06/14/2026
What it’s really like to be a rescue founder ❤️🐾
I’ve touched on this before, but I wanted to share a little more about what happens behind the scenes of rescue.
When you see a dog posted, you’re seeing the end result of a lot of moving pieces coming together.
Behind every dog is someone coordinating transport. Someone deciding which dogs we’re able to bring in and when we have to close intake. Someone making the difficult decisions about capacity, because every additional dog means additional vet care, supplies, time, communication, coordination, and responsibility.
It’s saying yes to intake. It’s making vet appointments, arranging medical care, picking up medications, ordering supplies, and making sure every foster and every foster dog has what they need.
It’s reviewing applications. Responding to emails and messages. Answering questions. Scheduling meet and greets. Updating the website and social media. Following up. Checking in. Finding temp foster coverage or backup coverage when something changes. Trying to solve problems before they become emergencies.
It’s learning each dog’s personality, needs, and quirks so we can find the right match - not just any match.
And sometimes, all of this is being done by a small team. Sometimes it’s one person carrying the majority of the responsibility while also working a full-time job, managing a home, and trying to keep everything moving.
Rescue is rewarding beyond words, but it can also be exhausting. The decisions are heavy because we know these dogs are counting on us.
So when we say we’re at capacity, when we can’t immediately take another dog, when we ask for patience, or when we can’t respond as quickly as we’d like… this is why.
It’s not because we don’t care. It’s because we do. We care enough to make sure the dogs already in our care get the time, attention, and resources they deserve.
There are so many people behind the scenes pouring their hearts into saving animals. A little kindness and understanding goes a long way.
Signed,
one very tired (but very grateful) rescue founder ❤️
Featuring some of the new faces that make every late night, hard decision, and exhausting moment worth it 🐾
