The lifeline Animal Project was proposed to assist LifeLine finding homes for dogs and cats and to offer support for pet owners unable to provide adequate veterinary services and food for their pets. Our partnership with LifeLine included 7 key planned activities totaling 18 separate events that support and contribute to the success of LifeLine and service to our community. This effort included 79 volunteers from Buckhead Rotary and their guests, and over 25 volunteers from LifeLine, Open Hand, and Boyce Ansley School.
We assisted and sponsored LifeLine “Healthy Pet” events at which 1,752 dogs and 58 cats were provided 1,248 microchips, 4,255 vaccines, and 1,711 free Spay/neuter vouchers.
Many of the dogs and cats end up in shelters due to the inability of the owners to afford to feed them. Therefore, our team drew upon our previous partnership with Project Open Hand. Using LifeLine funds earmarked for pet food, we adopted the Open Hand software for efficient delivery routing to identify and deliver to pet families unable to afford to feed their animals.
The successful adaptation of this food distribution system has allowed us to provide 60 deliveries every month, offering 5600 pounds of food to 200 dogs and 80 cats. The project has become so successful within our club that we often have more volunteers than distribution routes. In appreciation of their support and guidance, when we do have an excess of manpower, we reroute volunteers to Open Hand to deliver meals to their clients.