A is for Action

It's Day One of the 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge and I'm so excited to be participating again this year! Look for a new post every day in April except Sundays. Click on the A to Z Challenge button in the right sidebar to see a list of all participating blogs and see what others are writing for the challenge. 



A is for Action...

I believe it's very important to take action when we perceive a problem. Too many folks think one person can't change anything, but if every one of those people acted instead of just thinking about the problem, that would act up to big changes! And often the actions of one person can create more impact than you'd think. 

My daughter and I discovered a few years ago that the Humane Society in my hometown was often over capacity, which leads to animals being euthanized. The county has no pound, so all of the animals that Animal Control picks up are dropped off at the Humane Society. All of the animals that people find lost or abandoned are dropped off there as well. They also accept owner surrendered pets. Overwhelmed by the sheer number of dogs coming in, they developed a network of fosters to take animals until they can be placed with a rescue group or adopted and save them from being put to sleep. We knew we wanted to help.

We've fostered many dogs in the last few years and all of them have had happy endings except one puppy who came into the shelter with a deadly illness and didn't make it. We've had short-term fosters who have already been claimed by rescue groups but haven't transported yet, and we've had longer term fosters who needed a little socialization and extra help to make them more adoptable. It's so gratifying to see a puppy come running, tail wagging, when you call her...the same puppy that was so afraid of people at first that she didn't want to come out of her crate or be touched. That terrified puppy didn't have much chance of getting adopted, but the new cheerful version does!

Currently, we are fostering two dogs, Holly and Percy. To see more info about them, other pets in need, or the foster group that I work with visit www.helpdarlingtonpets.com or darlingtonhumane.org. 

What actions have you taken to support a cause about which you feel strongly? Comment below to share your story.