We all know the ASPCA is seriously dedicated to animal welfare, spay/neuter (S/N) and all other over-arching causes regarding animal rescue & animal welfare in general.

And, of course, as evidenced by its weekend animal shelter “rescue pet” showings/adoption centers, and its ongoing support of animal ADOPTION versus buying at a pet store, it is not a HUGE surprise that PetSmart Charities joined forces with the ASPACA .

Last month, the two powerhouse animal welfare contributors gave a HUGE donation of $5.2 million to Humane Alliance, another welfare cause that slowly has stretched its North Carolina roots across the country to provide cheap spay/neuter, veterinary student externships and training for not only those who want to open their own spay/neuter center, but also for private vets.

I was lucky enough to spend some time speaking with Julie Morris, Senior VP of ASPCA Community Outreach, who has over 28 years of shelter experience and has been with ASPCA for 20 years.

But first, a small summarization of this generous, MAJOR donation from the ASPCA press release:

“PetSmart Charities® and the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) have announced that they each will pledge $2.6 million to Humane Alliance in 2011 as part of a five-year commitment totaling $5.2 million to increase affordable spay/neuter services across the United States and prevent the births of millions of pets for whom there are no homes.

This funding will help 80 low-cost, high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter clinics to open across the U.S. Combined with the nearly 70 Humane Alliance clinic already open, the clinics will provide up to 800,000 sustainable spay/neuter surgical slots, preventing an estimated 11 million births through 2013.”

According to Morris, Humane Alliance is THEE model to follow in terms of high-quality spay/neuter that is cheap (in terms of price – NOT quality) yet seamlessly performed with perfection and ease.

“Humane Alliance is the gold standard when it comes to successful high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter,” she said.

“Replicating their model program in cities across the country will help us to make real, measurable progress in the fight against pet homelessness and overpopulation.”

Morris also noted that the Humane Alliance, started in 1994 as a teeny tiny S/N center in little Asheville, N.C. , grew and spread quickly because of its mission, dedication and vision (not to mention its leadership.)

“Humane Alliance has started over 80 clinics across the country in a few short years and plans to start at least 80 more in the next 5 years,” Morris said.

Humane Alliance Volunteer Worker

The donation money – which many people wonder about (for various organizations) - will be used for:

-assistance with all the national training programs for vets and volunteers

- externship costs

- operating costs

- the Emergency National S/N Response Team

- an organizational videos (to increase awareness/PR, etc)

- a conference in 2011 (more info on that later this summer…)

- starting new shelters, which includes design, flow, pace and tons more details

Essentially, the $5.2 million will be distributed over a 5-year period, helping to create thousands of reliable, affordable and sustainable S/N surgical slots through capacity-building grants and training programs for veterinarians and clinic staff.

PetSmart Charities and the ASPCA recognize that adoption alone will not solve the problem of homeless-pet overpopulation.

** For example, in the U.S. annually, it has been estimated that 4 million pets are euthanized simply because they don’t have homes. (The economy doesn’t help, and neither do people who continue to BUY animals from places like Petland and “boutique pet shops” across the country, not to mention puppy mills and irreputable breeders…)

Last year, PetSmart Charities provided more than $8.2 million for S/N efforts nationwide and the group remains 100% committed to expanding these services in the future.

The ASPCA has a deep commitment to Humane Alliance, and the Asheville community in North Carolina, where Humane Alliance is based. Asheville is one of 10 ASPCA Partnership Communities and Humane Alliance has been instrumental in piloting ASPCA programs related to feral cats and effective spay/neuter mapping mechanisms which will benefit the county.

“PetSmart Charities and the ASPCA have been instrumental to the success of Humane Alliance,” said Humane Alliance Executive Director Quita Mazzina.

“Our continued partnership means that we can continue to provide the spay/neuter services that pets desperately need, as well as the high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter technique training for the veterinary community so that even more pets are sterilized every year.”

Furthermore, Morris also explained to me that the ASPCA is quite careful about and extremely thorough in choosing where its “substantial grant money” goes. The group systematically bases its choices on Partnerships (10 communities involved in this), the live release rate of a particular facility after rescue and S/N in different states, and shelter programs related to that capacity.

Bassets Rescued in Ohio

In my (humble) opinion, this is FANTASTIC NEWS and such a large donation and the bigger mission behind it could help save and spare the lives of COUNTLESS cats and dogs over the next decade. That’s why I chose to interview Julie to get more information and post this news.

This will undeniably MAKE A MAJOR IMPACT on the animal relief efforts across the country.

If you are interested in learning more, I encourage you to click through on the links of the organizations highlighted above.

Also, only if you are as dedicated & serious about animal welfare and or consider yourself a “professional AW advocate” (in Morris’ words), then visit the little known site, aspcapro.org. It’s for folks like me who are extremely active in the welfare movement and deadly serious about contacting the legislators, getting petitions moving, getting more participation and involvement from others, donating to shelters and organizations, and doing whatever is needed to promote the cause.

My Rescue Sasha (in bad shape...)

rescue as I am,

Let me know what you think about this partnership and donation program in the Comments section!

House Bill 55:

- HB 55, known as the “Animal Cruelty and Pet Protection Bill” encourages judges to include pets in domestic-abuse protective orders. A protective order is a legal order issued by a court that requires one person to stop harming, stay away from and/or cease contact with another person or, in the case of HB 55, that person’s pets as well.

This critical bill also emphasizes the need to counsel convicted animal abusers and strengthens misdemeanor penalties for intentional torture of livestock and wildlife. The bill would help ensure that Ohio treats animal cruelty crimes seriously by making additional acts of torture to livestock and wildlife misdemeanors of the first degree (punishable by up to six months’ imprisonment and/or a $1,000 fine). This very modest increase goes a long way toward making Ohio a more humane state.

HB 55 just passed the House Criminal Justice Committee. However, the lengthy summer legislative recess is quickly approaching. Now is the time to ask House Speaker Budish to put HB 55 on the House floor for a vote!

Learn more about this important bill.

Ohioans for Humane Farms (trying to get on November ballot):

- Ohioans for Humane Farms is spearheading a new, citizen-backed ballot initiative to prevent some of the cruelest factory farming practices in Ohio. The measure will require the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board to adopt certain minimum standards that will:

* prevent animal cruelty

*improve health and food safety

*support family farms

*safeguard the environment throughout the state of Ohio

The ballot measure is backed by HSUS, Farm Sanctuary, the Consumer Federation of America, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Ohio SPCA, the Toledo Area Humane Society, the Geauga Humane Society, the Humane Society of Greater Dayton, Medina County SPCA, Mercy For Animals, and a quickly growing list of other reputable organizations.

With more than 600,000 signatures needed to get on the November ballot, the group desperately needs volunteers. While the opposition will have big agribusiness contributors, we’re relying on you—our supporters—to help us get there. Please sign-up above to join the campaign. Thanks for all your help to protect farm animals.

Endorse the campaign: join the growing number of Ohioans endorsing our campaign. Print out one of the following pdf forms and mail or fax it in to our HQ:

Business
Elected Official
Celebrity/Prominent Individual
Organization
Veterinary
Farm
Congregation/Religious Leader

Find the group on Facebook under “Ohioans for Humane Farms,” or, to find an event, click here.

Also, check out the HSUS article on this effort here.

House Bill 79:

Introduced last year by Rep. Barbara Sears of Sylvania, HB 79 will strike down breed bans, particularly those on our precious pit bulls. It would remove the longstanding BSL from state law. Late in 2009 the Bill moved to the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. This bill needs all the support it can get.

Image courtesy BADRAP blog

See this post for good information on this bill. Residents, please contact your state representative and let them know you support HB 79: http://www.house.state.oh.us/

The bill can be tracked here: http://lsc.state.oh.us/coderev/hou128.nsf/House%20Bill%20Number?SearchView&Query=HB%2079&start=1&count=10

Previous alert and more info on the bill: http://stopbsl.com/2009/03/18/ohio-hb-79-would-remove-bsl-from-state-law/

House Bill 70:

We all are familiar with this one – the Ohio Puppy Mill Bill. Sponsored by Rep. Gerberry it passed the House and is on its way to Senate. The “Puppy Mill Cruelty Bill” specifically prohibits cruel treatment of a companion animal by an owner of a kennel, including cruelty and depriving the animal of food, water or shelter, and makes it a felony of the fifth degree.

An Ohio Puppy Mill

This Bill is ALL OVER the Internet: simply Google “Ohio Puppy Mill Bill” and a huge list of pet blog posts and animal welfare site articles will pop up with additional information and updates, as well as opinion pieces and petitions. For Ohio Puppy Mill Bill articles on ThoughtsFurPaws, type the same thing into the Search Bar on the bottom right of this page.

**This is perhaps the most FAVORED of all of Ohio’s animal welfare legislation right now. If you haven’t already, sign the petition here please.

————————————————————————————–

There are a few other animal welfare issues up for debate in Ohio right now – most moving at a snail’s pace through the legislature. (What else is new?) Seems to me that most of Ohio’s designated Reps and Sens just don’t care enough about animals in general to put these Bills at the top of the priority list.

**For more information on Ohio Animal Welfare Legislation, visit the Humane Society Legislative Fund’s State Legislation Page, or click on the “Animal Welfare” Category tab to your right on this blog’s home page.

Each year, 5 to 7 million dogs and cats enter the nation’s 5,000 shelters  — or are taken in by over 2,000 rescue groups. Some of these animals are lucky: they get adopted.

But 3 to 4 million dogs and cats are euthanized every year — most of them  loving animals who would make perfect companions, but lack one crucial thing: someone to adopt them.

The ASPCA is acutely aware of the myriad of problems that many community shelters face, including lack of space, staff and funds needed to house these animals, care for them and pay for their vet costs in order to get them adopted. It also recognizes that to be successful in their goals, these shelters need direct support from the communities in which they operate.

That’s why on April 8, 2010 (yes I’m a little late telling you), the ASPCA launched a new competitive grant aimed at helping shelters save more lives and elicit community involvement.

Save More Lives: ASPCA $100,000 Challenge will award a $100,000 grant to the shelter that saves the most animals’ lives during a three- month period in 2010, compared with the shelter’s same three-month period in 2009. The ASPCA will also award an additional $25,000 to the shelter that does the best job of getting its local community involved.

Bert Troughton, MSW, ASPCA VP of ProLearning, says, “We’re tapping the collective intelligence of shelters nationwide to bring forth the best programs and practices for saving more lives. To be competitive shelters must save at least 300 more lives within a three-month period (YOY) and increase their community’s direct involvement to help homeless animals.” She notes, “Above all, we want to help shelters raise public awareness about animal homelessness and how adopting from a shelter can make all the difference in the world.”

The ASPCA $100,000 Challenge is limited to 50 shelters, and will run during August, Sept, and Oct. Shelters must be non-profit organizations or government-controlled, and they must spay or neuter animals before adoption.

Ed Sayres, ASPCA President and CEO says, “Unique from our other grants that fund specific programs, the $100,000 Challenge is a competition to inspire creative solutions for increasing pet adoptions and improving return-to-owner rates.”

Shelters up for the grant include those from coast to coast, including those in: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. For information on the specific shelters selected in these states, click here.

For more information on the $100,000 Challenge, please visit www.aspcapro.org/challenge. For a media kit chock-full of information on how you can help your favorite shelter, and even more details, click here.

**Some of the info in this post was taken from the “ASPCA Action Spring 2010″ print mailer

May 2-8 is the American Humane Association’s Be Kind to Animals Week.  Be Kind to Animals Week is American Humane’s annual event celebrating the unique bond between people and animals, and encourages the humane treatment of all animals.

But why limit kindness to one special week? Here are five ways to be kind to animals every day:

1. Adopt a pet from a shelter or breed-specific rescue. Shelter pets make loving lifetime companions, and many shelters offer pet-matching services and follow-up training and advice to help you and your new best friend form a beautiful bond.

2. Report animal abuse. Violence against animals is terrible enough, but it could also be a sign that other violent behavior, like domestic abuse, is happening.

3. Spay or neuter your pets. An estimated 3.7 million animals are euthanized in America’s shelters every year due to a lack of homes. Help stop pet overpopulation and euthanasia of adoptable animals by making sure your own pets are spayed or neutered.

4. Live humanely with wildlife. Learn how to peacefully coexist with deer, bats, skunks, squirrels, raccoons and rabbits.

5. Get active in local animal welfare policies and legislation. Sign up with American Humane to receive action alerts about issues affecting animals.
 
As part of Be Kind to Animals Week, American Humane is sponsoring Lemonade for Shelter Aid, a contest that encourages children to set up lemonade stands to raise money for their local animal shelters. The contest runs until May 10, 2010, and is open to children and teens (ages 6-14). One grand-prize winner/team will be randomly selected to receive three Nintendo DS Lite game systems. Learn more and enter!

**Thanks to AHA for this release.

I just found this very interesting post from Lisa Wogan over at the Bark Blog.

“If the obstacle to pet overpopulation is money–consider that challenge handled. Orthopedic surgeon, inventor, and 346th richest American Gary Michelson will give $25 million to the brainy someone who conjures a safe, one-time non-surgical means to sterilize male and female cats and dogs. And that’s not all.

Michelson’s non-profit Found Animals Foundation will provide an additional $50 million to support the research into plausible approaches. Michelson and others, including the Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs, believe an inexpensive, convenient alternative to traditional spay and neuter is the essential missing line of attack in the battle to save millions of dogs and cats from euthanasia every year.

My favorite line in the USA Today story on the program is when Michelson says, “No one will stop what they’re doing and turn their attention to this problem for $10 million. That’s not enough.”"

I think this is such an important news story, don’t you? Please cross-post as you see fit.

Here is an update on our friend, Mr. Capone, the English Bulldog. He is our hu-Mom’s friend Nicole’s dog. Boy is he a sweetie. And boy is he funny. We just love Capone (and English Bulldogs for that matter. They are just a comical dog breed we think.) It’s been awhile since we last heard from Capone.

Capone the English Bulldog

The past few months have been a little crazy to say the least. In a short matter of time, Capone was not only fixed, but he also had his hernia repaired, and had a “nose job.” (Like most celebs, let’s just say it was due to a deviated septum.) *wink, wink!*

Yes, that’s an awful lot, but let me explain why we had all of these procedures done. (After all, we’d do anything for our little guy!)

To Fix or Not to Fix

We really had no intentions of breeding him. While my husband and I would love a little friend for Capone, we realize we’re not breeders and would have absolutely no idea what we were doing. Plus, it’s very expensive!

According to our vet, Bulldogs, who have a short life expectancy as is, are expected to live a little longer once this procedure is done. Besides, had we not had him fixed, he’d be able to smell a female dog in heat almost 5 miles away, and you better believe he’d try to find her!

Hernia Repair

When Mr. Capone was just a pup, we noticed he had what looked like a protruding belly button. Well, upon examination, the vet informed us that when he was born, the vet who delivered the pups cut the umbilical chord too close, thus preventing it from completely healing. (Hence, the hernia. )

We knew right away that when we were going to get him fixed, we’d have that taken care of in order to avoid any complications later in life.

A Nose Job?
The vet had noticed over the course of a few months that Mr. Capone’s nostrils were unusually narrow. (Before any assumptions are made, let me just say that my husband and I LOVE Mr. Capone’s snoring and grunting like a pig!)

I was afraid to get the procedure done for a few reasons. First, the vet mentioned the snoring might completely go away. (Thank goodness it didn’t!) Secondly, he might get a “piggy” nose. Fortunately, that didn’t happen either! (Either way, we’d love him just the same!)

Anyways, we had his nostrils enlarged, thus enabling him to breathe more easily. This, too, will hopefully enable him to live a longer life than the average bulldog.

Looking back, I’m amazed at just how well he recovered.

As I picked him up from the vet, I broke down. He was on so many medications, had so many stitches and it looked like he either didn’t remember me, or he was so upset with me for taking him to get all of this done, he didn’t want to know me. I swear, I thought it would take months to get my lil’ Capone back in tip-top shape.

Well, it took about 6 weeks until he was completely healed. Let me tell you that Mr. Capone definitely is back to normal, and boy is he full of energy! He’s taken up a new sport, softball and even has a new lil’ lady in his life, Maggie May. (Friends of ours got her just a few months ago.)

It was a tough decision to have all of these things done, and it was a bit pricy, but the well-being of our Capone has made it all worthwhile. The fact that he can breathe more easily, and run for longer amounts of time definitely allowed us to see that we had made the right decision.

Mr. Capone’s giving me his puppy dog eyes right now. It looks to me like he’s ready to “Play ball!”

Here’s a picture of him and his new girlfriend:

Capone Getting a Kiss!

Wags,
Benson and Gibson

Coming up in August are two important days for our nation’s pets:

August 16th: International Homeless Animals Day, sponsored by the International Society for Animal Rights.

According to the ISAR’s website, ISAR was the first organization in the United States (and probably the world) to use in its corporate name the moral principle of “animal rights.” The first federal and the first state court legal decisions to invoke the moral principle “animal rights” were in cases brought by ISAR.

Not sure how this group has gone unnoticed by me until now but it’s definitely worth mentioning.

According to the President’s Message from a 2007 Newsletter, ISAR inititated the first Homeless Animals Day in 1992. They “launched a crusade to enlighten society, our elected officials, and the media about the urgent need to spay/neuter our companion animals in an effort to halt the massive killing of millions of unwanted dogs, cats, kittens and puppies each year in our nation’s shelters.”

ISAR began National Homeless Animals’ Day and Candlelight Vigils to publicize dog and cat overpopulation in its overwhelming magnitude. National Homeless Animals’ Day and Candlelight Vigils, commemorated on the third Saturday of August each year, have grown enormously in both number and content. Animal Rights/Welfare organizations, as well as individuals from around the world have taken part in the event to increase public awareness of this issue. In the U.S, it is now recognized in most states as National Homeless Animals Day. The group encourages locally organized vigils to run on these days. See their website for more info.

Send this free pet eCard to other pet lovers on National Homeless Animals Day this year!

August 23rd: National Dog Day 2008, created by the National Dog Day Foundation, National Dog Day has two goals: to honor dogs and to rescue dogs from homelessness and abuse. It’s an opportunity for us to recognize and appreciate the value and importance of dogs in our lives.

According to the National Dog Day’s website, “National Dog Day serves to help galvanize the public to recognize the number of dogs that need to be rescued each year, and acknowledges family dogs and dogs that work selflessly each day to save lives, keep us safe and bring comfort.

National Dog Day’s founder, animal behaviorist, author and founder of the Animal Miracle Foundation, Colleen Paige, felt it was time to honor dogs more than we do now, to give them a day, to show appreciation for our deep connection to each other – for their endearing patience, unquestioning loyalty, for their work, their capacity for love and their ability to impact our lives everyday in the most miraculous ways. National Dog Day wishes to encourage dog ownership of all breeds, mixed and pure – and embraces the opportunity for all dogs to live a happy, safe and abuse-free life.”

This week, May 4-10 is the American Humane Association’s Be Kind to Animals Week! The group created this celebratory week in 1915 to celebrate the unique bond between humans and animals.

Though we all love our fur-babies, there are some special things we can do this week to work towards a better future for all animals, everywhere.

So how can you be kind to animals this week? The AHA recommends the following:

Speak out for animals. Get active in local animal welfare policies and legislation.

Report animal abuse. While acts of violence against animals are tragic in their own right, they are also a red flag for other violent behavior, including domestic abuse and violent crime.

Appreciate wildlife. Create an inviting space in your yard or garden for butterflies and birds. Feed the local birds, ducks, bunnies, deer, etc. (Some people might disagree with this one, but oh well. This is my feeling on the subject of starving wild animals).

Make a donation to a local animal shelter. A donation can be monetary, but you can also volunteer or offer up some other service in-kind like contributing to the shelter’s marketing efforts, etc.

Adopt a pet from a shelter or a breed-specific rescue. Approximately 8 to 12 million animals enter our nation’s shelters every year, and more than half of these pets will have to be euthanized because of a lack of homes. Local shelters are the best place to find companion animals, even purebreds — 1 of every 4 dogs in a shelter is a purebred.

Educate others. Share information about animal welfare issues with friends, family and co-workers. Research an issue close to heart, i.e. puppy mills, factory farming, breed-specific legislation, and do something about it! Write letters, call legislators, and get involved with animal welfare advocacy groups!

Spay and neuter. Help solve the problem of euthanasia of adoptable animals by not contributing to it. Make sure your cats and dogs are spayed and neutered.

Who knew?

I know this topic came up quite awhile back but I think it’s worth re-introducing.

I got some snail mail recently from PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)asking me to buy a membership. I always do research before donating to animal welfare groups because I get so many mailings in a week, and half of the so-called non-profits are shams that spend like 1 cent of a dollar on the animals. (Once you donate to one you get on ALL the mailing lists.)

Anyways, I found a website called PETAKillsAnimals.com. They report that PETA killed 97% of pets in their care in 2006 (most recent year for which stats are available).

97 percent.

This information came to light after a highly puclicized trial of two PETA employees who were arrested in 2005 for animal cruelty. They were found with a roaming “death van” and had been euthanizing pets and throwing them in trash bins. They were, to the dismay of the public, acquitted in 2007.

I wanted to find some back up information to support the claim from PETA Kills Animals and I found out, from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, that PETA killed (“put down”) 14,400 pets between 1998 and 2005. Pets that were supposed to go to homes. In fact, PETA actually told the vets and shelters they picked the animals up from that they would be going to homes and getting adopted out, according to the PETA Kills Animals site.

PETA employees even admitted on the stand that the group frequently kills animals. How frequently? Well in 2006 the group took in over 3,000 animals. Only 12 were adopted out.

This completely shocked me. This is sickening.

PETA’s own philosophy holds that people and animals are equal. It’s President, Ingrid Newkirk, has likened dogs to boys. And coming from a group that works so hard for animal rights and to harm the reputation of animal abusers…

PETA has become every piece the animal killer as the companies it commonly attacks.

So much for animal welfare.

Tell me what you think about this.

No, I am not talking about your crush on the neighbor.

I am talking about a chance to help animals throughout the country!

Thanks to Best Friends Animal Society for this news article…

AnimalAttraction.com, a social networking site that has been called “MySpace for pet lovers,” is offering current and future members an opportunity to choose Best Friends as the recipient of donations from the website.

When somebody joins AnimalAttraction they are given the option of four animal welfare organizations to support: Best Friends, ASPCA, PetFinder and North Shore Animal League America.

The site donates $1 to a chosen group when a member signs up, then a penny each day that person logs on. It also donates $1 for each friend the member refers to the site. There is no cost to join the site.

Read the full article here.

This is a great opportunity to donate to the hard-working animal welfare community and a chance to make some purr-fectly pet-loving friends in a forum atmosphere. AnimalAttraction has all kinds of other features, too when you join including forums, photo contests and galleries, chat rooms, videos of the day and more! They have all kinds of educational materials as well so you can learn about your pet’s health and other information.

Click here to join AnimalAttraction today and start donating (for free!). It’s an awesome site where you can upload photos of your pets and create your own personal home page.

Thanks again to Best Friends Animal Society for this news.