By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Dogs are abused, malnourished, or sometimes their owner simply dies or loses a job and can no longer afford a pet. Regardless of the cause, Hands of Hope Rescue is back in the business of helping those canines. The licensed non-profit helps only dogs, and President and Founder RaShann Southard said they do it without an actual facility.
"We bring them in, put them in foster homes, then find them new homes - adopt them out," she said. "We get them medical care if they need medical care. A lot of our dogs end up needing medical care because they've been neglected or just haven't received any."
Hands of Hope operated for nine years before shutting down a year ago. In January, the group of volunteers returned to help dogs into new homes. The group takes in owner surrenders, or is sometimes contacted by shelters or other non-profits when a dog is in need. Southard estimates the group has helped some 2,000 dogs over the past decade. Without a facility, however, there is one steadfast rule.
"I don't bring them in unless I have a place for them, so if somebody contacts me about a dog they need to find a place for, the first thing I do is start looking for a foster," Southard said. "Without that foster, I have nowhere to put the dog. Fosters are key."
Hands of Hope has approximately 15 fosters around Kansas, including in Barton County. More volunteers serve as transport for the animals, sometimes driving the dogs across the state for placement. Some of the volunteers and fosters have been with the group for a decade. "We're all over the place," said Southard. "Wherever I can find a foster in Kansas, we try to make it work."
Southard said, for practical purposes, Hands of Hope focuses mostly on dogs in need of medical care. "Behavioral issues, we don't really take because they go into a foster home. These people have their own pets and their own kids, and their safety is No. 1. We don't take aggressive dogs. It's just too dangerous for the foster and the foster home."
Hands of Hope runs entirely on donations. Those proceeds not only help with medical care, but also buy dog food for some of the volunteers who may want to help but lack the financial ability to take on another animal.
"A lot of them need dental," said Southard of the dogs. "We've taken some with broken bones. We took one that actually, at one point, had a wire in his neck that had to be removed. It was basically decapitating him, so we had to have that removed."
There are several ways to donate to Hands of Hope. CLICK HERE to donate via PayPal. Checks can be mailed to Hands of Hope, 4827 Camelot West Drive, Great Bend, KS 67530. Owner surrender, adoption, and foster applications can be found by CLICKING HERE.