No Kill Animal Rescues in Greene County, TN

The subject came up recently on another discussion board that there was a lack of no-kill shelters in Greene County.

I responded to that post, and my response was removed, so I am going to post as much as I can remember once again here, and I am sure I will expand on the subject.

There are many no-kill shelters operating in Greene County. With the exception of Greeneville-Greene County Humane Society, these shelters are not supported by the community, and the people who run them are constantly stressed by their need for funding, volunteers and other support.

This stress load does not stop them. I know many hard working rescue people who have been at it for years. Many of them live in personal poverty, but still work at rescue. The animals in their care come first.

The animals in their care are the cast asides that people thoughtlessly dump on our county roads, or move off and leave sometimes chained up or locked in a building. We are a monstrous society when you think about how many people treat animals. I pray that some day the laws will be strong enough to stop the senselessness of not spay/neutering, of willfully abandoning or abusing any of God's creatures.

I will list many of the active rescues that I personally know about:

A Second Chance Adoptions
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN275.html
apawparty@aol.com

A Voice for Pets
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN288.html
sweatpea21560@yahoo.com

Bright Hope Animal Rescue
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN507.html
bhanimalrescue@aol.com

Feral Friends of Greene County, Inc.
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN363.html
adoptions@feralfriendsofgreenecounty.org

Forgotten Angels Animal Rescue
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN279.html
forgottenangelsanimalrescue@yahoo.com

Greeneville-Greene County Humane Society
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN90.html
gchs78@juno.com

GreenePets Foster Network, Inc.
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN258.html
greenepets@gmail.com

Helping Paws mountain View Rescue, Inc.
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN249.html
cdavispaws@comcast.net

Mustang Alley Horse Rescue, Inc.
http://www.mustangalley.org
mahr@mustangalley.org

Sheltie Rescue of East TN, Inc.
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/TN355.html
brenda@sheltierescueetn.com

As I said before, the only rescue that is really receiving any support in our community is the Greeneville-Greene County Humane Society.

Every rescue needs financial support.
Every rescue needs volunteers helping with animal care, fundraising, and getting the word out.
Every rescue needs donations of food and supplies.
Every rescue needs help with veterinarian bills.

You can call the vets in Greene County and find out which ones are working with which rescues. Donate to that rescue at the vets office.

Our state mandates that in order to rescue dogs and cats the rescue is responsible for the spay/neuter. No animal is to be placed unless the surgery has been performed. Yes, veterinarian fees are expensive, but guess what, not spay/neutering is even more expensive.

Anyone placing an animal in a new home without spay/neuter is only adding to the problem. New homes sometimes don't work out, then the animals are on the loose again able to breed.

We have many wonderful veterinarians who are working hard with these rescues, and they are trying to keep costs down to the rescue, still there will always be a never ending supply of abandoned dogs, cats and horses that must be dealt with by someone.

Contact the above rescues and see what you can do to help.

Oh, and another thing. Feral Friends not only rescues and places cats, but they are dedicated to maintaining colonies of feral cats around the county. These cats have all be captured at one time or another, spay/neutered, and vaccinated. To maintain a colony, they are visited on an ongoing basis, and fed. Feral Friends has been doing this for years, I am sure they need volunteers.