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What AARCS Has to Say

AARCS is so lucky to have a woman like Sandra Sparkes on our team. She has opened her home to countless rescued dogs since joining this fabulous organization. There is nothing but love that fills the Sparkes? residence. With four resident dogs (including an adopted AARCS dog), there is and endless supply of fun for foster dogs and puppies. The care and attention they receive is extraordinary and they quickly learn that rescued life is not scary, but exciting and full of warmth, good food, kindness and compassion!

On top of fostering, sometimes up to three puppies at one time, Sandra finds time to make each AARCS dog a special rescue blanket. Made from soft fleece Sandra sews each blanket or ?puppy pocket? until it?s perfect. Sometimes sporting cut-outs of bones, hearts, etc these unique blankets go with our dogs to their new adoptive home. Their special blanket is their first really possession with all the smells of their first loving home ? their foster home. With left over fabric she has made colorful braided rope toys and her newest project is paw-print soap! If you were at the Calgary Pet Expo in 2009 you may have met Sandra as she always finds time to volunteer and attend AARCS events.

Sandra, thank you for your dedication and commitment to helping AARCS, we are blessed to have you as apart of the AARCS family!

A Few Words from the Volunteer

I am proud to be a member and foster parent for AARCS! I joined at a time in my life when I needed to focus on something besides my own circumstances. I signed up to be a foster parent first, and to my surprise Deanna brought me my first rescue the very next evening. I could not imagine a dog that had not been inside a house, or did not know how to play with dog toys because she had never had such a thing. Going forward, if I did nothing else, I will always be a foster parent for AARCS. Oh, and I started making blankets too, I had this huge supply of fleece that I bought on sale, and now, I am putting it to good use.

The people of AARCS, from Deanna, our fearless leader, to Anna and Sue and Church and everyone else, some of whom I have met, and many others whom I have yet to meet, these are all people who do what they do for the love of the dog. These people find time in their days and room in their hearts to make a real life for dogs/puppies, until their forever family come along.

No, not every day ends the way we want it to, but more often than not we make a difference, a BIG difference to every single dog or puppy we save. I will never understand nor accept how any person can abuse an animal, but I will always be ready to help (and maybe sometimes a little too vocal!), just like all the other wonderful people of AARCS. My dogs (oh, yeah, I have 4 of my own) teach me something new every day, but what really matters, is what they give me, unconditional love and loyalty, 24/7, it does not ever get any better than that!