
Because you follow our website, you are already familiar with
our mission to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome stray and abandoned
dogs. You can probably even puts faces and names of our
rescue dogs to their stories of survival. This brings us to
our blog topic today - why we put so much effort into saving sick
dogs.
Let me back up to when we founded this little rescue group and
our reason for doing so. We became aware of stray dogs that
were struggling for survival. We became aware of the
overpopulation problem and the lack of humane supports for the
innocent canine victims of the cycle. We decided to make a
difference.
Jumping in to make a difference to dogs when you love dogs is
not an easy journey. Coming to the realization that you
cannot save them all is shattering. This is the frustrating
and draining part of dog rescue.
Because you know of us, you are likely aware that we do not
utilize the term "no kill" to describe our organization. We
have had to make the painful decision to euthanize dogs with no
hope of recovery from illness or injury. These decisions are
always made in conjunction with medical advice from our
veterinarians. The key question in our decision making
is "Will what we are doing improve the quality of life or prolong
suffering?" Quality of life is our priority. If we can
provide supports to save a life we will opt for that every
time. When there is a chance for a good quality of life, we
can still make a difference.
We certainly do not discriminate among our rescues and only
bring in sick or injured dogs. We know that there are hundreds
of homeless dogs that need help. And we also know that
when a dog as fragile as Symbol comes to our attention, if we do
not bring her in from the cold she will not make it.
It is true that a dog like Symbol requires more medical
attention than some other, healthier dogs, but to us that doesn't
change her value. Every dog's life is of value to us.
Had we brought in a different, healthier dog the same night as
Symbol, we still would not have enough foster space for all the
dogs that need it. Regardless of what dogs we rescue, our
biggest constraint is foster space. Unfortunately, we are not
unique in that regard. I don't think any rescue
organization or shelter will ever have enough space for all the
dogs in need.
Symbol came to our attention as a result of an education
campaign regarding parvo in our rescue community. By
educating the public on the signs, symptoms, treatment and need for
parvo vaccination we feel we are making a difference for the
Symbol's of the future.
Dog rescue is never easy. Our guiding philosophy is that
every dog, healthy or sick, deserves a chance at life and a chance
at love.
