Abandoned Terrier Rescue Association

03/25/2026

Abandoned Terrier Rescue Needs You!

It takes a village — and right now, Abandoned Terrier Rescue Association (ATRA) is looking for a few more people to be part of it 🐾
Fostering is one of the most impactful ways to help a dog in transition. It gives them a soft place to land, a chance to decompress, and the love they need before finding their forever home. Your home could be the bridge that changes everything for a Wire Fox Terrier in need.
If you've ever thought about fostering — even just a little — perhaps this could be your moment. Our ATRA Team will support you every step of the way.
And..... if you've been dreaming of adding a devoted, spunky, endlessly entertaining companion to your family permanently... ATRA's adoptable wire foxes are fully vetted, medically cared for, and ready to find their people.
Wire Fox Terriers are unlike any other breed — bold, clever, and full of personality. They thrive with folks who appreciate a dog that keeps you on your toes!
📍 Adoptions are open to California residents 🏡
Fosters are needed throughout CA but especially in Northern California
To learn more or apply, contact us at atrarescue.com
or email Nancy Smith at [email protected]

03/23/2026

03/17/2026

Happy St. Patrick’s Day from all of us!

03/15/2026

Lakie Fans! We are posting for our friend, and ATRA volunteer, Esther Yu .
We have helped Lakies in the past and Esther has her own Lakie named Monty.

Meet an adorable 7 yr old, red male Lakie named Jackson who is available for adoption. He is neutered, healthy and up to date on all his shots. He is a confident, energetic Lakie who loves to go on walks, hikes, play fetch and tug with Chuckit balls and then plop next to you and snooze (he does cute little snores).

Jackson has had challenges in his life including being attacked by a coyote which has heightened some of his reactive behaviors. So Jackson needs a Lakie-experienced home who understands the unique challenges and quirks of the Lakie. They need to have the level of fitness/active lifestyle to keep up with a Lakie in his prime. Also, no children (teenagers would be ok) and no cats (Jackson has prey drive!) He would be best as an only dog as he wants his own humans to love.

Message Esther for more info. Jackson is in the San Francisco Bay Area/Northern CA.

03/14/2026

Gingerbread has a bone to pick!

Public Service Announcement!

Hi friends!

You may be noticing heartfelt postings like those in a group, Wire Fox Terrier (note: no s)You may see the very same story in the Airedale Terrier group or pretty much any dog breed group. And many photos are AI generated. If you join, comment or react to a post, they have your FB profile and the information it contains.

Please check admins of groups. Some will just say, Banglasdesh and where there are admins named, they are very recent users. Please be careful what groups you are in and your commenting, sharing and liking.

There’s also rehome/rescue/purchase scams and people stealing your photos to create reactions and inquiries to use as outlined below. No location is given for the dog. They always want a PM for information.

Here’s what I learned from Sidney Hardie of Airedale Rescue:

The primary motive for posting these identical, emotionally charged stories with varying dog breeds is engagement farming—a strategy used to manipulate social media algorithms and monetize page activity.
1. Algorithmic Manipulation
Triggering Reactions: Platforms like Facebook prioritize content that receives high levels of interaction (likes, shares, and comments). Emotional "heartbreak-to-healing" narratives are highly effective at prompting users to comment "Amen," "So beautiful," or share the post to their own feeds.

2. Monetization and Scams
Payouts for Views: Facebook’s Content Monetization program pays creators for views on their posts and stories. Viral emotional stories generate massive view counts, directly translating into revenue for the page owner.

"Like-Farming" for Resale: Pages with high engagement are valuable. Once a page has thousands of followers gained through these stories, it can be sold to third parties who then strip the content and use the established audience for advertising or political influence.
Puppy Scams: Some pages use these "hero" stories to build trust before posting fake "puppies for rehoming" ads. They often request deposits for dogs that do not exist, leveraging the goodwill built by the emotional post.

03/11/2026

Gingerbread checks in!

Hi everyone! I have some good news to share!

First, I am now at 3 negative urine cultures! So nice to be staying free of those UTIs!

Since I have such good results, I hope to get back to water therapy in the near future.

But for now, my vet offered a therapy that is used for chronic pain. Since my spine is so bad, he felt I should give it a try in addition to my medication, therapeutic bed and laser therapy.

So, a week ago I had my first ketamine therapy. It’s delivered IV so I stayed at the vet for a few hours being monitored. You’ll see my “poodle cut” in one of the pictures. I think it’s helped, I’ve been a bit more active, spunky and bossy.

So, I am going back tomorrow for a second therapy. We’ll keep you posted!

Otherwise, it’s been a bit boring here. Mom has been hurting and asked the vet to hook her up for some ketamine therapy, too. The vet said no so she called her doctor!

I’m hoping that more playing and walking will be happening soon but in the meantime, the extra belly rubs are fabulous!

03/03/2026

If you watched the Westminster Kennel Club Show last month, perhaps you caught this segment featuring Bill Berloni reminiscing about some of the dogs he trained for Broadway.

When he got to the playbill for the show, “Nick and Nora,”(that of course needed an “Asta”) he commented, “one of the toughest terriers I ever worked with!”

Well, that challenging terrier was Riley,
an Abandoned Terrier Rescue alum from ‘way back in 1991.

(Yes! We have been rescuing terriers for over 35 years!)

Riley’s story is featured in Bill’s book, “Broadway Tails,” Chapter 10, appropriately entitled “Outfoxed.”

Bill drove up to the Ranch and saw “terriers everywhere!” While meeting some of the dogs, one snuck through Ruth’s legs, jumped up on the couch and sniffed Bill’s hair.

That was Riley. Riley was a stray found wandering in the streets of Los Angeles and never claimed at animal control.
Ruth warned Bill that Riley continually outfoxed her-he escaped most barriers and pretty much did whatever he wanted.

Riley jumped down, looked at Bill, wagged his tail and Bill was charmed. Though Riley was “pushy,” Bill thought “he had that certain something.”

And so, Riley then began educating Bill on Wire Fox terriers. He eventually learned that Riley was one of the most attentive and smartest dogs he had ever trained. But the road there and in the performances had quite a few detours and bumps!

In one scene entitled, “Walking the Dog,” actress Joanna Gleason had to wear a fox stole. Not only was it against her will, it was a very unwise decision with a Wire Fox in the same scene! Riley saw those beady fox eyes staring at him and he leaped up to kill it! Actors and audience alike cracked up.

Riley stole the show on other occasions but nevertheless, “Nick and Nora” was a flop, closing in a week.

Riley, though, received rave reviews-
as Wires do when they are understood and appreciated!

https://fb.watch/FCZcDxBkfT/?mibextid=wwXIfr&fs=e

02/14/2026

Happy Valentine’s Day from Abandoned Terrier Rescue!

May only sweet things (and terriers) come your way today!

02/14/2026

Update from Gingerbread!

Well, we have some good news!
I have had 2 negative cultures and have now gone over 2 months without a UTI!
Don’t want to jinx it but…..It’s a record!

In the meantime, I have mostly been celebrating by lounging around on my new therapeutic bed.

Also we did have a visitor from NY. I completely charmed her and demanded lots of cuddles. She goes home tomorrow and I will be very sad….as it is, if she goes outside without taking me, I cry at the door until she comes back!

I’m gonna need some help, mom!

(We both will, Gingerbread!)

02/05/2026

Two very important members of the Abandoned Terrier Rescue team have been benched!

But we’re happy to report that they are recovering well.

Tom Millington, Ruth’s husband and co-founder of the Rescue, needed to have triple bypass surgery.

And our tireless, dedicated volunteer, Nancy Smith, went through a shoulder replacement today.

They are both terrier tough people so we’re hoping they will be back in action very soon!

Please join us in wishing these two devoted terrier lovers a very speedy and successful recovery!

01/30/2026

Gingerbread’s rehab bed arrived yesterday! She loves it! Let’s hope it helps her.

We start with 30 minutes with 5 second pulses for 5 days. And she stayed for all 30 minutes plus!

If the past two days are any indication, it does make her quite happy and helps her move better. It is PEMF therapy. (pulsing electromagnetic fields).

In the meantime, clever Gingerbread found a new use for the ramp. She had a very relaxing sun bath today!

She wishes all her friends and supporters a happy weekend. And a thank you again for donations. They helped us buy her therapy bed.

01/26/2026

Though we are known primarily for rescuing and placing Wire Fox Terriers
(and occasionally others like Lakelands), Abandoned Terrier Rescue has also provided sanctuary for barnyard animals. In the past, we have had pigs, goats, sheep, horses and even a steer.

More recently we’ve limited barnyard rescue to horses and sadly, in a short period of time, we lost 2 of the current three at the ATRA ranch. Guiness was too young at about 11 (colic) and Dakota was a ripe old age at 27 (infection)

Guiness was unwanted and neglected at a nearby property and Dakota was adopted from a horse rescue in nearby Ojai.

Gentle and kind, they were able to live their lives free to roam and play, receive vet care and shoeing and, in addition to grazing, chow down on quality hay and food.

Their soft muzzles, nuzzles of gratitude and quiet nickers of greeting will be missed.

Farewell to our equine friends, Guiness and Dakota. Left behind and who whinnied for them is Ebony, an unwanted mare. We are searching for company for her.

Ruth and the vets did all they could to save them both. On the night of January 19, Ruth stayed with Dakota after the vet left until about 9:30 PM.
He passed sometime before feeding time at 7 the next morning.

“Horses make a landscape look more beautiful.”
-Alice Walker