It was the spring of 2018 when I made the commitment to foster a dog for the first time through Last Paw Rescue. I adopted my dog through the rescue and became good friends with one of the volunteers who also lived in Chippewa Falls. She convinced me to open my heart and my home because without the help of volunteers, the dogs would be euthanized or left behind. This really spoke to me because after I adopted my own dog, I could not imagine all of the other dogs who would never have a home, a bed to sleep in, eat a proper meal, or play with a toy because no one would give them a chance. The founders of Last Paw Rescue, Kathy and Kim, are based in Tomah but the volunteers are scattered all over Wisconsin. Each month, they transport hundreds of dogs from a high kill shelter located in Texas and bring them back to Wisconsin. They can only bring the dogs that the volunteers have committed to foster. I figured it wouldn't hurt to give it a try since I would just be offering a temporary home until the dog was adopted.
My first foster dog was a black lab named Bea. I looked at the photo that they provided to me and I actually kind of fell in love with her. She was a beautiful black lab with a silly under-bite. Black dogs are often left forgotten or overlooked. They get euthanized at higher rates and linger at shelters longer than lighter colored dogs. I feel like this may be due to the fact that many black dogs are often viewed as aggressive, intimidating, or evil. I took the drive to Tomah to pick her up. When I finally arrived at the building, I saw some volunteers spraying out metal crates that had been filled with urine and feces. It made me anxious. When I walked into the building, I was overpowered by the smell of feces, urine, and everything in between. The air was thick, and there were hundreds of dogs in crates, barking at me as I walked by. My eyes teared up because it made me sad to see the dogs in this condition. Some were pacing around, dirty, matted, or had either urinated or defecated in their crate. Kim, said to me, "It's kind of overwhelming, isn't it?"
I was definitely overwhelmed. I finally got to meet Bea and she was even more beautiful in person. Kim told me, "Some of the dogs get adopted right away, but some are in foster homes for months." She said she wasn't sure what attracted people to certain dogs but not others. Kim gave me the paperwork and Bea and I hit the road. A lot of people don't know what they get themselves into when they adopt a rescue dog. Most of the dogs are dogs that have been living on the streets most of their lives, eating garbage, and sleeping in whatever brush they could find. They are exposed to a lot of mosquitoes, ticks, and all types of parasites. Some of the dogs were even found with bullets in them, or were just abandoned in a crate by their owners. No one knows their stories. But with every dog, there is the risk of behavioral issues, health issues, and so much more that people don't realize. A person really has to have a lot of patience and a big heart to open their home to a rescue dog. Once you get past those hurdles, the love you get in return is worth all the trouble.
When I brought Bea home, there were no major issues and she got along with my own dogs. There wasn't much about her background in her paperwork so I had no idea what happened prior to her being rescued by the shelter. I took some photos of her and she was literally only advertised for a day when I received 4-5 people already interested in meeting her. I eventually set up a meet and greet with a couple who had a yellow lab. They were instantly in love with her and adopted her right away. It was hard to let her go because I was falling in love with her already myself. But it was the most rewarding feeling to be able to match Bea with her new forever family.
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