Blockbuster Crowd ICAS. More good stuff DECEMBER ADOPT DONATE. Shelter Open House draws over 200 people & pets.

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1 Volunteer ADOPT ICAS DONATE Blockbuster Crowd Shelter Open House draws over 200 people & pets. The line started in the conference room, snaked down the hallway, looped around by Dispatch, past the drinking fountain, through the lobby and out the door. As the staff and volunteers furiously issued licenses, gave vaccinations and microchips - they kept coming and coming, for hours. At one point I thought we must be giving away free Wii systems. But it was the love of animals that drew the crowds. Children held their precious pets waiting for a free rabies and other low cost life saving vaccinations. And many family pets received a microchip to help find their way home, in case they were ever lost. And it didn t end More good stuff Open House photos 2 Ask Bobble 3 Short & Tall Tales 4 Mark your calendars 5 Foreclosures & Pets 5 Sponsor A Pet 6 DECEMBER 2008 Newsletter ideas, stories, or questions for Bobble, contact Deb Allen at debmydeb@aol.com. Ingham County Animal Shelter 600 Curtis Street Mason, MI

2 Open House and the Never Ending Line there. Half price adoptions drew even more people to adopt wonderful pets. Seven dogs and 12 cats and kittens found homes that day. Our fabulous veterinarian Dr. Chadwick, gave 200 rabies and other vaccinations, in five hours. That must be a Guinness Book record! And I almost forgot about Stuff the Truck. Our generous community stuffed one of our Animal Cop trucks with dog food, cat food, toys galore, Kongs, raw hides and blankets. Thank you!

3 Ask Bobble Open House Visitors Dear Bobble, Last year, I remember seeing a story on the ICAS website about Eva, the dog with the broken leg. The shelter was raising medical funds for her. What ever happened to her? Katie One day a woman came to the shelter to adopt a specific dog. Her heart was broken when she discovered the dog had been adopted within minutes of her arrival. Our shelter Director Jamie McAloon-Lampman, had Eva in her office and asked the lady if she would like to see her. The woman was reluctant at first, but agreed to just take a look. The Director told her Eva had just arrived and explained the extent of her injuries. The lady took one look at Eva and was hooked. Her new owner Amy, has this to say about Eva, now Maddie. I'm just so happy I was able to adopt her, help raise money for her surgery, and save her life. Now I can't imagine my life without her. It's so much more special to adopt or even foster a dog that has such major medical needs. You feel so good about yourself when it's all said and done. Now that she has gone through the surgery she's a normal puppy again and her hobbies include, chasing frogs, chewing on shoes, and romping through the woods. Sniff y" later, Bobble

4 Short and Tall Tales Volunteer Stories THE KITTEN NURSERY By Larry Hagedorn Volunteer Jenny Lesperance, started The Kitten Nursery last Spring. Her goal was to establish a place where orphan kittens can receive the care they need to survive. Right now she is using her garage to house 14 or so cats and kittens. Three of her kittens, Georgia, Dezi and Sonny were orphan kittens who needed bottle feeding every 4 hours until they were 4 weeks old. Even though they now eat canned food, Jenny must still provide the vital organ stimulation a mother cat would. She must massage their little tummies and clean their little bottoms after they eat so they will grow up healthy. Molly is one of those precocious 5 pound female cats we all love. She came to the Kitten Nursery barely alive with 5 kittens and a strong will to live. Unfortunately, only 1 kitten, Big Al made it. He is doing great now and is almost as big as Molly. Molly plays with Big Al and the other kittens at the Nursery. Jenny hopes to enlarge her rescue facility so she can care for many more orphan kittens in the future. The shelter provides the medicine the kittens need, but Jenny is paying for all the food, litter and other supplies. She plans a separate heated building to house The Kitten Nursery in the future; a lofty goal for sure. Contact Jenny at chiplovessteve@yahoo.com or call if you would like to know more about The Kitten Nursery.

5 Mark your Calendars We need you! December January I Need a Home 6 Petsmart Mobile Saturday, noon - 4 Okemos 16 Petco Mobile Friday Lansing 19 Petco Mobile Friday, Lansing 18 Soldan s Mobile Sunday 12-4 Okemos Contact Teresa to volunteer ac_carter@ingham.org Homelessness Our Families and Pets On December 1, 2008, there were 384 Ingham County homes in foreclosure. In addition to this, families are filing for bankruptcy and losing their jobs. As a result, the Shelter has seen a significant increase in people having no choice, but to give their pets to the Animal Shelter. It s heartbreaking. These are NOT families who are bringing their pets in because they aren t cute anymore, want to trade in their current pet for a better one, or dumping them off. These people are devastated and have little or no options. Here s what we re doing: We are constantly recruiting suitable foster homes. Placing family pets in foster care as soon as possible decreases the stress and exposure to disease that can occur in a shelter environment. Please consider opening your heart and home to a foster pet. Our Customer Service Staff treat people needing to surrender their pets with compassion and understanding. People losing their homes and jobs often feel embarrassed, frightened and overwhelmed. Having to get rid of their companion animal just compounds the pain. Treating people in this situation with respect is paramount. We offer adoption specials to increase affordable adoptions during this economically challenging time. We know that many people on fixed incomes are wonderful pet owners and offering adoptions specials helps those people adopt from a reputable shelter and helps the animals get adopted quicker. We let adopters know when a pet was relinquished due to hardship. This often results in the pet finding a suitable home due to the information known about the pet s circumstances and temperament. We refer people facing foreclosure to This organization is a quick response program that has been known to provide financial assistance and counseling in addition to information and referral resulting in the family and pet being able to remain an intact family.

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