- 1. ASPCA Happy Tails: Mother’s Daughter
- 2. Saving Animals’ Lives: $100K Challenge Update
- 3. Hot Summer Gear on Sale…with Free Shipping on Orders over $50!
- 4. ASPCA Rescues 11 Dogs from Overcrowded Home
- 5. ASPCA Pet of the Week: Sabrina Speaks Out
- 6. Vote for the ASPCA’s 2011 Calendar Cover Model!
1. ASPCA Happy Tails: Mother’s Daughter
Six months after Hilde and her husband lost their precious Princess, a miniature Schnauzer, they decided to welcome another pet into their lives. They had no idea they would soon share their home—and car!—with a mother-daughter Dachshund team. Now the furry “girls” are an integral part of the traveling family.
ASPCA: Where did you adopt Roxie?
Hilde: We adopted Roxie and her daughter, Sally, from an animal shelter in Savannah, GA.
ASPCA: What made you want to adopt a dog?
Hilde: I told my son how much we miss Princess—our previous dog—and he got to talking about what kind of dog we’d like to adopt. We wanted a pet who is low-maintenance and low-energy since we are getting on in years.
ASPCA: How did you meet Roxie?
Hilde: We were looking online, and there was Roxie—we fell in love. Finally, we were able to go to the shelter and meet her in person—there was no holding us back!
ASPCA: What was your first meeting like?
Hilde: We were told she had some people issues, but when we took her for a walk, Roxie said, “These are my parents; I better be on my best behavior.” She was so loving—and we knew we wanted her.
ASPCA: How did you come to leave the shelter with Roxie and Sally?
Hilde: Surprise! The shelter staff said they had another Dachshund, Roxie’s daughter. Right away I wanted to see her. Now we have two of the best babies in the world.
ASPCA: What do you love most about the girls?
Hilde: We travel from Georgia to Pennsylvania every six months, and Roxie and Sally love it. They are the best travel companions ever. We enjoy them so much—it’s like we’ve had the girls forever. All in all, the day we found them was the best day.
Check out our Happy Tails archive for more heartwarming stories of furry fate.
2. Saving Animals’ Lives: $100K Challenge Update
We’re already three weeks into the ASPCA $100K Challenge, and our contestants are showing some great adoption numbers and creative promotions to save more animals’ lives. Check out some of the highlights below, and stay tuned in the coming weeks to learn who else is kicking butt and taking names in the race to the $100K finish.
McKamey Animal Care & Adoption Center in Chattanooga, TN, celebrated the start of the Challenge by distributing free collars and tags to promote the importance of proper ID for pets. “We are working to increase our return to owner (RTO) rates,” reports McKamey. “So often we receive loving animals who we know must have families, but we cannot reunite them with their pet parents because they do not have identification.”
Speaking of RTOs, the Kent County SPCA of Camden, DE, returned a staggering 43 dogs and 3 cats to their pet parents during the first week of the Challenge. Some great numbers are also coming out of Colorado: As of August 13, a mere two weeks into the Challenge, the Humane Society of Boulder Valley had adopted out 118 cats and 65 dogs—“an increase of 49 animals since the same time last year,” they report.
No rest for the weary at the Greater Birmingham Humane Society. When the Alabama shelter was closed one day last week, the organization still managed to turn in some exceptional results. That day, GBHS says, “the Lone Ranger, as we call our only veterinarian here, completed 26 spay/neuter surgeries and eight dentals!”
We’re consistently wowed by the innovative ways the Challengers are getting their communities involved in the action to find homes for needy pets. On August 7, Maui Humane Society assembled a team of 10 adoptable dogs for Pet Night at the Na Koa Ikaika Maui baseball game, where ticket proceeds benefitted the shelter. Meanwhile, the SPCA of Wake County in Raleigh, NC, got out some its favorite animal costumes and held an epic photo shoot with its Pit Crew.
Read all the minute-by-minute action on our $100K Challenge blog.
3. Hot Summer Gear on Sale…with Free Shipping on Orders over $50!
As summer winds down, we’re having a massive blowout in our Online Store to clear the way for chic fall apparel and new pet toys. So why not scoop up some of our most popular items for a fraction of the price? All of our summer gear is 20-50% off, and if that doesn’t convince you to stuff your shopping cart, we’re offering free shipping on all orders over $50 through August 27.* Just enter code SHIPSUMMER50 when you check out!
Summer Sale Grab our cute towel, visor or beach bag and hit the great outdoors—you'll receive 20-50% off and be the envy of all of your animal-loving friends!
New Items!
Shelter Cats Photographer and animal lover Michael Kloth captures the feline spirit with this new book of shelter cat portraits.
Chef Aprons Protect your ASPCA t-shirt from barbeque sauce and grease stains with our handsome new aprons for dog and cat lovers.
So, get shopping and don’t forget to save on shipping with code SHIPSUMMER50. Remember, all purchases at the ASPCA Online Store support our life-saving work across the country!
*Free shipping available only in the continental U.S.
4. ASPCA Rescues 11 Dogs from Overcrowded Home
On August 18, the ASPCA Cruelty Intervention Advocacy (CIA) Team and Humane Law Enforcement Agents (HLE) rescued 11 dogs—mostly medium-sized Pit Bull and Shepherd mixes—from a small apartment in Brooklyn, NY. The rescued animals lived in cramped and unsuitable conditions with 10 other dogs who will also be removed from the home in the near future.
"A misguided rescuer, the owner took in most of the dogs after finding them abandoned in nearby streets and yards," reports Stacy Wolf, ASPCA Vice President and HLE's Chief Legal Counsel. "Since they were not spayed or neutered, a few dogs soon became more than 20, far more than the tiny apartment or the owner's meager means could support."
As they were led out of the apartment building, Stacy says, the dogs were wide-eyed and appeared startled by daylight. They likely spent most of their lives without setting foot outdoors—some refused to walk and were carried by their owner with their legs wrapped around her neck. With expert animal handling skills and compassion, the CIA team and HLE Agents made all 11 dogs as comfortable as possible in crates for the trip to the ASPCA headquarters in Manhattan. The CIA team also comforted and reassured the owner, who assisted in removing the dogs and thanked the team for helping in her time of need.
The 11 rescued dogs are being cared for by staff at the ASPCA Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital, where the remaining 10 dogs will join them in groups. All of the canines will be evaluated medically and behaviorally before being made available for adoption or being transferred to partner rescue groups. The ASPCA Adoption Center and Bergh Memorial Hospital Teams—along with several rescue and shelter partners—have stepped forward to lend a hand in giving these dogs a second chance at better lives.
Animal hoarding is a complex and far-reaching community health issue. It encompasses mental health, animal welfare and public safety concerns. For more information about our efforts to help the human and animal victims of hoarding, please visit our Hoarding FAQ.
5. ASPCA Pet of the Week: Sabrina Speaks Out
Meet this yummy pudge-sicle: Sabrina is big, bold and beautiful and knows exactly what she wants. She’s looking for a special pet parent who understands her mysterious feline ways.
“She looks like a Great Horned Owl!” says Pune Dracker, ASPCA Director of Content and Editorial Services and Sabrina’s office foster mom. “Like an owl, she has a keen sense of observation, and you’ll need equal smarts to read and interpret her body language.”
Pune says Sabrina chirps her greetings and feelings to passersby or when she loses sight of her favorite laser toy. She spends her days in the office napping by the printer in between fierce games of mousie-fetching and bottle cap hockey. If you’re interested in adopting this captivating kitty, please contact our Animal Placement department in New York City at (212) 876-7700, ext. 4120. To see other animals looking for homes, visit our Adoption Center online.
****Got Facebook? Won’t you please donate your status to Sabrina today? Just copy and paste the following message onto your profile status to help spread the word that this kitty needs a home!
[Name] is donating my status to Sabrina http://www.aspca.org/sabrina, a cat at the ASPCA who needs a new home.
6. Vote for the ASPCA’s 2011 Calendar Cover Model!
Every autumn, the ASPCA creates a top-quality wall calendar that we give out to our friends and supporters. It features ASPCA staff and volunteers photographed with their adopted pets. We’re assembling our 2011 calendar right now, and there’s only one big decision left to make: Who should grace the cover?
Will it be the sultry Siamese, or perhaps the chunky Chihuahua? The Dalmatian/Basset Hound mix (you must see her to believe her), or the scruffy little Terrier and his canine pals? They’re all so cute that we can’t decide—so we’re handing it over to you!
Visit the contest page to check out the photos that are in the running, read a little about their fabulous four-legged subjects, and then cast your vote by September 3 for our 2011 Cover Cat or Dog. The pet whose photo gets the most votes will have his or her face in homes all over America! You can only vote once, so be sure to pass along the contest to friends and family to ensure your favorite photogenic pet gets top billing.
P.S.: Stay tuned to News Alert and ASPCA.org to learn how you can get your own ASPCA 2011 calendar!