"I am not a Miracle Worker. I am a Rescue Worker"
By - Jude Fine
Olddogs@seniordogrescue.org

If you know of a senior dog in need, please contact me. If the dog is in a shelter that you are employed at, and can be a contact for, please provide full information, including name, address (city and state included) and phone number of the facility. Please don't make me spend an hour on the phone and Internet trying to find the dog in need. Neither of us have the time to waste - certainly the dog in need doesn't.

If you are a shelter volunteer who wants help placing a dog, please contact me. Please provide all the relevant shelter information, including city, state and phone number. Please provide all pertinent information about the dog in question. If you are writing to me about a dog that 6 other rescue groups have turned down because of temperament or behavioral issues, please do not give me a 24-hour deadline to get the dog into rescue. I am not a Miracle Worker. I am a Rescue Worker.

If you are a fellow rescuer who wants help placing a dog, please contact me. Please tell me where you are located, the specific characteristics of the dog, and kindly provide a picture to put on a webpage. This will save both of us a lot of time, and I will do my best to help you rehome your senior rescues. I will joyfully work towards our like objective of finding new and loving homes for our senior dogs.

If you have lost a family member, please accept my deepest condolences. If there are senior dogs left behind who need a new home, please contact me. Please do me the courtesy of giving me time to find foster homes, and kindly provide all veterinary information with the animals. I will have a better chance of finding the right "forever" home if I have the "right" information to begin with. Please provide any of the dog(s) belongings to help them adjust to new surroundings - beds, blankets, toys, and food would all be helpful, and would save us the expense of buying new.

If you are an owner who needs to rehome their dog, please contact me. However, please be aware that if your dog has had behavior issues for the last 8 years and you have now decided that you are at the end of your rope, I cannot rehome your dog in 24 hours. If you have left your dog's situation to the very last minute, you, as the owner, will need to find a way to deal with it. I am not a Miracle Worker. I am a Rescue Worker.

If you are an owner who needs to rehome their dog, for reasons other than behavior issues, please contact me. If there is a specific time line, please tell me. Please do not exaggerate and think that I can do more if I am panicking. I can't. Your message is probably the 5th one, along the same lines, that I have received today. Realistic, truthful information about the animal and realistic, truthful deadlines will help both of us to achieve the goal of finding your pet a new home. If you are moving, please don't write me two days before your move. I am not a Miracle Worker. I am a Rescue Worker.

If you are an owner who needs to rehome their dog, please contact me. Please understand that if your dog is not spayed or neutered, I will request that the surgery be done before I have any further involvement. I cannot in good conscience participate in the placement of an intact dog when our shelters are overflowing with good dogs that never find homes and never enjoy growing old. Please do me the courtesy of accepting these beliefs, even if you do not believe in them yourself. I am not a Miracle Worker. I am a Rescue Worker.

In the year 2001, there was only one or two days out of the entire year (Christmas Day being one of them) where I did not get an email or a phone call requesting help for a senior dog. Senior dogs are my passion in life, and I will help in any way I can, without complaint or ill feelings. Please understand though, that I also need time to hug my own senior dogs and tell them how much I treasure every second with them. I need to sleep more than 4-5 hours a night on occasion and not be on the Internet at midnight every night. I need to spend time with family and friends, and recharge my batteries to face the joys, challenges and heartbreak of rescue. I will do everything possible to help you, but if your deadlines or requirements are unrealistic, I would ask that you please remember....
I am not a Miracle Worker. I am a Rescue Worker.

Copyright Jude Fine, 2002
Olddogs@seniordogrescue.org
Dedicated to the Many Tireless Rescue Workers, Always Striving for Miracles