"Guest House" for Foster Dogs
So first, my story for a little background!
A few months back, I adopted a pooch from a shelter out in east Texas. She was in really bad shape...scrawny, sad, covered in fleas and ticks and dirt. Got her home and cleaned up and to the vet, and things were going fine. A couple weeks later, she started getting bigger, a lot bigger. She was pregnant, had gotten that way either at the shelter or before. After a few more weeks, she had nine puppies. They've all recently passed the 10 week mark, healthy and happy. I'm now in the process of finding them homes, and most have been adopted already. It's been such an amazing experience, knowing that I saved 10 lives rather than just the 1 that I had intended in the beginning!
Long story short, I think I've found my way to give back and to help more dogs out. I'm interested in fostering or adopting more pregnant dogs (or possibly cats, also), raising them and their puppies until they are adoption age, and then find them all good homes. Maybe keeping some of them myself from time to time ;-) Could also help foster other dogs, if I didn't have a pregnant one and pups at the time. I've been looking for a volunteer project for a while that fits my interests and skills, and I think this is it!
Here's where you come in:
I have lots of ideas about how I could pull this off...I have a decent size house and a big backyard. But the big problem with this last batch of puppies (plus my two adult dogs) was that they WRECKED my house. Lots and lots of damage to carpets, cabinets, walls, furniture, etc. etc., in spite of my best efforts. There's no way I could pull off my plans if it involved again having so many dogs in my house. So I would like to build essentially a "guest house" in the backyard that is totally dedicated to dogs and puppies I'm currently fostering. So they have an air-conditioned place to go during the hot parts of the day, and a cozy place to sleep at night. Then the rest of the time they can be out playing in the yard (once they're past a certain age and have had their shots, of course!)
The size and scope of the building will be totally dependent on how much money I get through this fundraiser, I definitely can't afford to build it myself. 100% of the funds raised will be for the construction of this building, and the more we get, the more nice features I can have built in for the pups (and the more I could foster at once). Air conditioning being the main feature that I definitely want for them (and heat in the winter, although it's hard to think about that right now!). And once it's built, any remaining funds would go 100% to expenses for the dogs and puppies I would be fostering...food, shots, vet bills, etc. I've definitely learned in the last few months that raising a bunch of dogs and puppies is VERY expensive!
Also on a side note, I would love any non-cash help or contributions. Building materials, offers to help with the building process (any carpenters and electricians and a/c folks out there?), dog beds, food and water bowls, dog food, treats, toys, etc. etc. Even basic medical supplies to assist in the birthing process when it comes time. Anything you can think of dog-related, I'm sure we could put to good use. If you're not sure what would help, we could also put to use Petsmart or Petco gift certificates! If we received a large amount of a certain kind of item, I would still make sure they go to good use. They could be in turn donated to local shelters, or kept in reserve for future batches of dogs. This will be a long, ongoing project, with hopefully hundreds more lives saved ultimately. We will need large amounts of everything dog-related.
(a couple of examples of what it might look like...with way less decorative touches probably! The main priority is just a climate-controlled shelter for the pooches)
Thank you for your time and contribution, it means so much! It really bothers me that so many wonderful animals are out there in shelters, and that so many of them are euthanized each day. There's definitely an urgency to this project...every day that goes by means more dogs who could have been saved from being euthanized. I would like to get this off the ground right away, and would welcome any and all help!
Troy Preston Dillon
A few months back, I adopted a pooch from a shelter out in east Texas. She was in really bad shape...scrawny, sad, covered in fleas and ticks and dirt. Got her home and cleaned up and to the vet, and things were going fine. A couple weeks later, she started getting bigger, a lot bigger. She was pregnant, had gotten that way either at the shelter or before. After a few more weeks, she had nine puppies. They've all recently passed the 10 week mark, healthy and happy. I'm now in the process of finding them homes, and most have been adopted already. It's been such an amazing experience, knowing that I saved 10 lives rather than just the 1 that I had intended in the beginning!
Long story short, I think I've found my way to give back and to help more dogs out. I'm interested in fostering or adopting more pregnant dogs (or possibly cats, also), raising them and their puppies until they are adoption age, and then find them all good homes. Maybe keeping some of them myself from time to time ;-) Could also help foster other dogs, if I didn't have a pregnant one and pups at the time. I've been looking for a volunteer project for a while that fits my interests and skills, and I think this is it!
Here's where you come in:
I have lots of ideas about how I could pull this off...I have a decent size house and a big backyard. But the big problem with this last batch of puppies (plus my two adult dogs) was that they WRECKED my house. Lots and lots of damage to carpets, cabinets, walls, furniture, etc. etc., in spite of my best efforts. There's no way I could pull off my plans if it involved again having so many dogs in my house. So I would like to build essentially a "guest house" in the backyard that is totally dedicated to dogs and puppies I'm currently fostering. So they have an air-conditioned place to go during the hot parts of the day, and a cozy place to sleep at night. Then the rest of the time they can be out playing in the yard (once they're past a certain age and have had their shots, of course!)
The size and scope of the building will be totally dependent on how much money I get through this fundraiser, I definitely can't afford to build it myself. 100% of the funds raised will be for the construction of this building, and the more we get, the more nice features I can have built in for the pups (and the more I could foster at once). Air conditioning being the main feature that I definitely want for them (and heat in the winter, although it's hard to think about that right now!). And once it's built, any remaining funds would go 100% to expenses for the dogs and puppies I would be fostering...food, shots, vet bills, etc. I've definitely learned in the last few months that raising a bunch of dogs and puppies is VERY expensive!
Also on a side note, I would love any non-cash help or contributions. Building materials, offers to help with the building process (any carpenters and electricians and a/c folks out there?), dog beds, food and water bowls, dog food, treats, toys, etc. etc. Even basic medical supplies to assist in the birthing process when it comes time. Anything you can think of dog-related, I'm sure we could put to good use. If you're not sure what would help, we could also put to use Petsmart or Petco gift certificates! If we received a large amount of a certain kind of item, I would still make sure they go to good use. They could be in turn donated to local shelters, or kept in reserve for future batches of dogs. This will be a long, ongoing project, with hopefully hundreds more lives saved ultimately. We will need large amounts of everything dog-related.
(a couple of examples of what it might look like...with way less decorative touches probably! The main priority is just a climate-controlled shelter for the pooches)
Thank you for your time and contribution, it means so much! It really bothers me that so many wonderful animals are out there in shelters, and that so many of them are euthanized each day. There's definitely an urgency to this project...every day that goes by means more dogs who could have been saved from being euthanized. I would like to get this off the ground right away, and would welcome any and all help!
Troy Preston Dillon
Organizer
Troy Dillon
Organizer
Royse City, TX