1-800-PetMeds

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Doggie Angels

Doggie angels can also be called dog rescue transport volunteers and coordinators. These volunteer doggie angels donate countless hours of their time and save hundreds of dogs from being euthanized in shelters that are too full.
The way it works is when a shelter's space starts to become too crowded and can't take in more dogs, a call goes out to a volunteer who then takes care of coordinating the transporting of dogs from the overcrowded shelter to dog rescue organizations and groups. This isn't as easy as it sounds. It's detail-laden and sometimes an anxious process. One single error and the whole process can go under.
The volunteer coordinates two groups: the rescuers and the transporters. The rescuers rehabilitate the dogs if necessary and find foster homes for the dogs. All the while they are networking with other groups. The transporters physically transport the dogs to the rescuer group, many times at their own expense.
The coordinator makes the calls, ensures the drivers have maps, chooses a meeting point, does all the paperwork to get the dogs out of the shelter and into dog crates or dog carriers, makes sure there are leashes and collars, and that all the vaccinations are current. As you can imagine, this all costs money.
So why do they do it? What do the volunteers get out of it? Their reward comes when the dogs are placed. Usually a dog is placed in a foster home first and then adopted by a caring family. These volunteers do a real service to their communities by saving lives. Not only do they save lives, they they save taxpayer money, too.
Please contact your local shelter if you'd like to volunteer. It does take quite a commitment to do one of these valuable volunteer jobs. If that doesn't work for you, please consider providing a cash donation to help defray the costs involved.
Debbie Foster is the owner of Pet Beds Unlimited.com, an animal lover and advocate. You can find a wide selection of quality pet beds, dog crates, dog carriers, dog pens, cat beds, cat carriers, large dog beds, and pet strollers at http://petbedsunlimited.com

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