YOU, they will soon know what a loving home with a loving family feels like. They will no longer live in fear, go hungry or thirsty. They will have the life they deserve and they will bring endless amounts of love to their new family.
We asked and you came through. We can’t thank you enough…and the dogs thank you even more!
Take a look at the photos. These are the 12 souls that are about to be saved. We will provide updates as their flight date nears.
On June 25th we shared the faces of 12 Golden Retrievers we wanted to bring to the United States prior to the CDC ban going into effect July 14th.
You rallied and helped us raise all the money we needed to do so – in just three days. Some of you even reached out to make sure the other rescue we are partnering with had raised the money necessary to bring the other 12 Golden Retrievers to Nevada as planned, so you could help them too, if they needed it. Your generosity and heart for these Goldens is amazing.
Since the CDC announcement, rescues around the country have been working to get as many dogs to the U.S. as possible before the ban goes into effect tomorrow. As a result, the USDA’s Live Animal Department has been overwhelmed with requests, and they did not give us our permit in time to get the dogs on the flight we had planned for today.
Our Transport Team volunteers expected to be on the road today to LAX — chicken and rice was being made in kitchens across the Valley so we could greet those beauties with a “Welcome Home” meal.
We are heartbroken. We know you are too. Especially those of you who said yes to one of our Placement Team volunteers when you got the call about taking one of these beautiful “China Dolls” into your home.
WE ARE NOT GIVING UP! And neither are our partners. We are considering all options to get these dogs here, including:
Investigating moving the dogs to a country that isn’t affected by the ban. We would support the dogs financially while they’re in the care of another rescue and medically cleared to be granted a passport from that country which would allow them to legally travel to the U.S.
Planning to financially support the dogs while they remain with the Chinese rescue with a guarantee that we will bring them here when the ban is lifted.
The possibility of an exception. We are part of the effort by rescues all over the U.S. to make sure the CDC understands the process and rigor reputable dog rescues follow to bring dogs to the U.S. from other countries. Here is the letter that was sent to the CDC on behalf of Animal Wellness Action, the Animal Wellness Foundation, and a broad coalition of other animal welfare and rescue organizations. While the chances of the CDC changing course are small, they are not zero.
We have the names ages of 10 of the 12 dogs now, so we wanted to share their updated photos:
And here’s a recent video of the Goldens at the rescue in China enjoying some play time.
We understand you have many choices in how you give, and we are supremely grateful for the generosity Arizonans have shown Rescue A Golden for 23 years.
The money donated to save these dogs has been earmarked for the support of International Golden Retrievers through our Soul Legacy, which is what allowed us to bring nearly 30 Golden Retrievers from China and Turkey in just a few months.
Of course, if you would like us to return the donation you made toward rescuing these dogs, just say the word – you can email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your donation receipt, and we will return your money.
While we work on what’s next, we’d love your thoughts – if you have a moment, please take this super quick survey.
All for the love of a Golden. More to come and thank you again.
In gratitude and hope,
Board of Directors
Rescue A Golden of Arizona
Here's another recent video of the Goldens at playtime in China as they wait to come home.
Update on our Goldens in China
Saturday, August 14th marked one month since the CDC ban went into effect. We still plan to bring the 12 Golden Retrievers to Arizona that we committed to last month, and maybe a few more. We just don’t know when yet. There is quite a bit happening behind the scenes on the legislative front, and some work underway on behalf of rescues like ours around the country.Until the temperatures go below 90 degrees in China, we also aren’t able to fly the dogs to a country unaffected by the ban, where they would stay temporarily until they could be cleared to fly to the US so unfortunately, that’s not an option right now.
One thing that always makes our hearts happy is seeing happy dogs. While we can’t wait to get them to Arizona, please take a look at this video — they seem to be doing well at the rescue in China and we know they’re being taken good care of while they wait to make their way to us.
Thank you again for all of your support.
Board of Directors
Rescue A Golden of Arizona
September 30, 2021 Update on our China Goldens & the CDC ban
We’re happy to share an update on the progress being made around the CDC’s ban on bringing rescues in from other countries. A few days ago, 57 bipartisan Members of the U.S House of Representatives, including 35 Democrats and 22 Republicans, sent a letter to leadership at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urging the agency to rescind its abrupt suspension of canine imports from 113 countries, effective on July 14th. In the letter, the Members called on the agency “to work with stakeholders to create a solution that protects public health but also allows responsible members of the pet rescue community to continue their work.”
We’re hopeful that this work results in an overturn or changes to the ban that will allow us to bring the Goldens who are still being held (and cared for) in China home to the US and to their new forever homes soon.
We will continue to keep you updated as we get more information.
And just for fun, here's a "rerun" of the video on our website, showing the Goldens at playtime in the China shelter.
November 2021 Update on CDC Ban & our Commitment to the Dogs
It has been several months since the CDC instituted its temporary suspension of dogs entering the U.S. from countries classified as high risk for dog rabies. The CDC remains under pressure to change their position. A coalition of animal welfare groups put out a press release late last month with a link to a bipartisan letter Members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent to the CDC, asking specifically for rescues to be allowed to continue their work in the banned countries. Animal Wellness Action was also on a panel at a conference in Brazil last month alongside Dr. Emily Pieracci from the CDC to discuss the ban.
We remain hopeful common sense will ultimately prevail. The China dogs we tried to bring to Arizona before the ban went into effect are doing well. The rescue in China is resourced to care for them, and they continue to take in more dogs. We sent some money to the rescue late this summer to help repair some of the kennels that were damaged by weather. The funds so many of you helped us raised are being reserved for the dogs we committed to in July. Our plan is to bring them to Arizona just as soon as we can, and we remain hopeful that that day will come.
We remain hopeful common sense will ultimately prevail. The China dogs we tried to bring to Arizona before the ban went into effect are doing well. The rescue in China is resourced to care for them, and they continue to take in more dogs. We sent some money to the rescue late this summer to help repair some of the kennels that were damaged by weather. The funds so many of you helped us raised are being reserved for the dogs we committed to in July. Our plan is to bring them to Arizona just as soon as we can, and we remain hopeful that that day will come.
June 2022 Update on CDC Ban & our Commitment to the Golden Retrievers in China
The CDC may soon allow rescues to resume importing dogs from the 113 countries they banned last July. Regulators plan to enact safety measures while seeking a permanent solution. We expect new testing requirements before dogs can leave their home countries and big changes in procedures for receiving animals in the US (LAX is one of four airports allowed to accept these dogs). If you read that to mean more time, more effort, and increased costs, you're correct — but we're up for it — we know it will be so worth it.
For those who gave so generously to help us try to get those 12 dogs out of China last summer prior to the ban going into effect — that money remains earmarked to bring International dogs to Arizona. If any of those 12 are still waiting to be rescued, they'll be first on our list. We’ll keep you posted in future publications of Golden Tales, e-blasts, and on social media.
