Leesport residents made calls to several shelters but only the Animal Rescue League came to the aid of a gorgeous swan who was literally going from door-to-door looking for food.

This handsone guy (or girl - not sure!) was very lucky, and he's now residing in one of our cat colonies until we can place him in a nice home with a pond so he can do what swans like to do.  In the meantime, he is loving all of the attention he gets as people do a double-take when they walk by.  Call him "Handsome" and he preens knowingly.  My hat is off to the ARL staff who are safely able to go into his cage and change his bedding, food and water to care for this deserving animal.

In the warmer months, shelters and rescues are overrun with kittens.  Let’s hope that with the cooler weather approaching, the cat breeding will slow down.  It really never stops but breeding diminishes as feral cats turn their attention more to survival than breeding.  That’s why it is so vitally important that we stop this cycle of breeding.  If you have outside cats, please, please, please get your cats spayed and neutered.  Even if you think that you can give away any kittens your cats may have, what you are doing is not giving the cats in shelters a chance.  The people who adopt your kittens would have gone to the shelters for their cats.

And those of you with huge hearts who feed feral cats, if you care enough to feed them, care enough to get them spayed and neutered.  By continuing to feed them, you continue the cycle of breeding.  A healthy cat will be more likely to breed.  We know that it’s tough to ignore the wild cats, but they will be producing lots more wild cats if they are fed and not spayed and neutered.

We have a wonderful selection of kittens and cats here at the ARL.  I even saw a pair of rare Tonkinese cats last week here.  Please give the shelter and rescue cats a chance.

Celebrate Halloween with the Animal Rescue League at AZ Pet and Pondz on Wednesday, October 29 at 6:00pm for costume contests, prizes, food and fun!  AZ Pet and Pondz is located at 4274 Perkiomen Ave in Reading Station.

And for all of you jewelry fans, come on out to Van Scoy Jewelers in Wyomissing for a 2-day trunk show of dog and cat charms by David Gantt.  Also featured will be bracelets, pendants and cufflinks.  Most dog and cat breeds will be available or customized in the likeness of your pet. The show is October 30 and 31.

Every day, some of the companion animals (dogs, cats, critters) are adopted here at the ARL.  But it's not every day that one of the farm animals finds a home.  I was pleasantly surprised last week to hear that one of our horses and the three goats were adopted!  Ginger the horse went to live with a woman and another horse who used to be here at the ARL.  And Lucy the goat and her 2 sons, Sparky and Joey, found a great home at a farm with other goats and animals, and a mom and dad who love them.  We just heard today that Sparky has taken a real liking to his new dad.  We are so happy to hear that our farm animal friends are loved.

By the way, all of these animals were listed on our web site where their new families saw them and fell in love.  Thank you for helping the animals!

Owners of dogs and cats who were sickened last year from the melamine-tainted pet food have until November 24 to file a claim for a portion of the just-approved $24 million settlement.  The reimbursable costs include medical treatment for the pet, burial costs, replacement of carpets that may have be ruined by the sick pets, time off that owners may have needed to treat the pets, and the controversial “replacement value of the pet.”  While the settlement is a good thing - getting the companies to own up to the terrible pain and suffering caused to the pets and their owners – the issue of the pets’ true value is something that the settlement does not address.  By law, pets are simply property.  The replacement value is what they paid for the pet.  The emotional loss is completely ignored.  This is so sad.  I know that my pets, both rescues, are worth to me hundreds, thousands more than what I paid for them…well, really I cannot put a dollar figure on their worth.  They’re my buddies!  It’s time that the courts begin awarding settlements for loss of companions because, let’s face it, our pets are often our best friends. 

I was at Main Line rescue last night, attending a tree dedication for the 80 dogs slain in Kutztown in July, when Bill Smith announced that HB2525 had passed the Senate.  He was waiting to hear from Governor Rendell that he had signed it.  According to Bill, the Governor would like to do a ceremonial signing, to make it a happy event, but Bill has encouraged the Governor to sign right away, then do the ceremonial signing for the press.  The faster the bill is signed into law, the more protection the dogs have from senseless killings.

Unfortunately, for House Bill 2532 which Rep. Caltagirone introduced, that bill has been sent to the Agricultural and Rural Affairs Committee, according to his office whom I spoke with this morning.  Bill Smith heard that this was one of the concessions to passing HB2525.  Let’s hope that it moves through this committee quickly and passes.

Bill was encouraged by the passage of the HB2525, but it’s clear that we have more work to do.  The bill was passed but with some changes.  Now we need to chip away at the changes.

The incident over the weekend when the German Shepherd/American Bulldog mixes attacked the woman who lived with them raised a few questions in the “animal behavior” side of my brain with my years of experience dealing with aggressive dogs.  I have had many clients ask me to train their dogs to be attack dogs but insist that the dogs be friendly to people who are non-threatening.  They want their dogs to be able to distinguish between someone entering their home as a threat or a friend, especially when the owner is not home.  This question is preposterous! Dogs cannot make that distinction!  So we are left to deal with people who instigate aggression in their dogs so that the dogs are “protection” without knowing what they are doing.  They create a dog with a hair-trigger who is likely to go off with the least bit of provocation. These owners are likely to suffer the dire consequences of the dogs attacking family members or unsuspecting, non-threatening victims, just as what happened over the weekend. 

The most likely scenario in this weekend’s incident may have been something called “redirected aggression.”  If the dogs were outside barking at someone or something, the dogs were in a heightened state of anxiety, adrenaline pumping.  If the woman attempted to pull them away while in this state, the dogs very likely turned and attacked because they were being thwarted from their target.  It can take several seconds to several hours for the adrenaline to settle down.  Until it does, dogs will continue to attack.

The bottom line: if you want a protection dog, buy a little dog who barks a lot.  Most people won’t go near a home with a barking dog!  Never, ever provoke a dog into aggression.  It's inhumane and dangerous.

I hold my breath with conflicting reactions when a new dog movie comes to theatres.  Beverly Hills Chihuahua opens this Friday, and I’m looking forward to seeing it because my family has a Chihuahua member – my brother’s dog.  The movie looks like it will be pretty lame but what the heck!  We can use some silliness in these stressful times. Unfortunately, the movie publicity creates a tsunami of demand for that kind of dog.  It was 101 Dalmatians in 1961 and again in 1996.  Beethoven bounded into theatres in 1992 and the St. Bernard was the have-to-have dog.  With all of the hype and the cuteness shown in the movies, people want to run out and get that kind of dog to recreate the magic in the movie.  Without doing the research on the traits and needs of the dog.  When Snow Dogs and Eight Below came out, the popularity of Huskies soared.

After the initial flood of interest, animal shelters saw an increase in the numbers of these dogs surrendered to shelters after each of these movies. People simply did not understand the characteristics of the breeds and were unable to fulfill the dogs’ needs.  I fear the same backlash with Beverly Hills Chihuahua.  These dogs are depicted in the media by the likes of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears as little toys that like to be carried around and pampered, just like they are!  In reality, most Chihuahuas have the personality of a big dog in a very small package.  They are usually not laid-back and cuddly.  They are wary of strangers and don’t like to be grabbed – which is sooooo tempting when you see a little dog!  They may challenge even the biggest dog with no regard to the consequences, and housetraining is often a problem.  With early training and socialization, many of these problems can be avoided.

Here at the ARL, we frequently see quite a few Chihuahuas come in – strays and owner surrenders.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we don’t see that inevitable surge in the coming months…

The Animal Rescue League’s first Carnival for the Animals on Sunday was a resounding success! Thank you to everyone who attended, and to those who exhibited and gave demonstrations.  Of course, lots of people brought their dogs and they were a well-behaved representation of ARL alumni as well as dogs from other shelters and rescues. As a trainer, I am very aware of the way that people interact with their dogs in public. To my dismay, I witnessed lots of yanking on leashes to get dogs to stop pulling, pushing down on rear ends to get dogs to sit, and even some yelling to get the dogs to listen. Steve and Mary Jo from Awesome Dawgs provided a fantastic demonstration of agility and obedience early in the day at the Carnival. I wish that all attendees could have watched it.  The experience of teaching your dog positive methods of obedience does so much for the bond between dog and human.  Dogs learn quicker and are happier when gentle methods versus force-based or punishment techniques are used. Some people don’t even realize the importance of dog training!  I like to call it “communications skills” because training teaches our dogs what our words mean. They need to learn our language.

I could go on and on forever about the merits of positive dog training. Let me hear your thoughts!

It’s going to be a beautiful weekend, so spend Sunday outside at the Animal Rescue League!  We’re having our first annual Carnival for the Animals to celebrate Pennsylvania's Week for the Animals.  There will be fun for everyone: games for kids, pet contests, exhibits, face painting, dog training demonstrations, pet photos, food, a silent auction, a dunk tank with local dignitaries, and a book signing. The festivities start at 11:00.  Don’t miss the unveiling of the mural in our new lobby at 1:30.  Painted by artist Terry Flannery, the mural shows our animal friends waiting for us at the Rainbow Bridge.  More information about the mural and opportunities to memorialize your pet in the mural are available at the shelter.

We hope to see you on the last day of summer at the Animal Rescue League – Sunday, September 21, 11:00-4:00!

We did it!  The PA House of Representatives passed HB2532 unanimously, and HB2525 passed by a vote of 181 to 17.  Now it's on to the Senate.  Please be sure to contact your senators to keep the momentum to get these bills signed into law!

Thank you to everyone who helped!

Barrie Pease, president of the Board of Directors of the Animal Rescue League, and I had the pleasure of attending the rally in Harrisburg today, accompanied by Barrie’s shelter dog, Lily, to support passage of House Bills 2525 and 2532.  When Barrie spoke to Rep. Caltagirone after the rally, he seemed optimistic that the bills would pass tomorrow.  In session yesterday, most of the proposed amendments had been voted down.  It looks like all of our hard work is finally paying off!

I was so happy to meet and chat with AnneMarie Lucas from the ASPCA and she shared with me some of the interesting forensics work that they are doing in New York.  She even posed for a photo with Lily!  What a wonderful lady she is; so down to earth and friendly. That's Bill Smith's dog, HB, with AnneMarie.

I was finally able to meet Helen Ebersole, president of United Against Puppy Mills.  She called into the ARL’s BCTV program last night to speak about their work and the fundraiser they are having next month (check out Upcoming Events for more information!).  Great job to all in her group, with special thanks to Liz McCauley for being on the show last night.

If these bills pass this week, it will be a great help for the dogs suffering in commercial kennels. But we still have a long way to go.

Please join us in Harrisburg on September 16 for the Puppy Mill Reform Rally from noon until 2:00pm at Soldiers Grove at the Capitol Complex to show support for House Bill 2525 and 2532.  Speakers at the event include AnneMarie Lucas from the ASPCA and Jana Kohl, author of A Rare Breed of Love. After the rally, we are all encouraged to visit with our representatives to persuade them to vote for the bills' passage.

This is so important, folks.  If you say you are an animal lover, then show up at this rally or call your representative to express your support for these bills.  It's a highly politically-charged issue with very strong lobbyists working hard to see that the bills are not passed. 

If these bills are not passed, it continues to make it very difficult for the Animal Rescue League to do its job of protecting the animals and charging the abusers.  Under the current law, our hands are tied.

Let's join together and do it!

The Gulf Coast dodged a major hurricane last week as pet lovers watched to be sure that the animals were safe as well. With the passage of the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2006 after the Hurricane Katrina debacle, we all wanted to see if the new regulations held up.  They did.  Shelters in the affected areas made provisions to allow pets.

Have you thought about your plan if you needed to evacuate with your pets?  It’s not unheard of in our area to have a hurricane! I remember a few years ago when Hurricane Floyd came up the coast and dumped over 20 inches of rain.  My neighborhood was without power for three days. Although I did not have flooding conditions and was able to stay in my home, there were others in the area who were flooded and had to evacuate.

I’m watching the weather forecast this week and Hurricane Hanna is looking too close for comfort. When a storm is predicted, ensure that you have everything you need for you and your pets: food, water, medications, identification and vaccination tags, flashlight and batteries, and a first aid kit just in case. Stock up today instead of waiting for the day before!  I remember looking for bags of ice after Hurricane Floyd because the contents of my freezer were melting.  No ice to be found anywhere!  Plan today.

I apologize that my blog entries this week are about death.  But with death, I truly believe there can be lessons for life.  I promise next week to celebrate life!!  I wanted to tell everyone about the most precious Pit Bull who was here at the ARL.  Contrary to the often media-depicted stereotype of an aggressive killer, this girl was truly the standard for what a dog should be: incredibly loving to the point that she rolled on her back with legs fully outstretched for a belly rub, friendly to other animals, perfectly housetrained, and wonderful manners.  She recently charmed dozens of people at one of the events we attended.  In my years of working in shelters, training dogs and working with behavior cases, I rarely met such a combination.  Very quickly, it was discovered that she had a serious heart defect and she passed away on Monday.  The staff is still in shock and very, very sad.  Why did we have to lose such a great emissary for not just Pit Bulls but all dogs?   I wish that MY own dogs were as good as this sweet girl!  Please tell everyone that you know that we should not discriminate against breeds.  In every breed, there are good dogs and not-so-good dogs.