Tonopah Tails

  Tonopah Tails helps save kittens
  Daniel Burnette - staff writer

Cher Johnson has a warm and fuzzy story for you. In fact, she has 23 of them.

Johnson operates Tonopah Tails, an animal rescue service. Through a contact in the pet industry, Johnson about three weeks ago learned that more than a dozen kittens had been abandoned at a residence in Mesa. They were found by the leasing agent who handled the property.

The agent contacted Cuddle Cuts, a mobile dog grooming service based in Phoenix about the plight of the animals. From there, Sandra Holloman of Cuddle Cuts contacted Johnson.

Holloman, working with family members armed with large fishing nets, set about capturing the kittens. In all, they rounded up 23.

"We didn't know what it was going to be like, whether the cats had gone wild," Holloman said.

Meanwhile, Goodyear Animal Hospital was contacted to spay and neuter the kittens.

"It just made sense that the cats would be easier to get adopted if they were fixed," Holloman said.

Cuddle Cuts transported the cats to Goodyear Animal Hospital.

The kittens all were less than a year old but were old enough to be spayed and neutered, said veterinarian Amy Schomburg of Goodyear Animal Hospital. Many of the kittens had problems with ear mites but otherwise were in relatively good health, considering how they were found, the vet said.

"We spent pretty much two days taking turns spaying and neutering the cats," Schomburg said of the five veterinarians, including herself, who pitched in to spay and neuter the felines without charge.

As of March 6, all of the cats had been adopted, including one that was carrying kittens, Holloman said. That litter was adopted by the real estate agent who found the abandoned cats.

"The people at Cuddle Cuts and Goodyear Animal Hospital really put a lot into this," Johnson said. "I can't say enough about their time and generosity."

Both Holloman and Schomburg, though, credit Johnson with doing the bulk of the work in getting the kittens adopted, what Holloman called "the hard part."

Holloman and Johnson have been trying to find out if the person who had abandoned the kittens is going to face any kind of charges for neglecting the animals.

"It just doesn't compute in my brain how someone could do that," Johnson said.

Daniel Burnette can be reached by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Slim Shady is a mixed breed that was found by Cher in the desert over two years ago where he was abandoned by his previous owner. Cher lives so far out in the desert that there is no electricity available for her, so she uses a generator. She doesn’t have to live like this, but does so for the soul-purpose of finding animals that are discarded. She works 12 hours a day at Palo Verde Nuclear Plant then roams the desert after work and on weekends looking for animals.

At home, Cher keeps some of the Pit Bulls in a large pen separate from the other animals. Some live inside with her, others are sheltered outside. The ones that live inside can come and go as they please through a doggie-door. She has cats and dogs and even a cow that she found roaming out there one day. She will never turn an animal down no matter the size or the species. She now has over 40 animals to care for. Often, she is not able to find an abandoned animal in time before the coyotes do, but Slim Shady is one such dog that was rescued by her. Of course, Cher had no idea what kind of personality Slim Shady had but would soon find out when she brought him back home. At first, whenever Cher would bend over, Slim Shady would sneak up behind her, nip her on the rear, then run and hide in the corner. Cher has learned that whenever she needs to bend over, she looks for Slim Shady first. He does the same thing to the cats. He sneaks up behind them, bites them then takes off.

One day, Slim Shady decided to go outside and antagonize the Pit Bulls. One of them was so fed up with Slim Shady that he dug his way out from under his pen. Suddenly, Cher heard Slim Shady let out a scream. She ran to the front door and as soon as she opened it, Slim Shady flew into her arms with the Pit Bull close behind him. She lifted Slim Shady up in the air to keep the dog from grabbing him. She got Slim into the house and went back out and secured the Pit Bull again. When she came in, he was in his corner giving her that ‘look’ that he gives when he has done something wrong.

One evening while Cher was sleeping, Slim Shady killed a rat outside and brought it back into the house. He crawled under the covers of Cher’s bed and neatly tucked the dead thing into her pajama bottoms. When she opened her eyes that morning, she noticed Slim Shady hiding in his corner and knew he had done something he shouldn’t have. Cher sat up, felt something in her pants and screamed when she pulled out a dead rat.

Once in a while Cher is able to collect food donated to her from Wal-Mart and other stores, but all her paycheck goes to feeding these animals and toward Vet bills when she can afford it. Cher has asked the government for a grant which she is eligible for but that will take months of red-tape until any help finally comes in.

I wrote to a Christian newsletter requesting prayer for Cher that she might find more substantial help. So often she is in tears because her pay is just not enough to feed and care for them all. She does try to find them homes when she feels the home is suitable for that particular animal but more often than not, she can’t get them adopted out into good homes fast enough before others are found and brought home with her. There is one lady that volunteers to care for all the animals while she is at work making sure they have food and water and their pens are kept clean.

If someone knows about an agency that would help her or even an agency that would allow Cher some free Vet and medical help, it would be so appreciated. Please offer up prayers for Cher that God would grant her a miracle and enable her to keep these animals cared for. Including all the new ones she will continue to find in the future. (And maybe even a prayer that Slim Shady will behave himself!)

© Copyright Cheryl Taul 2008

My name is Cher Johnson.  I am the founder of Tonopah Tails, Inc. – an animal rescue approximately 35 miles west of Phoenix.  I would like to tell you about a very special day in my life – the day I met Memphis!

I received a call from a lady in the Arlington area who said she found a black lab who was limping badly.  She took the dog home and assumed the leg was broken.  She wrapped bandages on the dog’s leg and kept her for a week.  She saw that the dog did not put much weight on the bad foot but she also never whimpered in pain.  All she ever did was wag her tail and want to be the same room with everyone.  Finally, the lady called to say that she could not afford a vet and she felt the dog needed professional attention. 

Judy Zimmerschied and I picked up the dog at the parking lot of the Wal-Mart in Buckeye. She was beautiful!  I love all animals but there is something about a Lab that gets to me. I immediately named her Memphis and we took her to my vet – Goodyear Animal Hospital.  We asked to have her leg set and we would pick her up later.  That afternoon, Dr. Schomburg called to say Memphis’ leg was not broken.  She had been shot and the bullet had shattered all the bones her paw area and forearm.  She would require amputation.  I think I cried for the rest of the day.  The thought of someone doing harm to such a beautiful animal was unthinkable.  I was sad and mad all at the same time!

We authorized the amputation and visited her every day at the hospital as she was recovering.  One thing remained steadfast – Memphis never whimpered that she was in pain and she continually wanted to be with people and have loads of attention.  She certainly got the attention she craved at the hospital.  Everyone loved her and her gentle disposition.

After a couple of weeks, we brought Memphis to Tonopah Tails.  She lived in the house and got along well with my own Labrador.  Memphis would run and play in the desert as if she had all four legs.  But she never let us out of her sight.  She loved all the petting and cooing and singing (yes, singing!) that we did for her.  She was and still is so very special.

After a couple of months Lana and Marv wanted to adopt my precious Memphis.  I almost did not let her go.  I cried so hard the day they took her home.  I missed her immensely!  A part of my heart was gone.  But they assured me they would love and care for her.  They were right!  They love her so much and I know it was the best decision to have Memphis with them.  I thank God every night for these two special angels who are watching over my beloved Memphis her on earth!  Thank you Lana!  Thank you Marv!

I love you guys!

Mike Burkett
staff writer

Within two weeks of moving from Oklahoma to Tonopah, David and Keila Clements’ travel-trailer home was burglarized twice and their 6-month-old Chihuahua was snatched from their yard by an as-yet-unidentified ATV driver, chained to the back of the vehicle, and dragged across two miles of desert. And yet, the Clementses — both of whom have yet to land local jobs — could not be happier to call Tonopah their new home.

“We love it out here,” she said four days after the puppy, named Carnita, lost about 45 percent of its flesh in the desert-dragging incident. “This is where we want to live — all because of the people we’ve met since Carnita was hurt. We just can’t believe the kindness and the generosity of all our neighbors.”

One of those neighbors is Sher Johnson, who operates the nearby animal-rescue organization Tonopah Tails out of her home.

Johnson dropped by the Clements’ house the evening of March 31 to hand them a check (the Clementses cannot afford to pay Carnita’s medical expenses) and to get a close-up look at the injured puppy — which is expected to survive, even after losing much of the skin on its feet, belly and head.

“She is just such a darling puppy,” Johnson said, near tears, after the visit. “She gave me little doggie kisses and fell asleep in my arms. She is precious. I guess she used to be very hyper and loved to run around. But she can’t do that now and probably will never do it again. It was heartbreaking.

“We need to get people outraged about this, because there’s a lot of freakin’ knuckleheads out here. It’s getting scary. Everybody’s mad; everybody wants to drag the person who did this across the desert with a quad. Everybody’s feeling that way.”

Everybody, it seems, also is feeling compassionate. The 3-foot by 6-foot chain-link dog run, donated to the Clementses by Tonopah resident Cathy Dicus, was slated for installation over the weekend. Another local, Mona Cauley, contributed antibiotic spray, anti-itch spray and a stuffed-dog companion for Carnita.

Two brothers who live down the street from the Clementses have opened a bank account for the couple in hopes folks will contribute enough to pay for the puppy’s existing and future medical expenses. The account is at the Stockman’s Bank at 219 N. Fourth St. in Buckeye and the account number is 7140029724.

Desert dogs
Spearheading these and other efforts to help Carnita is Patrick Gierhahn, the first of the Clements’ neighbors to see the dog after the dragging incident.

Gierhahn’s wife, Kim Deflaminis, is a nurse and wound specialist who works for Maryvale Hospital. Together, they run Desert Dog Rescue Inc, a home-based operation for which she serves as president. The couple takes in strays, sees that they’re neutered and puts them up for adoption.

At the moment, they have 28 lost, abandoned and/or injured dogs in their care, all found in or around Tonopah. They have no room for more.

That anyone, child or adult, could chain a 6-month-old puppy to a vehicle and drag it to near-death “really upsets me, but it doesn’t surprise me,” he said.

“We’ve had people drop dogs off in our yard, just throw ’em over the fence, because they know we have a shelter here. So I am rarely surprised by how horribly people can treat animals.”

But equally unsurprising to those who live in this neck of the far-West Valley is how the Clements’ neighbors have banded together to help them and their badly injured pup.

“There are very good people out here, and it always warms your heart to see them pull together like this,” Johnson said. “They came to my assistance [after a storm nearly destroyed her dog-rescue facility last July].

“I told Keila Clements, ‘Honey, right now everything looks dismal, just like it did for me after that storm. But you are about to see the people of this community come forth. So don’t let this sour you against Tonopah.’