![\"The](\"http:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/catplayroom.png\")
<\/a>The facility is full of playrooms for cats and dogs.<\/p><\/div>\n
\u201cI believe cats should be cats and dogs should be dogs, and they can\u2019t be that when they\u2019re caged up,\u201d said Pauline Cushman, founder of the rescue. \u201cThey feel like that\u2019s the only space they own, so they become very withdrawn in that space, whereas like this, they can do whatever they want to do. And [the cats] interact with the dogs all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
While shelters usually place their animals in kennels, the rescue allows animals to socialize with each other freely. The rooms have beds, toys and bowls, and the cats and dogs can go in and out as they please.<\/p>\n
A few of the dogs are in glass rooms for health or behavior reasons, but even those rooms have just as many decorations and toys to keep them busy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re happier, they\u2019re healthier, and they\u2019re easier to adopt because people can come in and see their personalities,\u201d said Cushman.<\/p>\n
<\/a>The pooches get to share a mattress in one of the glass rooms.<\/p><\/div>\n
The free roam setup is not only meant for the animals, but for the visitors as well. Just like the cats and dogs, visitors are welcome to go from room to room and meet all the rescues.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has an impact on people too, not just the animals,\u201d said Cushman. \u201cWhen they come here, even if they don\u2019t see something they like, it\u2019s been a positive experience for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Founded in 2002, the rescue started with an office, a small room, and a goal to save about 70 cats. Fast-forward to 2015 where the rescue owns two facilities and has saved over 6,100 animals.<\/p>\n
While business was slow at first, the rescue now enjoys large numbers of visitors, especially on weekends. The staff ends up having to ask people to wait in the lobby because they get so busy.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Cats can hang out wherever they want, including the desks.<\/p><\/div>\n
The rescue saves animals from high-kill shelters inside and outside of their local community in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Extending their reach to North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee, the rescue is willing to use whatever resources they can to help cats and dogs that shelters won\u2019t take.<\/p>\n
When they can\u2019t reach a location in time by car, the rescue has a volunteer with a piloting license and a small Cessna plane who will fly over to North Carolina and pick up animals.<\/p>\n
With all the work the rescue does to save and take care of animals, it\u2019s no surprise that maintaining their facility requires a bit more work. Since all of the cats are allowed to free roam at night, they tend to leave the place a little messy.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look at it now, and it\u2019s spotless, but overnight it\u2019s party time,\u201d joked Cushman.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Pauline Cushman, founder of Hope for Life Rescue Center<\/p><\/div>\n
Every morning for four hours, staff members clean the facility before opening at noon. On average, they use about one gallon of bleach a day to keep the place clean.<\/p>\n
On top of that, the rescue takes in animals with various sicknesses and health issues. From cats with ringworm to dogs with sarcoptic mange, the staff risks their own health just to give these animals the proper care and attention they deserve.<\/p>\n
In order to keep their facility clean, pay for medical treatments, and continue to provide hope for their community, the rescue relies on donations. Any contribution would help the rescue and ensure a better future for the animals they save.<\/p>\n
To donate, you can visit the rescue\u2019s website<\/a> and for additional information, be sure to check out their Facebook page<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Welcome to Featured Rescue Friday! This week we\u2019re featuring Hope for Life Rescue Center, a rescue located in Virginia Beach that gives hope to the animals they save and the community they live in. At Hope for Life Rescue Center, the walls are painted pink, blue and yellow. The rooms are fully decorated, complete with furniture and paintings. If not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":598,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,4],"tags":[8,322,19,18,185,184,258,321],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=591"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":597,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591\/revisions\/597"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/598"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sittingforacause.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}