Over the past week I’ve been working on a grant submission for the dog rehousing program, well for the volunteers in the group actually – the FaCSIA Volunteer Grants Program. I’ve asked for funding to buy our volunteer coordinator Ludelle a computer and printer (she presently uses an old manual typewriter!), shirts to help protect volunteers clothing and provide some sort of uniform, and fuel reimbursement. Would be nice to get this, I’m just amazed at how much of their own resources the volunteers put into the program.
I am STILL waiting for the Qld Office of Fair Trading to get back to me about costs for getting a copy of the association’s rules – it has been at least four weeks, three phone calls, a fax and a letter. The last phone call was yesterday, the person I needed to speak to was away and I was promised a phone call on Monday.
Sent ABN application off to tax office last week, waiting to hear back from that. Got a call from Woolworths last week after dropping off a request for support – gave us a $50 wish card donation.
Things are looking a little more optimistic this week with another job interview coming up on Monday. It is one of the school admin positions I applied for weeks and weeks ago. The prayers have helped, thanks Dad!
As well as that, at work this week I was asked by the director to put in an application for the financial support coordinator position I’m interested in. This is the position that Gayle and Ron (who is leaving) said would need a qualified accountant to fill, so I was surprised when Ros (the director) approached me about it.
Ros said they might need to change the role slightly, as employing a staff accountant would be too expensive. The position description she printed out doesn’t even mention any requirement for tertiary qualifications, just a desirable Year 12 secondary plus relevant experience.
I mentioned to Ros that I’ve been interviewing for a second job – she asked me to hold off on accepting any offers until about the middle of next week, when she should have an answer from the management committee. I think it would solve a few problems if they decide I am suitable. It would certainly suit me since the hours are flexible, I wouldn’t have to give up my community work.
Speaking of which, another good piece of news is that another of my favourite pound dogs got a home this week. Roxy had actually been moved out of the pound to a nearby foster carer’s place to recuperate from being desexed. This was her second time in the program, the first place she went to hadn’t worked out. Better luck the second time we hope – she is going to a young family with kids she will adore.
Roxy
Sent off the group’s way overdue Annual Return last week too. Hopefully the Office of Fair Trading wont have any problems with it. I am waiting for them to get back to me about a copy of our constitution. Having phoned them early last week I was annoyed to have to chase them up again, I ended up faxing a letter to them. It is holding up so many things we want to do – open new bank account, apply for various endorsements from the ATO. Here’s hoping I hear back from them next week.
I have a soft spot for this very strong and boisterous bully x ridgeback girl we’ve been caring for at the pound. We’ve been calling her Zena, and she really does remind me of the warrior princess she is so macho! I’ve wanted to take her home with me, particularly for post-op when we were planning to get her desexed today but fortune smiled instead.
It’s difficult to tell whether a bitch has been desexed sometimes. The customary ear tattoo is sometimes impossible to spot. When Zena was under examination not only did the vet spot her tattoo, but also found a microchip between her shoulder blades. This was great news because it meant we could track down her former owner and learn a bit of her history.
Ludelle found the former owners on the Gold Coast, who were very pleased to hear from us. They are in the process of selling up and moving to New Zealand, and three months ago had given J-Lo (as Zena is now known) to people on an acreage out our way. They had thought it would be good for her there and were devastated to learn that J-Lo had been put into the re-housing program only a month after they had let her go.
The good news is the owners have decided to take J-Lo with them when they emigrate and are coming to pick her up next week. I’ll miss Zena/J-Lo but I am so glad she is going back to a loving home where she belongs.
The dog rehousing group needed a new treasurer so I put my hand up, and found I have my work cut out for me. No one in the group seems to have any idea about being on a committee (what committee?) and there are a few housekeeping issues that need to be sorted out. Most of the workload of running the group has fallen on Ludelle and unfortunately I think a lot of it has been beyond her with everything else she does for the program.
The financials haven’t been done for a couple of years. Some bookkeeping was done by the previous treasurer, but I’m finding the accuracy leaves a bit to be desired (the lady works at a bank and was apparently supposed to be a whiz at figures). I’m not checking off any receipts or dockets, just checking the additions and entering everything into MYOB so I can get a proper accounting system going. I’ll be more stringent with the accounting for this financial year and onwards.
There is also a bit of education needed with the recording of financial transactions – writing receipts for all donations, getting invoices for all expenses etc. The group has a bank account, but it is rarely used. Cash donations are just used directly to pay bills and a lot of bills are paid directly out of members pockets. Makes it difficult to determine the exact financial situation of the group, not to mention scary from a governance point of view. Have stipulated that if I am treasurer all of these things must be handled properly.
The local council has granted some land for erection of a shelter and kennels so there are building costs for that project, as well as ongoing costs for the program. I’m hoping to get the group registered as a charity with DGR (deductible gift recipient) status at the ATO, this will be of great advantage with grant applications, as well as for general appeals out in the community.
Today Hubby and I drove down to the Animal Welfare League shelter at Coombabah to pick up some donated dog food for our local group. Huge place and what an awesome set up. One of the workers was telling me that at any one time they have 100 dogs there, with 200 fostered out to carers. They re-house dogs at the rate of about 15 per day. The shelter is open 7 days and was packed with people looking for a new pet. Beautiful big pens with plenty of space for exercise, I overheard one of the other workers telling a visitor the dogs get walked twice a day.
The dog food has been coming in by the truckload thanks to a community drive they’ve been running – they had two huge container loads full of cans and dried food, one of the containers had been filled in a week! They were running out of space to store it all so the AWL very generously invited other animal welfare groups to take as much as they can carry. Managed to load about a ton of food on the back of our Defender ute, far more than our group was expecting us to carry I think, but very welcome.
I really believe it is better to adopt a homeless dog than buy a purpose-bred puppy. Obviously there are dog fanciers, trainers and breeders around the world who would disagree but for ordinary folk like me who aren’t interested in a dog’s pedigree, I think it is a kinder option to consider. Particularly when you visit a place like the one I went to this morning – the local dog pound.
I rolled up at 7.30am to find out about becoming a volunteer dog walker with the local dog rehousing program. I was the first one there and the sound from the dogs locked up inside the council compound just tore at my heart. They’d heard the car and obviously knew it was time for some food and human attention.
This dog rehousing program was started about 7 years ago by Ludelle, a retired local lady. Ludelle was shocked at the number of unclaimed and abandoned dogs which had to be destroyed by council each year and aims to give them a second chance at finding a good and loving home. The council gives her space for four dogs at the pound, and she has a network of foster carers who take extra dogs on a temporary basis until permanent homes are found. She can save as many dogs as she has space and foster carers available.
Today I met Ludelle and another volunteer dog walker, Fiona. While Ludelle was cleaning out the pens and preparing the dogs’ meals Fiona and I took each dog for a good 20 minute walk. Although there are only four pens, at the moment there are five dogs being cared for there, the fifth is housed in the corridor between the pens.
There was an exuberant young black Labrador male named Gabe, a young black Kelpie male named Zac and three Staffordshires – Inka, Roxie and Chevy. Chevy was such a joy to watch, his tail wagged the whole time he was on lead and he just seemed so happy to be alive. They were all in wonderful condition, they get veterinary treatment and a good solid meal every day while in Ludelle’s care.
It was a little sad to leave them, their pens are in a windowless shed with a roller door – some daylight enters through a row of brick-sized ventilation holes in the wall. Seems a very dark and dreary place. But the odds are they wont be there long, the rehousing program is apparently pretty successful, Ludelle’s phone rang several times in my hearing (when I wasn’t walking dogs), and she is very strict about the homes she allows them to go to.
