There are hundreds of stories about pet owners who develop a bond with their animal that would rival that of a parent-child relationship.
But sometimes that bond develops slowly or perhaps never does. Maybe the animal is labeled incorrigible and brought to a shelter, where it may be adopted. More often than not, however, the animal is put to sleep. And today, homeless and discarded pets continue to be a growing problem just about everywhere.
Arleen Braun of Bartlett and her friend Rita Milcarek of Chicago wanted to do something about the problem. Using their own funds and with the help of local supporters, they launched the Four Paws Animal Foundation of Bartlett last year. One of the primary goals of the foundation is helping dog owners receive proper training for their pets.
Braun said she began thinking about founding the non-profit organization after years of owning a dog that gave unconditional love. “I had the most wonderful relationship for 10 years with a dog I owned, and it made me wish everyone could share in that experience sometime in his life,” Braun said.
Six years of volunteer work with the Anderson Animal Shelter in South Elgin and the Strays Halfway House in Schaumburg convinced Braun there were too many animals needlessly cast away.
“It bothered me that a lot of people seemed to give up on their pets,” she said. “A lot of the problems just seemed behavioral. With a little more education about breeds, I felt, people could train their dogs . . . or at least choose a more appropriate breed.”
Braun created the Four Paws Animal Club in 1994 in hopes of achieving that goal, but it became a heavy financial drain on her. She teamed with Milcarek to create a not-for-profit foundation that could raise other funds.
“We’ve spent at least $1,000 combined to cover costs of filing forms for a charitable organization and requesting tax-exempt status with the state,” Braun said. “There was liability insurance, postage, producing a newsletter by ourselves and renting a mailbox. We realized that, if we wanted to ask others to contribute to our foundation, we had to show a belief in it by financially backing it ourselves.”
The foundation now exists, Braun said, to promote the belief that with encouragement, education and some financial support, human and animal relationships that have not worked can be turned around.
Four Paws’ first year as a foundation hasn’t been low profile. In May, during National Pet Week, it sponsored an essay contest for area children ages 7-12 asking them to explain how an animal had affected their lives.
A float in Bartlett’s 4th of July parade and a pet show used as a fundraiser in the August Bartlett Bonanza Days has kept them in the public eye.
“We had 65 cats and dogs entered in a variety of categories, and 250-300 people attended the (August) show,” Braun said.
Veterinarians Jennifer Hart of Bartlett’s Heartland Animal Hospital and Arlene Rodriguez of the Hanover Park Animal Clinic have supported the foundation in a variety of ways. “We served as judges for the pet show, and we’ve written articles on pet care for their quarterly newsletter,” Hart said. “For the past four years, we’ve offered a Picture of Your Pet With Santa here at the animal hospital, and we’re now giving the proceeds to the foundation.”
Hart said the foundation’s work is also important in terms of controlling the cat population and protecting the public, especially against rabies. “Controlling the cat population is very important,” Hart said. “We help out by giving people a break on spay/neuter fees and the necessary rabies shots. And Four Paws is willing to reimburse some of their costs.”
“We will pay for a maximum of four stray cats anyone finds if they wish to have them spayed or neutered,” Braun said.
Diane Hubberts, executive director of Bartlett’s Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber has been happy to make local businesses aware of the foundation’s activities.
“We act as a vehicle that helps Four Paws and other service organizations attract sponsors,” Hubberts said. “One of the ways the community gets something back is the animal visits (to nursing homes) the foundation makes possible through its dog training program.”
Through the pet therapy program, volunteers have taken their dogs to Lexington Health Care facility in Streamwood and Benchmark in Hoffman Estates. Four Paws also sponsors a program offered by the American Kennel Club in which owner and animal can earn a certificate in recognition of “Canine Good Citizenship.”
“Dogs are registered and given 10 basic tests related to obedience, behavior around strangers, amount of barking and so forth,” Braun said. “Owners can then visit the elderly in nursing homes because the animals have proven they can operate in this environment.”
Currently, the foundation has the resources to spay or neuter 20 stray cats per year and provide up to 10 dog owners with financial assistance for obedience training.
“Puppy classes typically cost $45 for a six-week course, and we’ll reimburse people their cost once they pay for the class, complete it and show us the receipts,” Braun said. “But part of our work in the foundation also includes persuading people to adopt older dogs.”
Braun said the Four Paws foundation has begun bimonthly education classes that meet on the second Wednesday of the month at the Bartlett Library. Braun will present a video that teaches children about safety around animals at a pet awareness session in May at the library.
“Our organization exists in order to help familiarize people with their animals, understand their behavior and help in training them,” Braun said. “Sometimes people have difficulties with their pets and feel that an animal shelter is the only place for them. We don’t want people to give up on something that’s a part of their family. And this organization is far less costly than building another animal shelter.”
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For information on Four Paws, call Braun at 630-497-2078.
