Pet Talk

    It has been an incredibly happy time at the shelter these past few weeks.  While we are saddened when an animal becomes homeless and ends up at our door in one way or another, it’s always exciting to see them find really good homes.  Over the last few weeks we’ve had a number of special needs cases come in, dogs especially, who have found homes within days of being admitted to the Shelter. 
    We have also placed several of the kitties who spent quite a bit of time in foster care and those placements are especially touching for us.  We continue to be thrilled by the response to the spay/neuter program put together by the staff where they sell bread and baked goods to help raise money to spay or neuter a shelter pet so that the adoption fee can be waived.  There are so many people who really love animals and would love to have a kitty, who can afford the daily expenses of food and litter but maybe just don’t have enough to pay the spay bill.  We are working hard to help these folks and to help more animals find homes.
    This last year has been a challenge for us, no doubt about it, but you know what they say, what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger, and we are thrilled with the direction the shelter is going.  Adoptions are up, morale is up, bills are paid to date, the Board of Directors will be voting in several new members at our annual meeting, bringing new ideas and lots of experience.  We’re working on identifying additional grant revenues that will hopefully revitalize our spay/neuter program, allowing us to assist local individuals with the cost of this surgery.
    We are planning a couple of fundraisers, a Christmas concert in December featuring Chuck Loucka on piano, and our annual “Homes for the Holidays” event on November 27th.  We hope you will keep us in mind on that day.  If you are coming in to town to shop at the craft fair, watch the Santa parade, then stop by the Congregational Church mid-day and join us for a lunch.  We’ll be serving chicken and beef stew, biscuits, punch and coffee, you can bring Fido with you if you’d like, have your picture taken with Santa, visit with some shelter critters who will be available for adoption, and purchase some baked goods for the weekend.  This event was a tremendous success last year and we really enjoyed visiting with you all while you came to have a lunch with us.
    In the meantime, November 27th is six weeks away and we only have enough money to cover bills for the next three weeks so if you are a lover of animals, if you think you could spare just a few dollars to help out, your support would be greatly appreciated.  Donations can be mailed to PO Box 548, Houlton, Me 04730 and also remember that our Pet Food Pantry is still helping families who have difficulty during this recession and need help with feeding their pets.   Thanks to a very generous donor, we have been re-supplied this past week but that supply won’t last long so if you are buying a bag of kibble for Fido, consider buying a second bag and dropping it off at the Shelter.
    Also needed at the shelter are rubber gloves, bleach, laundry detergent, dish detergent, paper towels, toilet paper, office supplies (photo-copy paper, etc) and most of all, cat litter.  Doesn’t matter what kind of cat litter, we’ll take anything you bring in.  We can use canned dog and cat food also.
    If you haven’t been to the shelter in the last year or so, you just must plan on stopping by, there have been many changes to improve the conditions of the animals and the staff who cares for them.  I can’t tell you how hard everybody works every single day to make sure that they don’t just “clean the cages” but give these pets all the love and attention they can, walking the dogs, sitting in the kennels with the dogs just playing with them whenever there is time, making sure all the animals get sufficient exercise and attention, making sure their time in the Shelter is not just clean and safe, but also full of stimulation and affection. 
    If you have an hour a week, or two hours, maybe you would like to volunteer.  We can use help with dog walking, cage cleaning, fund raising, errand running, there is always something to do and we always need help.  Call the Shelter at 532-2862 and ask Heather how you can help today.  Thank you for all your support, it is only with your help that we can continue.