EXCLUSIVE: Woman says live-in Dogs Trust job can be 'devastating' but 'so worth it'

In an exclusive interview with an Irish woman who has dedicated her life to caring for dogs in need, Eimear Cassidy shares with us her inspirational story at Dogs Trust Ireland.

Eimear Cassidy has worked for Dogs Trust Ireland for nearly eight years and said that she even lives on site along, with three other managers at Dogs Trust, and is constantly working to make sure the dogs in their care are looked after.

Between bottle feeding puppies and training dogs for their forever homes, Eimear's life is dedicated to a man's best friend. And she wouldn't have it any other way!

“I have a bit of a weird career…," Eimear started, "I actually done an electrical apprenticeship when I left school, so I became a qualified electrician."

“I also volunteered with the DSPCA and different rescues because I was really interested and loved animals but the option of a career in Ireland was either you’re a vet nurse or nothing, so I actually moved to Australia.

“When I was travelling Australia I was volunteering at a dog pound there and that’s when I actually got a job through them and from there. I worked in a rescue in Australia and I became a qualified trainer," Eimear said.

Eimear said that when she moved back to Ireland she "essentially stalked Dogs Trust" and went to every interview she could until she got a job.

She started as an assistant training and behaviour advisor for two years then became assistant manager of operations and that’s when Covid hit.

During Covid, Eimear set up the regional programme so that dogs could be rehomed through private boarding facilities around the country, and not just through the rehoming centre in Dublin.

That is when she was appointed Regional Rehoming manager of Dogs Trust.

Eimear has been Dogs Trust regional rehoming manager for the past four years also manages the customer service team, the foster team and oversees the intake of all of the dogs that come in through the organisation.

“I work very closely with the centre, I live on site so I'm one of the three managers that lives on site. I would be on call, I feed whelping mams and I bottle feed puppies…I do a lot.... it's pretty much my whole life".

“It's very emotionally draining…anyone who is in the industry will say it's probably one of the most difficult industries to be in for any kind of animal welfare at all.

"You know.. you're seeing quite tough cases, you're seeing people who have mistreated dogs and when you're that obsessed with dogs as we all are here...you just can't fathom why someone would do that…. so it's trying to get past that and take care of the dogs in that situation.”

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“You're also seeing dogs who kennel life isn’t necessary meant for them and you're looking going “why just because you’re a larger dog and you're not as desirable people would overlook that dog when you know they're going to be an amazing family pet.

"You also see people who have to give up their dogs through no fault of their own and that can be devastating watching them hand over their pet that they don’t want to hand over…it's probably one of the most difficult things you see.

“You know that we are amazing but were not as good as that family home that they came from…the dog doesn’t want to go the owner doesn’t want to go….so that’s really really hard.

Eimear said that the biggest pay-off working at Dog’s Trust is seeing the dogs progress during their time in the organisation.

“So let's say we get a dog from a pound who is absolutely terrified…a lot of our dogs come in through local authorities all around Ireland as well as surrenders and strays…some of them don’t understand why they are where they are so they can be very shut down and very fearful."

"You can have some that come from a puppy farming situation where they could have no contact with people. So really seeing that dog progress from being so terrified of people to then being on your lap and being your best friend that by far makes it all worth it."

“It's so worth it, that’s why I would say a lot of people do this, it's for the end story and seeing the good from the dogs."

“The number dogs in Ireland looking for homes is shocking….there is no end to the amount of dogs looking for a home and we've seen a huge increase in the number of people looking to surrender their dogs when they don’t want to due to rental, landlord circumstances.

"It's one of our main reasons why people have to give their dogs up…they don’t want to it’s purely they are being made to. We can see the increase of surrenders year on year and the numbers are just crazy, so pounds and rescues are overwhelmed.

“I really do believe that we can find a dog for you if you are open to what the dog is…if people are very set on a specific breed or age then it can become difficult us to match you a dog.

“We have all sorts…we have Lurchers, we have Collies we have really different cross breeds that will make family pets so they are just sitting waiting and can be so affectionate and so loving they might just need a little bit of care and a little bit of TLC and training because they have been through a lot.

“They are 100 per cent worth it, we do have over 200 dogs in our care at any one time that are all different sizes, ages, breeds and they are fantastic."

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"I only have rescues and I am obsessed with my two babies, they are so affectionate and so lovely….there's something about rescuing that makes it so much more worthwhile and a better connection with your dog I would say."

Pictured below is Eimear and her rescue dog Emma who was a puppy that got surrendered to Dogs Trust at just 12 weeks old.

Emma's family had just gotten her then found out they were expecting a baby so had to surrender her, Eimear said.
"I fostered her when she came in and ended up adopting her," Eimear said.

If you are considering rehoming a dog or making a donation to Dogs Trust Ireland, you can visit the website here.