No More Homeless Pets
Weekly News

September 5, 2004
From super adoptions to spay/neuter successes, people working together to bring about a time when there will be No More Homeless Pets.

• Spay/Neuter News
• Adoption News
• Feral Cat News
• Fabulous Fundraisers
• Community Campaigns
• International News
  
  

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Hall County, Georgia - The Hall County Commission presented the Humane Society of Hall County with $200,000 to start a low-cost spay/neuter clinic. "This will save taxpayers money by reducing the number of unwanted animals we have to pick up off the street," said Gary Gibbs, who made a motion to establish the clinic at Thursday's board meeting. The measure passed unanimously. Read the story in the Gainesville Times.

ADOPTION NEWS

Sign up now for "Home 4 the Holidays 2004" pet adoption drive! More than 261,000 homeless pets were adopted through last year's Home 4 the Holidays campaign. And your local shelter, rescue group, or animal control department can sign up now to be part of this lifesaving campaign this year!

The eight-week adoption campaign starts in November, but the Helen Woodward Animal Center, which sponsors the event , is asking you to sign up your local group now so they can get your guidebook out in plenty of time and to be sure they'll have enough adoption kits on hand. Over 700 organizations have already joined the effort.

Each registered organization will receive a how-to guide to help you make the event a success, and Iams pet food kits to be presented to adopting families. Your local group will also benefit from the publicity Home 4 the Holidays generates and will be eligible to win a grant from the event sponsors.

Participating in Home 4 the Holidays is free to animal shelters and pet rescue organizations. You can sign up online or call Pat Downing at the Helen Woodward Animal Center at (858) 756-4117, ext. 302.

If you are not part of a local humane group yourself, pass this message along to your local shelter, humane society, or animal control agency and invite them to participate in Home 4 the Holidays!

Bend, Oregon - Last Friday was a historic day for the little animal shelter on 27th Street in Bend. The 42-year-old Humane Society of Central Oregon broke an all-time monthly adoption record at 4 p.m., when the 300th animal was adopted by Jo and Craig Jorgensen. By the time the animal shelter closed, 302 homeless animals had found loving homes in August. The total included 73 dogs, 214 cats and 15 other small animals. Read the story in the Bend Bugle.

Lincoln, Nebraska - Capital Humane Society helped 54 cats find new homes during a three-day adopt-a-thon last weekend. The cats were part of a group of 146 cats found in May by animal control in an unsanitary home. It was the largest cat rescue ever in the city. The cats' plight has generated a flood of donations: 3,400 pounds of cat and kitten food; 1,500 pounds of kitty litter; $8,658 in cash.

Only 10 of the cats have had to be euthanized, said Jennifer Stager, director of volunteers and education at the shelter. Eighty of the cats have been neutered and were available for adoption over the weekend. Veterinarians are still working to get other cats ready for adoption. For more information, read the article in the Journal Star.

Fergus Falls, Minnesota - Laura Tysver and Leah Freithe, employees at the Humane Society of Otter Tail County, launched an innovative dog transfer program between the Humane Society of Otter Tail County and Golden Valley Humane Society in Hennepin County. Otter Tail County sometimes has a large supply of dogs waiting to be adopted but not enough demand, leading to high euthanasia rates. However, Golden Valley has a high demand for canines to adopt but not enough supply. Since the two humane societies began working together in January, they have been able to save more than 50 dogs, both big and small. Find the story in the Daily Journal.

FABULOUS FUNDRAISERS

Los Angeles, California - The Pasadena Humane Society has received a $106,000 grant from the California Community Foundation to be used for their spay/neuter program. Actors and Others for Animals, based in North Hollywood, will get $153,000; Best Friends Catnippers of Sherman Oaks will receive $28,000.

The funding is among $1.5 million in grants awarded by the foundation's Pets and Partners Initiative to 15 Los Angeles-based nonprofit organizations working with pets. The grants range from $4,750 to $170,000 and address a variety of issues, from pet adoption to therapy and companion animals.

"This is the most significant amount of money the community foundation has ever awarded to animal organizations at any one time," said Judy Spiegel, senior vice president of programs at the foundation. Read the stories in the Los Angeles Daily News and the Pasadena Star News.

For information on how you can get funding from your community foundation, check out the article called Getting to Know Your Local Community Foundation (.pdf) from the Best Friends resource library.

Palm Beach, Florida - Thousands of homeless cats and kittens will benefit from the Pets and Animals in Distress food drive. The event garnered 48,000 pounds of food.

"I am overwhelmed," said Brenda Beck, president of Pets and Animals in Distress. "It will give us the opportunity to share with other organizations in south Florida that desperately need cat food." Read the story in the Palm Beach Post.

Palm Beach, Florida - Dr. Boaz Man, a recent graduate from veterinary school, hasn't even opened a practice yet, but he's already helping animals in the area. Man recently donated $4,000 to Tri-County Humane Society, a no-kill animal shelter in Boca Raton. See the article in the Palm Beach Post.

Brookhaven, Mississippi - Several recent grants will help the Brookhaven Animal Rescue League with spay/neuter programs to keep unwanted pets from being born, said Tom Ross, an organization volunteer. An anonymous donor gave $10,000, PETsMART Charities awarded a grant for $6,000, and the Jackson Friends of the City Animal Shelter recently gave a $3,500 grant to help expand spay/neuter activities. Find the article in the Daily Leader.

Salt Lake City, Utah - Something was brewing last weekend at the grand opening of caffй d'bolla in Salt Lake City. All proceeds from the weekend, more than $500, were donated to No More Homeless Pets in Utah. Employees and management of caffй d'bolla donated their time for the event.

To kick off the fundraiser and to draw out the media, homeless dogs Earl Grey and Mocha threw their very own doggy tea party. The two pups of honor took seats at a table outside the cafй, lapped up some dog-friendly brew, tried out some delicious pawnini sandwiches, and feasted on giant, drool-worthy dog biscuits baked just for them. The tea party drew much attention, and Mocha was adopted by a fellow patron of the cafй.

Georgia - More than 17,000 Animal Friend license plates have been sold statewide at $25 each, according to the Georgia Department of Agriculture, earning an estimated $380,000 for the Dog/Cat Sterilization Program. The fund allows applicants who cannot afford spay/neuter for their pets to receive a discount. So far, 4,000 spay/neuter procedures have been approved, with more than 390 veterinarians participating. See the story on AccessNorthGa.com.

COMMUNITY CAMPAIGNS

Chicago, Illinois - Over 30,000 people pass through the Thompson Center in Chicago every day, and last week they were treated to the Best Friends Art Project.

More than 250 Best Friends members attended a reception with artists Cyrus Mejia and Clay Myers. Chuck Hagopian from the State Treasurer's Office was on hand to talk about their Treasured Pets program, which features adoptable animals on their website and has already helped place over 100 animals through their website.

Paula Fasseas, founder of PAWS Chicago, encouraged all Illinois residents to purchase the pet-friendly license plate and to get involved locally in helping homeless pets.

Best Friends' local program manager Aimee St. Arnaud talked about the new volunteer brigade being launched in Chicago to assist local shelters. Learn more about Best Friends Brigades.

Jill Borkowski, who drove from Ohio to see the event, said, "The exhibit was so moving and so necessary to raise public awareness. The more people who see this art, the more who may be inspired to get involved locally in their own community to make a difference for animals."

Check out some photos from the exhibit. You can also listen to the speeches given at the reception.

Richmond, Virginia - The Richmond SPCA transitioned to no-kill in January 2002. Though some worried that deaths might increase at the city shelter, the opposite has proven to be the case. Over the past two years, placements (adoptions, transfers) at the city shelter increased from 34% in 2001 to 52% in 2003, while deaths dropped from 62% in 2001 to 40% in 2003.

Community-wide numbers are also up: In the first seven months of 2004, shelter animal placements community-wide have risen to 65%, while deaths community-wide have plummeted to 23%. Read the full story on the Maddie's Fund website.

Columbia, Missouri - Most colleges and universities don't allow pets, but Stephens College is testing a new program that may change that. Michelle Cobey of the Delta Society said the Stephens test "sounds like a well thought-out program that may have many positive benefits to these college students." Find the article in the News-Leader.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Belize - Hundreds of island residents and their dogs showed their support last Sunday by attending the 2004 Saga Humane Society Fundraiser/Dog Show. This annual event makes it possible for the society to provide veterinary services for animals on Ambergris Caye. See the story in the San Pedro Sun.

New Zealand - Two Hawke's Bay veterinarians are off to Niue to help with the island's stray animal problem. There's no vet on the island, so Glenn McKay and Michelle van Houts are spending 10 days neutering cats and dogs on the cyclone-hit Pacific island. Read the story on MyTown.co.nz.