animal rescuers - resources - support

[betenoire]

I've found a home for Mamma! A friend of mine is taking her and one of the babies. They're only 5.5 weeks old, so it'll be another 3 weeks until I can rehome them - but I feel a thousand times better knowing that Mamma (who I anticipated having a great deal of difficulty rehoming) is going to be safe AND with someone I have known for years and trust.

I've gotten quite a few calls and emails since I posted the kittens online last night, and one person sounds very promising for the one female kitten. She called from her workplace (which is a pharmacy) and she sounds trustworthy. She likes the female kitten because apparently she looks a great deal like the cat that she had for 18 years who passed away recently and who she is missing. She told me a bunch of stories about her old cat...and I figure anybody who tells total strangers "kitty stories" is probably a good pet-parent.

I haven't returned any of the other calls or emails yet, but will be doing that this evening.

I wish that there were (or if they do exist that I knew how to access them) services in my area that could have made this process cheaper for me. Total vet bills between Mom's initial visit when she was pregnant, and getting the kittens checked out, and first sets of shots and deworming for everybody is going to total to nearly $400. Add on top of that all the extra kitten food and litter and the trip I'm going to be taking to Toronto to bring Mamma and the spotted belly kitten to their new Daddy....oy.

Not that I am complaining. I am glad I did it - it needed to be done. And if I had to do it all over again I would - except maybe next time I wouldn't burst into tears at the vets office when she tells me that Mamma is pregnant. (Seriously, I was a sniveling mess.)

I seriously tip my hat to people who do this frequently. To foster families and people who do rescue work on a volunteer basis and pay for so much petcare out of their own pockets and with their own time.

Much love to you all. <3

Pictures of Mamma and Babies

[lipstixgal]

Originally Posted by betenoire

I've found a home for Mamma! A friend of mine is taking her and one of the babies. They're only 5.5 weeks old, so it'll be another 3 weeks until I can rehome them - but I feel a thousand times better knowing that Mamma (who I anticipated having a great deal of difficulty rehoming) is going to be safe AND with someone I have known for years and trust.

I've gotten quite a few calls and emails since I posted the kittens online last night, and one person sounds very promising for the one female kitten. She called from her workplace (which is a pharmacy) and she sounds trustworthy. She likes the female kitten because apparently she looks a great deal like the cat that she had for 18 years who passed away recently and who she is missing. She told me a bunch of stories about her old cat...and I figure anybody who tells total strangers "kitty stories" is probably a good pet-parent.

I haven't returned any of the other calls or emails yet, but will be doing that this evening.

I wish that there were (or if they do exist that I knew how to access them) services in my area that could have made this process cheaper for me. Total vet bills between Mom's initial visit when she was pregnant, and getting the kittens checked out, and first sets of shots and deworming for everybody is going to total to nearly $400. Add on top of that all the extra kitten food and litter and the trip I'm going to be taking to Toronto to bring Mamma and the spotted belly kitten to their new Daddy....oy.

Not that I am complaining. I am glad I did it - it needed to be done. And if I had to do it all over again I would - except maybe next time I wouldn't burst into tears at the vets office when she tells me that Mamma is pregnant. (Seriously, I was a sniveling mess.)

I seriously tip my hat to people who do this frequently. To foster families and people who do rescue work on a volunteer basis and pay for so much petcare out of their own pockets and with their own time.

Much love to you all. <3

Pictures of Mamma and Babies

The cats are adorable!!

[CherryFemme]

Aloha,

I have a quick question for those of you who rescue and try to find homes for the rescued animal.

Do you have a questionnaire that you use when seeking out potential families?

BB and I have turned into a "Cat/kitten Rescue" by default. We live at the end of a street where people dump their cats before moving back to the mainland.
The dumpers are mostly military families, but some non-military. Unfortunately, this has been verified...meaning, our neighbor who watches the dump the animals runs out to them and asks WHY they are doing it and if they are military. Funny how people do not lie when they get busted.

Anyway-- I am writing today (and hoping I can find this thread later) because we are not allowed to keep animals at our house. We already are "stretching" the rules-- but the rejected cats keep coming.

We are getting rather good at getting the tamed, fixed, and fostered-- but I feel like I should do heavier screening before I place the kitten/cat with someone who contacted me via Craigslist.com.

Any ideas? I usually ask the basics like: Have you ever had a cat/kitten before and How long are you going to stay on Oahu-- but I feel like I need to expand my repertoire. If anyone on this site uses a script, I would love to see it.

Thanks, BB + CF

PS I am really bad at finding my old posts, but BB is better at it. I look forward to people's ideas and responses.

[Diavolo]

Get a load of this story. The local shelter had a "Doberman" up on their site. I called. She was on quarantine and I couldn't see her until 9/24. I called then. I still couldn't see her. I called four more times. No dice. Finally they called last Wednesday and said she could only be released to rescue and if I didn't come and get her by 5pm on Thursday it was all over for her. She came in as a starvation case. So at 4pm on Wednesday I got there and found this dog that was a lot of things but not a Doberman. Probably a German Pinscher. She's to their standard size wise. I couldn't leave her there to face the needle so I took this little shithead home. She's in heat. And she won't shut up and she's so damned cute, but Ike is intact so she can't roam free. And she attacked Rita so she can't roam free. Rita will kill her. If I don't first for the barking. Meet Sister, aka shithead.

[las68]

About 5 months ago, I picked up what I thought was a black Lab mix puppy off the interstate. Turns out he is a full Lab. I named him Dodge because he was dodging traffic on a busy Monday morning. Lol! I hadn't planned to keep him, but fell for his big brown eyes. I have never had a Lab. Is it common for them to chew on everything? Yesterday, while he was in his pool, he decided to chew on it and almost "ate" one side. He pulls rocks out of the flower beds to chew as well as solar lights.Silly pooch even chewed a small tree in half and was carrying it proudly around the backyard. He has a plethora of chew toys and I give him rawhide dental chews every day. He's about 8 months old now, will this ever end?

[Semantics]

With Hollywood once again glorifying horse racing I wanted to bring attention to what a cruel and inhumane sport it can be.




PETA on horse racing:

Horse Racing

They weigh more than 1,000 pounds, are supported by ankles the size of a human's, and are whipped and forced to run around tracks that are often made of hard-packed dirt at speeds of more than 30 miles per hour while carrying people on their backs. Racehorses are the victims of a multibillion-dollar industry that is rife with drug abuse, injuries, and race fixing, and many horses' careers end at the slaughterhouse.

Racing to the Grave
Horses begin training or are already racing when their skeletal systems are still growing and are unprepared to handle the pressures of competition racing on a hard track at high speeds. One study on injuries at racetracks concluded that one horse in every 22 races suffered an injury that prevented him or her from finishing a race, while another estimated that 3 thoroughbreds die every day in North America because of catastrophic injuries during races.

Strained tendons or hairline fractures can be tough for veterinarians to diagnose, and the damage may go from minor to irreversible at the next race or workout. Horses do not handle surgery well, and many are euthanized or sold at auction to save the owners further veterinary fees and other expenses for horses who can’t race again.

When popular racehorse Barbaro suffered a shattered ankle at the beginning of the 2006 Preakness, his owners spared no expense for his medical needs, but as The New York Times reported, "[M]any in the business have noted that had Barbaro not been the winner of the Kentucky Derby, he might have been destroyed after being injured."

Drugs and Deception
Trainers and veterinarians keep injured horses racing when they should be recovering by giving them a variety of legal drugs to mask pain and control inflammation. This leads to breakdowns because horses are able to run when, without the drugs, the pain would otherwise prevent them from trying.

Illegal drugs are also widely used. "There are trainers pumping horses full of illegal drugs every day," says a former Churchill Downs public relations director. "With so much money on the line, people will do anything to make their horses run faster." One trainer was suspended for using a drug similar to Ecstasy in five horses, and another has been kicked off racetracks for using clenbuterol and, in one case, for having the leg of a euthanized horse cut off "for research." A New York veterinarian and a trainer faced felony charges when the body of a missing racehorse turned up at a farm and authorities determined that her death had been caused by the injection of a "performance-enhancing drug."

Even the 'Winners' Lose
When they stop winning races or become injured, few racehorses are retired to pastures, because owners don't want to pay for a horse who doesn't bring in any money. Many end up in slaughterhouses in Canada, Mexico, or Japan, where they are turned into dog food and glue. Their flesh is also exported to countries such as France and Japan, where it is considered a delicacy.
Most horses who are sent to those facilities endure days of transport in cramped trailers where there is no access to water or food and injuries are common. Horses are subject to the same slaughter method as cows, but since horses are generally not accustomed to being herded, once together, they tend to thrash about in order to avoid being shot by the captive-bolt gun, which is supposed to render them unconscious before their throats are cut.

What You Can Do
Help phase out this exploitative "sport":

Refuse to patronize existing tracks and lobby against the construction of new tracks.

Support PETA's efforts to ensure that racing regulations are reformed and enforced. While horse racing should be eliminated entirely, the horses would benefit from a zero-tolerance drug policy, turf (grass) tracks only, a ban on whipping, and competitive racing only after their third birthdays.

Educate your friends and family about the tragic lives that racehorses lead.

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-i...se-racing.aspx

[diamondrose]

I firmly believe animals have the short end of the stick in life. There should be more laws protecting animals. It amazes me how animals can go through hell and back , yet they are the true example of unconditional love.

I always adopt from animal shelters and always older animals. I adopted a pair of senior chihuahuas. The boy of the two sadly passed away janurary 2009. I had him 3 short years, yet I wouldn't have done a thing differently. He left knowing he was loved. I still have his companion.

For all those out there who help shelters in some way or another.. thank you. Animals can't speak for themselves, but we can speak for them . They have feelings just like any living thing!

[Semantics]

Originally Posted by Semantics

With Hollywood once again glorifying horse racing I wanted to bring attention to what a cruel and inhumane sport it can be.




PETA on horse racing:



http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-i...se-racing.aspx

The season is well underway and the cruelty continues.

BREAKDOWN: Death and disarray at America’s racetracks


At 2:11 p.m., as two ambulances waited with motors running, 10 horses burst from the starting gate at Ruidoso Downs Race Track 6,900 feet up in New Mexico’s Sacramento Mountains.

Nineteen seconds later, under a brilliant blue sky, a national champion jockey named Jacky Martin lay sprawled in the furrowed dirt just past the finish line, paralyzed, his neck broken in three places. On the ground next to him, his frightened horse, leg broken and chest heaving, was minutes away from being euthanized on the track.

For finishing fourth on this early September day last year, Jacky Martin got about $60 and possibly a lifetime tethered to a respirator.

The next day, it nearly happened again. At virtually the same spot, another horse broke a front leg, pitching his rider headfirst into the ground. The jockey escaped serious injury, but not the 2-year-old horse, Teller All Gone. He was euthanized, and then dumped near an old toilet in a junkyard a short walk from where he had been sold at auction the previous year.

In the next 24 hours, two fearful jockeys refused their assigned mounts. The track honored two other riders who had died racing. As doctors fought to save Mr. Martin’s life, a sign went up next to the track tote board: “Hang in there, Jacky. We love you.”

On average, 24 horses die each week at racetracks across America. Many are inexpensive horses racing with little regulatory protection in pursuit of bigger and bigger prizes. These deaths often go unexamined, the bodies shipped to rendering plants and landfills rather than to pathologists who might have discovered why the horses broke down.

In 2008, after a Kentucky Derby horse, Eight Belles, broke two ankles on national television and was euthanized, Congress extracted promises from the racing industry to make its sport safer. While safety measures like bans on anabolic steroids have been enacted, assessing their impact has been difficult because many tracks do not keep accurate accident figures or will not release them.

But an investigation by The New York Times has found that industry practices continue to put animal and rider at risk. A computer analysis of data from more than 150,000 races, along with injury reports, drug test results and interviews, shows an industry still mired in a culture of drugs and lax regulation and a fatal breakdown rate that remains far worse than in most of the world.

read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/25/us...anted=all&_r=0