Today we’d like to introduce you to Rekka Melby and Nicole Bush.
Rekka and Nicole, please share your story with us.
Rekka: In 2010, I went to a street dog rescue for the first time. It was 100 degrees and a friendly momma dog was clearly nursing but her puppies hadn’t been seen. We put a long lead on her and fortunately, she led us to an abandoned house and eventually we heard puppies and found them buried deep under the floorboards and that hooked me! I went on more and more captures and gained a lot of experience trapping/rescuing street dogs.
In 2011, my passion for saving elusive street dogs reached a whole new level when we spent two months trying to catch a dog who had lived in the drainage ditch/pipe at 175/Buckner for over four years (that’s how long people told us they’d fed her). Due to her length of time on the streets and that we couldn’t get within 20 yards of her, most folks thought she’d be feral. We discovered Norah’s nine newborn puppies hidden in the bushes at a nearby church and when she came back to feed them, we were able to catch her! I fostered Norah and her puppies and within a few weeks, she was my shadow. She’s taught me the meaning of having a heart dog and is the reason I feel so strongly about not just saving the street dogs that hop in the car but putting in the hours and countless capture attempts to rescue the elusive dogs too. Acting skittish on the streets helps keep them from falling into the wrong hands and once you get them to safety, it is truly amazing to see their transformation! Video of Norah’s rescue has been viewed over 1.6 million times and I hope it inspires others to get involved and help save more lives! I served in the roles of Vice President and President at another street dog rescue from 2012-2015 and am currently serving as Co-President at The Street Dog Project along with Nicole!
Nicole: After losing my dad, I felt a little purposeless and then Lilly and my paths crossed. When I found her, she was a scared, emaciated dog. We were two lost souls who found hope in each other. Lilly didn’t trust easily so when she started to offer her trust it wasn’t something I took lightly. After seeing her blossom, I knew that there were other shy dogs that needed a different level of compassion and care. I started volunteering for a local humane society and through another shy dog, Ellie, found my way to the rescue group that Rekka was helping lead.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We were both in leadership roles at another street dog rescue that we had been heavily involved with for years. The organization was moving from street dog rescue to more of an outreach focus and while we realize that type of help is needed; our hearts are so heavily geared towards rescuing forgotten dogs directly from the streets, we made the decision to leave and start a new rescue group.
One of the biggest challenges was walking away from the brand and supporters that we had built from 2012-2015, and starting all over again from the ground up with limited donations. A lot of folks did not realize we were no longer with our former group and we had to adjust our operating model to be on a much smaller scale since we didn’t have the same reach via social media, donors, etc. We feared we wouldn’t be able to save as many lives because we now had fewer resources. We’ve worked hard to build The Street Dog Project brand while holding true to our commitment to saving the street dogs who need a chance.
Please tell us about The Street Dog Project.
We formed The Street Dog Project, a 501c3 non-profit, in 2016. We are comprised entirely of volunteers and our dogs live in foster homes as we do not have a physical location. We primarily rescue dogs directly from the streets, many of which are elusive and require days, weeks or even months of capture attempts.
A lot of the dogs we rescue from the streets are skittish and come to us with unknown behavior and medical needs. The first stop is the vet so we can get them checked out and start coming up with a treatment plan. We give them time to decompress and then move them to foster homes where they learn how to be part of a loving family.
We are known for taking in fearful dogs and helping them turn around; so are often asked by staff to take in dogs from their shelter.
We are most proud of our commitment that once a dog is on our radar, we do our best to follow through and get them to safety. Juno is a great example; we only saw her once on the streets but recognized her on a shelter’s Facebook page a few months later and welcomed Juno and her five young puppies to TSDP!
We are extremely thorough in vetting and placing dogs in homes as we strive to make sure it’s a wonderful match for everyone involved! We rely on donations and fundraisers as we take in a lot of dogs with beyond basic medical needs and bills add up quickly. We’re grateful for our great group of adopters, fosters, volunteers, and supporters!
We also enjoy educating Good Samaritans about how to help a street dog as we want to equip as many people as possible to get involved and help save lives!
We create videos showing our rescue dogs journeys as we hope that seeing the “before and after’s” will encourage others to foster or adopt a former street dog!
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite childhood memory was when I was in second grade and we adopted our dog, Gizmo. Someone had found her on the streets and after she turned out to be homeless, my parents found out about her and we took her home! She was such a fun dog!
Pricing:
- $25 tax-deductible donation covers one month of heartworm/flea/tick preventative for one dog
- $40 tax-deductible donation covers one night of medical boarding for a newly rescued dog
- $100 tax-deductible donation covers one exam and a round of vaccinations for a newly rescued dog
- $150 tax-deductible donation covers one spay/neuter surgery
- $400 tax-deductible donation covers heartworm treatment for one dog
Contact Info:
- Website: http://thestreetdogproject.rescuegroups.org/
- Email: info@thestreetdogproject.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thestreetdogproject/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thestreetdogproject/
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyJbgSojq4runRD1K0Nq4kw
Image Credit:
Christine Colling Photography
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
