Christine Coulson founded Leitrim Animal Welfare Centre in 1997 and in turn, saved the lives of thousands of animals in need of a loving home.
Following her passing, Ms Coulson has been remembered as having played a pivotal role in animal welfare in Ireland.
In a tribute posted on the Leitrim Animal Welfare Centre Facebook, a spokesperson said, “She set out to run the first Dog Pound to operate with a No-Kill Policy.
“This has since transcended and formed fellow pounds and rescues in Ireland to follow suit and thus drastically lowered the figures of the unnecessary euthanasia of dogs in Irish Pounds.
“Christine has been saving countless lives of animals for over 26 years and more.
“She had lived a life full of achievement, from spending her youth in America, where she worked in fast paced business environment whilst volunteering her time at Animal Shelters which contributed greatly to her knowledge of Animal Welfare and the operations of running her own.
“As well as caring for animals in need, Christine fostered and cared for many children in her time over a considerable amount of years.”
Christine Coulson. Photo: Leitrim Animal Welfare Centre.
Christine made it her mission to change Animal Welfare as she continually lobbied and challenged the government to change the current standards of animal welfare and to provide Christine with the opportunity to operate Leitrim’s first dog pound, that encouraged neutering and rehoming methods instead of euthanising dogs that entered the pound system.
In 2003, Christine began running Leitrim’s first dog pound and Irelands first pound to operate with a rescue centre on site running separately but in correlation with the dog pound.
Which in simple terms, this meant that after a dog spends five days in the pound, instead of being euthanised, they were transferred in to the care of Leitrim Animal Welfare, where they were rehabilitated, trained, neutered and most importantly, loved before they ventured off to their forever homes.
The spokesperson continued, “Leitrim Animal Welfare has been a successful and leading organisation for over 26 years and this was achieved due to Christine’s love, passion and dedication.
“This weekend gone by, we won an astonishing award of ‘Charity of the Year’ by The Local Pet Awards in which Christine was very proud of.
“Christine called on St Francis to help when nursing and caring for animals in need and now, we at Leitrim Animal Welfare have our own saint to call on in times of need.
“She was a strong, defiant and loving character who will be dearly missed and never forgotten.”
Ms Coulson’s funeral details have not yet been announced.