Dogs, devotion, donation

With tears in her eyes, Jaimie Boltz, one of the owners of Every Paw Animal Rescue (EPAR), told a personal story to describe why her and her partners, Nicole Courville and Jill Stevens choose to rescue the many helpless and homeless dogs roaming Evangeline Parish.
Boltz said, “About six-months ago we rescued Survie, a senior black lab, and four of her live puppies and four of her dead puppies from some woods in Bayou Chicot. The dogs had maggots all over them and Survie’s entire back end was rotting.”
After taking a moment to let her emotions settle, Boltz continued, “It makes me emotional remembering this. It was raining and cold when my husband walked through briers to help rescue Survie and her puppies. Survie could barely even lift her head or keep her eyes open when we first found her, but now, after having been able to properly care for her, Survie is just the happiest dog you have ever seen.”
Just like Survie so desperately needed help six-months ago, Boltz, Courville, and Stevens now are attempting to reach out to the people of Evangeline Parish for help to create a better environment to house the puppies that they rescue.
Courville said, “We do not have a parish wide shelter in Evangeline Parish. What they do have in this parish is an animal shelter in Ville Platte and one in Mamou.”
While these two shelters exist in the parish, there are many issues with what these animal shelters are able to provide for the animals that are taken in.
Courville said, “The employees at these shelters are doing all that they can with their limited resources, but the funds just aren’t there to be able to provide proper care for animals at these places. The two shelters that we do have in the parish stay full and unfortunately have animals with diseases that spread to new puppies that are brought there.”
According to Courville, the diseases in the shelters have made it to where “puppies have only about a 5-percent chance of surviving.”
Because of this, the three local ladies are working towards having their own foster facility that would be equipped to quarantine animals properly, which would prevent the spread of deadly viruses.
The ladies say that they are “$5,000 away from being able to purchase the dehumidifier” needed to quarantine rescued animals properly.
To try and reach their goal, Boltz, Courville, and Stevens have decided to hold a raffle, which tickets may be purchased for at Gator’s, Teet’s, Town & Country Animal Clinic, Coreil Veterinary Clinic, and The Hatchery until February 6. Raffle tickets may also be purchased on EPAR’s website.
The three owners are also working towards raising the $3,000 that they are in need of to have a labor and delivery suite constructed at their facility, located in Ville Platte.
Courville said, “Puppies already barely have a chance of surviving when they are brought into a shelter, so giving birth in difficult conditions leaves the puppies with even less of a chance to survive, as well as the momma.”
If EPAR is able to create a labor and delivery suite, Courville says that they could then “provide these animals with a better chance of survival.”
One issue that Boltz, Courville, and Stevens are trying to also stress to dog owners is the importance of having your animals spayed and neutered.
Boltz, who is currently fostering around 20 rescued dogs, said, “There are a lot of dogs that need to be rescued, and if those dogs have puppies then that leads to there being even more dogs without a home. The high population of dogs will just continue to grow.”
To try and help with this problem, EPAR’s owners are making an effort to create a spay/neuter program for the animals that are rescued, as well as for those in local shelter.
Boltz said, “One female dog can produce two litters of six to 10 puppies per year. That means one female dog is capable of producing 67,000 dogs in six years. That is why we want to be able to provide services that would allow for us to have rescued dogs spayed. This would help keep the population of dogs down in the parish.”
As Boltz, Courville, and Stevens continue to work on finding homes for rescued puppies, they plan to also work to educate the individuals on animal cruelty.
The ladies hosted their first animal cruelty workshop last November for the Evangeline Parish Sheriff, law enforcement officers, and even local judges.
Boltz said, “There is a great need here in Evangeline Parish for awareness and compassion for these animals. Since the first workshop, law enforcement officers have told us about the changes they have made when it comes to dealing with animal cruelty. That’s what we are doing this for, to help really make a difference in how these animals are being treated and cared for.”