Merlin's Kids, saving 2 lives at once

Hello, internet! Happy Holidays!

In May, I graduated North Carolina State University and chose to take a gap year to further my life experience before entering a committed relationship with veterinary school. (Which I have recently been accepted into. Thank you to all my family, friends, and mentors who have supported me through my pre-veterinary career!) I wanted to do something BIG with my gap year. Make a difference. Live my year and life by the theme song "I Was Here" by Lady Antebellum. For those unfamiliar with it, here is the song/video:

I have been so blessed to be given the most amazing gift- the opportunity to rescue dogs and train them to become service dogs for special needs children and disabled war veterans. I intern for Merlin's Kids, a non-profit organization who provides free service dogs to those in need. I facilitate periodic training classes for therapy and service dogs. I care for several dogs and livestock who will be used for therapy and service. I have met some of the most amazing volunteers and children in the short two months I have been serving this organization.

Let me tell you a little bit about Shawn. Shawn is six-years-old and has autism. He loves helping me feed the livestock. In fact, he's much better at throwing the hay over the fence than I am. I seem to get hay everywhere, down my shirt, in my hair, up my nose. He seems to get it perfectly every time. He is also great at math and makes it difficult for this college graduate to keep up with him. The other day, we were eating Cheese-itz. Not only did he improve his counting skills, but also learned how to share, as he generously gave me some of the Cheese-itz. Next time he comes on the farm, I will make sure to have Cheese-itz with me.

Shawn feeding the alpaca.

Let me tell you about Leo. Leo is seven-years-old and has cerebral palsy. Most of his life, he is confined to his wheelchair. A couple weeks ago, we worked with Leo to see if we could find the right service dog for him. Leo has such a gentle spirit and kind soul. He was more concerned with making sure his wheelchair did not accidentally bump Chaca than worrying about his own needs. What a good kid!

Chaca is checking in. She instinctually wrapped around Leo every time that he stopped in order to make sure he was safe. Chaca has not yet been trained to do this, but she has been remarkably quick with figuring out Leo's needs.

The real miracle was at the end of Leo's evaluation. Thanks to Chaca, Leo was able to brace himself and mom was able to let go, knowing that Chaca was there for her baby boy. She arched her back, again, something she was not yet trained to do, and instinctually supported his weight. 

For kids like Leo and Shawn, and for dogs like Chaca, this is why I do what I do. For more information on how to help us help animals help children, please visit www.merlinskids.org. If you would like to make a donation or make a difference, please email me or Janice Wolfe. All donations are 100% tax deductible. What better way to show your holiday spirit than by making a donation in honor of a loved one or in sponsorship of a child. 

The Miracle Wedding

Although not animal related, I think it's appropriate that I blog about this.

Stacy Lawrence, a close family friend and CEO of Make An Impression, invited me to serve as her assistant for the Rothberg and Kaplan wedding. I was only given about 48 hours notice, but I had the Why Not? attitude. Why not help a friend? Why not attend a wedding that was planned in 14 days? Why not meet a bride who has survived Stage IV cancer, has started her own charity, ComedyCures, and has moved across the US from California? Why not be able to network with people from Israel, California, Philidelphia, and locally?  Why not be part of an Orthodox Jewish wedding?

The Hora!

This is a segment of the Hora, a traditional Jewish dance in celebrating a special event. 

Jews know how to party and this could have gone on all night. What a blast!

The Bride and Groom next to their groom's cake. Made by Grandma's Kitchen!

So back to this 14 days business. In Orthodox tradition, a man and woman should not live together until they are married. Phil (the groom) moved to the east coast for work, and Saranne (the bride) moved to be here with him. They agreed that the best place to raise Phil's kids would be here. School was starting soon. It was important to have the wedding during this month not only to ease the kids' transitions, but also because this was a very spiritual month for Phil, as it is the Jewish new year. So, they wanted to make this happen.

The handsome, lucky groom, Phil Kaplan!

The lovely bride, Saranne Rothberg (now Saranne Kaplan!) and her Daughter, Lorielle, holding the dress.

They sent out "save the date" E-vites to family and friends at midnight a few weeks ago, and received 100 "yes" RSVPs by 6am the following day! Saranne's 19-year-old daughter, Lorielle (who has an incredible singing career ahead of her) has been instrumental in the creativity and planning the entire event. They literally did not sleep for 14 days straight to make everything happen.

So back to this cancer and chairty thing. When diagnosed, Saranne used laughter as medicine to heal her through her difficult time. She was then inspired to create her charity, ComedyCures, to share laughter to cancer patients across the nation. WOW! When I heard that this was the person I would be working for, it reminded me of the Relay For Life conference I had back in July, where Sarah Thomas from Ireland pulled together a Relay For Life in less than 12 weeks.
















As a result of her community involvement, infectious personality, and love of life and everyone in her life, Saranne created a web of friends, colleagues, family, and shul members who all dove in to help her and Phil's special day. Although meeting everyone for the first time, the warmth, love, and support they clearly had for Saranne and Phil radiated beyond the tight-knit community, and was trickled to the workers- the catering staff, security, the DJ, Klesmer band (who flew in from California just for the wedding!) planners/coordinators, and everyone else involved.

It gets even better. Saranne is meticulous and thinks about everything- even all types of weather.

Placecards were fans since the ceremony was 
in their backyard and it was warm out.

The giveaways were umbrellas, which had a logo (designed by Lorielle) with the word "witness" on it. Everyone who came was a witness that it was possible. I was a witness that it was possible.

And, the umbrellas came in handy when it began to rain.

Woah, Way Behind. I guess it's Catch Up Time

Hello, internet!

I realize I've been way behind on blogs, like 3 months behind. It must have just been an overwhelming semester.

The intern program was a semi-success. The interns were really great at being there when I needed them, and were able to help me in my travels. They learned quickly and I hope they achieved their goals.
(I wish I could have educated them more, but they became so independent that they needed me less and less.)

Although I didn't foster any piglets, here's a super cute picture of one of my interns with a baby pig. Enjoy!

Anyway, I began rehabbing with the NCSU College of Veterinary Medicine Turtle Rescue Team. After Kroger, I worked with BB, a blind Eastern Painted Turtle. I was able to increase her weight over 30%, which was much needed! She found a loving home and will serve as an educational animal.

BB, Eastern Painted Turtle

My neighbors stumbled upon a Red Eared Slider, who my creative intern named Dee Dee. They found her in a sealed sterlite container with inedible food in the middle of the woods. She must have been a pet and was probably left there to die. The kids rung my doorbell late in the evening and said "We found this and figured you'd know what to do." Of course, being the gentle soul that I am, I took her in without hesitation. We then found her a loving home a few weeks later.

Dee Dee, Red Eared Slider

For awhile I was fostering snakes too. We had some of the amino acids as well as others. Unfortunately I had to move out of the town home, so they went back to the Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas and are on their way to find forever homes.

I currently reside with my parents, Lester, Locke, and Atticus (our Doberman, failed foster) with occasional visits from my sister's cat, Doc. For now, I will focus on the welfare and enrichment for my pets, but who knows where fate will bring me.

First Day of Interns

My interns had their first official day on Sunday, Feb 12, 2012 and they are so helpful! They make a dynamic team together and I am so grateful to have them on MY team. They are extremely efficient and really easy to get along with, making my job rather simple.

One of my interns has taken on the internship to conquer her fear of snakes. Although she is not ready to handle an 11-foot burmese python just yet, she has shown tremendous growth, comfort, and maturity in a very short time.

 (Having a mini heart attack) 

(Much more confident with Glutamate)

The other intern's goal is to have expertise in herptile handling and husbandry. Hopefully I will help her attain her goal while educating both her and myself throughout the process.

One of my favorite parts of having these interns is the energy and enthusiasm they are bringing to a cause that I am so passionate about. I love sharing my passion with others, hence why I developed Jodie'sArk. I hope you enjoyed this post. 

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Amino Acid Snakes

Hello, Internet!

I cannot believe it's been over a month since I last updated you on Jodie's Ark. I will try to work on more frequent posts.

Anyway, a lot has happened these past few months.

After being appointed to the Board of Directors for the Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas, I felt that it was time for me to take a little bit more initiative with the organization, so I offered to foster a few more snakes.

Some stupid pre-teen decided to steal his mother's credit card and bought 30 expensive snakes and kept them outside in small containers. Mom was naturally against this, so the Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas swooped in and saved the day!

This was my chance to help make a difference. So, in addition to Victor and Queenie, I took on 16 more. This was a dilemma. How could I come up with 16 unique names to help differentiate my snakes? As a biochemistry teaching assistant, I naturally thought of the twenty amino acids. Some of these snakes became Glycine, Valine, Leucine, Isoleucine, Proline, Phenylalanine, Tryrosine, Tryptophan, Serine, Theronine, Aspartate, Cysteine, Methionine, and Glutamate. Oh, and Quazimoto.

Rather than me attempting to post over 60 pictures, check out my Facebook Album! If you see any that you like, please contact Brandon Terry or Matt Stoddard with the Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas.

Another really exciting update!

Sometimes the idea of having so many snakes can be overwhelming. I realized that as an individual, I can only do so much good for these snakes. Getting a team of volunteers and interns can enhance their quality of life so much more! Therefore, in addition to all that my friends do to support the rescue, I will have my own set of interns! I hand selected two very bright and ambitious pre-vet sophomores. My goal for the internship is to treat them with the same respect, kindness, and patience that I have with my snakes.

The interns start tomorrow! I cannot wait!

Quick Update!

Victor decided to use my blinds and alarm clock as a perch!

Victor, Queenie, and BB are being exceptionally cute lately. In such a short amount of time, they have become more friendly and social than when I first acquired them.

Queenie fell asleep in my pocket

Consider welcoming a snake into your home as a companion. They make great pets! For more info, check out Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas.

Email Matt Stoddard, mgstoddard@reptilerescuecarolinas.org if you would like to adopt Victor. Queenie is not up for adoption yet.

First Board of Directors, Victor, Queenie, BB

 Hello, animal lovers!

On Wednesday, January 4, 2012 I went over to the reptile rescue house for what I thought was just an innocent meeting. They invited me to come speak about budgets and non-profits. After 2 hours of a meeting (only 15 minutes of which were actually productive), I walked out with a position on the board and 2 more snakes.

I am so honored that the Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas has appointment me to serve on their Board of Directors as their non-profit expert/secretary. This is the first Board of Directors I have ever served on. (However I do serve on the Eastern Division Relay For Life Advisory Team and want to give them a shout out!) I hope to make the organization even better, and who knows where this will take me after college. Anyway, since my readers are animal lovers, I will focus on the foster snakes rather than myself.

 

Victor is an adult greenish rat snake (black and yellow hybrid) who is getting better with socializing day by day. He likes to musk when he gets frustrated so handling him with a paper towel never hurts.  Here is his bio.  Contact me if you’d like more information. If interested in adopting him, contact Matt Stoddard with the Reptile Rescue of the Carolinas.

Queenie is a corn snake not ready for adoption yet because the rescue suspects that she is due to lay eggs soon. I will keep you updated on Queenie’s progress.

 

I am also rehabilitating BB, an eastern painted turtle. She is blind but going to become an educational animal once I can put a little more weight on her. Luckily I’m a crazy Jewish mother and will strongly encourage her to eat!

To all those NCSU students, good luck on your first day of classes tomorrow. For all the non-students, appreciate the fact that you do not have classes tomorrow, but never stop learning!

Catching Up

Hello, internet! I apologize for not keeping you updated about the animals. Last time I posted was mid October so I apologize in advance that this might be a lengthy catch-up entry.

Lucky's and Rosie’s foster families fell in love with them so they will continue to live with their “permanent fosters.” Luckily, they only live a few doors away so they can visit each other often. Same with Huck Finn, he loves his foster mom, Ella! (Rosie is officially adopted with paperwork but if you have fallen in love with Lucky or Huck Finn, please let me know!)

Although I will miss her dearly, Big Berta found a loving home. In my time with her, we meditated together, scared masculine adult college students, and she became a celebrity!

A brief sidenote: if you saw the NCSU GLBTCA (Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Community Alliance) Cabaret on November 11, 2011, Chris Jackson performed Slave For You by Brittany Spears. Yes, Bertha was THAT SNAKE! She was adopted shortly after her debut. (Don’t worry, expert snake handlers were on scene in case the crowd got too rowdy, but everything worked out beautifully)

Yes, Bertha stole Chris's shades right out of his pocket.

While Bertha was still here, I housed a few more critters. For a week I housed 4 crested Geckos for a friend - Oswald, Mojo, Penny, and Spiro. Mojo and Penny got adopted together, Oswald is not adoptable yet, and Spiro continues to live with his loving owner, Brittany. 

On top is Spiro, in my had is Mojo, my right shoulder is Penny and left shoulder is Oswald. 

During this hectic time, I puppysat Beta, a 3 month old beagle mix. Beta came to my friend Ashley from Craigslist, full of 3 different types of worms, lethargic, emaciated, and full of mange. With some TLC and dewormer, her and Ashley are having a beautiful life together.

If Bertha, Beta, the geckos, Lester and Locke (my pet dog and bearded dragon) were not enough, amongst the chaos was Kroger, a 2-foot alligator snapping turtle that l had been rehabilitating for the month of November. He had been hit by a car and had a broken jaw, so he was fed through a feeding tube. (The Turtle Rescue Team at the NCSU College of Veterinary Medicine is truly remarkable for all that they do, and if you would like more information, or to donate, click here! )

Feeding Kroger

At this point you may be wondering, Jodie, where the #$%! Would you be able to house a 2-foot snapping turtle in your tiny townhome? That is an excellent question.
What appears to be an ordinary bathtub is in fact, an ordinary bathtub.  My bathtub.

Right before I left for winter break, I returned Kroger to the vet school. He is now in another rehab home and doing extremely well!

And with that, ladies and gentlemen, I thank you for keeping up with Jodie’s Ark. Please post comments, questions, or if you have expertise in any of these species, provide advice!