Hello, My name is Vera Edwards and I am the CEO of TREAT Below is a brief explanation of how and why I became involved in animal welfare.

I became involved in animal welfare for many reasons. My visits to our local shelter proved to be a very sad and frustrating experience for me. I witnessed many animals sick, injured, alone, afraid and dying with no hope for a better life. I knew I simply could not walk away from the pleading eyes of those who wanted and needed a helping hand and do nothing to improve the lives of those who had the unfortunate luck to find themselves within the shelter system through no fault of their own. While at the shelter, I saw a huge number of the dogs impounded were Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes. I couldn't help but wonder why, so I did alot of research on the breed. What I found out was appalling. Many of these dogs are abused, neglected and used for dog fighting. Irresponsible owners use this breed for their own personal and financial gain and then abandoned them when they are no longer of any use to them. I wanted to change that, even if that meant just to change the life of one dog and therefore became a staunch supporter of this very misunderstood breed. I rescued my first Pit Bull at the age of 19 years old and I have never regretted that decision. The love, devotion and joy I have received from my pets have been the best and most fulfilling part of my life. Below you will find pictures of the latest and greatest loves who share my life. Joe and Jake are my very best friends and they are just two of the reasons for why I do, what I do.

Because I indeed wanted to do more, I became involved in rescue on a more broad level. I have had the joy of rescuing many dogs of many different breeds and it soon became very clear to me that this was to be my true purpose in life. My involvement in TREAT is just one extension of that purpose. Through my years of working in animal welfare it became painfully clear to me that no matter how many animals we rescue and adopt into the community on a daily basis, the supply will always far exceed the demand. So I began to change my way of thinking to include prevention, instead of just maintenance. We, the responsible pet owners have a duty to help the animals who are suffering at the hands of irresponsible pet owners. One way of doing that is to insure that we insist on the spaying and neutering of animals to prevent the accidental and unwanted litters from entering into the shelter environment or worse, being abandoned on the streets. Another way, is to educate the public on how to be more caring and responsible with their animals. That is our primary goal with TREAT Through spaying and neutering and public education, we can and will make a difference to improve the lives of the animals within our community. But we cannot do it without your support. Please get involved and do your part to better the lives of the animals who are depending on you to make a difference in their lives. We can, if we pull our resources together, make the necessary changes needed to improve the lives of every animal within our community.

Vera Edwards
TREAT
Taxpayers for Responsible & Ethical Animal Treatment
www.TREATinfo.com