Update ... foster found to save young mother dog and her three pups!

Some tried and true phrases are timeless because they just cut to the chase.  Whether its Robert Burns 'gang aft agley' or the more modern "often go astray", the best laid plans can ... and do .. go astray every day.

Usually this type of thing is only inconvenient, but in this case its much more urgent.  The foster that ARC had lined up for this young little mother and her three remaining pups fell through.   If you, or someone you know, can help, please contact ARC . 

CAPS is coming back to the Greenwood Mall!

What a beautiful quilt!  I saw it a few weeks ago at when CAPS had their first offsite adoption event and even these lovely pictures don't really do it justice.  The draw will be on May 20th ... and anyone interested in buying tickets can click here for more info. 

I'm betting that tickets might also be available at the NEXT offsite adoption event at the Greenwood Mall.  CAPS will be back in the Center Court on Saturday, April 9th, from 11 am until 3 pm.   

Was the mall eager to invite them back?  You bet!  They found out first hand that animals always draw in more foot traffic.    Its just one of those lovely win win scenarios where what is good for the animals is also good for the mall merchants, eh?

Even better ... its a win win for all the cats. From my birds eye view of maintaining the cat galleries, CAPS cat adoptions do seem to be up for all the kitties, not just the ones who went to the event.   That of course means that more can be taken in from Annapolis County Animal Control.

Even better, each and every one of the cats that gets 'their lucky day' will be a great ambassador ... not only for being their own sweet selves but when friends/ family/ neighbours and coworkers discover what a great deal the adoption fee is.

Best of all, each and every adoption is part of the solution because the cats are already altered.

What time is it?  Its always time to promote a pawsitive example! 

Silence is not Golden

March is here!  Finally and at long last!  But wait a minute ... isn't everything still subzero and icy outside?  Isn't the greenhouse still hibernating under a blanket of snow?   Aren't some of the smaller bits of shrubbery still completely covered?
You bet!  But right on cue this morning, I heard my favourite kind of tweet .... the sweet sound of the robins greeting us for our first out.  
Gardeners are incurable optimists, eh?  While others only hold the bird actually in their hand, we are ever eying the 'ones in the bush'. 
Behind every beautiful bed .... before the backbreaking work ... all good gardens start with a vision.  Does experience make a better gardener?  Of course it does!  That vision won't ever amount to a hill of beans if it isn't accompanied by a real understanding of the practical bits needed to get it out of the gate.
Over the years, I have learned that almost anything is possible if one is willing to invest the time and energy.  There is ALWAYS a way to grow that delicate or difficult thing.  A little extra sheltering   An early start.  Extra winter protection.   Even to the extreme of burying the entire plant/ shrub/ tree below the frost line every winter.
The point I am making in my meandering way is that the only difference between the master gardener and the one who falls flat is persistence.  Kind of like anything in life, eh?
Thirty odd years ago, everyone knew that spousal abuse was wrong.  That a black eye was not a suitable response to 'not tonight dear'.   That broken bones were not an acceptable outlet after having a hard day.   That women weren't actually clumsy enough to keep falling down stairs.
Yet thirty odd years ago, priests were still advising women to be better wives.  Bosses were cautioning against complaints that would be "bad for a man's career".  In many instances, neighbours and friends deliberately kept the blinders on because they knew that (at that time) social services was long on good intentions and short on the legal ability to actually do anything.... and that things would actually be worse for the woman if they were asked to intervene.
I'm old enough to remember when "real women didn't pump iron".    When it was worth a woman's job to complain about harassment.  Worst of all, when even the women who were at real risk kept turning away from the solidarity of sisterhood.
Circumstances did not magically improve for women because people become kinder and smarter all on their own.  In a democracy, things improve because concerned citizens make it their business to lobby the politicians who make our laws about issues of importance to them. 
Sheesh ... doesn't that remind you of the plight of chained dogs? Its commonly understood within the animal loving community that it is inhumane and cruel to sentence any dog to life on the end of a chain.  
Chained dogs are out there for all the world to see, and I wouldn't be surprised if they top the complaint charts on our provincial animal abuse line.   does everyone who lives close to a chained dog complain?  Of course not!  Why?  Do they not care about the animals?  Of course they do. 
BUT .... concerned kind hearts who complain run the very real risk of creating animosity in their own neighbourhoods.  In some instances their own pets and personal safety can be put at risk. 
Coming out of the gate, that is setting the entire inspection process up for failure.  The inspectors cannot remove dogs from situations where they are getting the (very barely) minimum legal standards for care.   Given the risks, people generally don't complain until they are utterly frustrated.
At that point the last vestiges of any beautiful day in the neighbourhood are gone.   Everyone is going to have their knickers in a twist.  The person who had the SPCA van in their driveway will be annoyed.  The inspector driving said van who once again has to explain to a frustrated neighbour that there really is nothing wrong with the situation.   Right through to the person who complained who now has to live with the knowledge that he or she has created a lot of hard feelings without being able to improve anything for the dog.
The only one who doesn't get upset is the dog ... because today is just another of a long line of crappy days.  The dog might get moved out of line of sight of the neighbours but odds are pretty slim it ever will see the inside of the house.
Does that mean that it always has to be this way?  Of course not!   One of the best bits about being fifty six is having seen that society CAN change.  That it is possible to create safer and healthier environments for everyone in the community.  And before the keyboards catch on fire, I will be the first to acknowledge that there is much that is still more journey than destination.
Circumstances will not magically improve for chained dogs because people are going to become kinder and smarter all on their own.  Things will improve in exactly the same way ALL things do in a democracy. 
Things will improve when a sufficient number of concerned citizens in this province let their MLA's know that they want antitethering legislation.  Things will improve when our own society moves past their position paper and places a petition to provide focus for an actual campaign for anti tethering legislation prominently on the front door of their site.
How will this help?   It will allow the society to educate by clarifying the issue.  To explain that antitethering legislation will not affect the many dog owners who keep a yard leash by the back door for early morning pee breaks.  To reassure the field trial people that their safety tethers will still be acceptable.  Best of all, it would provided a wonderful opportunity for the society to garner tangible support by "speaking for those who cannot speak for themselves"
What time is it?  It is always time to remember that every good idea begins with a vision.  It may take time.  It may take persistence.  But it won't amount to a hill of beans without the practical bits.
We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people.    Martin Luther King, Jr.

In praise of carrying a compass

I love making soup on a day like this.  There is something so cozy about such good smells simmering away when the day is so dreary outside.   Soup is one of the few foods around that lends itself well to the fly by the seat of your pants approach.   Its a great way to clean the fridge and to use up all those little bits of things in the cupboard that aren't nearly enough to stand on their own.
Not like baking for sure.  To the casual observer it might not look like I'm using a recipe ... but that's only because the recipes for bread/ brownies/ biscuits are such familiar friends they are committed to memory.
Rather like the recipe for No Kill, eh?   Its not a new concept anymore, so the No Kill Equation is not an unproven theory .. it is a tried and true recipe now.  They have discovered that it IS possible to adopt the way to No Kill.  Straight, sweet and simple.
So how DID that offsite adoption event work for CAPS?  Well I was just updating the CAPS Cat Gallery on the site and there were fifteen kittens and cats that have found their furever homes!    And a little birdie told me that another one is going home tonight ... with the promise of more to come!
The Greenwood Mall loved the whole idea so much that CAPS has been invited back.  Why wouldn't they love it?  People just love to go anywhere that they can meet animals, especially the purrfectly lovely ( and calm and quiet) kitties.   The adoption event attracted quite a crowd to a mall that is in desperate need of more foot traffic. 
Even better, now there can be a better outcome for more cats in Annapolis Animal Control as CAPS had room to take more in!
Win win all around, eh?
Will CAPS be going back to the mall?  You bet!  Plans are already afoot for another event in April if I am not mistaken.
What time is it?  Its always time to celebrate success!
One's vision is not a roadmap but a compass.     Peter Block 

In praise of enthusiasm

I love being able to do up my seed orders online.  Its comfy and easy.  Being able to check the totals as I go along is a great reminder not to bite off more than I can chew.   Best of all, I know immediately if seeds aren't in stock and so can tweak the other orders accordingly.  THAT isn't just convenient ... it can save the extra shipping and/ or handling charges down the road.
I'm a middle aged grandmother ... so I tend to treat the net like a teenager.  Its interesting to watch it develop.  If you ask the right questions you can find the information you are looking for.   But you still have to be careful what you 'tell' it if you wish to keep a measure of personal privacy :)
That being said, its lovely to see the net blossom in so many great ways for the animals.   From share buttons on Petfinder and websites right through to twittering for the animals ... social networking is changing outcomes for both owned and homeless pets.
One of the neatest things I've seen yet is the fairly new Nova Scotia Lost Dog Network.   What a brilliant idea!  Its beauty lays in the simplicity of sharing lost dog listings around facebook.
How does it work?  Do the group admins passively wait for lost dog listings?  No sir!  They comb the ads in Kijiji and contact the owners to offer to help.
And it doesn't stop there ... they have fundraised for large traps and crates for transport.    Created posters for dog owners to print and put up everywhere.  
Even better, it provides a central place for sightings to be listed and searches to be coordinated.
Best of all, it has been such a success that similar groups have already been created in BC and beyond!
Now they are building a wonderful website  to reach out to all those folks who might never see the light of Facebook Day. 
Does that mean that all the lost dogs listed on the group are found?  Of course not!   The group provides the resources to help the owners ... but if the owners don't print the posters/ share the information with their friends / etc, odds are less on the side of success, eh?
What time is it?  It is always time to applaud a great idea like this, using social networking in such a proactive way to help owned pets find their way back home.
Nothing was ever achieved without enthusiasm.   Ralph Waldo Emerson

SHAID is celebrating their 25th Anniversary!

I'm one of those sentimental sorts who loves to mark all the special days and occasions of all sizes.   Why?  Because if I have learned one thing in fifty six years it is that there it generally takes a lot of love, energy and commitment to get to each milestone.  

SHAID turns 25 this week ... and today to celebrate the shelter will be open until seven.  There will be cake ... the spiffy SHAID T Shirts will be on sale ... and best of all of course is the chance to meet their adorable adoptable pets :)

If today doesn't work for you, I do believe you can still catch all the fun tomorrow.  The shelter will be open for its usual Wednesday hours, from 12 - 3 pm.

I'm betting that if the animals had a chance to blow out the candles on the cake, their paws would all be crossed that cake might lure in the kindred spirit they have been waiting for :)

I'll freely admit to having a special affection for SHAID.   My own little mighty mini Morgan might not have lived to tell the tail had she been rescued by a different group.   ( if you are unfamiliar with Morgan's story, the short version is that she was a teenage mommy who had been so badly hurt that she couldn't walk.  Instead of assuming an Unhappy Tail was the only option, SHAID gave her the time she needed to get back on her paws )

Every morning when she kisses me on the nose to "check" if I'm awake .... every time she is waiting at the door to greet me .... everytime she gallops along with that funny little hitch to her gait ... I am grateful she was rescued by a genuine No Kill Shelter.

If you want to see the sweet faces who will be there today, scroll down.  If you want more information about any of them, click here.

If you need directions to the shelter, click here.

I know I say it all the time on the homeless pet sites, but it really is true that while adopting one homeless pet will not change the whole world, it will change the whole world for that one homeless pet.  And for you too, ya know?

What time is it?  Its always time to celebrate the hard work behind the success :)