When Suzanne Matthews retired from the Air Force in 2013, she moved back to Owensboro from Whiteman Air Force Base in Johnson County, Missouri. She said it was on a whim that she decided to stop at the Daviess County Animal Shelter on the way back home from picking up her retirement card.
This “whim” would not only lead Matthews to open her home to foster many dogs and cats, but would also lead to her driving thousands of miles across the country to help save some of the animals’ lives.
During her visit that day, she overheard the workers discussing one dog, in particular, that was on the euthanasia list. This was the dog’s third time on the list and, with the shelter being overcrowded, the dog could be put down if not fostered or adopted soon.
Matthews decided to ask her landlord if she could foster the dog. When the landlord agreed, Matthews became a foster mom to Sara, a half boxer/half rottweiler mix.
“When I was traveling for the military, I never could open my home through fostering animals,” Matthews said. “I was excited to finally get to help.”
Matthews found that Sara’s problem was that she didn’t know how to meet people. People often misread her actions when encountering her for the first time. A group of volunteers raised donations and sent the dog to professional training for a few weeks.
“If you came at her too aggressive, she would be aggressive too,” Matthews said. “It’s important to let the dog come to you.”
This is when Matthews decided that she was going to adopt Sara and foster another animal from the shelter that needed a little work.
According to Matthews, a lot of dogs at the shelter are awaiting a similar opportunity for someone to understand them.
“I was pulling dogs and cats from the shelter and fostering them until they were able to get adopted,” Matthews said. “ I was helping but still wanted to do more.”
Meanwhile, DCAS director Ashley Thompson and shelter volunteer Allison Speer began contacting rescues around the country to see if any of them had room to take more dogs and cats. With DCAS at full capacity, something had to be done to save these animals. The contacts led them to a rescue in Rochester, New York, who was willing to take in 20 dogs.
Since getting involved, Matthews has traveled to New York several times, made a trip to Cheyenne, Wyoming and, on her biggest rescue mission, she’s had as many as 32 dogs with her on one trip. She credits the success of these missions to the other amazing people she volunteers with at the shelter who have the same heart as she does for animals.
“Ashley has nurtured the relationship between our shelter and these rescues across the country,” Matthews said. “I am not the only one doing transports. One volunteer, Denise Bell, took 20 dogs to Chicago just the other day.”
The transport of dogs and cats from DCAS to various rescues around the country is paid for by Saving Animals In Need Together (SAINT). Formed by volunteers that work with the shelter, SAINT provides funds to offset transportation and travel expenses for the transporters. The fund covers the gas up and back to New York and one night of hotel, for example. Without this funding, the animal transports would not be possible.
“People don’t know how lucky we are in Daviess County with the shelter we have,” Matthews said. “People become numb to the plight of the animals in other places.”
Matthews said the volunteers at DCAS give up long hours to serve. Only six paid employees cover two counties, including Daviess County and Mclean County. Two of the individuals are animal control officers who are on call 24 hours a day 365 days a year.
“People go to the website and just see a standard picture but they don’t get to see the animal in a home environment, interacting with other cats and dogs,” Matthews said.
Matthews, who has eight cats and eight dogs of her own, continues to open her home to animals. Currently, she has two greyhounds that she is fostering for friends who are in the Air Force. She says kittens, puppies and elderly animals especially benefit from having a foster home placement while waiting for their forever home.
Those interested in volunteering at the shelter or fostering can contact 270-685-8275 or e-mail [email protected] for more information.
