A huge thanks to...

Rescued Paws Animal sanctuary

 

A Haven for the homeless

There are so many people involved behind the scenes of each rescued dog, and I wanted to let others know what goes on so they can have a better appreciation for all the wonderful people involved in rescue, and to give a huge thanks to all those involved, without them, most of the dogs on our site could not be saved.

 

The typical rescue is as follows:

We are notified by email about an urgent case where the dog’s time is up at the shelter or animal control.  Since we are a foster based rescue and not a shelter, we don’t always have available space to take in a dog.  We list the dog as “Urgent” on our site to try to get a foster or adopter.  Some times we will have an approved adopter looking for a dog and we can match them up. 

 

We work on extremely short timelines to get the dogs to safety.  Sometimes only a day or two before the time the dog is scheduled to die.  It is a very stressful process for all the people involved.  Most dogs come from out of state, so getting them out of the shelter and coordinating a transport takes time.

 

Please remember, there is nothing wrong with the dogs whose time is up.  7 days in animal control is typical.  Because of the high volume of dogs these shelters and animal controls deal with, there is no other option, as there are not enough adopters for all the dogs, and many are surrendered by owners who don’t care enough.

 

Once we can commit to a dog, we contact one of our transport coordinators to see if they have drivers available to get the dog out of the shelter and transported to us in MN.  There is a lot of back and forth phone calls and emails between shelter contacts, who are trying their best to save as many of the dogs in their care as possible, the transport coordinator, sometimes boarding facilities or short term foster care, sometimes veterinarians.

 

Just because we can take a dog in, doesn’t mean we will actually get the dog if things can’t be coordinated to get the dog out of the shelter.  This is the really stressful part!  Knowing a dog is going to be killed in less than 12 hours, and things need to be coordinated between so many volunteers to actually get them out and to safety!

 

Also, if a potential adopter is interested in an urgent dog, they must get approved before we can commit to the dog, if we don’t have an available foster.

For rottie adopters, they must have rottie experience.  They fill out an application, get their references checked and then a home visit depending on the distance.  There is a lot to be done in a short amount of time.

 

Before transport the dogs need a rabies vaccination and health certificate to cross state lines.

 

Once the dog is taken out of the shelter, they stay a few nights at a volunteer’s house, vet’s clinic or boarding facility until the transport date which is always on a Saturday or Sunday since so many people work during the week.  Sometimes the shelter can hang onto the dog for a few more days until transport if they know the dog will be rescued.  The transport coordinator has a list of volunteers that they contact by email with the travel itinerary, which is the starting city and receiving rescue and all the stops in the states in between.  There are usually 6-10 volunteer drivers through the various states. We have had dogs come in as far as Kentucky, so there are many drivers needed!

 

Now remember, this is often coordinated within a couple days, so you can imagine the intensity of not knowing if the dog is actually going to make it or not!

 

Once a transport coordinator gets the required drivers and the transport is set we can breath easier knowing the dog is safe and going to be coming to MN soon to his/her new home or foster care. YEA!!

 

Many times the transports have ending points at Eau Claire, WI or Owatonna, MN so we will drive there to pick up the dog/dogs.  With the gas prices and a vehicle large enough to accommodate big dogs, ouch on the pocketbook!

 

Once we pick up the dog, if we were able to have them vetted (spayed/neutered, microchipped and vaccinated prior to transport) they get delivered to their new home to start their new life, YEA!!

 

Sometimes they will come here to Rescued Paws, get vetted at our vet clinic then go to their new home or foster home, or they get vetted at the vet clinic of their foster home.  They are now safe at their foster home and they get love and nurturing to prepare them for adoption.

 

Thank you to all the wonderful volunteers involved in the above process!!!!

 

 

 

A special thanks to our transport coordinators:

These special ladies are volunteers who spend an incredible amount of time and a lot of stress getting the transports together!  They do this on the side, they also have full time jobs!

Barb Krimminger—Nebraska—Mid America Rottweiler Rescue

Michelle Shadowens—Illinois—Mid America Rottweiler Rescue

Molly Kendall—Indiana

Toni Klemko—Illinois—Akita Rescue

 

Thank you to all the volunteer drivers who donate their time and gas money to get the dogs to safety, without you we couldn’t save all these dogs!

 

A special THANK YOU to our wonderful fosters!!! Because of you we can continue to save more dogs.

 

Thank you, Thank you to East Central Veterinarians of Cambridge and Mora, and to Dr. Melco of the Milaca Veterinary Clinic, in Milaca,  for the wonderful care of all of our animals!!!

 

A HUGE THANK YOU to all the wonderful people who donate money and supplies to our rescue to help the dogs!!!!  It is so appreciated!

 

A SUPER HUGE THANK YOU to all the adopters of these wonderful dogs.  Thank you for adopting a rescue dog that would have otherwise not had a chance at life, and will now have a better one!  They will repay you with more love and devotion than you can imagine.