Friday, November 30, 2012

Who has it worse, the dog or the child?

A little pug/beagle mix was brought in by its owner due to allergies.  Sounds reasonable right?  Now for the rest of the story. 

A seven year old girl, her mother and step father visited the shelter and found the little girl's dog in the kennel.  Apparently, the household where the dog lived with the father had two other dogs.  So are allergies a reasonable excuse?  Somehow I doubt it.  And the mother and stepfather do not live in a place where they are allowed to have pets.

So the little dog loses its family most likely out of spite and a little girl is devastated because she lost her dog. 

The only good news is that the dog was quickly adopted and placed in a loving home.  Hopefully the couple that adopted her won't divorce.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Signs, Signs, Everywhere are Signs

If you are old enough to remember this song you will know that it is simply about signs.  So is today's blog.  (more or less).  We have a sign on the SPCA door that reads, "Stop cruelty to animals, No smoking."  I find it an amusing way to say no smoking.  Others may read something else into that sign such as the man who offered a donation.  He stated that this would be his last donation if that sign was still on the door next year.

My first take on his response to the sign is that he must be a smoker.  My second take was "really?"  In Pennsylvania a business is required, by law, to post a no smoking sign.  So what if we put an amusing spin on it? 

But then, a former employee visited the shelter with her new dog.  The dog smelled of cigarette smoke and I said to the dog, "Don't you know smoking is bad for you?"  The dog didn't reply (:-) but the owner did. While she admitted that she should not be smoking, I thought of the second hand smoke the dog inhaled.  Is it cruel? 

Studies on asthmatic children have found that their risk of having asthma was increased if they had parents who smoked.  So we do know that cigarette smoking is bad for smokers and those who inhale the second hand smoke. Are our dogs at risk?  (And cats too, of course.)

So the sign stays. 

Friday, November 23, 2012

Black Friday Special

The turkey carcass is in the trash can.  (No energy for soup). 

Ten pies are in the fridge.  (We really need to coordinate the bring a dish thing.)

And the SPCA is having a Black Friday special.  Really!  All black animals are 50% off the adoption fee.  How great is that? 

This is a good time to adopt because the kids will be home from school for the holidays and will have time to help an animal get acclimated to the new home and environment.  Christmas Eve is not a good time however.  Think about the Thanksgiving festivities and think about how the hustle and bustle stressed you out.  (Or not)  And think about how the animal will respond when it is thrown into this new environment.  It is better to acclimate the animal in a calm environment-then add the festivities. 

Or better yet, provide a SPCA gift certificate for the animal lover on your list.  You can purchase an adoption certificate for someone and let them choose an animal.  Or you can purchase a gift certificate for use in the SPCA gift shop. 

Whatever you decide, you will be helping the animals have a joyous holiday season.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Dogs, Clogs, and Cat Claws

I know I should be writing about animals but I just have to get this off my chest.  It's the day before Thanksgiving and I've already clogged up the kitchen sink.  Enough said.

Now for the dogs and cat claws.  The family is coming and that includes my brother's two dogs.  Last Thanksgiving he only had one dog and I had three.  So now he has two and so do I.  Everyone got along until I decided to give the dogs pig ears to keep them occupied. Big mistake!  There was some territory issues over personal property and the four legged kids lost their treats.  Lesson learned:  Don't give out treats with new dogs, they haven't had the chance to establish their pecking order.  And make sure the cat can protect itself.  (Cat claws)

Please enjoy your Thanksgiving.  Keep your pets safe.  Don't let them get into the turkey bones, chocolate, onions, grapes, or your gum with Xylitol.  Be careful with the candles and toxic plants (Poinsettias, daffodils, etc.) 

Monday, November 19, 2012

Be Nice Day

Monday's are my most dreaded day.  Because the shelter is closed on Sunday we make up for it by having double the usual numbers of intakes, phone calls, and crabby people. 

So I nominate today, as 'Be Nice Day'.  Everyone should only say nice things to one another.  Plus, I would like it if everyone that enters the shelter on 'Be Nice Day', adopts an animal.  And if I really want a good day, someone would donate one million dollars to our Jean Marie White spay neuter fund and we could use the interest every year to spay and neuter animals.  Now, that would be a nice day.

So thanks for reading.  I appreciate it.  Have a "NICE DAY."

Friday, November 16, 2012

Lax Not Lazy

I go through periods where I just can't seem to find the time to blog.  Here are my most recent excuses: 
I had to finish our annual report and,
I had to help with our Sweet Temptations event and,
I had to help pick up 15 cats from one house and,
I had to get the raffle tickets ready and,
I had to work on the holiday newsletter.

So now that I am done with those things, I'll try to be more vigilent about telling you what's going on.

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

So many rescues, So little money

I understand the difficulties in animal rescue and I certainly don't want to criticize other rescue groups.  But what about individuals?  Lately, I have had several people requesting spay or neuter assistance for dozens of animals.  Yes, it is wonderful that someone is getting animals spayed or neutered.  But then they give the animal away.  Our staff is torn between wanting to get the animals spayed or neutered, making sure that the animal is in a good home and is well cared for, and budgeting our money for the most affective use.

So if someone wants to be a 'rescue', should they also shoulder the responsibility for the financial costs for the care of that animal?  Unfortunately, so many rescuers become hoarders and the animals are the ones that suffer.

On Monday, we removed 15 cats from one home.  The smell coming from the house was typical of a hoarding situation.  So, while I want to get every animal spayed or neutered, I also want responsible care for those animals. 

Friday, November 9, 2012

How to Train a Dog

If you ask five people how to train a dog you will get a variety of responses.  Over the years I've been exposed to a variety of dog trainers and I've learned a lot. The main thing that I've learned is that you have to be consistent.  If you don't want the dog to jump on you, you can't tell it 9 times no and then on the 10th time let it jump. 

There are trainers who would body slam a dog to the ground if it did something they didn't like. (That would go over well in a humane society wouldn't it?) And there is the other extreme who only believe in rewarding positive behavior and ignoring the negative.  (As in never saying no)

So that doesn't really tell you how to train a dog because what you are really doing is training the dog owner. 

Here at the SPCA we are fortunate to have two wonderful trainers.  They donate so much of their time for the welfare of the animals.  Tracy has training classes year round for dog owners.  Plus, she helps our staff with temperament testing our shelter dogs.  She is always willing to check out a dog when we have a behavioral question and often offers good advice.

Ann has established training classes for the volunteers.  We have a core group of dedicated volunteers who are willing to go the extra mile and work with the rambunctious dogs.  It is so important to provide that consistency.  We have learned so much from Ann it has translated to the adoption of difficult to place dogs.

So thank you to Tracy and Ann. And to all of you dog owners who have difficult dogs-remember "consistency."

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

I Love My Donors

We held our Sweet Temptations fundraising event on Friday and it was a huge success!  This is such a fun event because it combines dessert, adopted animals, and auction items.  There is a little something for everyone.

But the best part for me is seeing the people who support our shelter.  There are so many generous people who love animals and appreciate our role in animal sheltering.  We would not be able to achieve so much without their financial support.

So xoxo to all of my donors.