Making A Difference in Your Community : Caring for Dogs Waiting for a Home

Every couple of months or so, workers at Millerwood Animal Rescue and Sanctuary in Burbank find a dog tied up outside their building or one that has been tossed over the fence and into their yard.

It would probably happen even more often if the kennel--where the abused, the sick, the old, the abandoned and even mixed breeds sometimes end up--advertised its address. But if it did, there would be no room for all the animals people would leave there, said Pamela Miller-Sackter, kennel founder. “It’s always full.”

Including others boarded with a cooperating veterinarian and at another kennel, the organization houses about 70 dogs.

“I’ve made a lot of money over the years with animals,” said Miller-Sackter, a horse trainer at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center. “I’m just trying to give something back.”

She started Millerwood about two years ago after volunteering at a kennel in Chatsworth. The owner promised a no-kill policy, but then put to sleep two dogs who had homes waiting for them, Miller-Sackter said.

“Then, he said, ‘That red shepherd is the next to go,’ ” she said. That dog was Jason, one of the eight original pooches rescued by Miller-Sackter that still live at Millerwood. “He’s a good boy,” she said as the dog greeted a visitor.

For an animal lover, Miller-Sackter has had many a heartbreaking experience with dogs. A puppy was found tied by a wire around its neck outside her office at the equestrian center, another was left in a garbage bin. She took in a bulldog with broken legs and chest wounds whose owner was unwilling to pay the veterinarian bill.

Miller-Sackter rescues any dog she can--as far away as Orange County--unless a veterinarian convinces her that there is no way to save the dog’s life.

It is that firm commitment to a no-kill policy that drew Deidra Hearn, a hairdresser and makeup artist, to volunteer at Millerwood.

“I wouldn’t trade this place for anything,” said Hearn. ‘

Hearn volunteers three days a week, between two and six hours a day, walking and grooming dogs. Volunteers are also needed for clerical work, answering the telephone and to help screen potential foster homes for the dogs. They should be prepared to get dirty, Hearn warned.

“I was clean when I walked in here today,” said Hearn, wearing a dirtied white T-shirt and sweats with her hair pulled back.

Volunteers should be at least 18 years old; 15- to 17-year-olds must have parental permission. Younger children may not volunteer.

“You can’t look at these dogs quite as pets,” Miller-Sackter said. “You have to think of them as dogs. Every single dog has a history we don’t know about.”

Part of the advantage of having volunteers who take the dogs on walks is that the animals have daily contact with people, which Miller-Sackter said helps them be more sociable. During the walks, Millerwood workers also learn the animals’ individual quirks, perhaps fear of trains or loud noises.

“We have some of the happiest rescued dogs in town,” Miller-Sackter said. “Life is pretty good for them here. We do what we have to do to make sure they get homes.”

Millerwood needs donations, volunteers, foster homes and people willing to sponsor individual dogs by paying for their monthly expenses. For more information, call (818) 845-5452 and ask for either Deidra Hearn or Joe Becker.

Volunteers are needed to support children and families being helped by the Children’s Bureau of Southern California. A special volunteer orientation session will provide an overview of the agency at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the bureau’s central office, 3910 Oakwood Ave., Los Angeles. For more information, call (213) 953-7356.

*

Getting Involved is a weekly listing of volunteering opportunities. Please address prospective listings to Getting Involved, Los Angeles Times, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth 91311. Or fax them to (818) 772-3338.