Second Chance Canine cares about stray dogs
We all love our dogs. They are part of the family. We take them for daily walks around the neighborhood. We let them tag along for short rides in our vehicles. We groom them and pamper them. We spend hours outside playing fetch with them or patiently teaching them some basic obedience commands.
We do it because we care. But who cares about the stray, neglected and sometimes aggressive dogs that roam our neighborhoods?
In Franklin County, the members of the non-profit Second Chance Canine Advocates care.
The group was founded three years ago after several members shared concerns about the number of neglected or stray dogs they were seeing in Russellville.
“We kept seeing dogs that weren’t being cared for or were running wild,” said board member Patricia Cox. “Some of the dogs were in pitiful shape – starving diseased, injured.” Since then, the members have developed a three-pronged approach to address the problem – education, fostering and supporting the improvement of local animal laws.
Perhaps the most pressing component of that strategy is the need for fosters – people who can care for a dog temporarily to help prepare it for adoption.
Many of the members of Second Chance Canine Advocates are fosters, so if you’re willing to foster a dog, they can prepare you for the experience.
Their education component focuses on the importance of spaying and neutering to reduce pet overpopulation. And they are always on the lookout for programs to help cover the cost of those surgeries, especially residents on Social Security.
The group’s promoting responsible ownership efforts include support of microchipping pets and emphasizing the importance of ensuring every dog wears an ID collar.
Lastly, the canine advocates do all they can to ensure fewer dogs are euthanized. Like most similar groups in neighboring counties in northwest Alabama, they work with rescue groups in the northern U.S. states to expand adoption efforts.
“We’ve worked with rescues up north to save more than 200 dogs,” said board member Anne-Marie Bucholtz.
Like all canine rescue organizations, Second Chance Canine Advocates does what it can, when it can. But assistance programs are free, and funds are limited.
You can help their cause by donating. Send an email to sccak9@gmail.com for information on how to do so. Or check out their Facebook page at https:// www.facebook.com/share/ g/1CGBRg7yfj/?mibextid=wwXIfr for information on the group’s activities.
