About Us

Dr. Gloria Andrews, founder of Colbert Veterinary Rescue Services, Inc. (aka CVRS), moved to Madison County, Georgia, from the Athens area. There was no animal control in the county and the dogs that were running loose and wild were numerous. She took many a skeleton dog from the side of the road to where she worked in Athens and found homes for them.

Dr. Andrews opened a veterinary practice in Madison County (Colbert Animal Hospital). It was not uncommon for her to see 2 or 3 dead dogs along the highway on her way to the animal hospital. Although it was not possible to take in every stray, injured animal that people brought in, she did what she could to help.

A dog rescue group in a neighboring county came under scrutiny of the Department of Agriculture, They had taken in too many dogs and the situation was out of control. The Colbert Animal Hospital staff contacted shelters in the New England area to see if they would take the dogs and also found a trailer. Fortunately, Dr. Andrews already had a truck that could pull the trailer and 45 dogs from that dog rescue were taken to rescues in New Jersey, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Vermont. That was our very first transport!

Non-profit 501c3 status was obtained and until 2020, we continued to transport our rescued dogs and cats to places where they would have a better chance of being adopted.

We currently operate out of the Colbert Animal Hospital in Madison County, Georgia. In addition, we have 2 buildings to house our intakes, Mario’s Mansion for cats and the Heart For Mutts Haven for dogs. In addition to finding homes for our intakes, we assist other rescue organizations in caring for and placing dogs and cats. Dr. Andrews is the main heartworm veterinarian for a number of rescues in the area and has worked with and diagnosed several somewhat rare issues in our rescue dogs.