NSPIRED
CDA pet groomer
leads rescue organization dedicated to saving one dog at a time
By JOE BUTLER Photography By JOEL RINER
Angie O’Neill has been rescuing dogs for more than 25 years.
A ngie O’Neill knows she can’t save all the dogs. But if she can find homes for at least some of the unwanted pooches out there, she will have made a difference. “I save one life, four paws at a time, over and over,” she said. “I con- centrate on each dog in my care until I find its perfect match in an adopter. As a rescuer, you have to know your limits — you can’t save them all, but the ones you save are everything.” Since 1999, O’Neill has been a key part of Second Chance Pet Res- cue, a non-profit organization based in Coeur d’Alene that brings dogs to North Idaho and finds them homes. Dogs can come from overcrowded shelters, people unable to care for their dogs anymore, or requests from
other rescue organizations. O’Neill learned to be choosy and has created an effective process for screening applicants. She also learned to set personal and profes- sional boundaries, which means sometimes declining well-meaning requests from shelters or individ- uals trying to persuade her to find room for just a few more dogs this week. And the next week. And the next week… “You really do have to steal your heart sometimes,” she said. “You can get emotionally exhausted eas - ily. It’s draining. I’m still here for the dogs, but I’ve learned to be pro- fessional about it.” She’s also seen good-hearted peo- ple, who want to help all the dogs,
learn how difficult the process can be. Burnout is common, often with- in a few years. “Rescue work isn’t an easy thing to do,” she said. >> How it works Second Chance is a recognized res- cue organization, which means it sometimes gets calls from organiza- tions or people with dogs who need homes. Some busy shelters have strict policies of euthanizing dogs if they remain past a certain point, sometimes as little as a month. Shelters that choose not to kill, however, face other population chal- lenges. Dogs and cats could poten- tially stay there for years, increasing costs and crowding.
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