WEST BRANCH – Claws and Paws Rescue was born out of a dream to do better for the animals in our community.
In late 2011, a small group of community members attended a No Kill Conference in Bay City and learned the answer. A well thought out plan, called the no kill movement, was already in place and simply needed to be followed. To say we were excited is an understatement. In early 2012 Claws and Paws Rescue became a reality. In those early years we operated from a kitchen table and learned by doing. None of us had ever worked in animal welfare, but were united by our love for animals, and wanting to save lives.
We made a name for ourselves by beginning with a trap neuter return (TNR) program where we trapped and sterilized feral cats and kittens. From there we kicked off a foster home program, began holding adoption events and moved into a little office space in downtown West Branch. We are guided by a volunteer board of directors who works hard to set direction and growth for the rescue.
We are volunteer based, and community supported, rescue group. We rely on our volunteers for every aspect of what we do. Volunteers work in our office, foster our animals, transport animals, go out on life saving missions, bag food for our food pantries, present the rescue to the community, write, photograph, maintain our website, design promotional materials, manage social media and the list goes on. Our volunteers are the backbone of the rescue and without them we would not exist. If you are an animal lover and would like to join our crazy animal loving team, please stop in, or call our office at 989.345.2479.
We are the voice for the voiceless. we are the voice for the abandoned. The voice for the homeless. The voice for the abused and neglected. The voice for those no longer wanted by their owners. We will work with law enforcement and court officials, if needed, to bring an animal to safety and into our care.
Our dream for the coming year is for a place to call home. We are dedicated to finding the perfect home for all of our animals and the time has come to do the same for the organization. We currently have a small rented space in downtown West Branch, that has been very good to us, but we are bursting at the seams and ready to take this next big leap of faith. Watch for a capital campaign to kickoff in early 2019 to raise the much needed funding to make this dream a reality. A new home will allow us to immediately take in crisis animals until a foster home can be secured, a fenced play area for dogs and a screened in safe area for cats to experience the outdoors, hold trainings for our volunteers and the community, enlarge our pet food pantry to greater help those struggling to feed their pets and expand our services to our community.
The demand is great and we need to grow to continue to meet that demand. Our goal is $150,000 to make our dream come true. If you are an animal lover, please consider making a donation via our website at www.clawsandpawsrescue.com (designate capital campaign) or mail to Claws and Paws Rescue, PO Box 55, West Branch, MI 48661. It truly does take a community to save lives.
