Superheroes Do Exist
I’d heard about the Animal Rescue Corps before, snippets mentioned by other rescue people in passing, but nothing solid, nothing that I thought had anything to do with the world of dog rescue I inhabited.I pictured a group of superheroes who swooped in during the direst of situations and rescued the dogs, but I had no understanding of how that actually worked, where the dogs went when it was all said and done, and if they were actual people or just this brilliant fantasy.Yesterday we were on our way south to shine a light on the shelters, rescues, and pounds working so hard to save dogs, in the hopes of raising awareness and resources to help them do just that. It was our first official trip for Who Will Let the Dogs Out and we were excited to get started, maybe over eager. We woke to snow in Christiansburg, Virginia and went in search of caffeine before beginning our drive to Columbia, TN where we would spend the night with one of my rescue heroes, Laura, who moves more than two thousand dogs out of Tennessee each year on to safety with shelters and rescues to the north.Over breakfast, I read through messages and noted one from Kim, another animal advocate I’d connected with on Facebook. She told me about a few shelters and dog pounds we might want to check out while we were in Tennessee that week. She also mentioned that Animal Rescue Corps' emergency shelter was in Lebanon. Kim is the Animal Welfare director at ARC and she thought we might find their work interesting.The idea of seeing some dogs and finally discovering what this mythical group was all about was irresistible. We would be driving right through Lebanon, how could we not stop? Kim sent their address and we reset our GPS to head there with no idea what to expect. The address was a Suite and she mentioned we would be meeting with the PIO, which made me wonder if that meant we were just going to meet the official leadership and only hear about the dogs.When we pulled in, clearly that was not the case. ARC was located in a warehouse, but if the dog crates stacked to eye level and an ambulance-like vehicle adorned with the Animal Rescue Corp logo parked beside the building didn't give them away, the faint sound of barking made it clear we were about to meet a lot of dogs.
Inside the warehouse, there was a steady dog noise and the familiar smell of a shelter. We met Michael Cunningham, but he was definitely not what I expected a Public Information Officer to be. He wore jeans and an ARC t-shirt and was busy directing volunteers and answering questions amid the organized chaos of a large shelter which appeared to house hundreds of dogs.
Inside the warehouse, there was a steady dog noise and the familiar smell of a shelter. We met Michael Cunningham, but he was definitely not what I expected a Public Information Officer to be. He wore jeans and an ARC t-shirt and was busy directing volunteers and answering questions amid the organized chaos of a large shelter which appeared to house hundreds of dogs.
It was an impressive operation and it was easy to see how the contagious energy would draw animal-hearted people to the warehouse each time it filled up with another case.We are headed into a week of meeting more dogs and more heroes, who work day in and day out to handle the steady flow of need, but it’s nice to know that Michael and ARC are always at the ready to swoop in like the calvary should disaster or demons strike.Today we will drive on to Mississippi to visit a flea market where they sell puppies and dogs. After that, we’ll meet our OPH rescue partner MidSouth Animal Foundation whose focus is on addressing one of the biggest reasons why so many animals suffer in the south-- the great need for spay and neuter.This is only the beginning of what promises to be an inspiring, enlightening, and exhausting week.Until every cage is empty,Cara
Please help us by subscribing (button on right side) to and sharing this blog. You can also keep track of us on Facebook and Instagram.Who Will Let the Dogs Out (we call it Waldo for short) is an initiative of Operation Paws for Homes. If you’d like to contribute to our work, we encourage you to click on the how to help link above and give directly to a shelter. You can also donate to our work via OPH’s donation page by designating Who Will Let the Dogs Out in your comments.My upcoming book, One Hundred Dogs & Counting: One Woman, Ten Thousand Miles, and a Journey Into the Heart of Shelters and Rescues (Pegasus Books, July 7, 2020) tells the story of not only our foster experience but how Who Will Let the Dogs Out began. A portion of proceeds of every book sold will go to help unwanted animals in the south.
Please help us by subscribing (button on right side) to and sharing this blog. You can also keep track of us on Facebook and Instagram.Who Will Let the Dogs Out (we call it Waldo for short) is an initiative of Operation Paws for Homes. If you’d like to contribute to our work, we encourage you to click on the how to help link above and give directly to a shelter. You can also donate to our work via OPH’s donation page by designating Who Will Let the Dogs Out in your comments.My upcoming book, One Hundred Dogs & Counting: One Woman, Ten Thousand Miles, and a Journey Into the Heart of Shelters and Rescues (Pegasus Books, July 7, 2020) tells the story of not only our foster experience but how Who Will Let the Dogs Out began. A portion of proceeds of every book sold will go to help unwanted animals in the south.
