The season of giving

Gail and I continue to do our normal animal aid work but that isn’t what I want to write about this week. I want to talk about the Holiday time we are currently in.

So, it’s that time of year again. A time of shopping and stress. Followed by eating, giving, receiving and more stress. It’s also time to remind people about what this time of year is really all about. Its a time of generosity or spirit and pocket. It’s a time to think outside our personal desires and think of those with less then what we have. We all have more to give then we generally do and this is the time to reach down deep inside ourselves and find that kindness that we have a bottomless well of and allow it to pour out. It’s the time to find that bit of extra money to give to a charity even if it means we have to skip our daily Latte or bring lunch to work instead of ordering in or eating out.

In this spirit of giving WAIF has donated $100 dollars to buy toys for some of New Orleans’ foster children. These children are in group homes without families to spend Christmas with. You may wonder why an animal charity is donating it’s money to children. The answer is easy–helping children is not so very different from helping animals. Both are innocent of their circumstances and both rely on our kindness to improve their future. Gail and Elly (the ladies of waif) each personally donated another $50 to bring the total to $200. We went shopping with the money last night and bought over 25 great toys for these kids (we still have $75 more to spend). The toys were delivered to Cafe EnVie 1241 Decatur St. Cafe EnVie will be hosting a Breakfast with Santa on December 20th for these foster children. They are doing this out of the goodness of their hearts and that kind of goodness must be supported so we gave as generously as we could. Cafe EnVie, and those who donate toys and wrapping supplies, may be giving these kids the only present they receive this Christmas–a present and party that may be the only thing keeping what should be a time of  joy and fun from turning into tears.

There are many organizations that do this type of toy drive. Most fire stations at this time of year gather toys for the underprivileged and coats for those who haven’t one. Find one of these drives near you and bring them a toy or two. It is a small thing but it will make a huge difference to a child.

Gail also organized a card drive to send cards to wounded soldiers. We have been asking our fabulous customers at Mary Jane’s Emporium at 1229 Decatur St to fill out Holiday Cards with a kind sentiment and sign their name. We have until Dec 8th to fill out as many cards as possible and then we will be sending them to the Red Cross who will be giving them to our wounded soldiers who are going to be stuck in hospitals during the holidays. If you live in the area please stop by MaryJane’s Emporium and drop off a card or fill out one of the cards we have had donated. You can fill our as many as you like as they will go to different soldiers. We also need more unused Holiday Cards so if you have any old ones lying around please bring them in to us. At this time we have collected over 150 cards. Our goal is a minimum of 300. At this rate I think we can send double our minimum!

If you don’t live in the New Orelans area you can still send some holiday cheer to a soldier gather as many cards as you can, write a positive note inside and sign them, send then (without envelopes) to

Holiday for Heroes - PO BOX 5456 - Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

Cards must be postmarked by Dec 9th to get to the soldiers in time.

Happy Holidays to you all. Remember to smile at those you pass and take the time to offer a helping hand. Kindness and smiles are contagious and it’s something that needs to be spread at all times.

Blog posts may be few and far between but honestly, when we aren’t actively trapping we are actively helping people that call or stop by and need help. At the times when there isn’t an emergency, a horror story or trapping to be taken care of we do our best to try have a semblance of a normal life. We try to forget about what still needs to be done, that we are fighting an endless battle and that we are relatively unappreciated.

We try to forget about that animal we couldn’t save and the people that like to tell us that we aren’t making a difference or that the feral cat’s “sex” is “none of our business”. We also try to forget about nights like last night.

Gail and I returned to a block where we had trapped before. There is still a lot of work to be done there and it’s a block that is nearly a pleasure to trap on. The neighbors are all helpful and friendly. They are supportive and appreciative. They give us money as they can as well as donations of old sheets, traps and their company while we wait for the traps to fill.

Shortly after arriving at the location we set some traps and started to head across the street. Gail had to jump back as a pickup truck went speeding down the street. While the truck missed hitting Gail it did hit a young orange cat that had been lurking under a car nearby. The hit was hard and quick to the poor cat’s head and thankfully the cat couldn’t even have known what hit it. I doubt the cat felt a thing. The injuries were so severe and it was so obvious that there was nothing we could do but move the poor ruin of a creature out of the road and sit with it until it passed away. I kept my hand gently on the cat’s side until I felt the heart slow and still. We wrapped the cat up in one of the sheets we had and took the body with us to give it a burial.

The neighbors were devastated by the senseless death but were grateful that we were there to make sure the poor thing passed as peacefully as possible.

As much as we wanted to call it a night at that point there were still cats to trap. We shook off the sadness and trauma and went about setting more traps. The cats were cooperative and the night was getting better. While we were trapping an orange cat walked up to us and made friends.

The neighbors told us that he seems to have been dumped on their block as they have no idea where he came from. I noticed right away that he walked like he was drunk and his basic coordination seemed to be off. It soon became apparent that the cat had a neurological disorder. He was super sweet and funny and it took every ounce of my being not to bring him home with me.

Gail named him Weeble (as in “Weebles wobble but they won’t fall down”–although this cat does fall down sometimes). We pet him and played with him. He chased our flashlight beams and wrestled with my hand. He playfully grabbed and chewed on my hand when I tickled and rubbed his belly and watching him play was like watching a comedy routine. He seemed to react a second too late for every move he made but it didn’t damped his spirit one bit. To him everything was normal and he was having a blast and loving life. The good news is that his disorder does not cause him any pain, he has a normal life expectancy and will not require any special care.

We (and the people that watch over him on the block) would really like to see this cat off the street and into a home. He is so sweet and funny that he would be a blessing to whomever takes him in. We are terrified that with his condition, and the way the cars race down the street, that he will become another casualty of the road. If you know of anyone interested please let us know. I’ll try to get a picture of him tonight but he’s really a rather ordinary looking orange cat. He’s already neutered and healthy and seems rather young (maybe 2-3 years old). I don’t know who dumped him on the street but they were complete fools to let a cat like this go. They are missing out on a great companion and natural clown. You simply can’t be sad when watching this cat. I would swear that this universe sent this cat our way when we were at a low point to remind us why we do this and lift our spirits.

In the short hour I met this cat I feel a special bond with him and want nothing more then to protect him. Please consider giving this special man a place in your home and I guarantee he’ll quickly work his way into your heart as well.

Slammin’ and Jammin’

So, Gail and I have been hitting the TNR front hard. It was slow going for a while there. We had the will but the cats just weren’t finding their way into our traps. Finally we hit the motherloads. One location we are working at has had our traps filling up quickly. In the 3 weeks we trapped there we caught 24 cats! We aren’t done with that location but we decided the cats needed a break and many of the kittens needed a little time to grow before we could have their surgeries done. I think we probably have another 10-20 cats to do at that location but we’ll get them taken care of. The neighbors are great– helpful, concerned and generous.

Yesterday we went out to a location that Southern Animal Foundation asked us to help with. A trailer park out to the east was getting overrun with cats. We went out with big hopes and a bunch of borrowed traps. By the end of the night we had filled 14 traps and didn’t see any more adults that needed catching. We’ll likely go back in about a month to catch the kittens that were too young to have surgery but I think we made a serious dent in the breeding and have brought the amount of cats that still need TNR down to a managable level for the residents to handle themselves. Once again we were treated to kind and helpful people that loved the cats and were thrilled to recieve our help. The children of the park were swift to do all they could to help. They helped us set the traps, pointed out the best locations for placement, and watched them to let us know when a cat was caught. They were fabulous “gopher” too, always eager to run to our van to retrieve sheets or food. Way to go guys, you all are animal helper heroes!

As a follow-up, Lady Bits, the little old dog we were fostering was successfully returned to her home. The family finally placed an ad on Craigslist and were thrilled to find her safe and healthy.

Next week we are trapping close to home. A neighbors of Gail alerted her to cats living in their yard. Seems one neighbor allowed the cats she was feeding to breed unchecked despite being offered help with TNR from us. Now that they are spreading out into the neighbors’ yards we can no longer stand back and allow it to go on–especially since the neighbors affected have asked from help. Wish us much luck for full traps and healthy surgeries.

Grinding on

Gail and I are back in the game after having to take some time off from trapping. Since we started up again it’s been slow going. The cats simply seem to be outsmarting us most of the time and our traps return home mostly empty. This last week we managed to hit a triple-header (if not a home run) by quickly filling 4 of our traps with female cats (our favorite). One of them is the mother to the other (mostly grown) kittens. She’s a big producer and it’s a great feeling to put her out of business and give her body a permanent rest from being a baby making machine. She can now enjoy her life and her family without the drain of constant reproduction. There are still a few more of her brood to catch as well as the daddies so wish us luck.

We’ve still been doing some dog rescue and fostering. Our last success story is a miniature poodle we named Clumpy due to the fact that he was so matted when we found him that he felt lumpy from the matted clumps of hair. He was cleaned and shaved, fostered, loved and cured of his heartworms. He got a wonderful home with a devoted family and is now enjoying the good life he was meant for. You can see pictures and learn more about Clumpy here http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.195600483788854.56630.170971742918395

We now have another foster dog. Lady bits is a chihuahua/terrier mix that was found running in traffic on a busy highway by a couple of good Samaritans. Waif took her in and are preparing for her extensive medical care. Lady Bits has horrible teeth which will require extensive cleaning and extractions. She also has the worst case of luxating patellas we’ve ever seen. Her poor back knees seem completely out of joint and appear to have been that way for years. She cannot walk without pain and is terribly unsteady. We aren’t certain if her knees will be able to be surgically corrected as her tendons and inner anatomy have most likely been dramatically changed. She may also have other, life threatening, issues that only her up-coming vet visit will uncover.

We are not certain how long we will be able to foster this poor old girl as we don’t have any long term room for her at this time. We are hopeful that there is another rescue or foster home willing to take her in while we try to heal her as best we can. The nice men who originally rescued her, along with waif, are going to be covering most, if not all, of her medical costs.

Lady Bits is very sweet. Her biggest issues are her medical problems and some food aggression–both things that can hopefully be fixed with time and patience. She gets along with other dogs and cats and wants nothing more then to be close to you and be pet. She does her job as a dog by barking a little when a stranger enters the home but quickly warms up to them and comes over for her lovin’. She seems to be house trained as well, both on potty pads and with going outdoors. She would be perfect for someone older who wants a sweet, gentle dog to keep them company.

If you know of a foster home, rescue or adopter that would be interested in Lady Bits please steer them in this direction. If you would like to make a donation towards her care you can donate through Paypal at http://waifnola.com/, in person at MaryJane’s Emporium 1229 Decatur St, NOLA, or contact us here on Facebook for other options.

Gratitude and attitude

This week Gail and I would like to express our heartfelt thanks to those of you that have been contributing and keeping us up and running.  Our regular supporters have been generous with us over the years and are still continuing to support us now.

We want to thank every one of you that drops a nickel, a quarter, a dollar or more in the donation jars we have around. We also want to thank those that send donations through Paypal–big or small your donations mean more to us then the money they represent.

We can’t help but notice that it’s usually the people who can afford it the least who donate most regularly. You are making this world a better place and Gail and I never forget where this money comes from.

You have helped to spay and neuter hundreds of cats and dozens of dogs. You have helped us take sick, dying, abused and neglected animals off the street, make them healthy and happy again and place them into homes where they will be forever cherished. If ever you doubt the value of what you give, please visit our “Happy Tails” page on Petfinder http://www.petfinder.com/pet-search?shelterid=LA212&status=X and look at some of the animals you gave better lives to.

However, it never seems to fail that the people that benefit the most from what we do, or who have more money then they need (and thus can afford to donate to our cause), usually have plenty of excuses why they can’t donate.

Last night we trapped four cats for a woman. When we told her that we are in need of donations her reply was, “Thank goodness I got to you before you ran out of money”–yeah

The next location is on Marigny St where we have caught and TNRed over 20 cats now. Next door to where  we were trapping is a gorgeous house with custom stained glass windows and doors, a beautiful, natural stone in-ground pool/jacuzzi with a waterfall and a private drive with an automatic gate.

While Gail and I were waiting for the traps to fill the owner of the mansion arrived home in a big, expensive SUV. She was dressed in expensive clothing with an expensive haircut/color and took out of her car a long, thick bag of dry cleaning. She asked us what we were doing and we explained it to her. Then thanked us for what we were doing. She asked us what she could do to help. We explained that we really needed donations because it costs us $30 a cat to do this and we were almost out of funds. She stuttered and managed to finally spit out, “There’s just so many…”

*?*

…ummm…yeah, there are. That’s exactly why we need donations.

She practically ran into her house to get away from her self-induced guilt. She did come out again later in a silk, hand printed kaftan that must cave cost several hundred dollars to throw out the trash. She didn’t look at us and she took care of her chore as quickly as possible like she was afraid we were going to mug her.

After nights like that it’s hard to keep going. It’s hard to battle on and keep the faith but those of you that give your change regularly remind us that there are good people who care and want to help. As long as you haven’t given up on us, we won’t give up on you or the animals.

Thank you.

Filled quotas and empty pockets

Elly here! Gail and I continue to plug away on the TNR front.  Southern Animal Foundation has generously given us additional spaces for cats so we are able to catch and neuter 7 each week. Last night we went to help out a couple of families with spaying and neutering a largish colony (maybe 10-20 cats). We caught 5 before the other cats caught on to us and disappeared.

We moved on to another location we had visited many times before. We have already caught about 15 cats at that location and there are still more to do along with fairly new kittens and the addition to a Siamese cat and what looks to be one of her adult offspring.

We caught the Siamese and a half grown orange kitten and filled all of our appointments. Good news!

I wish what we do can always be good news, funny stories and feel-good tales. However, that is never the reality of animal rescue.

The reality is that every happy ending, every feel-good story and every funny rescue situatuon was brought about by some sort of tragedy that never should have happened.

We are in demand more then ever. We get calls daily for help TNRing cats. Our waiting list is over a month long. We get calls from people wanting us to bottlefeed kittens or rescue feral kittens before it’s too late to socialize them. We have people call about sweet dogs they found and even people looking to unload their pets with the “excuse du jour” –new baby, moving, dog got too big or has too much energy etc…

Our answer lately has had to be “no”. Yes it’s because we have no room and adoptions are down but it’s also because we are almost out of money.

None of the people at the  locations we trapped at yesterday gave us a dime. The first location even asked how they could help us. As soon as we stated that we really needed monetary donations they lost interest in any communication with us. The second location where we have trapped at numerous times and caught at least 15 cats has not given us more then a nominal amount and that was several months ago. We have even talked to the neighbors when they asked us what we were doing during our trapping expeditions. They all approve, they all tell us what wonderful people we are but NOT ONE has given us a dime.

A couple of weeks ago we were at another location at some posh apartments. The lady who called us in had fine things and was talking about how her husband was currently at their country home. She made certain to get my address “to send a check” but thus far no check from her has arrived.

Because of this WAIF’s pockets are nearly empty.

We might have enough to see us through next month–maybe.

Everyone wants our help, everyone has a sob story but no one wants to donate. Finances are tight for everyone–including WAIF. It doesn’t take much to keep us going. A few bucks from every person that tells us we are doing a great job would do it. All we need is money to spay and neuter the cats. Gail and I don’t take one dime for ourselves or for the gas or time we spend. We usually even pay for food and supplies for the foster animals out of our own pockets.

Despite the unwillingness to help fund us from the people we help we keep on helping and hoping that the next person will help–and sometimes that happens and those people are our heroes. Most of the time we are treated like civil servants.  People treat us like we are at their beck and call. If we can’t help we are uncaring assholes. If we can help but have no open spay and neuter appointments for a month or more then we are accused of ignoring them or have some sort of personal grudge against them. Half the time, if we need to access their personal property to trap and have their assurance that they will be there to let us in, they don’t show up and they never have a good excuse. usually it’s because they went out to dinner or to a bar. Lord forgive us if we dare forget to come by their home and pick up someone’s personal pet to spay. If that happens we are treated like criminals. If we refuse to allow ourselves to be treated that way and point out the favor WE are doing for THEM they suddenly have a sob story about how stressed they’ve been to make us feel sorry for them. Yeah, right, cause what we do, and have to put up with, isn’t stressful.

I guess all we are asking for is a little help and a little respect. It’s impossible to do this without funds and it’s real hard to do this without respect. People often state that too many rescuers are “mean” or “rude”–it’s because we get jaded and have seen so much of the worst people are capable of.  Good and generous people help heal that in us.

Louisiana SPCA begins implementing New Orleans spay-neuter ordinance

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2010/08/louisiana_spca_begins_implemen.html

The Louisiana SPCA has begun implementing a spay-neuter ordinance that the New Orleans City Council passed in May in an effort to reduce the numbers of stray dogs and of dog bite cases in the city.

Scott Threlkeld / The Times-Picayune archiveThe New Orleans spay-neuter ordinance requires owners to spay or neuter all dogs more than 6 months old unless they obtain a permit to keep the animal ‘intact.’

Money generated from these permits will be used for animal control services in Orleans Parish. The law requires owners to spay or neuter all dogs more than 6 months old unless they obtain a permit to keep the animal “intact.” 113 0 121 Share The council put the SPCA in charge of issuing the permits, which cost $20 a year per dog after an initial $10 application fee, and the organization this month began accepting applications.

Because more than half of the year is gone, the permit fee for 2010 has been reduced to $10. Starting in January, renewals will cost $20.

Applications can be made in person at the SPCA offices at 1700 Mardi Gras Blvd. in Algiers or online at www.la-spca.org. A response is promised within 30 days.

Money generated from the permits will be used for animal-control services in Orleans Parish. The SPCA said it is facing a deficit of more than $1 million this year for those services.

 The council approved the spay-neuter ordinance, introduced by Councilwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell, on May 6. It was endorsed by the SPCA and the Humane Society of the United States but was opposed by the American Kennel Club and several dog breeders and trainers, who said it would not accomplish the aims Hedge-Morrell announced.

Katherine LeBlanc of the SPCA told the council in May that the law was designed to encourage — not mandate — spaying and neutering, and thus to reduce the need to euthanize hundreds of dogs a year. She said intact male dogs are 2.6 times more likely to bite than neutered animals.

SPCA CEO Ana Zorrilla told the council last week that until Oct. 1, the owners of any intact dogs that staff members impound or have reason to investigate will be given a permit application.

A “grace period” then will be in effect until Dec. 31, Zorrilla said. Owners of all intact dogs that the SPCA impounds will be required to spay or neuter the animal or apply for a permit before the dog is released, but no fine will be imposed if the issue is resolved within 30 days.

After Jan. 1, owners will be assessed the fines outlined in the law: $100 per dog for a first violation, $250 for a second violation and $500 for subsequent infractions.

As proof that a dog has been spayed or neutered, an owner can present a veterinarian’s invoice or a document signed by a veterinarian attesting that the procedure has been done.

If a veterinarian certifies in writing that a dog cannot be spayed or neutered for medical reasons, such as a heart problem or its age, the owner can file for an exemption rather than an intact permit. The application fee for an exemption is $10, but there is no permit fee.

Owners of show dogs, hunting dogs or breeding dogs that don’t want them spayed or neutered must apply for intact permits. Owners must submit a separate application and pay a separate fee for each animal they own.

Owners unable to pay the cost of spaying or neutering may call 504.363.1333 for a list of clinics that offer the procedures at reduced cost to those who qualify.

The SPCA itself offers spay-neuter services at its Algiers offices, charging from $25 to $50 for a cat and from $75 to $100 for a dog, with reduced prices for those in financial need or who are older than 65. Call 504.363.1333.

People with questions about the spay-neuter ordinance may call the SPCA at 504.368.5191, ext. 100.