In my daily online search for cute animals, I stumbled upon a life-changing app. Who knew that the simple act of walking could change the lives of shelter animals? I was immediately intrigued and downloaded the free ResQwalk app onto my iPhone. (It’s also free for Android phones.)
Savannah J: Rescue kitty of Erin Kowtko
The premise of this cool app is that it donates resources and money to registered animal shelters based on the distance that you clock with your walks, runs or bike rides. It caps the mileage at 14mph and 30 miles a day. Each month a corporate sponsor donates a money gift and/or resources that creates a pool. The mileage you clock earns you the ability to draw from the pool and ResQwalk then donates that amount to your chosen animal rescue.
The process of signing up is straightforward, simple and free. Download the app and then register as a first time user. Hitting “start my walk” will prompt a map that shows your exact location. It also begins the clock and mileage tracker to keep an accurate account of your workout. I was thrilled with the simplicity of the app. However, I soon discovered that it is a work in progress.
Chloe: Rescue baby of Jason Ellinger and family
I immediately looked up the animal shelter where I adopted my sassy cat 9 years ago, the Austin Animal Shelter out of Austin, Texas. It’s the largest No Kill shelter in the good ol’ U.S. of A. It was a no-brainer that this fine shelter would be there, right? I was disappointed to see that it was not in my search results. The great news is that should this happen to you; it’s easy to send an email to ResQwalk (info@resqwalk.com) with the shelter demographic and contact information so that they can ask your favorite shelter to participate.
Oreo, Mocha and Snickers: Rescue babies of Cheryl Sklar and family
I went to my second favorite option and typed in Angels Among Us, which is a local Atlanta rescue that does a ton of good. I came up short again. I’m chalking up this limited list to the fact that it’s a relatively new app that’s still gaining popularity. Luckily, I saw Paws populate as an option. Paws is a fantastic Atlanta shelter so I selected them as my organization of choice. Now, whenever I go for walk, my efforts will help the animals at Paws.
Rook, Pawn and Bishop: Rescue babies of George Notel and family
This app also helps shelter animals get adopted. If you click on the newsfeed, it populates a list of animals from all over the country who are in need of loving homes. It links right to the Petfinder site so you can easily peruse the animals’ profiles.
If you click on “pet friendly” a list of categories quickly offers relevant information. Categories include Parks, Trails and Dog Runs, Vet and Animal Hospitals, and Lodging. It’s helpful to find pet friendly places with the click of a button.
Hank and Gracie Viebrock-Oneal: Rescue babies of Kate Viebrock and family
Overall, this is a marvelous app with altruism at its core. In my humble opinion, it needs some time to evolve and increase the content but it will get there in good time. Meanwhile, we can shake a leg while using ResQwalk and know we’re helping furry friends in need.
*Many thanks to the rescue dogs and cats of the Network 1 family who posed for this article.
Erin Kowtko
Erin has years of experience in the healthcare and non-profit sector. She brings her skills and passion to benefit Network 1’s team, clients and partners. She strives to provide the best service and solutions to her clients so they can achieve greatness through Worry-Free IT.
ekowtko@network1consulting.com or 404.997.7656
Network 1 Consulting is an 18-year-old, IT Support company in Atlanta, GA. We become – or augment – the IT department for law firms and medical practices. Our IT experts can fix computers, but what our clients value most highly are the industry-specific best practices we bring to their firms. This is especially important today as technology, along with its associated regulations and cyber-threats, is changing so rapidly. We take a proactive approach to helping our clients use technology to gain and keep their competitive advantage.
