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Sassy

By Greg Mortensen – Volunteer Coordinator

A lot of volunteers knew and loved Sassy. She was the sweet Pit Bull in kennel 27. A long time went by and she was not getting adopted – maybe because of her breed. Our Animal Health Technician, Anne Figoni, noticed Sassy was stressed and needed a “time out”.

Leann Mannie, one of our volunteers, decided to take Sassy home with her to foster. Sassy was in heaven. She got lots of extra love and walks, and Leann also gave her a cushy bed that became her very own. Sassy loved being warm and cozy all night by Leann’s bed. She also got to spend time with Leann’s dog Red Rex.

Sassy went to work with Leann at Leann’s store where she could greet and meet all of the customers. And, Leann would bring Sassy back to the shelter during adoption hours so people could see her. Sassy’s lucky day came when a man saw her on our website and came to the shelter to fill out an adoption application.

The morning of Sassy’s adoption Leann took her for a walk on the beach, she had fun chasing birds and then returned to the shelter for a visit with the man who filled out the application. He decided to adopt her – Hooray! Sassy’s new family followed Leann back to her house to pick up Sassy’s bed and away she went to her new home.

Leann followed up by calling Sassy’s new family and gave them some tips on her behavior. (It is hard for a pet to adjust to a new home, so it’s important to be patient and work with them.) Although all dogs are different, two weeks is an average adjustment time. Sassy’s new family signed her up for training lessons at Pet's Lifeline in Sonoma, and she now lives in harmony with an African Grey Parrot and a cat - sometimes all in the same room watching TV! How cool is that to be living with a cat? And a bird?

Sassy went from being stressed to being fatter, happier and adopted into a wonderful home. Certain dogs need extra attention or have other special needs, so if anyone has a chance to foster a dog, it is an awesome thing to do and some fun and good will come from it.

Boots

By Shirley Zindler – Animal Control Officer

Just about every breed of dog ends up in a shelter at some time. Occasionally a breed comes in that’s so rare and unusual that even experienced shelter personnel don’t recognize it immediately. Recently, a Good Samaritan found a friendly dog running in the street and Officer Roger Dengler picked up the unique-looking animal and brought him to the shelter. An attractive, leggy, red and white dog with a whiskery face, he almost appeared to be a Whippet mix. Other shelter staff thought he was a Pharaoh hound or Ibizan hound mix.

Officer Robyn Brown, who owns Whippets, recognized the dog as a Portuguese Podengo, a rare breed of coursing hound that is noted for being very athletic and long-lived. Some of them reach the age of 20 years or more. The dog, Boots, fortunately had a microchip but it traced back to an owner in Connecticut. Animal Health Technician, Anne Figoni, attempted to contact the owner numerous times, but kept reaching answering machines and disconnected numbers.

Finally a man called back who stated that he had formerly worked with the dog owner and that the owner had moved to Germany. He agreed to try to email the owner there. Eventually the owner responded, saying that he had given the dog back to the breeder when he moved overseas. Anne called the breeder, who stated that they had re-homed the dog with a local woman. Further research located the second owner who was no longer able to take the dog back either. It seemed that no one was able to take Poor Boots. In the meantime, Boot’s original owner moved from an apartment to a house and found himself able to have a dog again. He started working on arrangements to have Boots shipped to him in Germany. Thankfully, the breeder generously offered to care for the dog while he was awaiting transport to Germany. Thanks to a microchip and a lot of dedicated people, Boots will soon be reunited with his original family.

Gimme Shelter

By John Strathman, DVM – Shelter Veterinarian

Although I have been working in animal shelters for nearly ten years and have been visiting them for several decades, I know all too well the various reasons why animals wind up in shelters and I still wonder why it has to be this way. I walk through the dog kennels and cat wards, looking at one cute and friendly face after another, shake my head and wonder "what the heck are YOU doing here?" Makes me kinda sad.

But, oftentimes I am quite glad that animals come to us. That's because some animals were mistreated, abused, or neglected in the places they were before. Some come from miserable living situations where they suffered needlessly. Abuse isn't always the stuff that makes headlines. For every sensational, crazy case of somebody abusing an animal, we see many more animals that suffer from "passive abuse.” People can be cruel to animals by simply ignoring them, depriving them of proper care, and by allowing health problems to go untreated. People can abuse animals by being ignorant or not caring, by not doing anything or by intentionally and actively abusing them.

"Zippy", a young poodle, was such a case. When he came to us as a stray, he was a mess. His coat was dirty, overgrown and heavily matted. There were some heavy crusts around his muzzle accompanied by a foul smell. He accepted human attention, but with little enthusiasm.

We anesthetized Zippy and gave him a total body haircut and cleaned his teeth. When we shaved his face, we found that the skin of his muzzle and lips was cut 360 degrees around. Evidently, some sort of ligature, probably a rubber band, was placed around his muzzle and slowly worked its way through his skin. After a bit of reconstructive surgery, the wounds were repaired. He acquired the temporary moniker "Zipper Nose" because the stainless steel staples used to close the wound made him look like he had a zipper around his muzzle.

After these treatments, Zippy was a new dog. Almost immediately, he became much livelier and friendlier. He had to have been terribly uncomfortable with his matted coat and facial wounds. After treatment, he felt so much better and his true sweet, bubbly and adorable personality surfaced! He was fitted with a fancy collar with lots of bling and a snazzy sweater and the makeover was complete! He found a good home, second time around, and we hope (in a good way) that we never see him again!

I like to think that Zippy might have made a daring escape from an abusive situation. Maybe he tunneled his way to freedom under a fence that surrounded the yard that he shared with 3-foot high weeds and junk cars. Whatever the real story, good thing he came to us, because we treated him kindly, made him whole again, and he moved on to a much brighter future!

When Dinner Bites Back

By Shirley Zindler–Animal Control Officer

Animal Control Officers deal with a wide variety of domestic and wild animals in the course of our duties. Some of our favorite calls are rescuing animals that have gotten themselves into predicaments of one sort or another. Certain calls stand out as being unique and a lot of fun.

Last month, Officer Kim Adragna received a report of a hawk with a tether hanging from its leg, struggling to fly. The caller assumed that someone’s trained hawk had escaped with its jesses on. Jesses are thin leather straps used during falconry to control the bird and are often left on during flight.

I went along with Officer Adragna and, to our surprise, we found that instead of jesses, the beautiful red-tailed hawk was weighed down by a huge gopher snake approximately four feet in length. Hawks frequently catch and eat snakes, but in this case the tail of the snake had became tangled around the bird’s foot and talons in such a way that it was unable to let go. After eating its’ fill, the hawk attempted to fly away, but due to its burden, ended up sitting in the road, at risk of being hit by a car or eaten by predators.

The hawk was still able to fly, but not well, and it took off as we approached. We followed, and after some maneuvering, the bird soon became tangled in some tree limbs and a fence where we were able to capture it. Taking great care to avoid the razor-sharp beak and talons, it took the two of us several minutes with heavy gloves and a pocket knife to remove the tightly entangled snake. It appeared that the snake had been there for a while and it’s hard to say why the bird didn’t use its’ beak to free itself but we were glad to help.

Once relieved of his heavy load, the hawk flew to freedom as two tickled animal control officers exchanged high-fives and watched it go. It’s always immensely rewarding to assist a needy animal and have a positive outcome for everyone involved.

Sally Miller

By Greg Mortensen – Volunteer Coordinator

There is much we could not do without the outstanding support of all of our dedicated volunteers. Among our many excellent volunteers, this month we are spotlighting an individual whose volunteer contributions are hard to measure – Sally Miller.

Sally, aka “Volunteer Gal Sal,” has been volunteering at the animal shelter for seven years and has worked in nearly every capacity. She is a volunteer extraordinaire who has always been willing to do anything and everything. When first joining the animal shelter volunteer program, she wrote on her application under Area/Position of Interest – “All.”

And, she does it all. Sally is technically a dog person, but we all know that it does not stop there. She is an excellent Canine Kennel Assistant, a volunteer job that includes dog walking and kennel care, but she also loves to assist the public with the adoption of any animal.

Sally’s ability to educate and communicate with our clients makes her an outstanding volunteer Adoption Counselor. She loves to see our pets leave the shelter and go to a great new forever home. Sally, serving as a Client Service Assistant, has also aided many people in finding their missing pet and sending them home together.

Although a dog person on record, Sally could not say no when asked to foster kittens as well as dogs. She not only fosters kittens, but she is always the volunteer willing to take the litters of six to eight kittens. We know she does a great job putting her heart and soul into the kitties’ care because there is always a sweet story behind every name that she gives them.

Sally also puts her talents to use helping with fairs, mobile adoptions and other special events. It is a comfort to have her assistance at a mobile adoption, and she has even been known to help with microchipping.

If you are interested in volunteering at the shelter, please contact Greg Mortensen at (707) 565-7116 or visit us on-line at www.theanimalshelter.org for more information.