Due to a shortage of administrative volunteers and IGCA Rescue Representatives to coordinate intake, fostering, vetting, transportation and adoptions, we need help!

Many hands make light work!  If you would be interested in helping homeless Italian Greyhounds by volunteering your time, please write Georgianna at IdoIGRescue@yahoo.com and let me know how you would like to help [see the list of opportunities, below]. Many of the responsibilities are a commitment of just a few hours a month [or year!].  If you feel you can contribute by fulfilling several roles, please let us know !!!!  If we have enough volunteers we can continue our program.

Applications Coordinator:  Receive applications and ensure they are complete, conduct telephone interview and complete reference checks.  Routes applications to the Home Visit Coordinator.  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED: 1

Home Visits and Home Visit Coordinator:  Complete home visits in your vicinity [or as far as you are willing to travel] and coordinate home visits outside of your vicinity with other volunteers.  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED: 1

Home Visit Volunteer:  Complete home visits for Home Visit Coordinator. NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  AS MANY AS POSSIBLE!!!!

Breed Education Volunteer:  Primary contact for people considering an IG who have never owned one before and for people needing information about their current IG [do IGs shed?  how do I brush my dog’s teeth?  How do I potty train?].  This volunteer would likely also help the Applications Coordinator if needed doing telephone interviews with applicants who have never owned an IG before.  Maintain and distribute education materials as needed.  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1

Supplies Coordinator:  Obtain and distribute rescue supplies as needed. Solicit donations for local supplies and coordinate donation acknowledgement letters to be sent from IGRF [Italian Greyhound Rescue Fund].  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1

Intake  Assistant:  First contact interview for someone who is considering giving up their IG is open to keeping the dog if certain problems with the dog can be overcome. This volunteer will help the owner identify solutions to the problems that prompting them to consider giving up the dog [i.e., suggest restricting access to the house when people aren’t home for a dog with marking or chewing problems, suggest Care Credit financing program to people who cannot afford to pay for a broken leg, educate people who are concerned about moving to a cold climate with an IG, etc].   NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1

Foster Home:  Care for a homeless IG, take the dog to and from vet appointments as needed, work on training issues as needed [housetraining, chewing, etc.], provide feedback to Adoptions Coordinator.   NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  AS MANY AS POSSIBLE!!!!!

Transport:  We need A LOT of transport volunteers from as many areas around the valley and state as possible.  The more people we have, the more likely it is that people will not have to drive very far or very often!  Pick up owner surrendered dogs for Intake Coordinator.   Help with getting dogs to and from vet appointments when the foster home is unable to get the dog vetted.  Assist with transport legs for remote adoptions.

Lost and Found Coordinator:  This volunteer thankfully will likely only be called on once or twice a year!  When a dog in the IGCA Rescue Program is lost, or when we have a stray turned over to us, we post on various websites to try to locate the dog or owner.  This volunteer would react quickly to get the postings up on line and take the calls and emails that result and coordinate the resources necessary to retrieve a lost foster or to get a found dog safely back to it’s owner.   NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1

Web Surveillance Volunteer:  Often Italian Greyhounds are listed for sale or for free on internet forums such as Craig’s list and people concerned about the welfare of these dogs will frequently contact IGCA Rescue to alert us to the ad.  We encourage people needing to re-home their IGs to undertake this task themselves but many people benefit from our experience and guidance.  This volunteer will respond to ads by providing brief guidance if needed [i.e., explain why it is not recommended to offer the dog for free, encourage them to physically visit the home interested in the dog to ensure the dog is going to a desirable place etc.] and to provide them IGCA Rescue program and contact info if they decide they want or need our help re-homing the dog.  The email responses are in a standard format with neutral and informative language. Each encounter should take only a few moments to address.   NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1 OR MORE

Vet Liaison and Coordinator:  With the increasing costs of veterinary care, it is becoming more difficult to find services within our budget for each dog.  This volunteer will talk with clinics about our program and attempt to gain favorable pricing and direct billing to IGCA for our dogs.  This volunteer will help foster homes locate IG experienced vets near them [new foster homes often need help with this if their vet is too expensive for routine procedures] or coordinate cost effective care for the dog at one of our regular vets that may be too far for the foster home to take the dog.  This volunteer will obtain vet bills and coordinate reimbursement when direct bill is not possible and will be responsible for ensuring a complete copy of records is assembled for the adoption package.  THIS VOLUNTEER IS NOT AUTHORIZED TO APPROVE GETTING VETERINARY CARE FOR A DOG AND IT CANNOT APPROVE THE EXPENSES THEMSELVES.  ONLY IGCA RESCUE REPRESENTATIVES CAN APPROVE CARE.  THIS VOLUNTEER WILL BE HELPING WITH PROCESSING AND COORDINATION ONLY.  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1

Shelter Dog Volunteers:  We occasionally get reports of IGs in animal control or other kennel environment.  When possible, we try to bring these dogs into our program since many do not fare well in kennels.  This volunteer would visit the shelter to learn if the dog is a purebred [we cannot accept mixes] and would ‘spring’ the dog if approved by the intake coordinator.   NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1 OR MORE

Correspondence Volunteer:  Maintain an up to date contact list of adopters and volunteers.  Send out invitations for the annual rescue parade or other rescue events.  If possible, start sending out a thank you card to each foster home for each dog fostered along with the dog’s picture mounted in the card.

Intake Coordinator:  You must be an IGCA Rescue Representative to accept dogs into the IGCA Rescue program.  If you are interested in this vital role and want to learn more, please contact Alice Espey who is the Western States IGCA Rescue Coordinator based out of Seattle, WA 206-782-5445 aespey@mac.com  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  WE CAN’T HAVE TOO MANY!

Adoptions Coordinator:  You must be an IGCA Rescue Representative to approve and complete the adoptions.  If you are interested in this vital role and want to learn more, please contact Alice Espey who is the Western States IGCA Rescue Coordinator based out of Seattle, WA 206-782-5445 aespey@mac.com  NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  WE CAN’T HAVE TOO MANY!

Volunteers Coordinator:  This volunteer will contact people who have expressed an interest in helping our program and will describe our process and the opportunities to contribute. Many of our volunteer opporunities like fostering require that people fill out an application and have an in home visit completed similar to an adoption application.  The volunteers coordinator will facilitate this process. NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED:  1 OR MORE