Category Archives: Shelters and Rescues
Not a Crazy Cat Lady
Everyone knows about crazy cat ladies. They are usually older women with a whole house full of every kind of cat imaginable. Quite often they become animal hoarders and mot people think they are crazy. However, they swear they are doing the best thing for the cats they keep, even if the cats live in terrible circumstances.
Taking all of this into consideration, what would you say if you heard about a lady who had seven hundred cats? Yes, 700 cats! I know the first thing that would pop to your mind – crazy cat lady and animal hoarder. I would probably think the same thing at first blush.
However, we all would be wrong. This is no crazy cat lady, no animal hoarder and she is doing wonderful things for the cats in her care. Her name is Ms. Lattanzio and she runs a wonderful place called Cat House on the Kings in Parlier, California..
Cat House on the Kings is a no kill shelter where Ms, Lattanzio takes in strays, offers low-cost spay and neutering referrals and helps in the rescue and adoption of hundreds of cats. Now you have to admit, that is not crazy. In fact, it is a wonderful endeavor that has saved the lives of many cats and allowed others to live out their lives in peace.
Watch the video below to get an idea of the wonderful rescue Ms. Lattanzio is running..
From Daily Mail;
Ms Lattanzio, who said her mother banned her from having a cat as a child, said she began taking rescues after a divorce.
Now, she takes in rescues from all over the world, and estimates she has saved close to 19,000 felines in almost two decades.
The Cat House on the Kings is the largest no kill cat sanctuary in the world and along with Ms. Lattanzio will be the subject of a National Geographic documentary titled The Lady with 700 Cats. It is narrated by Glee actress Jane Lynch as part of the Nat Geo WILD series premiering later this month.
Be sure to tune into the documentary and if you want to adopt a cat, you certainly know where you can find a whole bunch of them to choose from.
Adopt a Military War Dog
Belgian Shepherd Malinois on top of a military tank.
Have you ever thought about adopting a dog who has been part of the military and has been to war? I must admit, I had not thought about this avenue for rescue or adoption before I read the article about it.
After I read the article, I was really ready to go out and get a war dog. But, I will warn you before you get all enthusiastic to get one of these dogs, it takes some time and persistence on your part. You won’t just make a call and then go to pick up your dog. So be prepared to spend the time and effort. If you are willing to do that, you will become the proud new companion of a four legged hero. How cool is that?
From USWardogs.org;
1. Download the “MWD Adoption Application”
Read all the requirements carefully to make certain you can comply with them. Talk to all the members of your family who will be involved in the retired MWD’s life to be sure they are all supportive of the adoption idea. Fill out the application entirely and HOLD ON TO IT until YOU have located the MWD you wish to adopt.When appropriate, send the application to ONLY THAT location!! Only fax the paperwork to Lackland AFB if you are adopting a MWD from THERE. The MWD Facility where you adopt your retiring MWD must generate the Adoption Packet which they will ultimately forward to Lackland AFB. Save time, effort, and paper! THERE IS NO ADOPTION CHARGE OR2. CALL the MWD Facilities YOURSELF!
The folks at Lackland AFB are terrific, caring people. They are also extremely BUSY!! So, while they may graciously take the time to give you some referrals of MWDs in your geographical area, those referrals are not always up-to-date. In my own personal experience, I was given five referrals. After calling the various MWD Facilities, three dogs were adopted by their former handlers (always a WONDERFUL thing!!!), one failed the *Adoption Suitability Test and one had died in the interim. (*This is a test required by the DoD given and videotaped by the handlers to determine if the animal is suitable for civilian adoption)3. BE DILIGENT when calling to see about the availability of retiring MWDs!!
In my personal MWD adoption experience, my retiring MWD was NOT listed in the Lackland database even though he had been declared “excess” one month before I even began my search for a MWD to adopt. The “Why?” is not important. Fortunately, for me and for my MWD Benny B163, I continued to call MWD Facilities in my geographic region. I made approximately 20 calls before I discovered Benny was available. I began my effort to locate a retiring MWD in need of adoption at the end of November 2007. Benny had been declared “excess” in October 2007. He was scheduled for euthanasia and necropsy in December 2007 or January 2008. Don’t get discouraged…a noble MWD’s future happiness may depend on YOU!!!Read the rest along with step by step instructions here.
If you find yourself wanting a military war dog and you meet the requirements to rescue a canine soldier, I hope you are successful and find the dog of your dreams. If, perchance you can’t get one of the MWDs, then please think about rescuing a dog or other animal from a shelter. They will spend the rest of their lives showing you how grateful they are and how much they love you. Could you ask any more than that?
USPS Rescue Animals Stamps
There are a lot of good pets sitting in shelters and rescues right now just hoping and waiting for a forever home. They want their very own family to love and care for them. Dogs, cats, horses and other animals are housed at shelters throughout the country.
In my opinion, the more we can focus attention on these good pets that just need homes, the better. That is why I am so happy the United States Postal Service has issued a new set of stamps featuring rescued cats and dogs. The shear size of the USPS will put the faces of these great animals front and center on letters throughout the world. They will draw more attention to pets in shelters than any blog or animal charity could ever hope to.
It is an ongoing duty for all pet lovers to stress the need of animals who are stuck in shelters. We will never get to a zero kill level if we don’t keep bringing attention to the problem.
We all must also stress to everyone we know how important it is to have our pets spayed or neutered. Its simple surgery that can go a long, long way toward reducing the number of unwanted pets.
The stamps go on sale April 30, 2010. The price, of course is $8.80 for 20 of the $0.44 stamps.
We all have to buy stamps anyway, so why not buy these and help spread the word about rescue pets?
Pick the stamps up at your local post office or you can go to the USPS store here.
Looking for a Rescue Dog?
Only Natural Pet Store is the place where I buy the bulk of my cats supplies. I like the store because they have good products and they really are all natural, plus they have the best customer service of any pet supply I have ever dealt with. There have been times when I had a question about a product and if the staff couldn’t answer they phoned the manufacturer and called me back with the information I needed. Now that is service!
I also like Only Natural because the people there really care about dogs, cats and all other pets. They have now done something that I think shows their dedication to animals. You can register at their site and when the type of dog or puppy you are looking for comes into a rescue in the area you specify, they will notify you.
Needless to say, this can save you a lot of time and angst. It also will help to get more rescue dogs adopted and into forever homes. So, in my book, it is a win-win situation.
If you are actively looking for a dog to adopt or if you are considering it, please go to the link below and register with Only Natural Pet Store. Take advantage of their offer to help you search.
http://www.findarescuepuppy.com/?BTC=RP0310
If you find a best friend through them or if you have pets already, please consider shopping at their online store. You can find it here on fluffyfeet in the pet supplies mall. You will not be sorry that you gave these caring people your business.
ASPCA Cat of the Year
The ASPCA has awarded their Cat of the Year Award to a grey tabby named Nora from Philadelphia, PA. Of course, this is a rescue cat. She is also a piano playing and You Tube sensation. From the ASPCA website about Nora:
When Betsy Alexander and Burnell Yow visited an animal shelter in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, they never imagined they would adopt a feline prodigy. Nora is a five-year-old gray tabby, whose special piano-playing skills quickly became a YouTube sensation, drawing more than 15 million page views and inspiring a Lithuanian composer to arrange a symphony in her honor. Nora is a talented example of how shelter pets—far from being castoffs—often make the best animal companions.
You can go to the ASPCA site to read about the other animal award winner this year by following the link. You can also watch Nora’s You Tube video below.
http://www.aspca.org/pressroom/press-releases/101509-1.html
Please rescue a dog or cat if you can. You never can tell what talents they will have and each one is special. It will make you happy and the animal will be forever grateful.