LP doberman rescue expands coverage area

Aug. 06--LAKE PLACID -- It started out with a few picked up here and there around Highlands County, finding homes for the unwanted, unhealthy or those just needing new places to live and a bit of loving.

But over the past nine years in Highlands County Gary Veldhuis has spent fostering and adopting out Doberman Pinschers, his care for canines has increased and spread from out of the county borders.

Since 1992, when he lived in Lake Worth, Veldhuis has spent his spare hours caring for Dobermans, a medium-large breed of domestic dog originally developed around 1890 by Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann. Through his non-profit agency founded in 2005, Dobermann Rescue of Lake Placid, Inc., he has made it his mission to take care of and foster out any of the dogs that need attention and care.

From his Lake Placid home off Hillside Drive, Velhuis, along with his friend Marsha Coe, house, feed, bath and play with Dobermans of all ages, colors and sizes.

So far in 2015, Veldhuis, a retired plumber, said he has adopted out about 40 dogs and is on track to beat the 70 he found homes for in 2014. In 2013, he was able to get 82 dogs into caring homes that had to leave their original owners.

"A lot of times it's insurance. Homeowners' insurance doesn't cover Dobermans, some will, some won't," said Velduis, 74, who moved to Lake Placid from Lake Worth in 1989. "They're sometimes regarded as a dangerous breed, but they're not high-bite dogs. They're good, family pets."

Wednesday from Coe's home patio, 171 Hillside Dr., Veldhuis spoke at a table, surrounded by his personal dog, Ozwald, and four other Dobermans he called "Velcro dogs" -- always close by and sticking around. There, he said over the past six years, he has been spending more time on the road, bringing dogs in from cities such as Orlando, Miami, Brooksville, Sarasota, Tampa, the Carolinas and Georgia.

Today, Veldhuis said he's driving to Miami to pick up "Sparkle" and take her in.

"I'm working with a lot more dogs. I just got the seventh oil change on my van since February," said Veldhuis, a native of Grand Rapids, Mich.

As his range of rescue continues to widen, Veldhuis said he's more in need of financial donations to supplement his operating budget that comes from the $250 to $450 in adoption fees he collects. Much of the budget goes for food, vaccinations and spay and neutering for the dogs, usually done at the Heartland Animal Hospital, Lake Placid.

There, Megan Redding, a veterinary technician for 14 years, said she or Dr. Kortney Reddick tend to dogs from Dobermann Rescue. Redding, who has worked in Lake Placid for about a year, said Veldhuis brings in rescue pets once or twice a week and receives a discounted "rescue price" for their services. She said Reddick also works with Veldhuis to make treatments affordable, especially as his travels have recently increased.

"He gets the dogs from all over. If she (Reddick) sees something a dog really needs, she sometimes gives him a discount," she said. "It's his life. We see him in here more than anyone; it's his life and he's compassionate and concerned for the dogs."

That concern was evident for Dallas and Maurine Platt of DeSoto City. They adopted "Zena" -- an almost 3-year-old doberman -- from Veldhuis. The owners of 98 Produce on U.S. 98 said they were impressed with Veldhuis' concern for all of the dogs he takes in and were glad to see him expand his operations outside the county.

"It's great what he does. His dogs are wonderful and he's a wonderful, caring person. He's very good with those dogs," said Maurine, as Dallas sat with Zena on a golf cart by the produce stand.

Veldhuis said his love for dobermans began in 1972 with a Pincher named "Thunder." He said that led to a lifelong love of the breed and desire to be a guardian for them locally and wherever his calling takes him.

"I'll keep doing this until I take my last breath. I know when I pick up a doberman, that's all skinny, beaten down and see it go to a nice family, it's very satisfying," he said.

For information on Dobermann Rescue of Lake Placid, see www.dobermannrescue.org or call (863) 446-0429.

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