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Potcake Place was first set up in a home on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, which has fostered puppies for many years. We are a Non-Profit organisation made up of a group of volunteers who want to help these rescued potcakes. We take pups to the vet, and give them all vaccinations, wormers and other treatments appropriate for their age. There is no animal shelter in The Turks and Caicos. We look after these Potcakes in our own homes until a permanent home can be found. Our policy is to house the pets for as long as it takes to find the best home. This is the only alternative we can see to them starving in the bush, being run over, intentionally poisoned, dying of Heartworm/Ehrlichia/Parvo or being euthanized. We socialise the pups with beach trips, and organise dog training where necessary. We meet potential adoptive families for a play session with the pups. If an adoption goes ahead, we take the pup to the vet to arrange a health certificate, book the pup on to the plane, and meet the families at the airport. We also spend time finding volunteers to transport the pup if the family are not visiting the island. Our aim is to increase the chances of finding a place for every Potcake. We hope Potcake Place can grow to involve more foster homes and to continue an adoption programme. "The Rescued Dog" Once I was a lonely dog, just looking for a home. I had no forever place to go, no one to call my own. I wandered up and down the streets, in rain, in heat and snow. I ate whatever I could find, always on the go. My skin would itch, my feet were sore, my body ached with pain, And no one stopped to give a pat or gently say my name. I never saw a loving glance, I was always on the run. For people thought that hurting me was really lots of fun. And then one day I heard a voice so gentle, kind and sweet, And arms so soft reached down to me and took me off my feet. "No one again will hurt you," was whispered in my ear. "You'll have a home to call your own where you will know no fear." "You will be dry, you will be warm, you'll have enough to eat." "And rest assured that when you sleep, your dreams will all be sweet." I was afraid I must admit, I've lived so long in fear. I can't remember when I let a human come so near. And as she tended to my wounds and bathed and brushed my fur She told me about the rescue group and what it meant to her. She said, "We are a circle, a line that never ends. And in the center there is you, protected by new friends. And all around you are the ones that check the local pounds, And those that share their home with you after you've been found." And all the other folk are searching near and far. To find the perfect home for you, where you can be a star." She said, "There is a family, that's waiting patiently, and pretty soon we'll find them, just you wait and see. And then they'll join our circle, they'll help to make it grow, So there'll be room for more like you, who have no place to go." I waited very patiently, the days they came and went. Today's the day I thought, my family will be sent. Then just when I began to think it wasn't meant to be, There were people standing there, just gazing down at me. I knew them in a heartbeat, I could tell they felt it too. They said, "We have been waiting for a special dog like you." Now, every night I say a prayer to all the gods that be. "Thank you for the life I live and all you've given me. But most of all protect the dogs in the pound and on the street. And send a Rescue person to lift them off their feet." |
