THE BARK SPRING Creating Happy Futures. PAWS P.O. Box 888 Oriental, NC T: PAWS(7297) PAW WORTHY

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1 SPRING 2017 THE BARK Creating Happy Futures PAWS P.O. Box 888 Oriental, NC T: PAWS(7297) PAW WORTHY Wait for it. Wait for it. Yes, it s Volunteer Appreciation Month! We would like to thank all the PAWS volunteers for finding us a place to call home with a loving family over the past year. We owe our lives to those who picked us out at the shelter, fostered us, doctored us and trained us. A high four to those who support our PAWS programs. We ve seen new faces helping out at our events and attending meetings. We appreciate your support and look forward to another year of working together to create happy futures for us. Sincerely, Lola, Owen, Jeannie Noel, Tenney, Gibbs, Haley, Cole, Scarlet, Ranger, Jewel, Leo, Bambi, Lizzy, Leiko, Addy, Layla, Raleigh, Cadbury, Wilbur, Fitz, Boomer and Nikki. New Leash on Life Graduates Calendar of Events May 13 Art on the Neuse July 1 Croaker Festival TBD OWC Fine Arts & Crafts Show Dec 9 Spirit of Christmas IN THIS ISSUE Yard Sale Dog Parade Art on the Neuse Dog Park Water Fountain Spay & Neuter Program Donations Cat Corner Pet Health Behind the Scenes HELP! Fostering New Leash on Life Sponsoring EXTRA EXTRA! HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 1 of 8

2 YARD SALE PAWS would like to thank all the volunteers who came out over the three days in February to greet, carry, tag, organize, sell and box items at one of our largest fund raisers. We were so excited to get to know new volunteers! Fitz, one of our New Leash on Life dogs, enjoyed two days with us too. We will try to bring a NLOL dog to some of our events. The Craven Pamlico Animal Shelter appreciated the food donated during this event. Thanks to our community who supported us! DOG PARADE The PAWS Annual Dog Parade was well attended on April 1 with 58 dogs participating. PAWS would like to thank the Pamlico Community Band for providing the music, Wally Umbach for leading the parade, Berkley for bringing the Pamlico emergency response trailer and his dogs, all of our judges Cat Clowers, Cam Funk, Cheryl Thompson and our bribe judge Jeanne Robertson and Per Erichsen, our Emcee. ART ON THE NEUSE PAWS next event will be Art on the Neuse on May 13 th from 9am to 4pm in Oriental. Our traveling Pawtique will be there which includes our PAWS T-shirts, caps, jewelry, nature photographs and painted oyster shells. Don t forget to bring a donation of food or litter to put in our donation bin. All donations will go to our local pet food pantry. HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 2 of 8

3 DOG PARK It s on! An anonymous person has come forward to donate funds for a dog park in Oriental. Please send any suggestions via to charlieovercash@townoforiental.com. The park will have a separate area for small dogs. WATER FOUNTAIN Let s keep going with this dog friendly theme here in Oriental! A new water fountain is being installed at the tennis courts in Oriental which will have a dog fountain attached. PAWS would like to thank those involved in making sure our pets have fresh water to drink here in dog town! SPAY AND NEUTER PROGRAM The Spay and Neuter Program provides assistance to low-income Pamlico County residents who are financially unable to alter their pets. Applications for vouchers are available at local vets or by calling PAWS (7297) or at Fund raising, in order to support this program, keeps PAWS busy throughout the year. A word of thanks to Dr. Dimond and Dr. Hicks for spaying and neutering 49 cats a 5 dogs so far this year. Dr.Dimond - Oriental Pet Clinic, 510 Broad St, Oriental, NC 28571, (252) Dr. Hicks - Oriental Village Veterinary Hospital, 407 Broad St, Oriental, NC 28571, (252) DONATIONS Any time you see the Pamlico Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) at an event, you will see this bin for donations of dog and cat food and cat litter for our local animal shelters and pantries. Come see us at Art on the Neuse on May 13 th in Oriental. CAT CORNER April showers bring kitten season. Dr. Dimond and Dr. Hicks have been busy spaying and neutering cats during our latest Free Spay and Neuter Clinic for cats for low income families in Pamlico County. You know what they say about curiosity? If your crawl space is opened for any reason or a vent cover falls off, check to see if the space is being inhabited. Cats can t resist to go exploring. Reports are coming in that if this does happen the meowing could be deafening. May 30 th is International Hug Your Cat Day! Our Cats can t wait! HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 3 of 8

4 PET HEALTH Spring is such an exciting time! Each week brings different wild flowers in bloom, more visible wildlife (I saw my first black bear for this year) and lush plant growth. As a veterinarian, as the seasons change, I see risk factors for our pets change. Snake bite season has begun. If you see a weeping puncture/punctures with swelling on your pet, your pet needs veterinary care. All snake bites can cause infections, and venomous snake bites can create cardiac arrhythmias as well as tissue death. Thankfully, most snakes are not venomous and even venomous snakes will usually not strike if you can convince your pet to leave the snake alone. Even dogs with strong hunting drive can be trained not to annoy snakes. As the mosquito population grows this time of year, so grows the risk of heartworm disease in dogs and cats. All dogs and cats living in eastern North Carolina should be on year round heartworm prevention medication. This includes pets that never go outside. Spring is an excellent time to make sure that you are keeping your pet safe from this deadly parasite. Spring allergens pose troubles for many pets. Itchy ears and/or skin may mean your pet needs help getting safely through the season. New allergy medications have become available over the past year to offer your pet relief. As the daylight hours keep increasing, it is a great time to find new ways to engage your pets in fun activities. Roll dental treats across the floor for your cat to chase, teach your dog a new trick or visit a new place, create puzzle-solving activities for your pet, or just spend more time snuggling. Happy Spring! Dorothy Dimond, DVM Animal Cruelty Hotline You can now report physical harm to animals by contacting the Attorney General s office at ncdoj.gov or call or mail the NC DOJ at PO Box 629, Raleigh, NC In Pamlico County call Berkley Hill at (252) If it is an emergency dial 911. HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 4 of 8

5 BEHIND THE SCENES AT NEW LEASH ON LIFE If you are thinking about adopting a dog, please consider adopting from a shelter. The majority of PAWS New Leash on Life dogs come from the Craven Pamlico Animal Service Center in New Bern. The New Leash on Life program begins with the story of a dog. Let's call him Sam. Sam is a Lab mix who was picked up in Craven County as a stray (about 75% of NLOL dogs were strays). Sam is lonely and sad, as he doesn't understand why he was dumped. Who would? Several days later, Jackie Schmidt and Sue Ward show up at the shelter. They see in Sam a dog who can be happy again. Sam is taken to his foster parents so he can be observed, vaccinated, neutered and cared for until he can enter the NLOL program. His foster parents are working on both his mental and physical health. Sometimes dogs who enter a shelter come out with shelter shock, which is similar to PTSD in humans. Two months have gone by for Sam with his foster family. It's time. Sam is taken to the prison to meet his inmate trainer. Sam's trainer at Pamlico Correctional Institute in Bayboro is trained by Alecia Williams, owner of Dove Landing Kennels in Merritt. Alecia has a roomy boarding facility for dogs. Her services also include training and some pet sitting. In this picture, Alecia is outside in her dog run area with Bob, one of her boarders. Alecia has volunteered her time with the NLOL program since its inception 5 years ago. Every Friday, Alecia travels to the prison with Jackie Schmidt, and sometimes Sue Ward, to work with the inmates and guide them through the training process. After several days spent bonding with his trainer, Sam begins to learn his basic obedience skills. Beginning with "Focus" (look at me), commands are taught in a specific order. All of Sam's obedience training is geared towards his earning his AKC Canine Good Citizen certificate by graduation time. Sam will also learn socialization skills by a patient and caring trainer. When Sam is adopted, he will be an interactive member of the family. In addition to training, Alecia, Jackie and Sue have also taught classes on first aid, problem solving, animal cruelty and business practices. Their goal for the inmates is to prepare them as fully as possible for reentry into society. Sam's trainer will have the opportunity to earn his state training certification from the NC Department of Labor. This may take approximately 2 years and 4000 hours in the NLOL program. Sam knows something is about to happen that will change his life forever. Graduation day is here. Sam gets to show off his talent and what a good boy he is! He now can interact well with humans and other dogs. Then, finally the time arrives for Sam to go home with his new family. Sam wags his tail and turns in circles with joy. The NLOL program has built a strong relationship for Sam and his family, ensuring a happy future for everyone. HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 5 of 8

6 HELP! WE RE BURSTING AT THE SEAMS! OK folks, we have reached maximum volume. For those of us at PAWS, this pretty much looks like many of our garages. PAWS has had to rent a storage unit at Village Mini Storage in Oriental to house its hot dog cart, tables, t-shirts, signs, etc. The cost for the storage unit is $495/year. We are looking for Friends of PAWS who can share this cost. Someone wishing to donate will pay for only half of a month which would be $20 each. Send in your check and put in the memo section on the check PAWS Storage. We will assign a month to you and recognize you in the next Bark Newsletter, Facebook and our PAWS website. Since PAWS does not have a physical location, all monies received by PAWS goes directly to helping our animals. FOSTERING Ben Rauch, who works at Oriental Village Veterinary Hospital as a vet tech, fosters dogs on a regular basis. Ben has worked with Dr. Sherri Hicks since Currently, he is fostering Harvey, a medium sized hound/mix. Harvey would like to find a home. We met up with them at the PAWS Dog Parade. If you would like to meet Harvey call Ben at NEW LEASH ON LIFE PROGRAM Fitz and Boomer graduated on April 12 th Adopted Adopted HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 6 of 8

7 NEW LEASH ON LIFE PROGRAM MEET OUR NEWEST NLOL CLASS Hello. I m Zeta, a 40 lb. 1 ½ year old chocolate lab cattle dog mix and a sweeter dog you won t find. I so truly want to please my family. I am a medium size girl with a low energy level. I already will come when you call me, have been good with other large and small dogs and am very obedient. I m still trying to figure out cats, so a home without cats or cats that are dog savvy would be best. I also really love children, so hopefully you have some around. I can t wait to show you all the new things I ve learned. Hello there. I m Mattie, sometimes known as Mattie Moo, because of my beautiful spots. I m a 2 year old lab hound mix that is mellow with very low energy. A 65 lb. sweet love bug that is good with cats and all dogs, large and small, I m never pushy and just love people. As a matter of fact, I m so good in the home that I won t get on your furniture or counter surf. Best of all, I m great with children. Adopted Hi there. I m Mack, and a more handsome black lab you will not find. I m friendly and great with children and cats. In fact, I was so good with my foster family that they ve decided to adopt me. I am a testament to the PAWS NLOL program and how well they evaluate dogs. So my recommendation to you is to regularly check out the dogs that are in their NLOL program at Pamlicopaws.net. The Pamlico Correctional Facility NLOL program has graduated 175 dogs as of April SPONSORING If you would like to sponsor any of the NLOL dogs, please call PAWS(7297). You can pay all or part of the $250 sponsorship fee. If you wish, you can designate your donation in the name of a specific dog in the NLOL Program. These funds will be used toward spay/neuter fees, shots, vet costs and food and supplies while the dog is in the NLOL Program. All NLOL dogs are fully vetted, up to date on vaccines and spayed or neutered. When they graduate from The Pamlico Correctional Institution, they will have 8 weeks of crate and housebreaking training along with some obedience and agility training. If you think you could be best friends with Mattie or Zeta, contact Penny at or go to pamlicopaws.net to fill out an adoption application. All adopting families will attend their doggie s graduation. Bios written by Muffin Schmidt. HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 7 of 8

8 EXTRA EXTRA! If you like shopping online, stop by any of these websites and share your support by choosing PAWS as your non-profit of choice. Each time you make a purchase PAWS will receive money Sammi and Sofie s Wholesome Dog Treats are available at the Oriental Farmers Market and several local retailers. We receive 10% back. You don t have to wait until an event to purchase PAWS shirts. You can go anytime to the Inland Waterway Provision Company in Oriental. NEW COLORS! If you are looking for jewelry as a gift, call Roz Kutchins at She donates her beautiful jewelry to PAWS. If you have a story about your cat or dog, including New Leash on Life dogs, we want to hear about it. Send your story, along with pictures to thepawsbark@gmail.com. SEE YOU AT ART ON THE NEUSE MAY 13, AM TO 4PM REMEMBERING OUR FRIENDS Don t know what to give your loved one, who has everything, for their birthday, wedding or anniversary? Do you know someone who has lost a pet? Your generous donation to PAWS will honor both pet and pet owner. PAWS will send the recipient a card telling them of your thoughtful donation and the donation will be displayed on our website. PAWS Officers Jackie Schmidt-President Christine Garman-V. Pres. Mary Maxwell-Treasurer Penny Monell-Secretary Board of Directors Dot Dunford-Chair Penny Monell Mary Maxwell Kathie Meyer Lynn Hines Founded in 1990, PAWS is a North Carolina 501(c)(3) non-profit organization striving to provide a better life for local animals. We are always needing volunteers. Meetings usually are 4:00 p.m., the 3rd Monday of the month, at the Oriental Town Hall. MEMBERSHIP: $20 individual & $25 family Membership applications are available on our website. Online donations are welcome on our website too. PAWS * PO Box 888, Oriental, NC 28571* If you have any questions about The Bark, send us your correspondence to thepawsbark@gmail.com. HELPING THE HELPLESS Page 8 of 8