Special Care Fund for Animals and Vulnerable Populations

The Cause

Providing Animals With Safety for Life (PAWS for Life; PAWS for short) Foundation is located in Edmonton and was established in 2009. We are dedicated to improving the lives of abandoned, abused and neglected dogs through force-free training, rehabilitation, and finding our rescues safe, loving homes. PAWS is a registered non-profit charity in central Edmonton and an Alberta Force Free Alliance member.
Our idea for the grant funding is to establish a "Special Care Fund" to address growing needs in our community's pet population. The fund would be used for two main areas of concern: rehabilitating dogs who have demonstrated long-term and extreme behavioural issues that prevent their adoption, and assisting the growing houseless and low-income population in Edmonton with retaining ownership of their companion animals.

Our request will allow PAWS to finance the cost to assist ten dogs over one year who require extra care with our partners, K9 Misfits, animal trainer/behaviourist Ryan Pozobut , and others. These facilities and specialists provide hands-on behavioural training and more hands-on care than our facility can provide, and have demonstrated positive results with dogs who display behavioural challenges in response to past trauma.

The second part of the funding requested will be utilized for food and veterinary costs for low-income persons/families or persons experiencing houselessness who cannot afford life-saving measures or other medical procedures for their dogs. It has been proven that dogs provided critical support to homeless people (University of Bristol, July 2023), and PAWS has endeavoured at its own expense to assist those who are awaiting access to affordable housing and permanent shelter to keep their pets under their care by covering the costs of pet food and basic veterinary procedures. PAWS has also, on occasion, provided temporary boarding of pets while individuals are in periods of transition to find new housing, again utilizing the services of K9 Misfits where the shelter space at PAWS has reached capacity. The funding provided from this grant would allow PAWS to establish a formal program to address these issues as they arise.

Who Will it Benefit?

The pet ownership community will benefit through PAWS' efforts to provide extra behavioural training to dogs who have experienced past trauma, bettering their chances of successful adoptions and lower return rate to the rescue. The dogs who are adopted will be well-trained and suitable to a good home.

The low-income and houseless population will benefit from retained ownership through the Low-Income Pet Care Assistance Program that the funding will support. It is proven that dog ownership among those facing housing insecurity will improve the owner's ability to maintain a routine, assist them through mental health issues and give continuous emotional support (University of Bristol, July 2023). By assisting the houseless population to retain ownership of their dogs through food supplies and covering the cost of basic veterinary care, as well as the option for temporary pet boarding, PAWS will be directly improving the chances of survival while such persons are transitioning into more permanent and supportive housing options.