The Pike County United Way supports 18 charitable agencies and organizations countywide. Most of them have been supported by the United Way for several years.

However, new agencies and organizations are added when a need has been identified.

This year, the Pike County United Way has added The Precious Paws Sanctuary to its list and is providing financial support to assist in the sanctuary’s efforts to rescue small animals, mainly dogs and cats.

Symantha Griffin, founder of the non-profit animal rescue sanctuary, said its primary purpose is to rescue abandoned and/or abused companion animals.

“The animals may be found on the streets, in shelters or even relinquished to the sanctuary,” she said. “Precious Paws is a sanctuary for animals that are hurting. Our goal is to care for the animals and restore them to good health so they will be adoptable.”

Griffin said Precious Paws Sanctuary is self-supporting and operates primarily on donations.

“I greatly appreciate the support of Pike County United Way, which makes a quarterly donation to Precious Paws,” she said. “It’s good to know that every three months those funds will be available.”

Griffin owns and operates The Freckled Frog Boutique in Troy, which, along with her husband’s construction company, are the major “contributors” to Precious Paws.

“August had been a busy month with a lot animals rescued and a lot of expenses,” she said. “We rescued 17 kittens that were on ‘death row’ at a shelter. After the rescue, we found that several of them had respiratory problems or leukemia. The medical expenses were high, as were the expenses for Charlie, an emaciated dog we rescued off the animal control truck. He was at the vet’s for a week and then we took him home hoping to build him up for a blood transfusion that could save his life. But, after three weeks, we lost him.”

Griffin said the cost of providing medical care for rescued animals quickly reaches the thousands of dollars.

“So, donations like the support of the United Way go a long way in caring for these helpless animals,” she said. “But right now, we have we are at our limit. We can’t financially take any more animals. I say that, but then we got a call the other day about a dog that had been hit by a car and was laying a ditch. We couldn’t just leave it there.”

The dog was rescued at an initial veterinarian cost of $200.

To raise funds for Precious Paws, Griffin has extended The Freckled Frog to include Rescue Rags Upscale Resale Store. Rescue Rags includes T-shirts with the Rescue Rags logo and cute quips about dog and cats. Rescue Rags may also be purchased at Confetti Carte in downtown Troy. All sales benefit The Precious Paws Sanctuary.

Donations may be made to the Precious Paw Sanctuary, c/o Symantha Griffin, 220 Elba Highway, Troy, AL 36079 or at The Freckled Frog. All donations are tax deductible.