To hear Sandra Stavely tell it, they’re a bit like OkCupid.
“We’re kind of like a matchmaking service,” Stavely explains. “We want to find the right dog for the right family.”
Stavely is one of the founding members of A Voice4Paws, a canine rescue society that looks for dogs who have been neglected, abused or surrendered.
The registered charity formed when its founders –formerly volunteers with other agencies – realized there was a void on the North Shore when it came to canine adoption.
They wanted to be open to dogs big and small while emphasizing thoroughness above quickness.
“We’re not about just bringing in a whole bunch of dogs and willy-nilly finding homes for them,” Stavely explains.
Each dog they handle needs to be “100 per cent vetted,” spayed or neutered, properly trained, and above all, “ready to go into their forever home,” Stavely says.
Because they don’t have a shelter, the society depends on volunteers to provide foster care for surrendered dogs.
“If someone is struggling they can come to us,” Stavely says.
Earlier this year they came across a posting on Craigslist from a pet owner looking for help.
The owner “came onto some hard times,” Stavely notes. In the midst of losing her job and getting divorced, the owner’s Siberian husky, Ice, tore an anterior cruciate ligament on Canada Day. After a successful surgery, Ice tore her other ACL in November.
Ice is currently recuperating after a second surgery.
Finding a new home for dogs like Ice is what A Voice4Paws is designed to do, Stavely explains.
“We often take some very difficult cases that other rescues are maybe not quite as open to,” she says.
They’re also looking for a home for Raleigh, a lab recovering from double
hip dysplasia.
Stavely estimates last year’s tab for shots, spaying, neutering and assorted veterinarians’ bills came to $32,000.
“That’s where the majority of our funds go,” she explains.
Voice4Paws is currently selling tickets for a 50/50 draw scheduled for Highlands Animal Hospital on Dec. 17 at 3 p.m.
With Christmas on the way, tasks tend to pile up for the society’s volunteers, according to Stavely.
“People, unfortunately, are going away on holidays and they don’t want to deal with their dogs,” she says. “We find that there’s a lot of surrenders at this time of year.”
Besides surrenders, the society sometimes ends up cleaning up after misbegotten Christmas gifts.
“A lot of people have what they think is a brilliant idea of, ‘I’ll get a dog for my daughter or my son or my wife or my husband,’ and they don’t really do the research that’s required to make a responsible decision.”
Stavely advises understanding that when you give a dog to someone, you’re asking them to make a lifelong commitment.
As much as the society’s volunteers love dogs, the Christmas season can be taxing, according to Stavely.
“We’re all volunteers and we all have full-time jobs and families and dogs of our own, so it’s a balancing act,” she says.
Anyone hoping to learn more about the organization can visit avoice4paws.com/
