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Saturday, January 15, 2011

Blog the Change for Animals: Chain of Hope

For today's Blog the Change for Animals-started by the great folks over at Be the Change for Animals-I was thinking about posting about Wayside Waifs. You guys know how important Wayside has been in my life. That's where I met Mom and where she volunteers. They have the best people over there. You can even read what my pal Ryker's mom had to say about them in her Blog the Change post today. Since I talk about Wayside all the time, I decided to post about a different local group.

There is a grass-roots organization in Kansas City, MO called Chain of Hope. It was started by Kate Quigley in 2010 as a way to reach dogs in the inner city that are chained; without shelter, food or water; neglected; or homeless. She and her volunteers will drive around until they find a dog who needs their help. They will provide a lighter tie-out for the dogs on heavy tow chains. They will give dog-houses with fresh hay to dogs living in mud with no protection from the elements. They will feed and water dogs whose owner's aren't able to care for them.

They don't just care for the dogs though. They also provide education. They knock on doors and talk to the dog owners. If the owner will agree, they will take the dog to be spayed or neutered. Sometimes, the owner will give up the dog altogether and Chain of Hope will foster it until it finds its forever home.

Situations are not always that easy to deal with though. If a dog is completely neglected and the owner can't be reached, they will call Animal Control and report the situation. Other times, it is too late for the dogs that Chain of Hope encounters. They might find them near death and the only way to help is to get the dog to a vet so it can be humanely euthanized, rather than suffer any longer.

Chain of Hope regularly holds fund-raising efforts to help sustain the organization. Mom went to one not long ago at a local bar. Many people came and brought food, treats and most importantly, cash. She met Ms. Quigley there and was amazed at what this one woman has been able to accomplish. She sees her as a hero, somebody to strive to be like. Ms. Quigley is an inspiration and a model for what all humans can do to help animals. Like her quote on the front page of their web-site says, "...if we can change the life of even one dog, it matters."

You can learn more about them and "Like" their Facebook page. You can also read their blog. My favorite story was a recent one about Jackson, who they helped to reunite with his owner. If you are in the KC area, I hope you will support Chain of Hope. Get to know them, spread the word, donate and maybe even volunteer.

And for my kitty friends-don't worry. Ms. Quigley feeds the felines she comes across too!


10 comments:

  1. That's just PAWEsome, Sebastian! Tell your Mom FANKS for posting about such a great group! (And tell her fanks too, b/c Person just fixed our blog-hop so that it SHOWS cuz she saw you had it :)

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  2. Between us and our Moms, we'll get all the homeless pets in KC taken care of! (And Mom says your welcome!)

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  3. This sounds like a great organization! They really are changing the world, one dog at a time. We are happy to hear about people like this!

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  4. I so admire people like Kate. Wow. That takes guts, dedication and a lot of perseverance. I am so glad you shared a blog post on this group. Truly a worthy cause!!!!

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  5. A great post pal. That organization sounds wonderful too.

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  6. My mom's excited to meet your mom and said something about margaritas?? You guys are gonna have fun at blogpaws!

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  7. Cokie-Mom said Margaritas is the magic word! MOL

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  8. This is so wonderful to hear about! Amazing work being done, all for the sake of those who can't speak for themselves. Thanks for letting us know about this!

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  9. Wow... Ms. Quigley is definitely a hero and an inspiration! Thank you for posting about this organization.

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  10. I'm so glad everyone enjoyed reading about Ms. Quigley and Chain of Hope! Don't forget to "Like" their Facebook page so we can all spread the word about them.

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