Adopt, don’t shop! Animal shelters nationwide are full to capacity, so when you choose to adopt from an animal shelter rather than buying from a breeder, you are saving two lives; the life of the animal you take home and the life of the animal who gets to take its spot in the shelter. While he was working as a Deputy Sheriff, Keith Benning became aware of the high volume of stray, mange-riddled, starving dogs that roamed the streets of his county. Upon discovering that the nearest animal shelter was a two-hour drive away, Keith took matters into his own hands and founded Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue (TMAR) which has saved over 7000 animals to date (mostly dogs and cats, but also some horses, llamas, pigs, and even chickens). Tune in today to hear what it takes to keep an animal shelter going (this work is not for the faint-hearted!), the process that each animal goes through when it arrives at TMAR, the expansion plans they have for their facility, and how you can support their incredible mission!
Key Points From This Episode:
- The number of animals currently being cared for by Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue (TMAR).
- People who make up the TMAR team.
- Keith shares the founding story of TMAR.
- The first animal Keith rescued.
- Advice for how to deal with a stray animal if you come across one.
- Examples of some of the many experiences Brittany has had with lost dogs.
- The importance of not making assumptions.
- How TMAR helps communities during disaster situations.
- The hard work that Keith and his team put into TMAR.
- Funding streams that keep TMAR running.
- Transparency as a value that TMAR upholds and how it has benefited them.
- The new TMAR facility that is currently being built.
- The process that an animal is taken through when it is rescued by TMAR.
- Circumstances under which TMAR will euthanize an animal.
- The types of animals that TMAR has rescued.
- Adopt, don’t shop!
- How you can support TMAR.
Tweetables:
“We’re not trying to stage anything or sugarcoat it. We’re just being honest about what it is and trying to educate people on what things are like behind the scenes.” — Keith Benning [0:21:37]
“A shelter can only save as many animals as people adopt.” — Keith Benning [0:37:53]
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue on Facebook
Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue on YouTube
Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue on TikTok
Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue on Twitter
Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue on Instagram
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