ANIMAL RESCUE
SAVES LIVES
One Dog And Cat At A Time Story and Photos by Meredith Burow
Wellington High School graduate Justin Bartlett was only 24 years old when he was tragically killed in a car accident. Now, more than a decade later, countless lives are being saved in his honor. Tucked away in a shopping center at the northwest corner of Southern Blvd. and State Road 7, professional animal lovers work rigorous hours to save dogs and cats at Justin Bartlett Animal Rescue, giving them a new lease on life. Peter Torres, the organization’s founder, was a friend of the Bartlett family. As a token of his appreciation to the Bartletts for supporting his previous rescue organization, as well as of Justin’s love for animals, Torres named the organization after him. The nonprofit, no-kill rescue consists of an adoption center, an animal hospital and a thrift store. The organization maintains high standards when adopting out animals. In order to assume ownership of a Justin Bartlett pet, interested individuals must first complete an application and then be approved by one of the rescue’s adoption counselors. Applicants are asked to include information on subjects such as their previous pets, family veterinarians, HOAs, the type of home they live in and references. According to Torres, the in-depth process applicants must complete is a
necessity, as an unfit owner can be detrimental to the physical and mental well-being of the pet. The case isn’t always that the owner is irresponsible, but that the dog and owner may not be the best fit for each other’s lifestyles. Torres used the example of a newly married couple, living in a one-bedroom apartment, in search of a husky or German shepherd. The couple may be perfectly fit to own a dog, but not one as high-energy as these particular breeds. The goal of the rescue is to find the animal a loving, permanent home. “Dogs need someone to look up to, and once they have that trust in you, they’ll do anything for you,” Torres said. “But if today it is you, and six months from now it’s somebody else, they feel that, and they know it.” Despite the team’s best efforts, Torres said that dogs walking out of their doors don’t always end up staying at its new home. Sometimes the owners decide it’s too much effort to own the dog, and sometimes, to their own disappointment, the dog has behavioral issues. The rescue has a dog trainer for wellington the magazine | september 2019
37