Fiona Haynes has seen the good that Pound Rescue does in the community up close.
Haynes initially came into contact with the animal rescue, one of seven Foothills charities being supported by Western Wheel Cares, a dozen years ago when she adopted her first dog.
After losing her mom to cancer, she was looking for a pet to help work through the grief, which is when Skye, named after the Isle of Skye, her mom’s favourite place, joined the family.
“It made a huge difference, just having something else to focus on, a reason to get up in the morning, a reason to go for a walk and be outside and be in nature. It really did make a huge difference,” she said of Skye, a collie-husky mix who is now 13.
Haynes began volunteering for the organization and then about five years ago pitched in as a temporary foster home, which led to the adoption of a second dog. When a good friend who had also adopted a Pound Rescue dog passed away three years ago, her brood expanded to three.
The Haynes household in Sheep River has been even busier these days after becoming a full-time foster home last fall when Pound Rescue sought refuge for two dogs with a combined 21 puppies.
“I took two puppies thinking that it would be like a one-off, just something to help them out over a bump, but it just never stopped,” she said. “I've had 14 foster dogs, all that were placed in loving homes, which is amazing.”
With numbers 15 and 16 now in the fold, Haynes said any worry about becoming too attached are outweighed by the greater good.
“What I'd love people to know about fostering is that when you find the right home for the animal that you have, it feels amazing. Sometimes it's hard to let them go, and I have definitely cried from time to time, but the thing is you turn around and there's another one there that needs you," she said.
“I highly recommend if people have got a bit of space, if they've got a bit of time and they want to do something that matters, become a foster, it's incredible."
Founded by the late Dr. Gabriele Barrie 30 years ago, Pound Rescue is an entirely volunteer-run organization that cares for homeless and abandoned animals through a network of foster homes.
This year’s Western Wheel Cares campaign runs until Dec. 31. In 2023, the campaign raised a record $100,002, pushing its 12-year total to $669,061.
Each week, the Wheel will feature one of the seven organizations — Foothills Advocacy in Motion Society, Foothills Country Hospice, Inclusion Foothills, Okotoks Food Bank, Pound Rescue, Rowan House Society and Sheep River Health Trust — supported by the initiative.
To donate to Western Wheel Cares, mail cheques to Box 150, Okotoks, AB, T1S 2A2 or visit westernwheel.ca/western-wheel-cares for a Paypal donation link. As well, you can drop by the Wheel office at 9 McRae St. from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays (closed from noon to 1 p.m. for lunch) or call 403-938-6397.
