Lovable dogs seeking homes
Do you have room in your hearts, and your homes, for a healthy, well-adjusted and socialized puppy or adult dog? Would you like to help out in the effort to find homes for abandoned or homeless animals? Would you like to make a difference by spreading the word on the importance of spaying and neutering in reducing the animal overpopulation problem here in Warren County?
If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you might want to get in touch with Viola Valley Dogs, Inc., a local no-kill pet rescue and adoption facility organized in 2003 when three local ladies, Linda Coursey, Emily Dillman and Villa Mitchell, with major support from Coursey’s husband Paul, began rescuing dogs from citizens in Warren County and from the local shelter with the objective of finding good homes for the animals through a local adoption program or by placing them with other rescue organizations around the country.
“Our philosophy is, “Every dog deserves to be loved and treated like an important part of the family,” say organizers. A visit to the group’s colorful and well laid out Web site at www.violavalleydogs.com will provide a wealth of information about the organization itself and on how the adoption process is handled, as well as some of the things you can do to support the cause.
The organization received its 501(c)(3) non-profit status in March of this year and has several projects in the works. Mitchell, who has considerable experience in writing and obtaining low cost spay and neuter grants in the county over the past several years, plans to keep doing so as part of her involvement with Viola Valley Dogs. The grants will provide vouchers to help families in Warren and surrounding counties get their pets spayed or neutered, which all three women feel is of major importance.
“Because killing homeless dogs is not an effective or humane way to control the pet overpopulation problem, Viola Valley Dogs places a heavy emphasis on spay and neuter,” they say.
Mitchell points to other communities around the country which have had considerable success with spay and neuter legislation and ordinances, and hopes, even though the idea has met with initial resistance in this area, that others will come to support it.
“It’s just the answer to the problem,” said Mitchell. “If we don’t attack the overpopulation problem this way, we’re never going to get anywhere. We’ll be doing the same thing we’ve been doing for years and years.
“Everywhere you look that they’ve put spay and neuter ordinances in effect or set up low cost clinics, that they’ve had pet registration, leash laws, all those things, you see numbers coming down. But places that are not doing that, they’re not making any headway at all.”
Coursey agrees, and says it’s the lack of responsibility of some pet owners that has contributed to the overall problem in Warren County.
“It’s just a shame that people let their dogs have puppies and then take them to the shelter or throw them out on the side of the road,” Coursey said. “If people really care a lot about their pet, they need to get them spayed or neutered.”
In support of this goal, the group has another project in the works, spearheaded by Mitchell, who has been working on the idea for a couple of years now.
“In addition to operating the rescue and applying for spay/neuter grants, we have filed the paperwork to open a low-cost spay/neuter clinic in Warren County,” they report. “This clinic is being set up to serve primarily Warren, Grundy and Van Buren Counties. The clinic will be named P.A.U.L.’S Clinic (Prevent All Unwanted Litters). It is also named P.A.U.L.’S Clinic because Paul Holder has generously agreed to let us set up the clinic in a building he owns. So far we have been promised support from two major foundations that fund low-cost spay/neuter clinics. We are very excited about the difference this clinic can make in the pet overpopulation problem in Warren and surrounding counties.”
Viola Valley Dogs is a small organization and can only take a limited number of animals. So far they have received limited donations from outside sources, but hope this no-kill rescue is a cause citizens of Warren County will want to support. The group is also in the process of constructing a puppy building, and would appreciate any donations toward this project. Donations are tax deductible.
To find out more about the organization, adopt one of the more than 60 rescued animals currently on hand, or to make a donation or offer other support, contact Linda Coursey at (931) 635-2765, or [email protected], or Emily Dillman at (931) 273-8527 or [email protected].
Coursey says the reason she, Mitchell and Dillman have devoted so much of their time, and personal funds, to this project, is a simple one.
“We’re just trying to save as many dogs as we can,” Coursey said, “and find them a good home.