County's animals find two legged friends
By Staff
Melissa Dozier-Cason, FCT Writer
Animals of Franklin County have an ally. Two local animal activists created a home for the county's homeless animals.
Barbara Ghrigsby and her daughter, Miranda, currently tend to several animals in an attempt to keep them off the streets.
Together, the Ghrigsby's care for cats, 13 dogs, four goats, and six chickens. They currently have 15 animals up for adoption, Ghrigsby said.
"I rescued the chickens from someone's dinner plate," Ghrigsby said.
Ghrigsby believes that all animals, including mice, should be treated humanely with compassion and love.
As for her meals, she proudly eats a meat free diet.
"I am always telling people that I cannot save animals and eat them, too," Ghrigsby said.
Ghrigsby began rescuing animals since seeing a dog killed as a child. Since that moment, she began saving every animal in trouble that she could find, Ghrigsy said.
"After a while, the animals would find their way to my house," she laughed.
In 1987, Ghrigsy organized the Human Society of Franklin County.
However, the organization folded within a few months because of lack of funding, Ghrigsy said.
"We could not get any funding from the county or the city," Ghrigsy said. "We would get small donations here and there but our vet bills alone were hundreds of dollars each month, so we had to close the doors."
After Ghrigsy retired due to health problems in 1999, her daughter continued to care for and love animals because her mother instilled in her the love of animals.
"Miranda is so in tune with animals that I believe she could she could walk beside a mountain lion without being attacked," Ghrigsy said
Ghrigsy helps her daughter run the Homeless, Abused and Abandoned Animal Shelter in Franklin County, which accounts for a large portion of their animals.
They are both committed to finding all the animals a good home, Ghrigsy said.
The shelter will host a yard sale December 8 to help fund the shelter.
The sale will be held Dec. 8 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 2030 County Road 48, two miles East of Highway 43 toward Tharptown.
All proceeds will go to benefit the animals.
For more information on the yard sale or how you can help needy animals, please call 460-7785.
