Happy National Dog Day! Today celebrates all breeds, pure and mixed, and serves to help galvanize the public to recognize the number of dogs that need to be rescued each year, either from public shelters, rescues and/or pure breed rescues.
National Dog Day honors family dogs and dogs that work selflessly to save lives, keep us safe and bring comfort. Dogs put their lives on the line every day – for their law enforcement partner, for their blind companion, for the disabled, for our freedom and safety by detecting bombs and drugs and pulling victims of tragedy from wreckage.
Jo-Ann, a Property Administrator at MHC, is an avid dog lover and rescuer who currently has 17 dogs. No typos – you read that right, 17. She started rescuing dogs around 15 years ago, with a goal to take them in as fosters on their way to finding a fur-ever home.
“Sometimes you come across a foster that you can’t bear to give up, and that’s why I’m considered a “foster failure”, but that’s perfectly okay! That just means that you’ve given an abused, abandoned dog an incredible home to live out the rest of his/her years – and that’s always the ultimate goal of any rescue!
I am fortunate to have a wonderful husband that shares my passion and the work that goes into it. There’s ALWAYS room for one more dog in the pack … and failing isn’t always a bad thing! 😉”
Rescuing and caring for dogs is Jo-Ann’s biggest passion and her only regret is that she didn’t start sooner.
“My only hope is that when I am gone, there will be someone to take my place. My promise to that person is this – I will be with you in spirit from wherever one goes when the breath leaves the body. Because I will ALWAYS be a rescuer, even when I am just a memory.”
Kudos to you Jo-Ann, and to all other dog lovers on this National Dog Day!
We’ve had the pleasure of volunteering with Big Dog Ranch Rescue, a local leader in the field. Click here to see their efforts and how you can help!
