Guest post: Rescue a dog, save a life!
Written by Courtney Wilson, Buyer’s Agent and Closing Coordinator
In case you’ve never spoken with me before, or taken a look at our website, I’ll fill you in on a little secret…I’m a huge animal lover! It all started because my wonderful mother raised me to be a loving and compassionate person, especially towards those that can’t speak for themselves. As I got older, and more aware of the pet overpopulation problem, I decided I wanted to help. My mother, the Vice President of the Boston Terrier Rescue of North Carolina, inspired me to become a volunteer at a local rescue organization called Saving Grace Animals for Adoption.
I wanted to help for several reasons, but my primary reason to start volunteering is because according to the Humane Society of the United States, 4 million cats and dogs are put down in the US every year. That’s about one every 8 seconds! To me, that’s just unacceptable. Together we can greatly reduce that number by having our own pets spayed or neutered, and by adopting a pet from a shelter rather than buying one from a breeder or pet store. Click here for more information from the HSUS about adopting an animal from a shelter.
David and I have personal experience in rescuing a dog. Our in-house client satisfaction supervisor, Marley, was rescued from a shelter in Johnston County by Molly Goldston, president of Saving Grace Animals for Adoption.
How could you resist a sweet smoosh face like this?
We had a very difficult situation, because our other dog, Pilot, is dog-aggressive. Pilot lost his only buddy, Spencer, about a year earlier and really needed another canine in the pack. Pilot just wasn’t himself…Spencer was his guiding light, and Pilot was lost without him. It took a long time to integrate Pilot and Marley, but now they are completely inseparable. Even though Pilot is twice as big and Marley, our little girl is the boss! She is our little ray of sunshine, and we can’t think of a life without her (and Pilot, too!). It breaks my heart to think of the millions of animals who could be someone’s Marley that don’t get that chance.
If you are considering expanding your family, please consider rescuing a dog or cat from a shelter. Shelter animals make great pets! If you are local, I urge you to contact Saving Grace and talk with Molly about the right animal for you. You can check out all the dogs available for adoption here. If you are not local, please check Petfinder.com or your local SPCA for available pets that need a good home like yours. If a new pet just isn’t in the plan, consider volunteering your time…Molly could really use some help! The Wake County Animal Care, Control, and Adoption Center is also looking for volunteers to help walk and socialize dogs. If you don’t have any time to spare, Saving Grace is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization funded only by private donors, and all donations are tax deductible.
To wrap things up, I’ll leave you with a slideshow of a few available dogs at Saving Grace…these guys are just too cute to pass up! All photos courtesy of Saving Grace and Diane Lewis Photography.
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Courtney can be reached on Linked In and Facebook.
