The sheer number of dogs I live with keeps me pretty close to home, so I’ve gotten to know my hood extremely well. Iconsider myselfvery lucky that many of my neighbors, past and present,arepassionate dog lovers. Some are also serious animal rescuers – and the most dedicated of these is Susan Cava.
Susanfounded and runsa dog rescue outfit called Rescuzilla (it used to be called Dogzilla, but the name evolved). She’s also a professional dog walker, which is how she funds her noble mission.
Like me, sheadores pit bulls – 90 percent of Rescuzilla adoptables are pits – andhas a soft spot for the ones she calls “forgotten seniors.” Susan – a petite brunette who happens to bea knockout, as this beauty-and-the-beast photo reveals! – is rarely seen without one or more of her strong, handsome rescue charges by her side.
Our mutual friend John Bartlett is one ofher biggest fans:”I met Susan outside thecity animalshelterone wintry night as she was pulling a dog that was at risk of being euthanized. She sees the potential and innate gentleness ofall dogs, and finds them foster and ultimately forever homes. Susan does the heavy lifting, saves as many lives as she can finance, and I support her work completely!”
She’s also very savvy about partnering with like-minded people on projects that benefit dogs. And that’show Faces of Hope note cards came about.Susan recently partnered with Fancy Shmancy Notes, makers ofelegant note cards on Etsy, to create an exclusive collection of cards that spotlight the beautiful Rescuzilla dogs who got themselves a new leash on life.
There are three different cards in the 9-card set, each telling the sweetstory of a different Rescuzilla dog. My personal favorite is Stella Hope, a formerlysadblack dog whogot a much-deserved happy ending. 
As the back of her card reads, “Stella Hope was a lonely black pit bull facing terrible odds at the pound. As the days at the pound went on, she grew sad, unhealthy and defeated until she was rescued from the euthanasia list by Rescuzilla. Now, Stella is happy and healthy and living with a loving owner in New Jersey.”
“We love dogs and so do most people,” says Janet Yule of Fancy Shmancy. “Putting some great pictures of dogs who triumphed against the odds onto notecards and selling them for charity is a natural fit!”
As Susan concludes, “Proceeds from the sale of these note cards will help us care for the many wonderful dogs we’ve recently pulled from the shelter. We hope that by parterning with Fancy Shmancy we can raise some much needed funds for our dogs in foster awaiting a home.”
Won’t you please do your part to help? Go here andorder your notecards today!
