Today we’d like to introduce you to Danielle Giroux.
Hi Danielle, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
I have been dedicated to saving the most vulnerable animal lives in our community for 10+ years. Through my volunteer work at various municipal shelters and non-profit organizations, I really discovered my passion in life. I started fostering in 2014 where I focused on caring for the most fragile of lives, neonatal and special needs cats and dogs.
Through this intense level of care, I expanded my knowledge of medical procedures and needs. While as a dog caregiver, I quickly learned the daily operations required of my local municipal shelter. To better serve the dogs I cared for, I also began taking a multitude of dog behavior classes. This is where I knew I needed to take it a step further to help my community.
I currently manage a feral cat colony and I use care to educate the public on community cats. I am a huge proponent of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) and spaying and neutering to reduce the homeless pet population. Since teaching myself to trap and fix cats 8 years ago, I have successfully TNVRed over 1000 cats.
To increase my life-saving impact, I formed the 501c3 nonprofit organization, The Runaways Animal Rescue. Despite facing the trials and tribulations of starting a not-for-profit during a worldwide global pandemic, I successfully led the organization in saving the lives of almost 2000 animals since opening in 2020. We bought an old church in the middle of a pandemic and after a year of renovations, we finally opened our brick-and-mortar shelter in September of 2021.
I believe that every animal is worth fighting for and that they all deserve loving forever homes. I try and focus on the most at-risk animals like special needs, neonatal kittens, and puppies. We also pull from our surrounding municipal shelters and have a community food bank to support our community with pet food.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been nothing but smooth, lol. I have been in the shelter and animal welfare world for over a decade, but nothing could have actually prepared me for running my own shelter. There has been a lot of trial and error in figuring out what works best for us and the animals in our care.
I also started this nonprofit in March of 2020, right before the pandemic hit. It was challenging trying to find ways to raise money and do adoptions at a time when most of the country was on lockdown and going out in public seemed like a thing of the past.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Runaways Animal Rescue?
A 501(c)3 Animal Rescue in Pasco County, FL, our mission is to protect and advocate for all companion animals in need. We do this through rescue, adoption, and spay and neuter services. Additionally, we hope to build a humane community that promotes compassion and kindness, by controlling the overpopulation of these animals through Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), community outreach services, pet food bank, and education.
We are solely run on donations from the community. We can’t save these lives without community support. We are always looking for volunteers and new and creative ways to fundraise for the animals in our care. We started The Runaways Animal Rescue, in March 2020; Yep, that’s right, a month before Florida went on lockdown for COVID-19.
Our initial plan was to be a small foster-based rescue that would be built on the years of knowledge the Giroux sisters had from volunteering at local rescues. Of course, we laugh about how quickly that notion lived when 5 fosters turned into 10 fosters, which seemed to turn into 35 overnight.
Even though the rescue was growing rapidly and feeling the support from the community around us if someone had asked the question, “Where will the rescue be a year from now?” We would have never imagined the answer would be with us residing in a 7000 sqft building, with our name plastered on the front.
The first half of 2021 involved nothing but demolition, painting, cleaning, and frankly more painting. Side note, painting 7000sqft is a feat on its own, but by god, we did it! Now, a once rundown abandoned church has turned into a thriving, life-saving animal rescue. A rescue that has saved and adopted hundreds of animals, this year alone.
Rescue Capacity
6 Cat Pods: 80 cats
Quarantine Room: 40 cats
“Welcome Home” Room: 6 cats or 1 dog
Dog Kennels: 22 dogs
We also have 6 dog runs and an outdoor cat enclosure for feral community cats.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I think the best way if you find something you are passionate about and are looking for a mentor is to volunteer. The rescue community always has people willing to help and guide you along the way. I made a lot of friends volunteering at different shelters, and then found a small nonprofit that took me under my wing and guided me on how to start a nonprofit and pursue my dreams.
Social media is always an amazing way to network and gather advice. I have an entire support system of people I met online through fostering. We would always bounce ideas off of each other or ask questions when we need medical advice.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.runawaysanimalrescue.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runawaysanimalrescue/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/runawaysanimalrescue/
Image Credits
Genesah Duffy, Alyssa Giroux, and Monica Kivlen
