Along the road in the Search for Clarity

Researching the backstory for the Rescues Without Borders thread has definitely had me digging into some dark and dirty corners ... and sadly not all of those grubby little places were south of the border.
We've been pretty pleased with ourselves because the society finally pulled out all the stops to ensure that the CB branch stopped using the gas chamber this year.... the actual announcement this year triggered the blog post ... Its Already an incredible day
One of the other research projects that I've been working on it to try to compile accurate statistics with respect to the homeless pets in this province. There is no difficulty obtaining the society stats ... in their newfound spirit of transparency the provincial branch has been publishing them online ( the subject of how much Cape Breton Fudge might still be included is a very interesting topic to pursue on another day )
Nor is it any trouble to get stats from any of the groups who do rescue. Generally they are pretty proud of the lives that they've saved and don't hesitate to "dish up the goods"
Yet there will be no meaningful numbers without accurate data from Animal Control .. and that's where it gets a little sticky. Although AC in our province is a municipal responsibility, if there is one constant in the equation it is that there is no constant.
The operations are as varied as one can possibly imagine. In some places there is an animal control officer.. in others that job is contracted out. Some have their own pounds .... others contract out for sheltering services.
Outside of Antigonish and Guysborough Counties, who both still have restricted dog breeds on the books, generally the dog by laws are pretty consistent throughout the province. There is a 72 hour holding time for impounded animals... after which the designated animal control person can destroy or sell the unclaimed animals.
Destroy how? It was only five years ago in Annapolis county that the dogs were still being shot by Animal control. Sheltered how? When the SPCA shut down Celtic Pets, the Town of Port Hawkesbury had to scramble to make other arrangements to shelter and dispose of their impounded animals.
If there is one standard, it is that there is no standard, only secrecy. Animal control information should be freely available on all municipal websites. In some instances, its only possible to find anything when one of the participants runs afoul of the law... such as the recent difficulties that one contractor has landed in with Revenue Canada.
Irregardless of the contractual arrangements, monthly and annual animal control statistics should be publicly available on each municipal or county web site, just as the society is doing. Unfortunately, secrecy always inspires suspicion.
Now this is where it really starts to get dirty. To the best of my knowledge, it isn't happening in Nova Scotia, but the fact that its happening anywhere in Canada is nothing to be proud of for sure. Its called Pound Seizure and in a nutshell it is the practice of selling homeless pets from pounds and shelters to laboratories for experimentation.
In fact the land of BSL likes the idea so much that they actually wrote it in legislative stone ....hard enough to be a pit bull up there but clearly there are fates worse than death in Ontario for the pitties. Nor is the practice limited to Ontario... Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec are also engaged. Indeed animal welfare advocates estimate that Quebec has become the largest unregulated supplier of pound source animals for research in Canada.
And before the keyboards catch on fire, yes.. I am very opposed to the use of animals in research. There is a common conception that this is acceptable because it allows researchers to move forward with the cure for diseases like Cancer. The reality is that according to statistics released by the Canadian Council on Animal Care, nearly two-thirds of all animal research carried out in Canada has little or nothing to do with curing disease or advancing human medicine.
In addition to which, as a DES daughter, I have had personal experience with the fact that the drugs that were tested on animals didn't always turn out to be safe for people after all. Given existing data on species specific reactions, most animal deaths at the hands of animal research are inspired by curiosity or that old 'publish or perish' bit.
The last little dirty bit flew through my radar by accident, in the form of a story about a farmer up near Truro whose neighbours have taken legal action to stop his practice of fertilizing his fields with liquid sludge from rendering plants. My curiosity got the better of me and when I started digging I was almost sick. Dead animals, even diseased animals, from all manner of sources are disposed of in rendering plants which produce a product that eventually becomes the 'animal fat' ingredient in some commercial pet foods. The list of potential problems with that one runs right around the block... starting with the concern for spreading BSL and winding though the issues of using animals which have died from cancer or communicable diseases.
How many times has assumption left the animals out in the cold... or worse it would seem? In light of that, there are three pieces of protective and/ or preventative legislation that should be tabled in this province, to ban :

• the disposal of companion animals from any source at rendering plants.
• pound seizure, and
• the use of the gas chamber or any other inhumane method for killing

As always ... in so much dark no light is little. I tripped over an amazing group of volunteers who run Project Jessie ( http://www.projectjessie.ca/ ) Among other things, these folks are working hard to save every animal they can from pounds where they are vulnerable to seizure, while at the same time advocating to have the law changed.
If you have men that will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men. St Francis of Assisi

Tis the season

For some reason that she can't explain and I can't begin to understand ... Miss Ruby has disliked the white wooden reindeer that one of my neighbours puts out on their lawn every holiday season. There are all kinds of the overly cute wooden cutouts adorning lawns up and down the road all year long ... yet it would seem that these reindeer are the only ones she objects too.
On a lovely day like this, if the darned reindeer weren't out on display, it would be easy to imagine that the holiday season was still months away instead of waiting just around the corner to pounce.
I'm a middle aged granny so I'm already gathering bits and pieces for the holiday parcel to mail off to my daughter and her family. Extravagance has never been part of the family holiday traditions, but there are some little bits of home that help make the holidays away easier.
As far as my daughter is concerned, as long as she gets fudge, flannel pyjamas and stocking stuffers anything else is just frosting on the cake.
If, like me, you are shopping for stocking stuffers, there are no shortage of great things around that will do double duty by helping the animals as well. In fact many of the things are lovely enough to make great gifts on their own

• ARC offers a wide variety of things ... they have a "store" which features T-shirts, a wide variety of magnets and a selection of very snazzy thermal mugs. They also have a lovely selecition of jewelry to fundraise for the animals ... and of course there is also the fun of their online auction
• The folks at S.H.A.I.D are running their ever popular Pet Pics with Santa, for times and locations http://www.shaid.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=6
• At CAPS, you can choose to shop for T-shirts, ball caps and those great CAPS mugs that coffee just tastes so good in, or you can keep your eye peeled for both their annual calendar and the dates for their pet pics with Santa
• If you are too busy to bake, the LA Animal Shelter is having a huge bake sale at the Zellers end of the Amherst Center Mall on Saturday, Nov 28th starting at ten until two pm or when they run out of goodies .... whichever comes first. AND this year , on Sunday, Dec 6th, they are holding a Telethon at the Amherst Lions Den, from 2 - 6 pm which will be televised on Eastlink Television. There will be music, a silent auction, along with a Dog Trainer / Dog Behaviourist; Veterinarian Advice; Highland Dancers; recently adopted dogs and cats with their owners.
• The 2010 Bide Awhile calendar is available now and although there is no date posted yet, they normally have an open house in December
• The TLC Animal Shelter 2010 calendars are available at the Port Royal Veterinary Hospital ... you can even choose from all cats or all dogs.
• Down in Shelbourne County, P.E.T. PROJECTS are raffling off tickets, which can be purchased online, btw.... on a beautiful painting and the draw for that will be on Nov 24th AND they are holding a Adoption Fair and Christmas Sale on Saturday, Nov 21, from 10am until 2pm at the Shelbourne Fire Hall
• NS Labrador Rescue is holding a flea market at the Enfield Fire Hall from 8 am until noon. There is a $10 fee to rent a table and all interested in doing so should contact Lab Rescue. AND they are also doing Santa pics with pets at the Doggy Bag Treatery in Enfield on Sunday, November 29th from noon until 4 pm. There will be treats for the furkids and apple cider and hot chocolate for their humans
• supporters for Atlantic Boxer Rescue can shop from their store or through their friends at Best Dressed Dog ( Collars for critters). Better yet, you can go to the facebook group for Collars for Critters to find out about their holiday auction
• The Clare Feral Friends are having having an amazing raffle ...with 1st Prize: Handmade Quilt donated by Gary Comeau. 2nd Prize: Oil Painting by Thelma Maillet-Comeau, 3rd Prize: Dozen Lobsters donated by local fishermen. Draw Date: Dec.20, 2009
• If you want a break from all that cooking and shopping, HART is holding its Annual Italian feast at the Annapolis Royal Fire Hall on Saturday, November 28th from 3 to 7 pm.
• the Hants County SPCA 2010 calendars are ready
• The Antigonish SPCA have their 2010 calendar ready and throughout the fall are selling tickets on the most beautiful cat quilt that I have ever seen ... pictures of it are on the front door of their site
• From Nov 28th to Dec 6th, the folks at the Metro Shelter are having their annual Santa Pix with pets AND from Dec 11th to Dec 22nd, they are having their Tree of Lights Festival. If conscientious pet owners are looking for a place to shop, the newly reopened Petcetera is a great place because they feature a Satellite Pet Adoption center for Metro instead of the usual Puppy Mill wares.
• The Yarmouth SPCA now have their own store, http://www.yarmouthspca.com/merchandise.html. They will also be holding their pet pics with Santa on November 28th from 11 am until 3 pm, along with a craft fair, at their shelter on Hardscratch Road.
• The Kings SPCA are running their annual Shelter lottery

If for some reason, anyone or anything has been overlooked, please email me and I'll add it in.

You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give. Winston Churchill

Undercutting the competition

Its been a beautiful week and that has made it a great time for many things ... from wrapping up the last bits in the garden to sharing the dogs enjoyment in their new play yard. As always, this year my garden to do list ambitions have exceeded my grasp .... not surprising when I am at liberty to spend as much time as I want walking and hiking with the dogs.
I am a middle aged grandmother ... so if I am not always wiser, I am at least old enough to understand it is rarely possible to accomplish everything at once. The hardware kit for the gazebo/outdoor kitty room will still be there in the spring. The nursery will still be selling fruit trees next spring to convert the garden on the hill to the worlds smallest fruit orchard. And it will be just as easy to transplant the perennial herbs that I started from seed to their permanent digs next spring.
I'm not quite so prosaic about the changes that are needed to make a better world for the animals. But at fifty-five years of age, I do understand that the necessary legislation simply isn't going to happen overnight.
Does that mean that nothing can be done in the interim? Of course not ... while we are advocating for better laws .... there is more that can be done at the ground level for the animals right now.
Why do people still shop at pet stores? With all the information about puppy mills and backyard breeders, how can they still go in and shop? The plain unvarnished truth is that the majority of folks neither know .. nor to be perfectly honest ... care about animal welfare issues.
Its not that people aren't compassionate. Its not that they don't care. It is simply that there are just so very many different causes and needs out there that the animals often slide to the bottom of people's priority lists. Child hunger, poverty, spousal abuse ... its a such a hard old world out there that the animals are often overlooked.
Nor is it that people aren't animal lovers. By best guestimates, at least half of the 350,000 households in the province either have, or are thinking of getting, a pet. Why do most of these folks fly under the animal welfare radar? Because they ARE kind ... they spay or neuter their own pets and keep them for life. Safely and warmly and well cared for. There is absolutely no need for folks like that to have anything to do with animal rescue.
With all the stories that have been in the news, why do people still advertise and shop on the free online ad sites? It is just a fact of life that unless there is a personal involvement with family or friends.. most folks don't remember the stories a month after they're published. If you don't believe me, just bring up Celtic Pets in conversation with someone uninvolved in the animal rescue world and see how much they remember.
To make matters worse, most folks never hear about the many, many great pets that were adopted from rescues and shelters. They hear about the ones with unaddressed behaviour issues that make the news and THAT only reinforces the urban legend that pets find their way into rescue because there is something wrong with the pet.
So while we are advocating for better laws for the animals, what can we do? We can recognize that rescue groups and shelters are in competition with pet stores and the free online ad sites for homes for their pets. What do businesses do when they have competition? They pull out all the stops when it comes to customer service. They make it as easy and comfortable as possible to be their 'customer'.
Right here, right now, it only makes life saving sense to simplify adoption procedures. Why do so many more folks opt to take out fast food orders than to eat in the outlet? It isn't because its any cheaper. Its because it is easier and simpler and less hassle for families to bring the food back home.
People may want to be kind, but at the end of the day they do NOT want to be inconvenienced.
Good adoption experiences are the best publicity any group or shelter can get. After all, when I adopted Ruby /Henry/ Morgan / Andy, they each became ambassadors for rescue to my friends and family. Andy in particular is an awesome spokesdog for adopting senior pets because unlike the two young dogs, there were no knots to work through and no training to be done.
What time is it? Its time to bring a little business sense to pet adoption and start undercutting the competition.

Rescue without Borders ... part 3

Do you remember Shep ? He was part of the first vehicle full of good dogs that East Coast German Shepherd Rescue brought up from Georgia. They all stopped to rest and regroup in New England with volunteers.

Shep was part of the first group of four dogs that have made the second leg of the trip to Nova Scotia ... and is the only one of the three that hasn't been adopted yet.

You can see he's having a good time while he's waiting. Shep has been discovering the newfound delights that Nova Scotia has to offer .. including our early snow: )))

Yesterday, the last three of the original seven dogs that made the first trip up from Georgia arrived in Nova Scotia.

Monica, the woman with the van, brought them to the mall parking lot in Truro where she met with Leah and Paula from ECGSR.

The two boys you see together were picked in Mississippi, where they had been picked up and were being kept at a police holding facility. Monica picked them up on her travels down south, saving two more lives.

The older fellow is Benson, and he was one of the three that Leah had arranged to be pulled out of Cobb county animal control. Leah describes him as a "sweet older guy"

It takes a lot of dedicated volunteer energy and love to take on a project like this. Love is not all they need, and if you want to assist in any meaningful way with the next trip that is being organized as we speak, contact Leah at leah@nsgsrescue.com

The other day, a friend of mine was asking why this was being done, when we have so many homeless dogs right here in Nova Scotia. Unfortunately, a lot of the great things that are done by rescues here in this province never come into the public eye.

Very few folks outside of the rescue community are aware of the lifesaving work being done by Ador-A-Bull Rescue, saving lives from a sure death sentence in the land of BSL. Nor do most know how many times rescues in the Maritimes have pulled out all the stops for their adoptables by sending them where the adopters are.

And of course there is that whole other end of the stick that I go on and on about like a stuck record .... any publicity for the animals helps all the animals. The person who notices the story about the good dogs from Georgia on one of their friend's facebook site, might not adopt one of the Georgia dogs. But upon occasion, it opens their eyes ( and their minds ) to the possibility of adopting A dog. ( or a cat/rabbit/gerbil/iguana/etc )

What time is it? Its always time to remember that we can't cherry pick which lives count. Its just frosting on the cake that the work being done with Rescue without Borders is doing more than opening a new door for the Georgia dogs ... its opening a few eyes right here.

Update on more Rescue without Borders

On this day of remembrances its always great to have a glimmer of good news. Ralph, the senior shepherd in Georgia has been saved by another rescue. In turn that will be good news for another good dog, making room for one more good dog to have a second chance in Nova Scotia.

Making Do When the Men went away

All five of her daughters had already been born when the first shot was fired. Like many other women in small farming communities, she kissed her husband good bye and took up the reins of the family farm.
The task would be made somewhat easier when army engineers ran electricity out to the farms. It would still be a full days trip to go into town by horse and wagon to shop. It would take half a day when anything was needed from the local sawmill.
There was no phone or tv. Only one of the girls was old enough to walk down the road to the schoolhouse. There was no indoor plumbing, washing machine or running water.
Her grandfather helped bring in the sixteen cord of wood it would take to heat her uninsulated house and run the wood stove each year.
Still she counted herself lucky. None of the telegrams delivered in the community came to her door. None of the girls came down with anything she couldn't take care of.
And she had Charlie. He had captured her heart from the first moment they met. She knew deep down that she shouldn't give away her heart .... that noone in the community would understand.
Out of respect for public opinion she wouldn't allow him in the house. Charlie spent his nights in the barn and was waiting eagerly to meet her every morning at dawn.
Somehow she never mentioned Charlie when she wrote to her husband. He was away ... fighting for freedom, and it just didn't seem right to worry him. There were a few snickers when she went to church with the girls, but somehow noone quite knew how to broach the subject of Charlie.
Eventually they all just decided to take the easy path and let her husband handle Charlie when he came home. Speculation sparked and occasionally flared up about how that would go.
The girls had all started school by the time her husband came home. Thanks to her grandfather and his friends, the hay had been baled and was up in the loft. Sugar was short so there were no sweets for the homecoming hero.
Finally, at long last, it was time to come clean about Charlie. On Sunday when their buggy rode into the churchyard, everyone was waiting and wondering and watching.
Going to war changes a man in ways both big and small. If the community was expecting him to get excited about Charlie, they were in for a surprise. After the horrors he had seen overseas, her husband didn't get excited about Charlie. He was actually happy that Charlie had helped his wife through the lonely years he was away.
And because he had already seen enough killing... and because he loved his wife .... Isabelle's pet pig Charlie lived to be a ripe old age.
Webmaster note: For all of you who have already asked ... yes this was a true story. Isabelle's husband was one of over a million Canadians who went to WWII. It was told to me by Isabelle, on the evening before I left for basic training, in 1974.
The years had not dimmed her affection for Charlie ... nor her love for the normally thrifty Scottish farmer who went against everything that he knew to let Charlie live out his days as Isabelle's pet. Charlie was still there after the girls were all grown and gone and lived to the ripe old age of 22.

More Rescue without Borders

Meet Ralph. Right now he's knocking on heavens door down in Georgia, but there's a lot going on that he doesn't know about.

For starters, he's probably got no idea that there even is such thing as a gas chamber. Ralph is eight years old and well behaved, so at this point in time he probably thinks being in a kennel in Animal Control is the worst thing that's ever happened to him.

He's been there almost a week now, and that's probably felt like a long time to him. Ralph likely has no idea that its not long enough ... on the 11th his time will be up.

Ralph would have no idea that the gas chamber has been outlawed in Georgia. Nor would he know that rural Animal Controls received special dispensation from the state to continue using the gas chamber. There are a lot of animal advocates down there trying to change that, but that won't happen in time to help Ralph.

Most of all, Ralph doesn't know that East Coast German Shepherd Rescue is quietly pulling out all the stops trying to arrange transport for him and three other good dogs in the same fix as he is. He has no idea so much is hanging on this and how there will be the same round of nail biting suspense until definite arrangements are made.

Ralph doesn't know its Adopt a Senior Pet Month. Nor does he know that two of the senior shepherds from the original Rescue without Borders story have already been adopted.

Now before the keyboards catch on fire ... and it may just be my imagination .... but it seems to me that there have been more dog adoptions around the province since the first Rescue without Borders trip.

Why would that be? Anytime a group runs adoption incentives ( seniors/ cats/ long term shelter residents ) it has boosted all their adoptions. Why? Because adoption incentives are also attention getting devices that help all the animals.

What more wonderful way to garner attention for animal rescue than to be pulling good dogs, many of them seniors, from the jaws of the gas chamber just in the nick of time.

It is to be hoped that in time, there will be no need for Rescue without Borders. That there will be a time when exemptions are rescinded in Georgia and that the animals will face a better future there.

Until that day, committed volunteers will continue to carry on. Because the alternative is unthinkable.

Man does not weave this web of life. He is merely a strand of it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself. Chief Seattle