On April 6th, 2013, Downtown Dog Rescue and Found Animals forged a partnership to begin the South LA Shelter Intervention Pilot Program. The goal was to prevent 400 animals from entering the South LA animal shelter through the end of the year.
The idea was a simple, but important one, for the impoverished area of Los Angeles that experiences extremely high numbers of owner-relinquished pets, overcrowded kennels, and a high euthanasia rate.
A sign was hung near a table staffed with DDR volunteers asking “How can we help you and your pet?”
By offering resources such as low-cost and free spay neuter services, wellness care, vaccinations and medical care, and food, DDR nearly met their year-end goal in the first month! After only 12 days, the results were astounding: 100 families were helped. 100 pets never had to see the inside of the South LA shelter.
“The ‘pet problem’ is often just a symptom of a far more complex challenge the pet owner’s family is facing,” explains Lori Weise, founder of Downtown Dog Rescue and head of the South LA Shelter Intervention Program. “Poverty is the most common reason why families have to surrender their pets.”
Each month, the program was presented with new and unique challenges that required creative solutions. Approximately 75% of those who came in to surrender their pet ultimately accepted the program’s help, which was further proof that these were wanted animals and that surrendering them to the shelter resulted from situations where the family felt they had no alternative.
One such story is Cookie, a 3-year-old terrier mix who was brought to the shelter for surrender in August 2013. Her pet parents could not afford to get her spayed, so the intervention program made an appointment with a local low-cost spay neuter clinic and helped pay for the surgery and vaccines. A month later, their landlord asked for a $100 pet deposit. Since they were now aware that resources were available, Cookie’s owners asked for assistance and were able to keep her in the home where she belongs.
The phrase “it takes a village” comes to mind when examining why the Intervention Program has been so successful. The tireless work of volunteers and the program team, including Intervention Counselor Amanda Casarez, who works with the program full-time, was further enhanced by the many LA rescue groups that came together to offer resources, including: Dawg Squad, Labs and Friends, Amanda Foundation, Cage Free K9 Camp, Angel City Pit Bulls, Go Dog LA, Forte Animal Rescue, Karma Rescue, and A Purposeful Rescue.
“Forming relationships with other non-profits [and] shelter staff, working together, is critical for success,” says Lori.
Found Animals is especially grateful for the local news coverage that helped spread the word about the work being done and the resources available to pet owners, like this piece from the LA Times and a news segment on TV channel KTLA.
With the program continuing to surpass all expectations and a strong desire to do even more, we presented a check for $100,000 to DDR at our October Gala, to help fund efforts through 2014.
When the year-end 2013 numbers came in we were floored!
- 2041 pets total were prevented from entering the South LA Shelter.
- 1789 dogs
- 241 cats
- 11 rabbits
That is an astounding 400% above the original goal!
Low cost spay and neuter needs were the most common service inquiry with pet care, food costs and landlord issues rounding out the 2nd and 3rd most common reasons for owner surrender.
Additionally, in the first three months of 2014 alone, 633 pets were kept out of the South LA Shelter. That’s a staggering grand total of 2674 (and counting!) beloved furry family members who deserve so much more than waiting in a kennel at an overcrowded shelter, facing euthanasia due to lack of space.
Ultimately, as Weise reflects, “Sharing resources, expanding the information away from the shelter is very important, since most of the people who visit the intervention office are unaware that assistance exists. Approaching each case with compassion, using a non-judgmental attitude with a goal to help every unique challenge is the way that we save more lives and empower families to be successful!”
If you’d like to help Downtown Dog Rescue, please visit their website and follow them on Facebook for more stories about the accomplishments of the program. We look forward to another year of helping the South LA community and their pets and we want to thank everyone who has helped make this a reality!
If you’d like to share your 1-year happy anniversary wishes for the team, please do in the comments below.