Charity’s new scheme allows families to foster a pet

This year you can have a puppy just for Christmas – thanks to a Galway animal rescue charity that wants to place their pets with foster homes for the festive season.

MADRA’s resources are so stretched at this time of year that they are promoting pup fostering scheme – and that will give families the chance to see if they are suitable, without making the mistake of getting a dog they’ll find they cannot cater for.

MADRA – Mutts Anonymous Dog Rescue and Adoption – is a volunteer-led dog rescue charity based in Camus but rehoming nationally.

Their dogs come from the general public, local authority pounds or veterinary clinics – as well as dogs rescued from cruel and abusive situations.

On arrival all dogs are assessed by a vet, they are vaccinated, wormed, treated for fleas, neutered and micro-chipped. All MADRA dogs are temperament-tested as well as medically treated.

The Galway charity rescued a total of 777 dogs last year – 474 of those dogs came directly from pounds. In total MADRA succeeded in rescuing eight per cent of all dogs transferred to rescue organisations nationally.

The latest report from the Department of Environment reveals that last year 2,896 dogs were put to sleep in Ireland – that’s down 620 on the previous year.

MADRA Chairperson Edel Commerford is ‘happy to see that the number of dogs being euthanized has come down further this year’.

“In our own county, we are delighted to see that the put-to-sleep rate has been reduced this year to 7%. When we first started working with Galway County Council this figure was 83% and that was only eight years ago,” she added.

And although reducing the number is a positive step, MADRA has ambitions beyond that. They actively support, encourage and promote the neutering of dogs as an ethical solution to the over-population and killing of dogs in Ireland.

Eileen Keleghan of MADRA claims dogs end up in pounds primarily due to “lack of neutering and lack of thinking.”

MADRA’s mission is to match the right dog to the right owner – and in order to do this they need as much information as possible and ask people to fill out an adoption questionnaire.

They ask that potential foster homes are equipped with adequate space; they must also provide for the pooch to sleep indoors and must be available to spend time with them.

“These are frail little pups. They need company, love and attention,” says Eileen.

All new foster and adoptive owners will be provided with a free consultation and training session with a qualified trainer – MADRA is run under the management of registered dog trainers Marina Fiddler and Tara Nic Dhiarmada. A full back-up service is also available should somebody encounter problems with their new dog.

MADRA rely heavily on donations to meet their costs of over €100.000 per annum. The Department of Environment allows a grant of €3,000 – the rest of their income comes from the general public. Those wishing to adopt a MADRA dog or surrender a dog to MADRA are asked to make a donation – to cover the costs of neutering, vaccinations, micro-chipping, food and veterinary care.

Persons interested in volunteering, fostering or adopting can contact MADRA via their e-mail address madradogrescue@gmail.com or alternatively text 086 – 8149026.