This is a guest post from Elizabeth, who runs a blog called “It’s Raining Cats and Dogs in West Virginia“. Thank you for writing, we think what you are doing is fabulous!
Seeing photos on the Internet of cats and dogs in shelters was upsetting. On Best Friends website I read about animals from all over the world who needed help. I read about the dogs and cats in Lebanon who were being helped by BETA. BETA has made a difference in the lives of the animals in that country. I felt helpless. What could I do for animals in my country? I decided to become a virtual volunteer cross posting shelter animals who were urgent on Internet animal sites.
I started cross posting for Mason County Animal Shelter in WV. While doing this I became aware of many small rural shelters and many other shelters that did not have the resources to keep animals for very long and did not have significant numbers of adopters in their area. It was an education. What I learned about the conditions at some of the shelters and about gas chambers horrified me. I decided to extend my cross posting to give visibility to animals in shelters in states surrounding WV and also in Georgia and the Carolinas. Then I thought blog. I could cross post my blog and increase the traffic to the site. The more visitors the more chance the dogs and cats had of getting to rescues and homes and of getting sponsored.
.
I think part of the grassroots movement to change shelters and stop killing adoptable animals (who is adoptable is a whole other topic) starts with education and legislature in the government so I post links to animal law sites and organizations like CAN (Companion Animal Network).
I also post links to organizations that help shelter animals, all homeless animals and are part of the no kill shelter movement. If I find a site that has great information for pet owners about pet health or marketing ideas for rescues and shelter, they get linked on the link list.
“Raining Cats and Dogs in West Virginia” is a resource for anyone who loves animals and want to save their lives, get them OUT of shelters to safety. It is also meant to promote awareness so we can change how we treat our animals in the U.S. shelter system. Dogs and cats deserve better than 3- 5 days in a shelter to get a home or rescued. They deserve better than to be gassed like Holocaust victims. They deserve to be loved and cherished and treated with respect.
The people who rescue, transport, and donate their money to shelter animals are the only hope for many animals so please read my blog and see if you can help. Sponsoring a shelter animal, volunteering at your local shelters,donating money for supplies and medical bills to shelters and rescues, helping with transport and cross posting pictures of urgent animals are all ways to help if you can’t adopt. Look at their faces read their stories and don’t turn away. These dogs and cats need all our help especially in these difficult economic times.
