Not only does Who Chains You Books sell our Happy Dog! Coloring Books online and in bulk through our website, we also license the coloring book to nonprofit anti-chaining groups to help them raise awareness for suffering dogs in their communities.
It’s a win/win. Often, small local groups don’t have the volunteer support or funding to commission an illustrator for their own book; licensing ours at a fraction of the cost enables them to quickly and easily get their own product. PLUS, we get the unique pleasure of knowing our books are making an even bigger difference to chain-ge minds and lives in communities across America.
When we license Happy Dog!: From Chained To Cherished, (by Tamira Thayne and illustrated by April Pedersen), we change the background cover color and personalize the cover and interior information for each group, so it truly becomes their own product. We then provide the directors with .pdf files to take to a local printer, and provide support as needed. The license is valid for ten years, too.
How 4 Love of Animals is Using their Happy Dog! Coloring Book to Make a Difference
4 Love of Animals is our most-recent licensee, and is located in Waynesville, Haywood County, North Carolina. The group works to promote respect and compassion for all creatures through humane education, legislation, and action.
Denise Brooker, director of the organization, tells us: “We are dedicated to improving the lives of animals in Haywood County, North Carolina. Our main goal is to get an anti-chaining ordinance in all of Haywood County.”
How is the Group Featuring their Coloring Book?
“We had two of our biggest fundraising events this month—very large downtown Waynesville art shows. We decided to hold an adoption event along with our new coloring books. We ‘rescued’ stuffed dogs from our local thrift stores and displayed them at our booth. For a small donation, the children (and adults) received their rescue dog of choice, a certificate of adoption, and a ‘Happy Dog’ coloring book. We sold out of all of our books!”
The group plans to continue their educational ‘adoptions’ using these coloring books throughout the year. They are also planning to approach their Board of Education and hope to get their coloring books into the classrooms.
To read more about them, or donate for their work, visit www.4loveofanimals.net.
We asked 4 Love of Animals about the process of getting their version ready to go. Was it hard?
“The licensing process for ‘Happy Dog: from Chained to Cherished’ was so easy,” said Denise. “We took weeks trying to figure out how we wanted to personalize our version. Once we submitted our information, it took Who Chains You barely a day or two to finalize it. We are so impressed with the final product! The book was a huge success at recent events; in fact, we’re sold out and are ordering more this week!”
Our Final Question: Does the Group Rescue Chained Dogs? If so, What is their Favorite Story with Photos?
“4 Love of Animals works with our local Haywood County Animal Services to save dogs from horrible lives on chains. We get requests by concerned citizens about chained dogs in their neighborhoods and we check out the situation. If we decide the dog is in immediate danger, we contact an animal control officer or a sheriff deputy immediately. If there are violations and no immediate health risk, we request animal services to perform a wellness check and provide us with a copy of report. We continue to follow up as needed.
“We had one dog we’ll always remember, Damon. Damon was chained to a large tree in the owner’s front yard. Neighbors reported to us that the owners had not been home for at least a week and they were very concerned. Damon’s house was upside down and he seemed to be tangled up on a short chain. 4 Love of Animals went to the property and witnessed the same conditions.
“We called our Animal Services and asked for an officer to come to address the situation. It was after hours and they would not come. We then called the Sheriff’s office, explaining that we were not leaving until an officer arrived. Long story short, we had several weeks of this same situation occurring over and over. There was no caretaker around for days at a time, and Damon would just sit on a log overlooking the creek that was his only water source. Finally, after much turmoil, the officer insisted that the owner surrender Damon to the shelter. Damon was adopted, and we’re hopeful he now has a much better and happier life.”
To read more about them, or donate for their work, visit www.4loveofanimals.net.
To order Happy Dog! Coloring Book for yourself, in bulk, or license it for your group, visit our page at http://whochainsyou.com/happydog.html.
FreedomChaser Books 
Reblogged this on Tamira Thayne's "Untethered" and commented:
Love this! How one group is using the coloring books I wrote (and April Pedersen illustrated) in their work for chained dogs. Even when you’re no longer on the front lines, you can still find ways to make a difference!
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This is a wonderful way to educate children. Well done. Thank you for your efforts on bringing this to the attention of the public. Let’s hope chaining a dog becomes history and a dog can be a dog, not an object.
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Amen, Cynthia, we couldn’t say it better ourselves!
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We are working hard to bring awareness to the public about the heartbreaking practice of tethering dogs 24/7. Your coloring book is a very effective way to reach the next generation and make tethering dogs a thing of the past.
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Thank you, Marilyn, these Forgotten Dogs appreciate you!
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