A lot can happen in a year

This is such a changeable time of year .. the snow that still blanketed my yard two days ago is very nearly gone. Snowdrifts have been exchanged overnight for mud puddles and there is a little temporary creek running through the yard as the snow disappears from the hill behind my house.
A year ago today, Miss Ruby arrived here and its nice this morning to see her so comfy on the couch, sleeping off this morning's hike. This is a difficult time for my sweet girl as her little hound nose just has ever so many more distractions to contend with: )))
She has certainly learned a lot in a year ... although some lessons are still on the drawing board. I am happy to report that its been months since she's felt it necessary to wake me up in the middle of the night to investigate why the coyotes might be singing. But she is a such a smarty pants that the journey is as fun as the destination.
There have been so very many changes this year. The most eye popping differences that I can point to with the society are all to do with the upcoming AGM .

• Unlike last year, the time and date have been broadly advertised ( 132nd Annual General Meeting ) well in advance of the actual date.
• Another change is the open and above board Call for applications for 2009 Board elections
• And last.... but very definitely not least, is the fact that the Nova Scotia SPCA 2008 Annual Report now available! has been online for a bit now and can be read long before anyone heads into the AGM

No question about it ... that's a pretty big change from this time last year.... when the society was so very close to circling the drain that the wording for last years animal cruelty legislation was amended to include the option of replacing the society if they were unwilling or unable to fulfil their mandate.

It took more than hard work and determination to make these changes. It took a couple of key resignations to begin the process of restoring the society's public credibility. After that the changes came as quickly as the ones I've seen in the yard this week. From a newfound transparency .... to support for feral cats ... to turning Metro around in such a positive way ... and everything in between, this board has done more in a few months than all the previous boards in the 22 years that I have lived in Nova Scotia.

IMHO, that's worth celebrating as much as Ruby's first "anniversary".