An animal shelter in Delaware County gets an extra special Christmas gift, $50,000 cash. But this is no ordinary shelter. Our Tamara Lindstrom tells us why the prize is so deserved.
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DELAWARE COUNTY, N.Y. -- For eighteen years, Susan Marino has opened her door to needy animals.
"The animals kind of find their own niche when they get here. They find the corner that they want to sleep in and the blanket that they want to sleep in. And every single animal here seems to find a friend," said the founder of the non-profit Angel's Gate Hospice for Animals.
But Angel's Gate in Delhi is no typical shelter. There are no kennels, and the 400 dogs, cats, birds and other animals that live here have found a permanent home.
"I know every dog's name, every cat's name. Every now and then I forget the name of one of our employees," Marino said.
But it's not just any animal that comes to Angel's Gate. Marino and her staff take care of animals with special needs; animals with missing limbs and serious illnesses.
"They're animals that have no place to go, that nobody wants them. There's just no place for them," Marino said.
A registered nurse for more than 40 years, Marino turned her attention to animals after a neighbor's dog was seriously injured.
"I realized at that point that there were so many dogs in our shelters that were being euthanized long before they were ready. So I decided to pretty much do what I had done for children most of my life,” said Marino.
She uses the skills she learned treating terminally ill children to care for and rehabilitate the needy pets, and winning $50,000 in Rachael Ray's Mutt Madness competition will make life a whole lot easier for the caregivers. Construction has already begun on what they're calling "Rachael's Kitchen."
"The new kitchen will have a commercial dishwasher, it will have a place to wash animals, it will have a place to prepare the food, which we desperately need," Marino said.
Though not all of the animals may live very long lives, Marino said when they take their last breath they will know they were loved.
Angel's Gate is full and is not taking in any animals at this time, but Marino hopes to expand the facilities to better care for the animals.
If you would like to help, click on www.angelsgate.org.