[Dailydrool] In rescues defense

[Chris Bly]

I wanted to comment on the post about how rescues should help at risk dog owners out with expenses so they can keep their pets. As a rescue we always ask the owner who is wanting to surrender their dog if there is anything we can offer them in the way of help that would allow them to keep their dog. Most of the time when an owner calls rescue they have already made up their mind they do NOT want help to keep their dog. Rescues do try to offer education and sometimes even dog food or supplies to get owners to keep their hounds and once in a great while the owner changes their mind and decides to try to keep their dog. Rescues are not waiting by the phone for calls to come in, we do not need more owner relinquishes we have enough on our hands just saving the Bassets left in kill shelters. But we do try to offer help, we are always willing to give suggestions about training, we will offer food, but where are we suppose to get the $200.00 to neuter or spay their pet for them? Rescues do not get funding from the government like the big Humane Societies. Rescues money comes from donations and if we do not get enough donations we pay for medical bills out of our personal family budget. We do not make a money from rescuing; the adoption fees do not even cover the cost of altering the dog, much less for shots and teeth cleaning, heartworm tests, well dog check up, not to mention the dogs we get with health problems. Most owner relinquished dogs have not been kept up to date on shots, most are not altered, and have never been on heartworm preventative. Most owner relinquished dogs have been neglected and we rarely get one that is well adjusted and healthy. Usually the only time we get a dog that is a happy well adjusted owner surrender is when the owner dies and the family does not want the dog. Just my two cents. 
Chris Bly Western Missouri Basset Rescue, Inc.    wmbri.org
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