Its Adopt a Shelter Dog Month!

We had a wonderful hike this morning in the woods.  October is my very favourite time for this .... but October is also Adopt a Shelter Pet Month.  Here in Nova Scotia, not all the great dogs looking for love are waiting in shelters.  We are lucky to have a such a variety of Adoption Options to choose from.

So with apologies to anyone on the off chance that I missed anyone  .... or inadvertently included a lucky Happy Tail, here are the wonderful dogs available for adoption here in beautiful Nova Scotia.  

If you are interested in anyone, they will either be on the Boy Dogs or the Girl Dogs page of the homeless pet site.  The link to their Petfinder listings is embedded in both the pics and their names.

I've brought home puppies from good breeders and adopted good dogs from rescue and I'm telling you right now that the only difference ( besides the price tag of course) is the extra satisfaction of knowing that I've made a difference by offering safe harbour to a good dog in need.

So have a look at these sweet faces and you'll see why I'm always nattering on about how there is Somebody for Everyone!



On old dogs and young girls

Its no secret that I love senior pets.  In their own time, I have loved each and every one of my own elderpets and actively promote senior pet adoption with The NS Senior Pet Project.

If its a crapshoot to be a homeless pet, the ante really steps up for the seniors.  And one kind heart at a time, senior pet adoption IS starting to catch on.  

People are beginning to realize what lovely settled companions that seniors generally make.  Many of them, like my own Andy, are still active and can have years of love left to offer.

But what about the senior pets with health issues?  The ones that don't have years of love left to offer?  Finding a home for them is a real gamble.   Even the kindest of hearts might not have deep enough pockets to manage the medical bills.   Not everyone wants to go through the heartache of losing a love so soon.

That is why the innovative folks at the Metro Shelter have come up with The Golden Opportunity Program. How does it work?  Its a palliative care program with very special foster homes that provide the love while the shelter picks up the tab for the medical bills. 

Programs like this don't simply save lives ... it is an effective education tool that demonstrates in a very practical way the society's belief that ALL life is precious.  They are doing their darnedest to get to No Kill and if they're not there yet at all levels, at least they have a plan.  More importantly, Metro.. which I suppose we should actually be calling The Provincial Shelter now, has to lead the way if there is to be any hope of the branches ever following.

As a sidebar note to this, if you would like to volunteer for this incredible foster journey, you can contact the Metro shelter.

A friend of mine has been volunteering with another great education program that the society launched a while back with the Girl Guides.  That's a great place to start an education outreach program while these girls are learning the ropes to become tomorrow's leaders.

What is it?  Its a Pawprints Patch that can be earned through a variety of activities involving the SPCA... from visiting a shelter to sharing a led discussion with volunteers like my friend to poster contests to everything in between. 

Last spring, 504 girls from 30 different groups and 18 different communities around Nova Scotia were involved in this program.   Everyone agrees that Humane Education is a critical cornerstone for getting to No Kill Nova Scotia and this years participants could foreseeably be tomorrows Humane Education Outreach volunteers.

In the interim, they are part of their communities and will have an important role influencing their own families and friends.  Its almost frosting on the cake that in a world where animal cruelty investigations are complaint driven that there will be ever so many more caring and compassionate young people out there.

Given all this ... its very good to see such energy rewarded.  Both these programs have earned them nominations in two separate categories for the national Summit Awards, which will be presented at the 2010 5th International Summit for Urban Animal Strategies being held Oct. 13–16 at Lake Louise, Alta.

The Golden Opportunities Program has been nominated in the Animal Wellness Category and the Pawprints Challenge in the Education Category.

What time is it?  Its always time to understand that Good News can be a Great Way to promote the animals

Not even a hurricane can keep this little guy down

When I tell people that my Grampy emigrated to Cape Breton from Newfoundland, they think I'm kidding.  Its easy to forget that Newfoundland only joined Confederation in 1949, because work and family affairs have laid down a well worn path between the two provinces.

Occasionally a very lucky pair of paws follows this familiar path ... as is the case with the adorable little fellow pictured here.  Scamper was not doing well at the Clarenville SPCA .   The little lad had survived a horrible dog attack, along with all the surgery needed to repair the damage.

Scamper had healed physically, but the shelter was no place for a little fellow to regain his confidence and rebuild his spirit.  Everyone had pulled out all the stops to find a foster home for him. 

What was the problem?  Were there no foster homes in the area?  Of course not!  The hitch was finding one without a large dog .... as Scamper was still understandably skittish after everything that had happened.

Happily, the kind hearts at Atlantic Small Dog Rescue here in Nova Scotia were moved by Scamper's plight and immediately stepped up to the plate.  

What a perfect fit for a little fellow so afraid of big dogs!  Although they have a couple of "honorary small dogs" in care, as a general rule the ASDR fosters already tend to be small dog people. 

Its frosting on the cake that they are terrier experienced and are willing to take the time and effort to get all their adoptables off on the right paw.  

What time is it?  Its always time to applaud those who go the extra mile for the animals.  The kind folks at Clarenville who pulled out all the stops for Scamper and didn't even let a hurricane get in the way of things ... and the kind hearts at Atlantic Small Dog Rescue who opened their hearts and their rescue to give Scamper a second chance at the good life!

PS ... if you are interested in adopting this great little guy, please contact Atlantic Small Dog Rescue

from the airport in Newfoundland

where this sweet boy wasn't sure what was going on

but hey ... everyone's been so kind it must be ok

leaving the Rock

 Hello to Nova Scotia

where its always nice to meet new friends!

Expecting Different Results

Best Friends has been running four campaigns for a while now and the poster here comes from the resource section of their Focus on Felines Campaign.  On the surface the numbers don't seem to apply to Nova Scotia where the live release rates on a bad day are never as bad as 28 %.
Why are the live release rates better in Nova Scotia?   Is it because more cats are getting adopted?  Or is it simply that the shelters and groups that AREN'T killing the cats aren't taking every cat who needs a new home?  
The cats are still being killed ... just not by the shelters and rescues, eh?
Here in the real world, the general consensus is that there is no possible way to be open admission for cats.   For example, when the Cape Breton SPCA was open admission,they needed a gas chamber to keep up with the volume.
Here in the real world, where cats can remain in care longer than the homeless pet site has been around, are there any other options?
At the risk of sounding like a stuck record ... if the adopters won't come to the shelters ... then perhaps its time for the shelters to come to the adopters.  If off site cat adoptions have been such a success elsewhere, why is the concept meeting such resistance in Nova Scotia?
I think there are a few misconceptions about off site adoptions:

• any that I have seen and researched still require the adopters to fill in an application and provide references. 
• References are still checked and pets ONLY get to go home that day if everything checks out.   Noone is passing the pets out like candy
• In many cases the pets don't actually go home that day because the offsite adoption events are actually Meet and Greets. 
• In some cases where adoption rates are up, it is thought that offsite events are not necessary, and
• Is it not a little elitist to imply that off site adoptions might attract all the "wrong kind of pet owner" ( as opposed to all those wonderful loving pet owners who have simply never thought about the adoption option? )

I LOVE living in Nova Scotia.  I've lived and travelled all around the world and Nova Scotia is my very favourite place on this planet. 
Our old fashioned charm holds a special appeal, but at times that has its drawbacks.  We can be reluctant to embrace new ideas from "away" such as Early age spay neuter, pregnant spays and even the baseline premise that TNR solves as many nuisance behaviors as overpopulation issues.
Not everyone is able to find a vet who will alter a pet before six months of age.  It can be even harder for rescues to find vets willing to do pediatric spays.
This is in spite of the official position of the Canadian Veterinary Association, which may be found by clicking here , which is: 
Dog and Cat Spay/Castration
Position
The CVMA believes that neutering is an important aspect of responsible pet care, both to combat the pet overpopulation problem, and because of the many health and behavioural benefits. The CVMA strongly recommends that all cats and dogs not part of a responsible breeding program be neutered, preferably before 5.5 months of age (i.e. before sexual maturity).
Background
The CVMA
Early spay/castration is now used by animal shelters wherever possible to ensure all pets are neutered before adoption. Long-term studies that evaluated risks and benefits in cats and dogs concluded that there are more benefits than risks associated with early-age gonadectomy in male and female cats and in male dogs (1, 2). Therefore, the CVMA supports the concept of early (prepubertal, 8 to 16 weeks of age) spay/neuter in male and female cats, and male dogs, in an effort to reduce the number of unwanted animals of these species. For female dogs, however, it is recommended that spaying be delayed until at least 3 months of age due to an increased risk of urinary incontinence (1). Just as for other veterinary procedures, veterinarians should use their best medical judgment in deciding at what age spay/neuter should be performed on individual animals.
Euthanasia is not an acceptable means of population control. The CVMA supports all education efforts to promote responsible pet ownership, including that neutering is part of being a responsible owner.
References
1. Spain CV, Scarlett JM, Houpt KA. Long-term risks and benefits of early-age gonadectomy in dogs. J Am Vet Med Assoc 2004;224:380-387.
2. Spain CV, Scarlett JM, Houpt KA. Long-term risks and benefits of early-age gonadectomy in cats. J Am Vet Med Assoc 2004; 224:372-379.
3. Aronsohn MG, Faggella AM. Surgical techniques for neutering 6- to 14-week-old kittens. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1993; 202:53-55.
4. Faggella AM, Aronsohn MG. Anesthetic techniques for neutering 6- to 14-week-old kittens. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1993; 202:56-62.
5. CVMA position statement on euthanasia http://canadianveterinarians.net/
(Revised March 2006) Copyright 2005
And before the keyboards catch on fire, the real issue is whether Early Spay neuter is available to all pet owners and rescues around the province.  From the feedback that I get, not all Vets are on board with the idea and sadly some of the biggest resistance comes from rural areas which have significantly fewer rescue options or adopters.
What time is it?  Its always time to remember that outside of the original Mi'Kmaq, everyone ... along with all their ideas ... came to Nova Scotia from Away.
"Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"  Albert Einstein