SPRING HAYWOOD SPAY/NEUTER Spring 2015 Haywood Spay/Neuter Spring 2015 Fresh Initiatives promote Wellness It all started with an organic flea dusting before releasing TNR cats. Then free samples to pet owners at transport pick up. Then a little dewormer for fixed cats, eartips, and a few dogs that looked like they could use it. Then affordable doses available at our office. Fleas and Worms. Tiny parasites that drain life and vitality, causing digestive discomfort with roundworm infestations, allergic reactions to flea saliva such as hair loss and raw skin, anemia, ear hematoma, tapeworms. Pets suffer. The majority of our client pet owners have no regular vet. After spay/neuter surgery and first vaccinations, their pets need affordable treatments for common parasites picked up from their environments. Some pets need urgent care. When we expanded our mission with animal wellness programs, we envisioned a pet health Affordable treatment for common pet problems benefits public health care initiative providing simple, affordable, accessible care for four-legged members of our clients families. Thanks to you, fewer low-income animals will suffer this year. The continued decline in shelter euthanasia is the result of projects targeting high-risk animals like feral cats, surrendered litters, and pit bull mixes. The 2014 overall euthanasia rate of 22% is the lowest ever seen at the county shelter, saving hundreds of lives. Thank you! We must keep these programs going. Without your help, where will animals in need turn? Can we count on you? 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Euthanized Dogs & Cats 2004-2014 Haywood County Shelter Cats Euthanized Dogs Euthanized 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 PAGE 1
A BASKET for MOM Look for Haywood Spay/Neuter 12 th Annual Whole Bloomin Thing Waynesville NC @ Historic Frog Level Saturday, May 9 th 9 AM 4 PM HAND STAMPED NOTE CARDS CATNIP TOYS FLOWERING BASKETS FLEECE PET BLANKETS & MORE Call 828-452-1329 to reserve a slot! 1 in 3 pets will get lost. Without ID, 90% won t return home. ALTERnate Transport makes Cinnamon Roll Cinnamon is a red and white feist that adores her owner and Dennis adores her back. Friendship doesn t really explain their bond, but it will have to do. While looking for work, Dennis moved back with his folks who have an unfixed male pit bull, making a spay urgent when Cinnamon came in heat. But no wheels, no spay. It s dogs like Cinnamon that benefit from ALTERnate Transport. Why delay when all that s needed is a lift? Our volunteer helped get Cinnamon to our transport pickup site and off she went! But the story has a twist. Being crated was scary for Cinnamon and in fear, she Cinnamon s ordeal had a happy ending thanks to ALTERnate Transport volunteers. PAGE 2 bit an inexperienced vet tech. Instead of spay surgery and first rabies vaccination, Cinnamon now was doomed to bite quarantine. In heat. Dennis was greeted by our volunteer to take the still crated Cinnamon to county shelter. Owner and pet spent time together every day until her release. A local vet did spay surgery (no crate) and Cinnamon is doing fine. Dennis is very thankful to the Haywood Spay/Neuter donors who help put wheels under Cinnamon to keep the care she needed rolling despite setbacks & detours. Next task: that unfixed male pit!!
Tr a p - N e u t e r - R e t u r n i s S o - M u c h - M o r e The underlying success of our TNR project is its "managed colony" approach, which includes saving lives of unadopted shelter cats with an eartip or ET - the TNR badge of honor. Meet lucky Chipmonk, a feral gray striped tabby that was neutered at three months of age, a clear health benefit. His caretaker fed him and other community cats wild in nature, supplementing their hunted prey diet. Chipmonk s new family Chipmonk was almost a year old when trapped in a neighbor dispute, but he was not socialized enough for a shelter adoption. His ET saved his life from euthanasia, the cruel fate under current policy for trapped ferals in our county shelter. Once settled, Chipmonk liked his TNR foster colony, which gave him free roam and enough time to decide whether he wanted domestication or life as a community/barn cat. His choice for domestication and sweet nature gave him a ticket to Sarge's Valentine's Day adopt-a-thon. Chipmonk s young life was touched by his caretaker; TNR funding from PetSmart Charities and supporters like you; Haywood Spay/Neuter volunteers; shelter officers; & TNR foster colony parents. Chipmonk s new life began with a PetSmart adoption promotion; Sarge's Animal Rescue volunteers; and his new adoptive family. Purrr! Chipmonk is not alone. He shared his TNR foster colony with Chester, Moose, and many other ETs saved from euthanasia, looking for a safe place to live, to be the cat they re meant to be. Chester found his lifelong companion in Emory, who loves to read to him. Moose got his dream home as an only pet without hassles, without fear. Gabriel is an ET adopted last year from the shelter. Having Chester in the house meets with his approval. Saving lives is often a timing thing. Foster homes are as important as adopters. PAGE 3
Meet Christmas, a new Operation Pit recruit It started with a frantic call. A 12-week-old pit bull would be shot if someone didn t take it. The puppy had been abused by the owner s boyfriend and the shooting threat was real, she said. Without another thought, Kim said, "I'll take it. She was not looking to add another dog of any age to her household. But Kim knew she could help a puppy in need and perhaps find it a good home; she had done it before. But it didn t happen that way this time. This sweet, gentle puppy quickly became a member of the family. It was unanimous that Christmas should be his new name since he was rescued a few days before it and his new family had just seen "A Dog Named Christmas" on TV. Christmas soon became an Operation Pit recruit, and his new owners are grateful for the help. Kim had been saving to have her other two dogs fixed with the $10 Fall Fix special. Operation Pit made it possible to have all three done at the same time. We wish all pits could have the happy ending that Christmas found, safe & belly-rubbed at last. Christmas loves belly rubs! HO, HO, HO! Plott Hound enthusiasts were saddened to learn that 44% of Plotts in the county shelter did not make it out in 2013. By contrast in 2014, only 18% were euthanized. The question to ask ourselves is whether the drop to 18% is cause for celebration? What rate of shelter deaths is acceptable for our Official State Dog? Hikers can trace the history and heritage of the Plott Hound on The Plott Dog Trail in Maggie Valley, a loop trail featuring 18 stops. Planning for county animal shelter underway The Haywood County Commissioners postponed the April public hearing regarding the location of a new animal shelter. Additional options are being explored. The proposed fairgrounds location had supporters and detractors as most topics do. We at Haywood Spay/Neuter believe that all concerns, regardless of final location, can be addressed with proper planning and shelter design. In 2010, the Association of Shelter Veterinarians (ASV) published the Guidelines for Standards of Care in Animal Shelters. Our current shelter was built decades ago and is inadequate at best. Noise, limited kennel and office space, poor ventilation, and other problems impact officer efficiency and the health of stressed shelter animals. NC State Dog still euthanized at county shelter PAGE 4
OPERATION PIT promotes healthy, litter-free dogs with free spay/neuter, rabies vaccine, and microchip protection against theft. Each surgery is an investment in this high-risk breed. Recruits are less likely to be taken to the shelter because of reproductive or aggression issues. Spay/neuter reduces the desire to roam, keeping pets closer to home and out of the shelter. It s the Pits! We wish all pits could have the happy ending enjoyed by our new recruit, Christmas! He joins the 127 pit/mixes enlisted last year for safer, healthier lives thanks to Operation Pit. Here s a snapshot of our 2014 recruits and our local shelter activity impacting this much maligned, high-risk breed: 44 male and 83 female OP recruits in 2014 95% had family incomes below 300% poverty level Pit/mixes are the most likely breed to enter our shelter, representing 18% of dog intakes in 2014 They also are the least likely to leave, representing 25% of our euthanized shelter dogs Only 3 of 78 shelter pit/mixes redeemed by owners in 2014 were fixed = 96% were not fixed Haywood County Shelter Pit Do you really know pit bulls? Pit bull type dogs have first heat by 6 months, with litters of 5-10 puppies twice a year. Females age 3-5 years have the largest litters, 12 puppies is common! 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Haywood County Animals Services 245 Hemlock Street Waynesville (828) 456-5338 Shelter Intakes 2013vs 2014 1677 1738 Dogs Impounded 995 868 Cats Impounded PAGE 5 2014 Annual Shelter Report Dogs Impounded 2013: 1,677 Cats Impounded 2013: 995 2014: 1,738 2014: 868 Dogs Euthanized 2013: 453 Cats Euthanized 2013: 377 2014: 320 2014: 255 Euthanasia Rate 2013: 27% Euthanasia Rate 2013: 38% 2014: 18% 2014: 29% SHELTER HOURS MON-FRI 9 AM 4 PM SAT 9 AM 4 PM SUN 12 4 PM ADOPT a SHELTER PET www.haywoodnc.net select Departments, then Animal Services to browse shelter pets
Haywood Spay/Neuter 182 Richland Street PO Box 992 Waynesville NC 28786 Non-Profit US POSTAGE PAID Waynesville, NC 28786 Permit #54 Serving the community by providing low-cost spay neuter services and animal wellness programs Place Label Here www.haywoodspayneuter.org Tuesday through Friday 11 AM - 5 PM or by appointment 828.452.1329 Follow us on Facebook DONATE ONLINE O f f i c e r s p r o m o t e s o l u t i o n s t h a t r e d u c e s h e l t e r i n t a k e s, k i l l s HCAS Officers Haley & Gary review program flyers available to the public at the shelter Haywood County Animal Services (HCAS) officers attended our one-hour training session in January, learning more about the positive impact of spay/neuter programs on reducing shelter intakes. Unfixed dogs more often have behavior problems that land them in the shelter. Unplanned litters end up there, too. Regardless of breed, unfixed dogs are many times more likely to attack than fixed dogs, making their shelter outcome worse. Trapping cats for kill is proven useless. It is undisputed that shelter intakes decline in proportion to the number of spay and neuter surgeries performed. Being knowledgeable about free and low-cost solutions for high-risk animals makes HCAS officers jobs more manageable and saves taxpayer $$. PAGE 6