Donation covers adoption fees at Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry

SOAP LAKE — A recent donation to Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry will make it easier for some folks to find their perfect furry companion. 

“We started a special for Valentine's Day where it was $100 for the adopter to pay, and the rest was paid for by a donor,” said Shawna Kluge of Soap Lake, who runs the pet rescue. “And then we had somebody come forward and say, ‘Hey, I'm willing to cover the adopter’s portion.’ So basically, it makes it free for the adopter.” 

The special has been extended to the end of February, Kluge said. The anonymous donor’s contribution will continue beyond that until the money donated runs out. 

Adoptions have slowed down a lot recently, Kluge said, partly because of the economy.  

“Many people are struggling to feed themselves,” Kluge said. “There are more owner surrender calls than ever before, which proves to me that families are struggling.” 

In addition, most of the dogs at the Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry are large dogs that have been there for a while, which means adoptive families take a little time to get acquainted with the dog before finalizing the adoption. It also gives the rescue a chance to vet the prospective owners to make sure the dog is going to a safe, pooch-friendly place. 

“These guys are my babies,” she said. “They’ve been with us since they were little. They haven't transferred out simply because we didn't find the right transfer option for them. And I'm not going to transfer them if I can't guarantee they're going to be safe … I want the dog to be comfortable with the people we're sending it with. I don't want them to feel like we're sending them away because they did something (wrong).” 

Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry takes every dog adopted on an exit visit to the veterinarian to make sure they’re medically sound and then accepts the dog back if the adoption doesn’t work out in the first 30 days, Kluge said. The transition is difficult enough the first time a rescue dog is adopted, with the trauma that most of them have already suffered. But when a dog is adopted and then returned, that dog comes back even more emotionally damaged. 

Kluge started Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry in 2020 as a pet food bank for people having trouble keeping their animals fed during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Columbia Basin Herald archives. In 2022, she took in a pregnant dog whose owner had died, and found homes for both mama and puppies, and that started her on the road to accepting more and more abandoned animals. She moved to a patch of land between Moses Lake and Soap Lake about a year ago and has spent most of her time putting up kennels and caring for the dogs in her care. She keeps the specific location quiet so that people don’t abandon animals there, she said. She also has to have people text her rather than phone, she said. 

“There are people who want me to take their animals and when I tell them I can't fix their mess-up, they get upset,” she said. 

Kluge received a litter of puppies recently that’s taking up most of her time and money, she said.  

“My plan was to get them into foster care within 48 hours,” she said. ‘Well, 24 hours in we tested positive for a parasite. So, it’s irresponsible for me to try to put them into homes at that time.” 

She’s managed through great care to keep the parasite from spreading either to the other dogs at the rescue or to herself, she said, keeping a special pair of shoes and changes of clothes for trips to the rescue site and keeping the puppies isolated from the other dogs. Everything that comes in contact with the puppies must be either washed or thrown out, and Kluge said the laundry costs are running about $100 a week.  A pair of women came down from Winthrop with a load of blankets and towels last weekend, and the rescue can use more, she said. 

Kluge operates the rescue on a shoestring budget, taking what donations she can get. A local veterinarian has extended her a line of credit, which is usually maxed out or close to it. A recent donation from the Moses Lake Humane Society paid that off just before Christmas, she said, and now it’s back up over $4,000. 

She recently received a call from a community member who could donate a brand-new $1,600 shed from The Home Depot, provided she could get it to the site and set up herself.  

“I went in to try to coordinate it, and the delivery charge was really reasonable,” she said. “It was like $80. But for me right now even that is a lot, if you’re talking $80 worth of dog food or $80 for a shed delivery.” 

Instead, The Home Depot delivered the shed for free, and a few friends came and helped her put it together.  

The Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry can use more sheds, as well as pet food and other supplies. A post on the rescue’s social media page cited an urgent need for paper towels, garbage bags and bleach cleaner. 

Kluge can also put anyone who volunteers to work, she said. She has one regular volunteer who comes by three days a week, she said, and everything else she has to do herself. Like most other animal rescues, Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry is filled with pets in need, but not with resources. 

“We need more people who can step in,” she said, “but we also need people to realize that if they stop and pick up an animal off the side of the road, they really need to have a plan because rescues aren’t it right now. None of us have space.”