Megan Navarro
AUSTIN — After seeing a need for an alternative for the animals that need a home, Eileen McFall has been working with local partners in Hays County and neighboring areas to ensure that every dog gets the chance they deserve.
McFall is a long-time advocate for no-kill animal sheltering, with years-long experience in rescuing and fostering dogs and cats. She started the Indie Institute in 2018 and then, its rescue effort, Final Frontier Rescue Project, officially became a component of the nonprofit that same year. She saw the need for a rescue that would abide by the value that every life matters, even those that may not be considered to be the easiest and immediately adoptable.
“I'm a longtime academic and through my work as a university administrator, I attended a volunteer fair years and years ago, where I met the volunteer coordinator for a shelter. That's how I got involved with animal sheltering, shelter reform and rescue,” McFall said. "Indie Institute is named for one of my dogs, who has since passed away, but it's for the purpose of improving animal sheltering through research, education, rescue and rehabilitation. Final Frontier Rescue Project is the rescue and rehabilitation part of that and it just immediately took over because the need is so enormous.”
According to McFall, rescues see multiple requests from various of people, including: animal control shelters; owners who want to surrender their pets; people who have found pets and shelters won’t take them in or they don’t want to take them there in fear of the pet being killed; veterinarians and boarding facilities where animals have been abandoned; and other rescues who have an animal that they don’t have the skills or expertise to handle.
Final Frontier Rescue Project is no exception.
The group takes in dogs with behavior issues or reported behavior issues because, sometimes, it's not the same thing, McFall said. Sometimes, people will think that a dog has behavior issues based on their interaction with it, but it turns out that either the circumstances, the person reporting or something else led them to that conclusion, when it's not really true, she said.
“We get a lot of requests for animals that people think are too fearful to be adopted or resource guard or various behavior issues. We took in one, Maggie. We got a call last year from Cypress Creek Animal Hospital in Wimberley — which is a vet that we work with most — from a vet tech there, saying that her extended family wanted one of their dogs euthanized for behavior and she was looking for an alternative,” she explained. “So, what happened was, the family lived in this big property and the dogs would just be running around on the property. They weren't strays, but they were just running around outside unsupervised and a cat was found dead and somebody decided that Maggie was the one who had killed the cat, even though nobody had seen anything, and they wanted Maggie euthanized. So, we were able to find a foster and take her in and Maggie is the most amazing dog. She's okay with cats. She's good with other dogs. She's good with every person. She's just fantastic.”
Having this rescue effort and organization is important, McFall said, because its work and partnership with trainers and businesses who specialize in dogs with specific needs is building capacity throughout the region.
“We had an adopter who moved to Michigan and they were having issues with their dogs [and] we had another adopter who adopted a puppy from us at 3 months old and, at 2 years old, he wasn't getting along with their other dog, so we've had to try to find resources outside of this area and they're almost nonexistent,” she said. “So, just having rescues, trainers, veterinarians [and] businesses that do not turn to automatically euthanizing any dog with a special need helps create the capacity for all of those dogs and their owners because there are a lot of owners who … have a dog who has special needs and without a deliberate effort to build capacity, those owners are just out of luck.”
Final Frontier Rescue Project does not have a physical shelter, but it works with specific community partners, such as River Dog Ranch for boarding and Cypress Creek Animal Hospital for veterinary care in Wimberley, that they know and trust to ensure they are getting the necessary attention, while also being in a low-stress environment. They have also rescued dogs from several cities and counties across Central Texas.
The organization is always looking for more fosters that are a good fit for that dog, McFall said. Those who are looking to foster can submit a short-form application online that asks a few questions, including if they have a fenced yard, what their home is like, what the dog’s life would be like with them, etc. Then, they will proceed with a phone interview, do a meet-and-greet and have a foster to adopt or adoption agreement to place the dog.
Along with fostering, other ways that the community can help Final Frontier Rescue Project include donating to the cause and volunteering.
“There's a shortage of professionals in the entire animal care industry, but in veterinary especially,” McFall said. “So, for people who are interested, kids who are interested in going on to college and working with animals or people who are interested in changing careers and working with animals, volunteering or fostering can be a really good way not only to build your skills, but to add experience to your resume.”
McFall added that they are also in conversation to have a table at an upcoming farmers market in Wimberley, where they can be out in the community to share what they do.
To learn more, donate or apply to be a foster, visit www.finalfrontierrescueproject.org.
