Mission and Vision
MISSION STATEMENT
At Famous Fido Rescue, we are on a mission to transform the way our society thinks about animal welfare. We recognize that over 6 million companion animals are admitted to shelters each year in the US alone, with 1.5 million of them being euthanized due to overcrowding, illness, injury, or behavior.
We are dedicated to finding solutions to this problem by providing resources, spreading awareness, and changing the way we care for animals. Our organization focuses on rescuing and rehabilitating animals that are typically the most euthanized in kill shelters, such as seniors, bonded pairs, and animals with behavioral challenges.
Our goal is to create a world where all animals are treated with respect, kindness, and compassion. We believe that by educating and supporting our community, we can put an end to the cycle of abandonment and ensure that every animal has a loving and lifelong home.
Famous Fido Rescue and Adoption Alliance is guided by a simple quote by Gandhi: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
In the late 1970’s our founder – Gloria Lissner – saw that there was a problem with millions of animals being euthanized every year. Even with the general belief amongst the public that this problem never be remedied, Gloria began to rescue dogs and cats as an alternative to the violence they would suffer at a high kill shelter.
Her mission was a powerful one. She formed Famous Fido as a grassroots effort to end kill shelters and to promote animal rescue and adoption. Famous Fido works to rescue animals who aren’t considered “adoptable”, saving them from abuse and euthanasia and working to place these animals into safe, loving homes. Famous Fido also strives to educate the community about animal rescue and animal protection.
Gloria Lissner has been dedicated to Animal Protection and has saved thousands of animals in the last 30 years. The establishment of Famous Fido Rescue is the combined effort of many individuals who are driven and dedicated to finding solutions to the many problems that afflict abused dogs and cats who have been abused or abandoned. We have made a lot of progress however there is still a very long way to go. With the support of the many like-minded people we work with as volunteers or donors, we are able to provide food, shelter, veterinary health-care, spaying, neutering, training, and adoption information. We also offer lots of love, an active support system and many other resources.
We want to change the way people view animals and to promote awareness that many laws and policies do not work to protect them. Recently, we began to realize that the most pressing problem is that animal guardians often lack knowledge and resources that would allow them to keep a dog or cat in the home when an issue arises whereby they believe they must surrender their animal to a shelter. We have initiated, since moving into our new No-Kill Advocacy Center of Chicago, a program called Project GUARD. This is an intervention program, providing counseling and resources to those stressed by high vet bills, lack of pet-friendly housing, behavioral problems or family issues that have placed the animal into imminent danger of going into the shelter system where there may be a high risk of euthanasia.
Our Goals
- Stop the abandonment of animals
- Intervention and rehoming of cats and dogs and not bringing a dog to the shelter
- All animals are in good homes, and no more homeless dogs and cats
- Stop the killing of healthy animals
Joshua Clark wrote. “I can honestly say I’m an animal lover…when that animal is a Koala. As a child I was always afraid of dogs yet I wanted one. Mostly it was because I thought that any dog I had would love me as much as I love it, behave, walk and feed itself, and protect me from whatever monsters were living under the bed at the time. I can honestly admit that before working with Gloria Lissner and Famous Fido Rescue I lacked a genuine appreciation for “Man’s Best Friend”. Seeing and hearing the truth of what shelter and stray dogs go through has been somewhat of a life-changing experience. ”
Famous Fido aims to save the lives of the animals that need us most. We rescue and rehabilitate the animals that many other shelters feel they cannot take. No animal, with the chance of a healthy happy life, is declined medical treatment. All are vaccinated, heart-worm tested, micro-chipped and spayed or neutered before they go to their forever homes. We educate people to think of themselves as guardians of their pets, not owners. We encourage understanding that a shelter is not the answer to an unwanted animal. No animal should have to live in a shelter. If intervention counseling through Project Guard proves ineffective for an individual case, re-homing is the best and only answer. We will continue to build a network of foster parents and potential adopters to ensure that these animals are treated with respect and compassion for the rest of their lives.
We care about our furry friends and with your help we can change their lives for the better and find a solution to this never-ending problem.
