Mutts and Runts Rescue: Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

The money provided helped us purchase enrichment items such as fun feeders, puzzle games, treat balls, sensory toys and treats and bully sticks to use with those items. We also used the money to provide Adopt Me leashes, collars, and shirts for our foster dogs to wear while out in public.

We were able to provide six swim-therapy sessions and 12 daycare sessions for socialization, and purchase five social-media ads. We also purchased bandanas, bows, and bubbles for pictures.

Lastly, part of the money went to purchase a pet-management program to help us stay organized and up-to-date and make rescue easier.

The Adoption Options in Action Grant helped us utilize the tools we learned from the seminar. Using the props we bought, social-media tips we learned, and the ads purchased, we were able to gain more exposure for our rescue dogs. In turn, that helped us gain more followers and supporters for our rescue itself. Two of our disabled dogs had swim therapy sessions included with their adoptions as an incentive to encourage adoption. Daycare has helped socialize the dogs and helped us to learn more about their behaviors to include in their bios. The fun feeders, puzzle balls, treat holders, bully sticks, and treats helped us keep the dogs happy and mentally stimulated while in our care, thus reducing destructive behaviors. The Adopt Me collars, leashes, and shirts helped the dogs get noticed while out in public with their fosters. It has opened the conversation about rescue and what exactly a foster-based rescue is to people who never heard about it before. The biggest help has been having a pet-management software to help us streamline the rescue process. It keeps us organized and is a huge time saver. We wouldn’t have been able to do all of this without the grant and especially without the Adoption Options seminar.

How many pets did this grant help?

In total, the grant has helped us help 36 dogs. Since October we’ve had 14 adoptions and are currently caring for 11 dogs and 11 puppies.

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

The dogs most helped by the grant were two of our most difficult to receive interest. One was an adult large-breed dog, Jersey (first and second photos), and the other was our disabled and longest-stay (over a year) foster dog, Rocket (third and fourth photos). Jersey was found in 2018 as a stray in an orchard. She was quickly adopted then returned a year later. Upon being returned, she had no adoption interest and was suddenly without a foster home after a change in circumstance. Unable to find a foster home, we had to resort to boarding her. Jersey excelled the two months she was at boarding, yet we still had no one interested in her. With the grant’s help, we were able to promote her with the use of social-media ads. She was able to secure a first-time foster family who immediately adopted her after the first night!

Rocket was rescued, along with several other dogs, from an extreme hoarding case in Wasco, CA. He was only six weeks old when we found him. Rocket suffered severe nerve damage from a dog attacking him when he was only days old. He’s had physical therapy, specialist consultations, and surgeries to try and help him. It was concluded that he’d always be disabled, with extremely limited use of his back legs. After the grant, we put more effort into using pictures and posts to spread awareness about Rocket. We used the bandanas and bows for his pictures and videos. A rambunctious young pup, he was able to channel some of his energy into using the puzzle balls and fun feeders we bought with the grant. Knowing a disabled dog can be more expensive, we included four swim-therapy sessions with his adoption to encourage a successful transition. After a year and a half in our rescue, he too was adopted by his foster family.

Salty (fifth photo) was also helped greatly by the Adoption Options grant. He’s able to attend daycare regularly to help keep him socialized with new people and dogs. While in foster care, Salty has kept up with his training using the new treats and has stayed mentally stimulated using the puzzle toys and fun feeders. Salty has also become quite the model, wearing the bandanas and different props. He has gained a following of his own with the help of social-media ads. Unfortunately, we’ve still had little adoption interest in Salty. He’s another one of our adult large breed dogs and currently our longest foster dog. Meet Salty here.