Minnie is a petite pitbull mix with floppy ears and a trademark pit smile. She looks like she’s wearing a tuxedo, and her tail is constantly wagging—even though she bears the scars of the dog fighting ring she was rescued from.
“We are constantly working to rehabilitate animals from cruelty rescue situations,” says Maura Davies, Vice President of Marketing and Communications for the SPCA of Texas. “It just amazes me how loving these animals are, despite what they went through.”
Minnie is just one of over 3,000 animals the SPCA of Texas saves from abuse and neglect each year.
Making This Life-Saving Work Possible
Some are victims of dog fighting rings or hoarders; others, like KD, are house pets dumped on the side of the road. “Seeing the police surveillance tape of that was shocking,” Maura says. “Our team was able to rescue the dog and bring the person who’d done this to justice.”
Why was KD left for dead? It was due to a simple training issue that the SPCA’s rehab trainers were easily able to correct. “KD now has a loving family, a stuffed toy in her likeness, and even her own Instagram account!” Maura reports.
Donations from the public and grants like the ones from PetSmart Charities make rescues like these possible—and much, much more. The SPCA of Texas has two animal shelters, three low-cost spay/neuter clinics, two mobile spay/neuter vehicles, a mobile adoption vehicle and a mobile rescue vehicle.
“We’ve had a wonderful relationship with PetSmart Charities,” says Maura. “With these donations and grants, we can investigate more reports of animal cruelty, rehabilitate the rescues, and find them homes.”
Rescue Work Is Not Limited to House Pets
“They are one well-run organization,” says Chad Franke, a PetSmart District Leader for central Dallas. “I know this because we visit several times a year. My team and I help clean and feed the animals, play with the cats, take the dogs for walks. The SPCA of Texas has done so much for animals, we’re happy to clean up a little pee and poop as a way to give back to them.”
The SPCA of Texas also provides services to people who are facing the heartbreaking possibility of having to surrender their family pet. “We provide our community with alternatives,” Maura says. “Behavioral counseling, help with medical bills, training, referrals to pet-friendly housing, and more.”
Their help isn’t limited to house pets; in 2009, the SPCA of Texas was part of a nationwide rescue operation involving a dealer illegally selling exotic animals. Joining forces with other SPCA groups, the Texas team helped save over 26,000 animals, including chinchillas, hedgehogs, wallabies, lemurs, sloths, exotic snakes and iguanas, spiders, rats, and mice.
“Because of the funding we’d received, we were able to house thousands of animals in a new shelter we’d built,” Maura says. “Specialists worked 24 hours a day caring for the animals.” The rescued exotic animals were taken in by several zoo conservation programs that were able to provide them with a suitable living environment.
‘There Are Just So Many Minnies’
While the SPCA of Texas also has a livestock care program for rescued sheep, goats, cows, and roosters, the team usually finds themselves trying to save as many dogs and cats as they can.
“There are just so many Minnies,” says Maura. “She has a bunch of toys, and she doesn’t bite them; she snuggles with them. She just wants a friend to snuggle with. We’re here for her, and for all the animals,” Maura says. “Whatever it takes, we’re here for them.”