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Sanctuary! (Part I) - Page 2

© Sherrie Walker

Stillwater, MN, was organized with the goal of establishing a network of sanctuaries across the country. More programs like these, resulting in more sanctuaries being established, could bring Tracy's idea that much closer to reality.

Some sanctuaries are established on purpose, started by animal lovers who see a problem and, unlike most of us, DO something about it. Others just kind of - happen. Tracy Frank didn't intend to start a sanctuary, but people started dropping off pets at her gate. Ditto with Martha Hovers. Eleven years ago, Martha and her husband Jim decided to escape big city life in Dallas and retire to a 48 acre spread they owned near Sherman, TX. Then the dogs started showing up, dumped at the Hovers' gate or along the road. One thing led to another, and now The Animal Refuge Foundation (ARF) is home to almost 300 dogs.

Then we have David and Laura Sykes. When they moved to Fairfield, IA, in 1983, they were amazed to learn the city had no humane society or dog catcher, and that the county's method of animal control was a sheriff's deputy with a gun. David and Laura began picking up strays off the street. In 1990, they bought 34 acres on the outskirts of town and started The Noah's Ark Foundation.

I must warn you, if you visit the Noah's Ark web site, there is a story about something that happened in 1997 that will make any animal lover's blood run cold. I was horrified, not only by the act itself, but by the mentality behind the act, and the fact that this mentality is being passed from one generation to the next. I don't mean to single out Iowa. Texas has plenty of examples of this type of mentality - just ask Tracy Frank or Martha Hovers - and I'm sure other states do as well. Pat Hall, the director of the shelter where I volunteered, believes the homeless pet problem will not be solved until people change their attitudes, until they accept responsibility for their pets and stop thinking of animals as disposable once they're no longer cute or convenient.

This is another area in which sanctuaries, together with other humane organizations, can make a huge impact on the homeless pet problem - community outreach and education. Check back next month for a look at some of these programs.

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