Bluebonnet Animal Rescue Network is 100% volunteer-based. Our passion is to rescue animals and make life better for them, and ultimately, to make life better for the people who adopt from us. Our focus is on livestock guardian dog (LGD) breeds such as Great Pyrenees, Anatolian Shepherd, Akbash, and others with a similar history of protecting goats, sheep and other livestock from predators. LGDs make it possible for ranchers, farmers, and homesteaders to live in harmony with the wildlife native to their area, protecting livestock without the need to kill predators, who in most cases, occupied the land long before it was settled. Many of the dogs we rescue turn out not to have the right temperament to be working dogs, so we also place dogs as family pets who live inside the house. Our goal is to get to know each dog well enough to discover the kind of life that will make him or her happiest, and then find the right home to create "happily ever after" stories for each animal we rescue.
In addition to rescue, our work includes:
* Educating the public about the need for spay/neuter of all pets at the appropriate age, to help reduce the over-population of stray and homeless pets and the over-crowding in shelters and rescues.
* Educating the public about the importance of veterinary care for all pets, including the monthly use of preventives for heartworms and fleas/ticks to prevent disease.
* Helping our local Animal Control agencies, who are on the front line in dealing with stray and homeless pets in our area.
* Helping families keep their dogs and get the veterinary care needed, even if they can't afford it.
* Supporting other rescues who share our passion for animal welfare. Working together, we can save more lives and have a greater impact on our communities.
Our greatest expenses are veterinary care, dog food, livestock feed and hay, flea/tick protection, and heartworm prevention. These are ongoing expenses, month after month.
We would love to have enough funds to have each dog professionally groomed on intake and at adoption.
We have two "big ticket" items on our wish list -- a few commercial grade fans for the barns that serve our livestock, and a few veterinary grade free-standing stainless steel kennels for dogs who are required to be on strict rest after surgery or during heartworm treatment. Both of these items must be free-standing, because tax laws don't allow us to make permanent improvements to the home or property owned by any individual who fosters for us. That includes our home base at Windsong Ranch, which is a privately owned working ranch.
As much as anything, we would love to have more volunteers! We need foster homes, people to help with grooming, and people to help with our social media presence. We also need volunteers who are able to help us with basic obedience training. There are many ways to help -- contact us to let us know about special skills you are willing to put to work for the animals of Texoma!
Our mission is to make life better for animals and the people who love them.
Bluebonnet Animal Rescue Network (BARN) was founded in 2013 to rescue animals in North Texas, and especially in the Texoma area. Our focus is on farm-friendly dogs, including livestock guardian breeds such as Great Pyrenees, Akbash, and Anatolian Shepherd. Bluebonnet Animal Rescue is based on a small working ranch, so we also rescue livestock according to space available in our pastures and barns, and provide them with a forever home.
Organization name
Bluebonnet Animal Rescue Network
Causes
Animals, Community Improvement
Operating Budget
Less than $100,000
Counties Served
Wise, Tarrant, Somervell, Rockwall, Parker, Palo Pinto, Navarro, Montague, Kaufman, Johnson, Hunt, Hood, Grayson, Fannin, Erath, Ellis, Denton, Dallas, Cooke, Collin
Address
P. O. Box 964