ML - Vegas Magazine

2013 - Issue 6 - October

Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.

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SPIRIT OF GENEROSITY Michelle and Collin Jotz have big hearts when it comes to large dogs (FROM LEFT: Goliath, Odysseus, and Elektra). Size Does Matter COLOSSAL CANINE CARE'S MICHELLE AND COLLIN JOTZ ARE RAISING MONEY FOR VEGAS'S FIRST RESCUE FACILITY FOR THE "UNADOPTABLE" DOGS THEY WORK SO HARD TO SAVE. B ernie, 5, and Sandy, 7, were living on borrowed time. They were homeless, hiding out on the streets together, and about to die. "Bernie was the most emaciated mastiff I've ever seen," says Michelle Jotz. "You could count every rib because there was no meat around them; all you saw was bones. Sandy was covered in ticks and had the worst case of dental disease we had ever seen." "We" is Michelle and her husband, Collin, county workers on a mission to save the abandoned big dogs of Las Vegas through their group, Colossal Canine Care. The brainchild of former Vegas vet Dr. Caroline O'Sullivan, the organization is about to hold its fourth annual Oktober-Fur fundraiser, scheduled for Sunday, October 27, 10 AM to 4 PM, at Bruce Trent Park. The goal: to raise enough money to start building the first rescue facility in town specifically for dogs, typically larger breeds and with health issues, usually the last to be adopted and the first to be euthanized. For now, the Jotzes foster the animals in their home, with fellow big-dog lovers handling the overflow. 60 Why is it so crucial to have a group devoted to saving big dogs? Michelle Jotz: Most big dogs, if taken to a shelter, see a much higher kill rate than smaller dogs. We pick the dogs that really are on their last chance and we give them a new life. Collin Jotz: We save them, hydrate them, and get them eating again. We try to clear up their medical issues, and then we go out there and find them forever families. What was one of your most heart-wrenching experiences? MJ: There was an English mastiff named Max who was found on the streets of Vegas. He was being used as bait in a local dog-fighting ring. When we met him, he was covered in deep scars and fresh, bloody bite marks. Now Max is healed, with a new family, and is the sweetest, most loving thing ever. But Max has moved on. He takes in all other dogs like they're his family. He acts like a proud papa. continued on page 62 PHOTOGRAPHY BY BEVERLY POPPE BY CINDY PEARLMAN VEGASMAGAZINE.COM 060-062_V_SP_SoFG_Oct13.indd 60 9/17/13 5:12 PM

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