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 Our Goals
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Our Goals Our main goals in Rescue are 1) to educate the public about the pet over population problem 2) to educate the public about responsible pet ownership and pet buying 3) to rehabilitate and place as many Scotties as our funding, time and facilities allow. Education is our primary concern, because if we can cut down on the instances of pet over population, then we can cut down on the number of "needy" animals that need to be re-homed, placed, or destroyed. A great many animals in shelters today are products of "just one litter" , litters that could have been prevented in the first place. We try to educate the public on the benefits of spaying and neutering your pet, the dangers associated with breeding as well as the myths of spaying and neutering. This is a very important part of what we as rescuers do. We also try to educate the public about responsible pet ownership, and pet buying. We encourage people to research the breed they are interested in, spend some time with owners of that breed, talk to breeders about their lifestyle and see if that breed would be a good match for them. Don't just decide on a breed based on its performance in a major motion picture, or on a picture in a book or a one time meeting in a park. Don't think just because you've seen one Scottish Terrier, you've seen them all, because believe me...you haven't. We talk to people about how to find a responsible breeder, one who is concerned with where their puppies go, and about the diseases and health problems that effect their breed. We tell people about the proper training necessary to make a Scottie a well loved and respected member of the family. Scotties (nor other dogs) are born knowing house manners, inappropriate things to use as chew toys, good manners around guests and such. They all have to be taught these things. And many times because the breeder failed to mention this, or the owners didn't know where to turn for help, the dog is dumped at the local pound for lack of a better solution. All this education goes to helping reduce the number of individual animals that are given up each year. Finally, we do the "real" rescue work. We take in all Scotties, regardless of temperament, age, or health. Sometimes these Scotties are "non-placable" and in most cases live the rest of their life here at STRNA as our personal dogs. But fortunately most of the rescue dogs we get in are placable, and we work very diligently to find them permanent and loving homes. Its our responsibility and we owe it to these wonderful dogs. Rescue has many purposes and many goals, but they all lead to one thing. . . putting ourselves out of business. It is our goal to be completely unnecessary one day in this world that we live in. And that's what we are striving to do. When there comes a day when rescue is no longer needed, that's is when our work is done, and the dogs will be better for it. |