Where it began..

zooinmyhouse — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 17:53:04 +0000

At the start of 2011 I was at a bit of a loose end and wanted to get involved with a local organisation and do some volunteer work, and whaddaya know, a few days later I was at the Friends of the RSPCA op-shop and saw a flyer about fostering dogs. After talking to the co-ordinator, getting permission from my land-lord and having my house and yard inspected I was approved and registered and now I get to look after puppies and mature dogs and provide them somewhere to live while they’re waiting for their new family. I don’t tend to get much of a break in between fosters unless I need to go out-of-town for a couple of weeks, which has only happened once in the past 6 months. One of my favourite fosters, Nellie, only went to a new home at the start of November and about 36 hours later Sebby came in needing a place to recover from being treated cruelly for a long time. He was a sad case, and ended up stressing me out so much that I traded him with another foster carer!

In other words, we’re a very busy bunch working behind the scenes to make sure no dogs are euthanized senselessly, and are instead saved when injured, dumped, surrendered or abused by people. In the past year I’ve seen some pretty miserable dogs come through my doors and take up residence for weeks or months at a time. As of the 22nd of February 2012 I’ve fostered 12 dogs. I sometimes bump into their new owners on the street and I love the fact that they’re bringing such happiness to people’s lives, and living the good life they deserve. From this blog in its earlier days I’ve been contacted by one woman who’s amazingly found my blog and seen photos of Jasper, who she now owns in a city 400 k’s away.

If you’ve got the time, the space and the heart to do it, why not consider giving some of your time to your local RSPCA branch? All creatures great and small, and they don’t euthanize any dogs that they can re-home. Unfortunately, Pit Bulls and Pit Bull crosses cannot be re-homed legally through the RSPCA in Western Australia. At our little op-shop auxiliary we foster out most dogs up to 5 years of age, and only occasionally do we put down dogs who are being fostered. It happened to me with my last gal, an elderly, pregnant American Staffy who was on medication to treat severe trauma to her ears. It was a miserable sight. I gave her probably the best week of her life while she was with me, and while it was sad we had to do it, realistically it was the kindest thing to do. Her dog-friend from the home she was seized from was also put to sleep.

Sometimes a dog can be too much to handle for some people, and that is understandable. If people want to surrender a dog they call the office and talk to the co-ordinator about it, and they will see if there are any carer’s available. Sometimes dogs go and wait in the local kennels until there is a free spot for them. We need more carer’s though… we always do. People with their hearts in the right place are offering their time but sometimes they haven’t got the right sized yard or fencing or not enough time to spend with the animals, and sometimes people trial it and realise it’s not for them. It’s not all sunshine and happiness either. Sometimes it’s very sad to see maltreated dogs and to know how many there are in the system here in such a small population compared to most. And sometimes watching a dog you’ve nurtured and bought back to health jump in the back of someone elses car at the end of his time with you makes you tear up and get all snotty because you’re watching an animal you saved from getting killed go off to live out a long, happy, loved life. It’s a warm fuzzy feeling every time.