By Betsy Brewer Brantner
Contributing Writer
Having a pet is a big responsibility, but the rewards for taking care of one is priceless. No one loves you more than your pet. You can have a terrible day and come home and look into the eyes of your pet and the difficulties of the day just drift away.
Melissa Myers has been volunteering with Angel’s Retreat since 2003. She works with two veterinarians, Dr. Pearson and Dr. Mooney. Every second Saturday of the month, they bring a clinic to Oxford Feed and Lumber where they work on cats and dogs free of charge.
Cats receive a free basic exam, vaccines for rabies and feline distemper, and they can be micro-chipped, if desired.
Recently, a free clinic saw 20 dogs and 10 cats. You can bring in multiples of cats and dogs. It is estimated that Angel’s Retreat will see as many as 600 animals a year.
Vaccines are very important, especially to dogs. Parvo is part of the distemper vaccine, and dogs have to be watched carefully for this. Every dog is spayed and neutered and vaccinated. The adoption fee depends on many variables. They can start at $100 and run as high as $600.
Myers said, “We want to keep dogs healthy and in home, so we encourage people to take advantage of these low-cost vaccines.”
Angel’s Retreat is a small, non-profit, volunteer-run rescue organization which helps dogs of all ages and breeds, including senior and special needs dogs requiring special care.
The dogs come from puppy mills, city and rural shelters, as well as owner surrenders.
All of the dogs are cared for in an in-home setting where they roam free in a backyard and live in a compassionate environment.
Volunteers at Angel’s Retreat are passionate about their dogs being matched with their new owners based on their personality and not on their breed or appearance. Bringing a dog into your life means accepting that dog for all of their traits, good and bad. This philosophy of “love me for who I am, not what I am” is not only important for a successful lifelong adoption, but isn’t it also what we all deserve? Don’t we all just want to be loved for who we are, regardless of how we look or how people perceive us?
A shelter environment is stressful and confusing for animals. Under these circumstances animals will not display their best behavior and behavioral issues will become exacerbated.
In a study of behaviorally-challenged dogs, 90 percent of those dogs who went into foster for 30 days or less had a 90 percent live outcome compared to 44 percent live outcomes in the average shelter.
If you have questions about adoptions or about the free clinics for cats and dogs click on:
[email protected] or call 302-598-9023.
“We always can use volunteers and fosters,” Myers explained. “If you are willing to open your home up, you can submit your application through the website. One of the most important aspects is being open to meeting a dog with the right personality for your family. There are so many amazing personalities.”
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