Guest Post – By my sister – Ashley R.
This time last year my home was filled with the sound of tiny padded feet running across my tile floor. Every morning there were 20 tails wagging and 40 eyes shining when I opened up my door, I was the only difference between life and death, I’m an animal rescuer.
Spring and fall bring thousands of unwanted puppies, the shelters become full and there is not enough adopters to save these unwanted animals in time. Every year an estimated 7.6 million pets enter animal shelters across the country, and only 35% of dogs and 37% of cats are adopted. In recent years the number of adoptions has increased due to social media, but for the animals who aren’t adopted there are few options.
Rescue isn’t just playing with puppies and going for walks. Animal rescuers spend weeks, months and sometimes even years with their foster pets to help rebuild trust and understanding. Rescue is volunteer based which makes finding foster families for unwanted animals much harder, because in a time where everyone needs money no one is looking for an extra mouth to feed. But for people like me there is nothing I wont do to help an animal in need, and here is my rescue story. I hope it can give you a real glimpse into this way of life and inspire you to make a difference. One tail at a time.
Spring 2013 is when I think I really fell in love with rescue, and my first foster baby named Tanner. While scrolling threw facebook I noticed a post from one of my local friends begging for a foster home for a homeless elderly shiba inu mix and his very pregnant companion Labra-dane. After talking with my wife we decided we would foster them for a short time just until their New York rescue was ready to come get them. The day before the dogs were transported to us, the labra-dane gave birth to 10 Beautiful puppies and suddenly we were fostering 12 dogs! A week later i saw another post concerning 8 puppies who needed a foster in Alabama, and the following day when my wife came home we had 20 foster dogs. Thank goodness my wife loves me because I think anyone else would have rung my neck. It really can happen this quickly and one must be ready for it. And so goes my first week as a foster mom.
I’ve had a labrador retriever and three beagles, my mom always told me only ever get a purebred dog. After we lost our beagle last October I went to the local rescue center. They had a bulldog/boxer mix named Junie who they recommended because she was good with kids and laid back. I thought she was a funny looking dog and asked to see a pure bred boxer they had instead. The boxer was high strung and not very friendly so I reconsidered the funny looking dog and ending up bringing her home. She is the BEST dog ever and stole everyone’s heart at our house. People who work and volunteer at the rescue centers/shelters are very special, our Junie was so well taken care of by the local center until we adopted her. And I know that rescue centers are in dire need of people to foster pets, so many times they just don’t have any room left or have a special needs dog and need someone to provide temporary help.
I have friends that foster pets and I think it’s one of the most compassionate things you can do!
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