You can’t save them all, but you can make a difference

The black dog was curled up on the porch. The porch roof did little to protect the puppy from the fierce and bitterly cold wind that blew across its body. As I drew closer, the approximately 5 month-old stood up and moved. He looked at me, his body shivering violently. As I drew away, I counted his ribs, his vertebrae. As he looked mournfully at the group of people that began to watch him, he turned his face. A gasp was let out, his eye was gone. All down his check were scars of a battle once lost. As he sat there on that porch, staring at me, my heart broke.

I’ve had dogs all of my life. I’ve had big robust Saint Bernards, and a very thin, sickly 96 pound Saint. He was in much pain, and with a broken heart I had to put him down. But compared to the Rottweiler puppy I locked eyes with, my dog was fat. This was the first time I had ever seen a dog so malnourished that it looked like a vacuum-packed bag of bones. This was the first time I could see battle scars and red where an eye should be. The only other times were on the internet, while doing research into the effects of dog fighting.

“You can’t save them all,” an old cliché, yet so true. It’s a lesson that I have to learn the hard way. While following the poor puppy, yet never getting close enough to help, my group and I had to eventually leave him. We had followed him for a long time, through alley ways and roads. Our hearts stopped as we watched him trying to cross busy streets and stopping in front of oncoming cars. You could almost say he was playing chicken, yet he always staggered onwards. When we left, we could talk of little else.

I had been working at Safe & Sound for three months before I happened across this puppy. I work within their Community Partners program. Partners work in Milwaukee’s neighborhoods every day. They work with the residents of those neighborhoods directly. They collaborate with law enforcement and city agencies with the goal to reduce violent crime. In the 10 years since the pilot program first came into being, Safe & Sound has had measurable success.

While working within the Community Partners program, I was given an outreach to plan. My partner and I collaborated with both MADACC (Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission) and DNS (Department of Neighborhood Services). Our goal was to help the dogs of Milwaukee by running a pilot project to offer free pet health and safety services to low income dog owners.

We researched dog fighting and behavior. We found that several severe attacks had occurred over the summer. Sometimes animals were properly fenced, vaccinated etc. Other times they were not. With specific focus on Pit Bulls and Rottweiler’s, we handed out literature and resources to residents in the South and in the North sides of Milwaukee. We talked with residents that had dogs, and others that didn’t. We were able to connect with many different people in the neighborhoods.

MADACC had been working to solve the problem of not enough dogs being licensed and vaccinated. They offered a pilot program to target those dogs that hadn’t been given these services. Dogs that weren’t licensed were subject to the $12 licensing fee, and then will automatically be given free vaccinations (if not current), spay/neutering and a microchip. The services are valued at over $300 for lucky participants.

For weeks we worked on the project. The Partners helped by giving resources to their neighborhoods. Residents called in and were screened. If the dog was of age and eligible to receive the services, the owners were given a certificate outlining the program.

We were able to help 12 dogs through this pilot program. I remember the first certificate I gave out. It was to an elderly gentleman who had been retired. He had a venerated Rottweiler, but had been plagued with more than a month of illness. He was no longer able to afford some basic veterinary care. Through MADACC’s program, he was able to give his beloved companion the necessary vaccinations and a microchip.

I also talked with a teenage boy. He owned his dog, but as he was still in high school he was unable to provide his dog with some of the advantages adults can. Through the certificate, he and his dog were able to receive the same services adults routinely provide their companions.

“You can’t save them all” was a cliché that I had to deal with during the project. We had to turn away some dogs because they were still too young, under six months. There was another one where the frantic owner was hoping to take the $300 of services and use it as money for cancer treatments for his dog. Unfortunately, the program doesn’t work like that and we were only able to refer him to the Human Society.

We talked with a lot of owners during the course of the project. We saw many owners who adored their dogs, and had them taken care of. We were able to help some who adored their dogs, but because of a variety of factors, were unable to provide some basic care. One theme that maintained itself throughout the project was that the majority of the owners demonstrated the love between them and their dogs.

It was in memory of this love that I saw that little Rottweiler puppy that day. He had no one. His ratty and faded collar demonstrated that at some point in his short life he may have had a family, but that memory has long since faded. His body does not look to withstand a harsh Wisconsin winter.

When I saw this little puppy that looked as if he hadn’t eaten in a month, it was before a news article shattered what was left of my broken heart. An elderly border collie was left outside in 6 degree weather over night. If that wasn’t enough, the poor dog is so heavy he cannot walk. The owner has been arrested and released. This dog has an owner, and yet he has had to survive the frozen temperatures that this puppy has to face. The collie survived because of the extra fat wrapped around its middle. As much outrage as I feel against the owner of the collie, I felt morose because the little puppy does not have any extra layers of fat to help him survive the same night.

No, you can’t save them all. But with every one that you can save, it makes a difference for that animal. It makes a difference in the health of the neighborhood. It makes a difference for the families surrounding the dogs. It makes a difference.

Stephanie Paul is a Public Ally working at Safe & Sound for her 10 months of service to the community. Public Allies are a non-profit organization that seeks to have Allies develop their leadership skills by working in non-profits across the city.