Mikki Razor
Board Member, Illinois, USA
Hi, I’m Mikki one of the new board members for D2Care. I look forward to working with everyone and helping to move this organization forward and building its membership, education, and resource programs.
I was raised in and around the Chicago area, and also lived in Ohio during my "formative" years. We moved around a lot, and ended up in Rockford, Illinois, where I graduated from high school. Through all of our moves, we did have one constant in our family and that was a dog. They were just your everyday mixed breeds, but they were great. After high school, I started working at Illinois Bell Telephone Co. and retired this past February from AT&T after 40+ years. I now have more time for my fur babies and love it.
My husband (Jim) and I married in 1980, and we got our first dog a few months later when we purchased an Afghan Hound. A year later, we got another one from the same breeder and dam and sire, so we had sisters, Chella & Ashley. They lived to be 14+ years old. During this time we got another Afghan from a shelter, and some Chihuahuas came into the house from the shelter too. I also got a Golden Retriever from Leader Dogs for the Blind in Michigan. I was a puppy raiser, and I trained Sable for the first year and then sent her back to the school for her formal training and to be matched with her new partner. After 7 months, the school called and said if you want Sable as your pet come get her, she is not going to make the cut. So, shocked, I drove back and picked up Sable and she spent a great 13 1/2 years with us as the most amazing dog. She went to the bridge June of 2008.
We changed from Afghans to Greyhounds in 1995, and have done rescue and transport for them ever since. In 1999, we purchased our first Aussie and trained her for Agility, Obedience and Rally. I love Aussies and their energy. Then one day I was checking out the internet and came across ARPH and started looking at available dogs. I noticed one female that was deaf and vision impaired. That didn’t even really register with me I just loved her picture. I checked her out almost daily for some time then finally filled out an application. I was contacted and approved and drove to Michigan to meet Roxie and her foster mom.
I brought Roxie home on January 3rd 2005, and have never regretted one minute that I adopted a deaf/VI dog. She is amazing. I train and show her in APDT rally and she has the wiggliest butt. She is also a therapy dog and we go to schools and nursing homes. I would adopt more, but I’m at my limit taking care of 10 dogs. Roxie has helped me to understand deaf dogs, so that when my golden went deaf from age and our 18 year old Chi went deaf also, I was able to work with them better. My husband tells me the best "kids" in the house are the deaf ones. With 4 Greys, 2 Aussies, 3 Chis, 3 cats and then our "deaf Chi" we have a houseful.
Katrina sent out an email that there was a deaf Chi in the Pasadena, CA animal shelter that had been there since birth and needed to be pulled and foster/forever homed. I finally raised my hand and Simon was flown into O’Hare. Well, he is not deaf, nor is he a Chi, but he is amazing. We do Agility, Obedience and Rally. I now have the time to spend with all my "fur children" and do more transport and training of my babies. I now will have the time to spend helping D2Care move forward and to grow. I look forward to working with all of you in expanding and building on the education, resources and membership of D2Care.
