Four Legs and Fur

Good things often arise from dreams, and dreams need wings to fly. In Hickory County three women gave wings to a fledgling animal rescue in 2014 and on July 24, 2015 Four Legs and Fur Animal Rescue was born. Although nascent, it was the only established rescue in the county. Jo Rose, Berta Bryner and Jan Gerstlauer, firm animal advocates, established an organization to fill a void in the county, the goal of which was to make the lives of dogs and cats better where possible. By donating available dog houses for outdoor animals, altering animals as funds allowed, adopting dogs into new homes or moving them on to larger rescues, fostering abandoned kittens and helping feed pets when owners were experiencing challenging times, the rescue worked to fulfill the goal. Years later, we look back and know we have touched the lives of many animals and humans alike. There is always a stray or lost dog to help and abandoned kittens to save. Some of the kittens we rescue are the result of litters from cats living on their own with minimal or no interaction with humans. In 2022, to break the cycle of litter after litter in feral communities we began a “trap neuter return” program. Part community education, part spaying and neutering, every feral we help ends a lifetime of suffering. We are an all-volunteer organization, and our volunteers are the wings of this organization. Good things do arise from dreams.