Dogs Hope Heartworm and Food

In case you were wondering how much it costs to fund a breed rescue: In good economic times ( low gas prices, etc) we have had enough adoption donations to fund feeding and housing the dogs. We have been able to pay our routine vet bills. Our director, Judith, has stepped in on several occasions to cover emergency vet bills. She also provides the facilities. Currently adoptions are low and the dogs keep coming. It costs about $130 per week for dog food (Purina Dog Chow, and canned Pedigree), not including specialty food which we use for dogs with special needs. We did have a source for free canned food, but this is no longer available. We have cut down the use of canned food, but we do need to use some with medications. Each dog costs about $110 - $150 when he or she comes into our shelter for shots, spay or neuter, heartworm testing. This is a one time cost and varies depending on where the dog comes from and his or her condition. We currently have four heartworm positive dogs - they are on a new slow kill treatment which is going to cost a couple of hundred dollars per dog (daily antibiotics and weekly heartworm medication). Our vet treated three dogs with the conventional (but dangerous) method last year, which cost about $650 per dog. We can't do that under our current financial constraints - the new dogs are doing very well with the new protocol, but it takes about nine months to complete. Our dogs are kept on monthly heartworm preventative, flea and tick treatment (when needed) and regular parasite control. Vaccinations are kept up-to-date. We use a lot of cleaning supplies. We would like to add fencing. The outdoor kennels need replacement panels, some dead trees must be removed (so that they won't fall on the building). The roof over the back of the kennel area must be replaced. Right now all of the donations we receive ($100 so far this month) are being used for dog food.in case you were wondering how much it costs to fund a breed rescue. There is a donate button on our web page (plus a lot of information about the rescue)http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/dogs-hope.html