Leave No Paws Behind rescues senior and special needs dogs in imminent danger in shelters, gets them to safety, and gives them the care they need.
We spoke with founder Toby Wisneski in between her phone calls with a local shelter about the latest dog in dire straits. She says she'd been doing animal rescue work for some time, but found her true calling on March 31, 2012, when she got the call about Colby. The gorgeous, elderly golden retriever, too thin and weak to stand, had been left at a shelter by his family and was on the euthanasia list. She got him to the vet, who tearfully told her the poor guy was riddled with cancer and in terrible pain.
Colby passed on peacefully a few hours later, surrounded by loving people, and Wisneski realized that no matter how dire their condition or sad their history, special needs and senior dogs who would otherwise die abandoned in a cold, scary place needed a safe place to live out their days with people who loved them. And pretty quickly, thanks to the support of thousands of local and Internet-based fans, significantly fewer paws were being left behind. Wisneski just received PetsAdviser.com's Animal Hero of the Month award.
Many of LPNB's rescues like Colby are hospice patients, who receive medical attention and live in foster homes for as long as they can enjoy life. But an astonishing number, including those who arrive with horrific but treatable medical issues, are now thriving in forever homes—80 in the last year. Currently living in foster care are more happily rehabbed dogs waiting for their own families to spend the rest of their lives with.
Like, for instance, Raffie here, a 12-year-old neutered Chi mix who arrived severely emaciated and in horrible condition. Today he's happy, healthy, energetic and loving. If you're in Los Angeles or the surrounding area and think he's the one for you, LNPB would love to hear from you; email info@leavenopawsbehind.com.
