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HELPING OUT AT THE SHELTER – POSTING ON FACEBOOK

    With the right slant, posting homeless animals on Facebook can help find any adoptable animal their forever home.  Most shelters and rescues have a Facebook page in which they publicize their events, make it easy for people to donate, and showcase their adoptable dogs and cats.  If you can write well, posting on Facebook is your opportunity to help find a pet a home. HOW TO START POSTING ON FACEBOOK If your organization has no presence on Facebook, offer to start a page for them. If one already exists, let someone on the Board know that you’re willing and available to help. Shelters will often have assigned someone to perform this function, but that person may be overwhelmed with other commitments.  Having a second or third person working on the Facebook page may make the task much more manageable for everyone. Choose what each person will post. If you’d like to publicize events, then volunteer for that – if your interest is in posting personality profiles for the animal, let them know.  If everyone has an assigned role, there…

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7 WINTER BOREDOM BUSTERS FOR DOGS

  SEVEN WINTER BOREDOM BUSTERS FOR DOGS When it's too bitter to be outside, here are seven ways to beat the winter boredom blues! The polar vortex arrived, and all of us, animals and humans, were stuck indoors and bored.  For humans, we have our books, our television, and our computers to keep us happy.  But for a dog, whose interest is piqued by smells more than by sight, the cold winter months can be boring and depressing. Below find a few ideas to perk up your pet in the middle of a cold snap (most also work well for rainy days, too): Take a Different Route Since you can’t walk your dog for as long as you would in the warmer months, vary the route.  Put your pet in the car, drive to another part of your neighborhood, and do your brief walk there.  Or get extra adventurous and go to a different area altogether. Chances are there is a whole new world of scents just a few blocks away – something to perk up even the saddest dog. Add…

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THE “NO-KILL” MOVEMENT. HOW THE ANIMAL RESCUE FIELD IS REDUCING THE EUTHANASIA RATE ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND HOW YOU CAN HELP.

THE NO-KILL MOVEMENT WITH ONE IMPORTANT EXCEPTION THE GOOD NEWS Since 1984, the no-kill movement in the United States has made tremendous strides lowering the euthanasia rate of household pets.  From an estimated 17 million animals euthanized annually in shelters in the United States, we have dropped to a much improved 1.5 million per year.  Figuring that a percentage of those still performed are for terminal illnesses or severe aggression issues, the numbers become even better.  Still, not one healthy adoptable pet should ever be killed. Because of the never-ending efforts of hundreds of shelter and rescue animal advocates, starting with Rich Avanzino, the President of the San Francisco ASPCA in 1984, we’ve come a long way. The efforts now continue through many local and national organizations.  The result?  Many shelters with previously high euthanization rates are now either considered “no-kill” or are rapidly heading in that direction. PRIVATE SHELTERS So, why do some shelters still euthanize for reasons other than health or behavior?  There are two types of shelters to consider.  The first is a private organization, run as a…

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HOW TO CHOOSE A VETERINARIAN

So, you need to choose a veterinarian.  You’re new to the area, or you’re a first-time pet owner.  There are lots of veterinary practices within a reasonable distance from you – how do you pick? WORD OF MOUTH If you already know pet-owners nearby, ask.  Don’t just ask what practice, ask why.  Everyone looks for different things in a veterinarian – something that is very important to you may not be particularly important to your neighbor.  Vets and their staff come in all types – curt, but efficient; friendly, but scattered; working to the client’s convenience instead of their own.   And, from my personal experience, veterinarians can be an ego-driven lot, so make sure to ask about the vet’s personality as well. HOURS This can be very important, both for routine and emergency visits.  When I moved into my current home, I chose a practice which advertised that they were open until 7:00 PM two nights a week.  I commute to work every day, and having these two days where I could make an appointment after my work hours were complete…

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KIDS VERSUS PETS

NOTE:  This post is meant to be for fun only – please enjoy it as such! Younger generations seem to be opting for pets rather than children in larger numbers than earlier ones.  So…I decided to do a little research to see which is more economical.  Turns out the millennials may be on to something! MEDICAL Be they veterinary, or human, medical costs are expensive and only rising.  Gone are the days of $50.00 vet or pediatrician visits.  Hello to dropping at least $150.00 whenever visiting a medical professional.  Here is the breakdown: Veterinarian bills over the lifetime of a dog – approximately $22,000 Veterinarian bills over the lifetime of a cat - approximately $18,000 Pediatric Bills for a child up to the age of 18 - $12,024 plus vaccines at $3,150 = $15,174.  Or you can spend (in case something extra is needed) $34,895.00 for insurance, which will, of course, require a co-pay. EDUCATION Since we’re only talking about raising a child to the age of 18 here, education through public school, is very cheap.  (Not free, since there are…

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HELP A SHELTER DOG – FOSTER! FOSTERING A DOG IS ALL ABOUT GETTING THAT PET READY FOR LIFE IN A LOVING HOME. LEARN THE FACTS.

  FOSTERING - DOGS Many animal rescues are foster-based, meaning they have no central shelter, but house their animals up for adoption with volunteers in private homes.  Many thousands of dogs and cats owe their lives to individuals who step up to provide love, care, and some training while a rescue searches for the perfect permanent home. This post will be about fostering dogs – another post covered fostering cats and kittens. There are two kinds of fosters:  Foster successes, and foster fails.  Foster successes are temporary pet parents who do not adopt the animals they foster, but cooperate in finding these guys permanent, loving homes.  Foster fails (and I’m afraid I have to raise my hand here), start out with the intention of being foster successes, but then end up adopting their foster furry child. HOW DO I APPLY TO BE A FOSTER? Rescues who need fosters have Facebook pages and websites which usually have the foster application there.  If you can’t find the application, drop the rescue an email and they’ll be happy to send one along. Foster applications…

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