Today we’d like to introduce you to Charla Collings.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I started rescuing dogs in 2005 and rescued my first husky, Johnny Depp, in 2007. A husky had been hit by a car and had a broken pelvis in a metro-Atlanta shelter. He needed to see a vet or they would put him down. I had two hurdles to cross: I had too many dogs at my home and I needed the rescue that I fostered for to pull him from animal control. Another foster agreed to take the lab I was fostering, hurdle one complete. Hurdle two wasn’t so easy. The rescue was resisting because she wanted me to take one of her unadoptable dogs from her facility and not the husky. She told me huskies are a difficult breed. I pleaded with the director that I had fostered close to a hundred dogs successfully and was up to the challenge. I also explained that I would look good with a husky on my arm after all we both have blue eyes! Hurdle two was complete!
I envisioned a beauty that I could train like the countless Labradors that had been through my home. Obviously, I neglected to read the book about how to train huskies or rather how they train you! We named our new foster, Johnny Depp. He was a large black and white boy with the most piercing blue eyes. We fell in love. The vet told us to keep him crated and sedated for three weeks to heal. Yes, a sedated dog is an easy dog, right? Johnny’s first night was accompanied by me on the floor next to him trying to stop the talking and howling. We found out howling is a husky thing. I swear he says, “I love you.” Johnny hated the crate and broke out every time I left. I would come home to a shredded sofa, trash on the floor or chewed baseboards. Huskies are a tough breed to slow down. I took Johnny with me when I left the house to keep him from injuring himself and to keep my house in one piece! We had a hard time finding a home for Johnny because of his previous injury. The first try was with a family that had lost a husky but had small dogs and Johnny wanted to eat them. We talked to countless potential adopters but most thought his injury might diminish his quality of life. Johnny brought us such joy so we agreed to keep him.
Johnny gave me a love for a breed that was first bred in northeast Asia as a sled dog. I’ve always had a love of animals and a passion to change the way our society discards them. In 2013 with the help of my board, my family and my friends, my passion became a reality with Releashed Rescue, a licensed, non-profit rescue dedicated to rescuing huskies and other working dogs from high-kill shelters. There is an epidemic that even three husky rescues in the Atlanta area cannot control. This epidemic is the overbreeding and selling of huskies to consumers undereducated about the breed that keeps them until about the age of one and then dumps them. The thirst for huskies comes from the show Game of Thrones and the fascination with direwolves of the Stark clan. This happens with most breeds that are in a current movie or show but normally subsides in a year. The husky fascination is going strong. We have seen a dramatic increase in the numbers of huskies needing rescue and most of these dogs were purchased as puppies, never given proper socialization and now need extensive rehabilitation to rehome. Huskies are the BEST breed (can you sense my obsession) when raised and socialized properly but the worst when not. I have a 35-acre property in Cumming with a kennel exclusively to rehabilitate the ones needing rehabilitation and a small network of fantastic foster homes that know and love the breed and will keep their fosters until they find their forever home. Johnny is an 80 lb (large for a husky) goof who stole our hearts and ignited my passion for the breed. Johnny still talks non-stop and won’t sit for anything unless he knows it will be worth his time. He isn’t much of a guard dog but our landscaper says his crew is terrified of him. I guess looks are deceiving. Johnny is king of the castle but we wouldn’t have it any other way. Warts and all, we are addicted to huskies now. Our lives are never dull when we have 22 dogs to care for.
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?
The road has never been smooth. We are constantly looking for funding, foster homes, trainers and veterinarians that can do shots and spay/neuters but also veterinarians that specialize in unusual diseases. We have had dogs with glaucoma, ectopic ureters, a degenerative neuromuscular disorder, parvovirus, deaf, to mention a few. We have had countless dogs that have heartworm disease, a disease easily preventable. We need people to transport the dogs from shelters to our facility. We need people to write grants and these are all volunteer positions.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Releashed Rescue Inc – what should we know?
Releashed Rescue is a licensed 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing huskies and other working dogs from high-kill shelters, rehabilitating those that need training and rehoming them into permanent loving homes. Releashed Rescue will provide food, shelter, basic necessities, medical treatment including shots and spay or neuter, and work to train any animal going through our program. Our goal is to find the right family to love and care for the animals for their lifetime.
Releashed Rescue has a vision of a world where animals are not killed because they are inconvenient. Instead, we hope to educate the public about pet overpopulation, spay, neuter, humane treatment of animals and how animals can enrich the lives of people including the elderly, children and those with disabilities.
I am the founder and executive director of the rescue. I am most proud of the number of dogs over 650 that we have saved in our five years. We are different in that we try to educate our adopters about the breed and even send them training tips on bringing a new dog into their home.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Dedication to the cause. The job is 24/7 and there is no compensation. I keep at it to ensure the dogs we bring into the program never end up in the same situation from which they came.
Pricing:
- Dogs over 6 months are $300 includes spay/neuter, up to date on shots, and are microchipped. We have tested them for heartworms and if negative they are started on heartworm and flea and tick prevention. If positive, we use the treatment recommended by the American Heartworm Society
- Puppies under 6 months are $400 (see above for what includes)
Contact Info:
- Website: www.releashedrescue.com
- Email: releashedrescue@gmail.com
- Instagram: Releashed_rescue
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/releashedrescue/
Getting in touch: VoyageATL 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.
