A no-kill Shelter dedicated to loving and nurturing the animals in our care until they find new homes - no matter how long it takes.

OSAS 
by: Renee Robins

Archives
-------------------
Apr '07 Blog;
Mar '07 Blog;
Feb '07 Blog;
Jan '07 Blog;
Dec '06 Blog;
Nov '06 Blog;
Oct '06 Blog;
Sep '06 Blog;
Aug '06 Blog; 
Jul '06 Blog
Jun '06 Blog;
May '06 Blog;
Apr '06 Blog;
Mar '06 Blog;
Feb '06 Blog

Success Story:
Little dog pulled
from icy water;

We depend on donations from private funding to support our Spay and Neuter Fund.

Keep up-to-date  on our schedule.

Where's the Instruction Manual
Have you ever tried to put up a big tent with millions of poles and no instructions? In the wind? Just two people? ha, ha, ha!

Thanks to Candice, Sandi and yes, Todd who came to save us! I finally got it! It took a while and I hope this is the hardest part of the picnic and photo shoot!

The lawn was cut, the yard tided, the treats sorted, the pool cleaned, the blankets set out, the freeze pops purchased and in the freezer, the juice jugs and cups and mix bought and mixed, the signs made, the snacks are ready. Who hoo let's do it!

I am so excited to see who comes, you know I love updates and smiley faces! I hope there is time to get my babes their pics too! I know there will be a good turn out to make it all worth while!

Wish me luck - it's my first time for this and you just never know... it may not be my last.

House Rabbit
When the call came in for a house rabbit surrender I expected as it was, a littertrained, housetrained and leash trained pet rabbit. What I did not expect was a rabbit the size of a house!

Upon his arrival I quickly made arrangements to place the two guinea pigs on the Radio Star ASAP list, as we need the rodent space. The house rabbit's name is Easter and lived with an elderly couple, their dog and was as much as it gets a house rabbit. He ran freely and had never been caged (would you get a cage so big). Ate only the best fruit and veggies, used his box, and was a social and interactive pet. Unable to go with his family on their move to the nursing home, he now was facing a home in a cage and who knows where. Personality plus in this big fella too! He spent the night in the bathroom, as there are only so many places that are safe for a roaming rabbit with all those cats!

Then something wonderful for Easter happened, we had a call from a family looking for a great starter pet for their daughter (they read my care for life package and did all the right things!). They wanted her to rescue and learn the great things you learn from that, to do what was right and to start out with a low maintenance pet. I feared his huge size would scare them. BUT, they loved him! It was love at first sight and what a sight! Who hoo big boy.

There were big smiles when he sat on their lap (he could do both kids at once) and I think all three of them smiled. Thankfully, there will not be a bunny in the bathroom tomorrow! The GP's will be on-air anyway as they still need to go.

Lemonade Anyone
I am getting sooooo excited. The tent came for the picnic ... thanks dad. The totes are filling up with dog treats. Blankets are sitting out. The paper, the TV and the radio have all been notified and the fliers are out. I have been talking with Leslie, finalizing the details and we are taking a practice run tomorrow. Everyone is excited about the picnic. Offers have come in for baked goods ... you know I don't have time for that so it is not from me! Even my daughter Aislyn has offered to have Lemonade and Freezies available, 'atta girl! This will be a blast!

Looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday from 12 to 4 pm. I hope you will come out as the Spay/Neuter Fund can always use the help!

Good Old Fashioned...
A nice reminder that we can still do things the old fashioned way here. In the old days before 'email' and the internet the only methods of adoption were by telephone or dropping in. Although, I barely remember those methods. Today our little pup who came in as a "stray" went up for adoption. I thought that by 1 pm there would be a long line of people who had seen her and knew she was available and would be racing to the Shelter and standing at the door. It did not happen. 

So much for the original method. So I posted her on the web site and waited. Again nothing. Another surprise. At 5:00 pm we resorted to the old fashioned way, and opened up the book, to call our list of potential adopters. A few phone calls later and a nice couple were on their way! The best part is that I think they were the perfect place for her, a great match. I love it when it works out the way it is suppose to. 

Funny thing, as soon as the papers were signed, someone who saw her, came in to adopt her. Now, doesn't that figure.

Long Day
When you leave the house and 7:30 am, and get home at 7:30 pm, you know you have had a long day. 

The morning started with the superstar Barron who speaks on command and did a great job on-air at the Mix. Unfortunately, he does not have an off switch. So, we filled his belly to keep his mouth occupied in between his turn to talk. By the time he got to the TV station, he was so full and loved his car ride, the  walks, the trip to Tim Horton's that he was sleepy on camera. A real bonus. 

Today, we did a segment specifically on Shelter operations, as this is our last daytime appearance for the summer. Because it was a longer appearance I was very glad the big fella was all tired out. Then it was off to the Shelter where we discovered a package was left for us. Can't share these details just yet, however thanks to our new surveillance cameras and our investigations we will see you soon, fella with the cat!

We had a lovely visit with Ms. Gardner's class, our friends from Strathcona, who met all of those pets they have helped! We had a great visit! It was nice to see them smile. I hope they know how important they are to us too! 

We had a few adoptions and the next thing you know it's 6:00 pm. As for my Superstar, he was sound asleep for all of this and likely he will be up early on Saturday. Luckily, it is an early day. Maybe it will be his day to go home?

Ups and Downs
Emotional roller coaster today. I love my job! 

It was with great happiness I placed my two little kittens up for adoption today. The longhaired tabby and his brother the black one. They came to the Shelter over a month ago as strays with their eyes barely open and no mom. Panic stricken, I begged the "finder" to keep their eyes peeled for a mom! History proves that without mom these little ones have the smallest chance of surviving and with no immune system the greatest chance of getting sick (plus who knows why mom left them - if she did). 

Although we had a lactating mom, which sometimes is an option, we had no idea why these kittens were motherless. If, mom had left them because they were sick, we put the other babes and the new mom at risk ... been there before. So, we began the process of offering these two kittens milk replacer, the real stuff not the treat, and some A/D - specialty food that can be syringed. The process began with lots of TLC for the first couple of weeks with close monitoring, hand feeding, and prayers. Then they caught a virus - we began to treat them more vigorously and watch them closer. They finally made it through - their size is a bit stunted, but in all other ways these two exceeded my expectations. Imagine my relief to post them on my web site - and with all of this in mind.

The plan was to keep them together ... however, a nice man needed a companion for their new found kitten. He brought the kitten in to pick a friend and she choose the tabby with white. After a few minutes she was cleaning him, and they were rolling around together. 

So, here come the emotions - sad to see him go, happy to see him go, happy to see him happy, and sad to leave his brother behind. Hopefully, his brother will go Friday, then I  will be more stable - all happy! 

Here's hoping! Anyone got a cat that needs a friend?

Bunnies
Today was the special adoption of our little friend Webster the bunny. Webster, who was not always our friend, who has a long story to share...

Webster came to the Shelter a few months ago and was a release with another bunny. We noticed first off that he had extremely long nails, teeth and needed TLC. He appeared to have been mostly ignored. When it came time to clean  and feed Webster we noticed the reason for this. Ever been attacked by a rabbit? Wow!!! What a shock! Not only can he growl, grunt and chomp his teeth, but he actually ran at our hands in attack mode, which made every attempt to make contact impossible. None of the volunteers would handle him and few people agreed to feed him.

First thing Webster needed was his feet trimmed. This took three of us - me to hold and two trimming real fast. Although this cleaned him up, and is essential to keep him alive (need those teeth to eat) it certainly did not help him love us. I emailed my friend Gail, a rabbit expert, to find out what could be done. At first she thought it may be hopeless, but agreed to see what she could find out. Her research and contact with others who had similar problems made a world of difference in how things worked out for Webster.

First we removed Webster from his territory, gave him a new cage and a new location (up higher, so we were less threatening). Then we began hand feeding him (which we often do with nervous dogs) through the bars at first, so that he associated our presence with good things - food! Then we took time to gently stroke him, while we held him down slightly as a dominance signal, you love us and we are boss!! For three weeks we worked on this and he learned to tolerate our handling and even seemed to enjoy it - with each passing day Webster got better. 

When Webster left, he left being carried (his head was hiding, but clearly he enjoyed it), could be petted and easily hand fed. Whoo hoo success! I am so pleased. Lucky for Webster, as it would have been impossible to adopt out a biting bunny.

New Friend
I made a new friend today, someone I had never seen before, never mind had a chance to speak with. I am glad we met and I will never forget her. 

Today, my daughter and I (and the Grey Bruce Twirllettes) hopped on a coach and went to Marineland. Although I am never totally impressed with making wild animals do silly tricks, or walking from ride to ride in 36 degree heat, I was impressed by my new friend the beluga whale.

I went off on my own to try to catch some close up pics, and not only had success, but this one actually swam over to see me, and we had a chat, while she bobbed up and down. It is nice to be reminded how much I enjoy all of the creatures of the world, and it was excellent to be given such an opportunity by this white whale. What's even better is to get to love her and not clean up after her for a change! 

I checked in with the Shelter after the outing and found that everything was fine and that all was well without me (phew)!

Red Barron
Our little Barron was named after the WWI Fighter Pilot 'Red Baron' - you may remember Snoopy was always trying to take him on. We also have a Snoopy here at the Shelter and I should have tied him in with Barron for the Mix. But, our Snoopy is very shy, 6 months old and is a mix of Lab, Border Collie and Beagle (should be up for adoption early next week) and needed a little more time with me. 

While at the Mix with Barron, some of the comments made were about his unique rocket speed, agility (zoom - zoom) and best of all the two bombs he dropped in the control room. Ha, ha, ha! ... Oops! (puppies sheesh). My apologies JD and Jamie. It became the laugh of the day, but not a deterrent to potential adopters as Barron was off to his new home by 1:07 pm. 

Barron's adoption didn't come about because of the morning at the Mix, but rather because he had been spotted on our web site and the adopters did their own flying (zoom - zoom) to beat the crowd to my door to adopt Barron.

Freaked
I was a little freaked out at 1:00 pm today. I peeked out to see who was waiting and saw that Pyro had returned. I was so disappointed, so sure I had been right with this home, and quite frankly feeling very stupid with the decision I had made. So, I avoided opening the door and couldn't even watch them enter.

I could barely speak the words 'can I help you', when a smile came across the proud momma's face, "we are here to update you, to tell you how wonderful she is and to have a visit with you". Looking back, I think I actually jumped up and down and I know I actually squealed (yikes how silly). That was the biggest relief, all my sadness vanished and was replaced with excitement. 

They had brought pictures and stories about how much Pyro loves to swim, how she likes the cats, and how she hogs the bed! They told me of her obsession with sticks and belly rubs. NO concerns, no troubles and the most perfect match. So, glad I can still trust my judgment!

Cruelty and Injustice
Noggin is a dog I will never forget, he is forever implanted in my brain. Yet, another who's adoption made me cry.

About two weeks ago we had an emergency call at 11:30 pm ... "we found a stray dog and it's bleeding from the head". Todd was off and flew into town ... he handles these emergencies far better than I do (I tend to panic). Around 1:30 am he called to tell me he likely was spending the night to ensure his new friend would be alright. In the morning when we connected, he told me about his new friend's injuries. It appeared that "Noggin" (as I started to call him) had, shall we say, "run into" the end of a shovel. A long thin blade like incision ran down the center of his head and curved at the bottom (Todd warned me to leave it at that). In consult with our vet, Noggin was closely monitored and treated to prevent infection. We watched him heal and spent a great deal of time with him - testing him, evaluating him and falling in love with him.

A shelter friend had mentioned she might be looking for a dog and I did my best to provide her with all possible concerns, information and training details about Noggin. I then spent time with Noggin training him and boy does that dog have brains! No damage there! A quick - quick learner.

I am a little teary as I type this, so pleased to see how far he has come from injustice and cruelty. I know his new home is the best for him. He will be family, spoiled for the rest of his life, he will be put on a pedestal and never again find himself on the wrong end of a shovel!

Buddy - Special Forces - K9?
All about Buddy today. It must have been his day to go. By 3 pm there had been two different families considering him,  walked him and chatted to me about the perfect match. However, neither were what he needed. One family was expecting a baby and lived in an apartment, while the other family didn't have a yard and worked all day. Buddy might have worked in these places, but I just had a feeling I should hold off until something better came along for him. I also knew that the perfect dog for these two families would come too! 

Then about 5 pm I met a woman who would change Buddy's life. Our conversation was short - where are the dogs and which door to go through. But, I did notice that she was wearing a K9 trainer jacket for the USPCA. She asked to take Buddy out to throw a ball around. I watched her outside with Buddy and noticed she was really working with him ... he loved playing with the ball and was keen on the game of retrieval. He listened to the way she spoke to him and gave him commands - what a connection they had. When I spoke with the woman again, I discovered Buddy had been assessed and had a great score. It turns out he had been adopted for his strong retrieval drive, desire to seek, search and use his nose ... and then they were off. 

Way to go Buddy, and all the best to you now in your training as you become Drug Detector Buddy in your next  home. When you get to Detroit you will stay and work full-time as a member of the K9 force! We are so proud!

Picnic and Photo Shoot
Who knew Shelby could entertain so well. Who knew he was star quality? I knew he was great, but did not expect him to get so much attention for his handsome looks. 

Shelby had a great time filling his belly with treats for breakfast and having belly rubs on TV in the afternoon. Lucky fella! Although he did not find himself a forever home (just yet), he did manage to make a ton of friends - all are rooting for him, crossing their fingers, saying their prayers and wishing him well. The power of happy thoughts will work - I'm sure.

You know we are holding a 50/50 Draw - 1 for 5.00, 3 for 10.00 and 7 for 20.00. Tickets will be available at the Picnic and Photo Shoot. Use can use Paypal for your tickets over the internet or send your cheque via the mail. Mail your cheque to: Todd and Renee Robins, c/o Owen Sound Animal Shelter, Box 13, Allenford, ON N0H 1A0. The draw will be held July 15th. If you have any questions, please email me. All monies go to the Spay/Neuter Fund.

"Special Needs"
As with every Thursday, I spend a great deal of time contemplating who should be the superstar tomorrow. As we have a full house with both dogs and cats, I needed to think a little harder this time. With so many "hard to place dogs" I thought it was time to showcase one of the "special needs " pooches.

Shelby is a wonderful fella, who has been getting some training since he joined us, has fattened up and settled down. It is now time to get him moving! Unfortunately, the lump on his head ( which you don't notice unless someone points it out) needs to be removed. It doesn't cause him any pain, but this is a real turn- off to some people. So, once we mark animals "special needs" it can make people think there are more issues with an animal than they can handle. However, Shelby's beautiful personality outshines his problem. 

Here's hoping the right person will be listening and hear his plea. After all, it is just another little snip - easy to do when he goes in for that other one ... he'll never miss it! 

Let's have a great day Shelby and let's get you home!

In's and Out's of My Day
Today was filled, as always, with ins and outs. Unfortunately, the outs were temporary, but fortunately, this because they were off to be fixed ... so, only for a short time and they will be back. Two dogs which came in were in great need of being sheltered, but will take time and then given a chance to have a great life. 

I was so glad to see my two girls go - Ginger spice and Cheeba; watch for them. Both were mothers at the Shelter and their kittens were born, raised and adopted out. This means that the moms have been with me three months - it is now their turn! Excellent cats I have fallen in love with and will love nothing more than finding them the perfect home. Thanks to the Spay/Neuter Fund this will be possible. Hopefully, this has been their last week with us.

Picnic and Fundraiser
Today, I worked on finalizing plans for our next fundraiser. I am sooooo excited about this one. Leslie, the new and proud owner of Shadow (who by the way is doing excellent) is a professional photographer. She stopped in to show me Shadow's pictures, and it occurred to me I need these kind of pictures of my babes ... and maybe you do too! 

So, I decided to have Leslie come in for all of us! We set a date, Saturday July 1st (long weekend in July) where Leslie will be at the Shelter with camera in hand and her laptop ready to take pictures of your babies. We will provide treats, picnic area and then the fun begins. The festivities start at the Shelter at 12:00 pm until 4:00 pm on July 1st, so bring your beloved pets for professional pictures. You can see the pictures here and pick your favorites, order a package and Leslie will do the rest. Isn't that great! I am so thrilled that Leslie wants to help and of course proceeds go to the Spay/Neuter Fund. Best of all, I am excited to see all my four-legged friends again and captured with a big smile! 

If you would like to see some of Leslie's work, check out her web site. Watch for more details coming soon.

BSL - Do Your Homework
The cooler day, without the rain, returned things to normal (or as normal as it gets). Potential adopters in, a few new pets in and a few out. With the return of normal operations, brought the return of potential persons for Pyro. A new couple had been in and spent a few hours with her the day before, but I sent them away to do their homework on the breed specific legislation (BSL), breed characteristics and to think about the commitment. The commitment with any adoption should be lifelong, but with a dog that will be hard to place again, her age, her breed it makes her harder to adopt. I wanted to be sure it is a forever place we would be  sending her to.

When they returned today at 1:00 pm with leash and muzzle in hand, I almost cried. Again, time was spent - three hours in total to discuss care of a new dog, rules, requirements, and best of all falling in love with the dog. Here's hoping that love lasts her lifetime. I am rooting for you old girl!

Pyro was adopted!

2000-2009 © Owen Sound Animal Shelter. All rights reserved.