Fostering dogs so humans can get addiction treatment

When Laura Helvey met Catherine Gabbard in the summer of 2023, she was sitting on the ground next to her dog, Bossy, crying.

Gabbard was about to disregard her orders from a Kentucky court to go to addiction treatment for one simple reason: She couldn’t leave Bossy behind. Gabbard was packed and ready to run into the woods with Bossy, just so she could stay by her side.

Bossy, a pit bull-hound mix, was also pregnant and the only source of constant affection and support Gabbard had had for the past couple of years.

“She helps me if I am sad,” Gabbard said in a recent interview. “She feels what I am feeling. When I was getting high, she was feeling the trauma from all of that, too.”

Helvey, a stranger to Bossy and Gabbard, sat and consoled the pair and ended up bonding with the dog. Helvey made the decision to foster Bossy so Gabbard would feel at ease and get treatment.

A few days later, she was fostering seven dogs — Bossy and her six newborn puppies. They were dubbed “the recovery pups” and named after recovery facilities in Kentucky: Hope, Isaiah, Ethan, Spero and Arc. One puppy, Spark, did not survive.

Helvey, who lost her son Daniel to an opioid overdose in 2019, operates SPARK Ministries of Madison County, south of Lexington. The nonprofit community center points families and people with substance use disorder toward rehabilitation programs, detox programs, support groups, churches, job opportunities and more.

At its core, Helvey’s office helps remove barriers for people seeking recovery.

SEEING A PATTERN

It wasn’t until another woman came to the small SPARK office building on Main Street with her dog every day, resisting treatment because her dog had no place to go, that Helvey recognized another barrier.

The group, “Fostering for Recovery,” quickly was created, and calls were coming in weekly from people asking for Helvey and Kristall Morris to take in their dogs so they could go to treatment.

“When we started advertising it, it really took off,” Helvey said. “We get several calls a week.”

In another instance, Helvey and Morris met a man who was about to be released from prison after 18 years. While in prison, he was partnered with a shelter dog to train the animal and to gain work experience and emotional support.

The man was accepted into a trade school with the stipulation he complete an inpatient treatment program prior to his release. While going through treatment, he needed someone to watch his dog until they could reunite.

A foster took in the dog, which was later reunited with the man who successfully completed his program.

FINDING FOSTER FAMILIES 

“We have had to turn people down because we don’t have fosters. That is our biggest need,” Helvey said. “It is really sad.”

When the dogs are taken in, they go to the vet for spay and neuter operations, to establish responsible pet ownership once the pets are returned to their owners. Both fosters and clients sign contracts about their participation and expectations for being a part of the program.

With a lack of fosters, Helvey is no stranger to keeping the dogs herself. She currently houses three, in addition to her two personal Rottweilers. Helvey has had as many as 10 dogs in her home at once.

“It is a really big need,” she said. “The rescue community is just overwhelmed.”

GETTING BOSSY BACK

Gabbard, who was the first recovering addict Helvey helped through pet fostering, wasn’t allowed to visit with Bossy at first while in the program, but Helvey sent her pictures that Gabbard printed out and placed in her binder and on the walls in her room. When the two were reunited, Gabbard said, “Bossy knew I was better.”

Said Helvey, “Through all her struggles, that dog was with her....when she lost her family, when she lost relationships, when she lost her home. The dog was with her. Bossy loved her unconditionally, no matter if they were living in a park or in a tent.”

Gabbard successfully completed her treatment program, and she has been reunited with her family and Bossy. She is one of nine people the program has helped get into recovery by fostering their pets.

While she was in treatment, Gabbard said she heard stories from other women at the facilities who had not been as fortunate as she and had lost their pets.

“No words can explain the gratitude I have,” Gabbard said. “It was a blessing what she did, and a lot of people wouldn’t do that, especially with the stuff she already does.”

Gabbard hopes that others will hear her story and that it will inspire them to foster pets so their owners can get help.