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Wes and Belinda Reed, owners of Rise and Shine Retrievers, pictured with Saoirse and two of their dogs.

You might say her birthday went to the dogs.  A seven year old Londonderry girl celebrating her birthday recently made a difference for the NH Fish and Game Department’s K-9 Conservation Officer teams by choosing charity over gifts for herself.

Instead of having party guests bring the usual raft of toys and gifts, Saoirse Caldon’s parents, Jason and Siobhan, asked the birthday girl to choose from a list of worthy causes.  Saoirse asked for a hunting and fishing themed party, and chose Fish and Game’s K-9 program because she loves dogs and outdoor activities. Guests were asked to bring donations for the Wildlife Heritage Foundation of NH in lieu of gifts, and friends and family donated $353 towards the care of the K-9 unit!

Jason Caldon contacted Rise and Shine Retrievers in Loudon to do a demonstration of their dogs retrieval skills, and party guests were treated to a demonstration of retrieval skills of a Chesapeake Retriever and a Labrador Retriever, as well as the chance to play with  a 7 month old Lab puppy!

By coincidence, the owner of Rise and Shine Retrievers had just been appointed to the Board of Directors at the Wildlife Heritage Foundation of NH, the official non-profit partner of NH Fish and Game. Owner Wes Reed and his wife Belinda were happy to make a young girl’s birthday wish come true while providing needed support to the K-9  Unit and the dedicated dogs that help Fish and Game Conservation Officers find lost people, track down poachers, and find contraband.

Photos below: Officers Mark Hensel and Bob Mancini invited Saoirse and her parents to watch a training session with the dogs, and then surprised her with a cookout and birthday cake.

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