We Rescue. Our pets either come from high-kill shelters or owner surrenders. We drive all over the state helping to pull animals out of shelters that normally wouldn't have a chance. Whether it's an SOS put out by the shelter or one of our volunteers keeping an eye on their county shelter, we are often working with animal control to rescue animals. We also receive numerous requests from people asking to surrender their pet. Sometimes it is for very good reasons (deployment, illness, etc.) and other times it is frustrating (having a baby, don't want the pet, etc.) We understand life situation's change, but we really believe that when you commit to a pet---you commit for it's entire life! Every once in a while, we just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Take the picture to left---that's Asher! One volunteer, Mary, just happened to be in a parking lot when she noticed tons of people gathered around a car. Asher was trapped in an engine, friendly as can be, but scared to death. Mary was able to rescue him and he has since found his happy ending.
We Rehabilitate. Once we have rescued a cat or dog, we then have to assess its medical and psychological needs. We use foster care homes for every pet that comes into our group. By placing a pet in someones home, they are constantly given love and attention while being observed by our volunteers to determine the best possible home for them. Our foster families can have their rescues anywhere from a day to months at a time! Some pets need more work than others, but the best case scenario is that they need just a few days of TLC before being put up for adoption. Usually, it is a lot more work than that! We often take in dogs that are Heartworm positive. It's extremely expensive to treat! As a no-kill organization, GHS will address any medical concerns. We often have to deal with ear mites, heartworms, flea/ticks, minor behavioral issues, house training, crate training, and basic obedience. In addition, we spay/neuter ALL pets, provide a microchip and flea/tick preventative, and make sure everyone has age-appropriate vaccinations. The vetting, while discounted to us, can still be very expensive. Still, we think most people would rather adopt a healthy and fully vetted pet then having to take an injured or unvaccinated pet and go through the medical steps themselves. Take Lacy for example (see picture to the left.) She had freed herself from what we think was a tether that was wrapped around her leg. It was so badly infected she had to have the leg amputated and was in for some serious surgery and rehabilitation. Even though she had some injuries, we didn't think that she should be given up on. So we were able to rehabilitate her, vaccinate/spay her, and put her up for adoption! Rehabilitation is a crucial step for us in helping our rescued friends.
We Rehome. This is where everything comes together for us! Once our pets are safe, happy, and healthy we place them up for adoption. We maintain an active Petfinder.com account as well as do weekend adoptions on Saturdays from 1-4pm at the Petsmart on Howell Mill Road in Atlanta. Potential adopters find our pets via Petfinder.com, by visiting our adoption center at Petsmart, or coming to our adoption events. We often have out of state adopters and have some rescued pets living as far away as Washington state! We also work with other rescue groups (especially in the Northeast) to do transport. Often times small breed dogs or puppies are in high demand up North where they don't have the issues that the South has. We work with these organizations to transport animals out of Georgia where they would surely be killed after their time was up in a high-kill shelter. All potential adopters fill out our adoption application so we can make sure the pet is a perfect match for the home. It's so rewarding to see our pets living in their new forever homes with families that love them. We often tell people that they are really saving two lives---the pet they adopt and the pet we are able to rescue because they adopt! The picture shows Bradley with his new mom and dad. They had been looking for the right puppy when they spotted him and it was a match made in heaven! Once they adopted a healthy, happy, and fully vetted Bradley, we were able to go out and rescue another little of puppies and start the process all over!Taking our pets through Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rehoming is such a great experience. It never gets old! Seeing the transformation of scared and sad to happy and confident is amazing! We are happy to be there to help make families complete and that's why we will continue to Rescue, Rehabilitate, and Rehome!
