When Eva Wickemeier became involved in basset hound rescue eight years ago, she had three dogs.
Today, her Owensville residence is home to seven dogs -- a beagle, a German shepherd and five basset hounds, most with special needs. Her dogs include Eyvan, who has one eye; Twiggy, the diabetic; Nugget, who has bad hips; and Chelsea, who was rescued from a crate minutes before being shipped to a research laboratory.
Ms. Wickemeier's Ohio Basset Hound Rescue is a statewide program that has found homes for about 58 basset hounds in the past 18 months. She's one of thousands of volunteers across the country who have committed time and energy to pet rescue.
While rescue efforts vary in size, geographical range and procedure, the goal is the same: finding homes for homeless pets.
"I know I can't keep them all," Ms. Wickemeier says. "When a good home is found, it's best to part with them to make sure there's always room for another dog who needs help."
"I think rescued animals make the best pets because I believe they know they've been rescued," Ms. Wickemeier says. "They appreciate it and are grateful when they have a happy home."
"There isn't really one set type of (rescue) operation," says Lori Levin, president of Project BREED, a Washington-based non-profit group that publishes a national directory of rescue organizations, provides a hot line and acts as a clearinghouse for 12,000 rescue volunteers.
"Finding homes for homeless pets can be accomplished in many ways," she says. "Some rescue people work alone, using their own money and resources. Some may have the support of non-profit agencies, while others are part of large organizations, such as fanciers of a specific breed."
For dogs, there are "all-breed," "mixed-breed," "large-breed" and "breed-specific" rescue groups. Most purebred dogs, Airedale to Yorkie, are represented by a rescue organization. Cats, pot-bellied pigs, ferrets and horses also have rescue groups.
The Wildwood Pet Network, founded by Fairfield residents Janet Corbett and Loretta Henderson two years ago, has rescued dogs, cats and even a rabbit.
In the Wildwood Pet Network, seven representatives cover a 13-neighborhood area in Fairfield. Representatives take reports of missing or unsupervised, wandering pets.
Owners are counseled about where to report their missing pet -- animal-control agencies, shelters and pounds. Pets that aren't reunited with their families are placed in one of four foster homes until a new, permanent family is found.
"Our goal is to see that animals remain safe at home, away from dangerous streets and out of overcrowded shelters," Ms. Corbett says.
Since its inception, the Wildwood Pet Network has returned 32 lost animals to their owners and placed 14 in new homes.
Other rescue efforts have a broader reach, concentrating on placing unwanted pets taken from pounds, shelters or directly from owners.
While in foster care, the animals are spayed or neutered, tested for disease and brought up to date on shots and other health procedures. They also are evaluated for temperament and sometimes retrained, so bad habits aren't foisted on new owners.
|
Information
Old English Sheepdog Rescue-Kentucky, (606) 282-1662 or e-mail jpsrescue@aol.com.
Ohio Basset Hound Rescue, 248-1177.
Wildwood Pet Network, 107 Woodstock Drive, Fairfield 45014. Wildwood is accepting adoption applications and looking for foster homes. It also needs two large carriers, kitten food and cat litter. Monetary donations, used for vet bills, can be sent to Wildwood Pet Network, c/o Fifth Third Bank, Fairfield Executive Center, 6120 South Gilmore Road, Fairfield 45014.
Project Breed, P.O. Box 15888, Chevy Chase, Md. 20825-5888, will have an updated rescue directory available in June. Information: Send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Project Breed.
Most local shelters and veterinarian offices carry lists or resources to contact pet rescue services.
|
Unlike municipal shelters, rescue efforts have the luxury of time and will keep a pet until a suitable home is found. However, overly aggressive rescued pets are euthanized, but only after careful review of the circumstances.
Rescue volunteers have heard just about every excuse imaginable for giving up a pet: "I just got new furniture" to "I'm moving away to a new house."
Dakota, a neutered, 2-year-old mixed-breed male cat in foster care, was rescued by the Wildwood Pet Network after his owners moved and left him in the backyard.
Other lifestyle changes, such as divorce and a child going away to college, are cited by people giving up pets, as well housebreaking difficulties and allergies.
Pet rescue volunteers believe many people aren't prepared for the responsibilities that come with pet ownership.
"They don't realize how much work is involved," Ms. Wickemeier says. "Or the commitment involved."
"People generally get rid of their pets between the ages of 9 and 18 months, when they're not cute little puppies or kittens anymore," Ms. Levin says. "Purebreds aren't more immune to this than mixed breeds because when a person decides they're tired of a pet, they don't care how much money they paid for it."
Most rescue workers carefully screen adoptive families. They're asked how much time they're willing to spend with the pet and are required to sign contracts promising to return the pet to the rescuer if the arrangement doesn't work.
Jim Spurling of Florence, who rescues Old English sheepdogs, gives out grooming instructions that include the unsavory details of trimming the hair around the dog's private parts.
"If someone is turned off by reading the material, then an Old English sheepdog is obviously not for them," he says.
Rescuers charge an adoption fee of $25-$150.
"Usually, a lot more has been invested in the animal," Ms. Wickemeier says. "We've put as much as $600 or $700 into dogs who needed dental work or surgery on their legs."
Because Mr. Spurling's placements are frequently outside the Tristate, expenses include long-distance telephone charges and out-of-town trips to pick up or deliver dogs. Last month, he drove a sheepdog named Bosley to New York.
His reward? Heartfelt thank-you notes, e-mails and happy family snapshots including his rescued pooches.
Rescue work can be physically and emotionally draining.
"People who do rescue for the more popular dog breeds, such as beagles and cocker spaniels, tend not to stay in it for long because there are just so many of them out there," says Mike Kaser of Covington, Ohio, who rescues Alaskan malamutes. "They're overwhelmed by dogs."
Tracie Keller, a 12-year rescue volunteer for the Hamilton County SPCA, says it's not the animals that fuel burnout, but constantly dealing with owners who give up their pets without making an effort to live up to their responsibility.
"They don't try to educate themselves," Ms. Keller says. "And they dump their pets for the stupidest reasons."
