I give thanks that we have the Animal Rescue League, other shelters and rescues.  Where would the homeless animals go without these places?

I give thanks for those who work for these organizations.  Think your job is tough?  Try working directly with the animals in a rescue or a shelter.

I give thanks for people who support these organizations by donating and volunteering.  Without you, there would be no organization. 

I give thanks for those who do not criticize the shelters and rescues.  You recognize the difficulties faced by the organizations and know that nowhere is perfect.

And finally, I give thanks to the animals for the love and lessons they give to us.  Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Weren’t we lucky to have the National Dog Show right here in Berks County this year?  I would like to thank all of you who stopped by the Animal Rescue League’s booth at the show to tell us how much you appreciate our work.  And it’s such a treat to see all of the well-bred dogs.  I go home and look at my two rescued Golden Retrievers and wonder where the heck they came from!  One is a tall blonde with a sharp nose and feathering that reaches the ground.  One of my friends jokes that he’s mixed with Afghan hound.  Doubtful.  Then there’s the red guy.  He’s short and stocky with a stubby yet happy little tail.  Both of them are as far from breed standard as you can get but I love them with all of my heart.  Which leads me to ponder a comment made by a woman who visited the Animal Rescue League’s booth at the Dog Show.  She made a point of telling me of how she supported the ARL.  I had heard so many good things from other people that day, so I was ready to thank her.  But she continued by saying that her support consisted of surrendering her dog to us.  I asked her to repeat herself because I wasn’t sure that I heard her correctly.  Indeed, she very proudly reiterated that when she no longer wanted her dog because she had children, she brought him to us.  She went on to say that the dog was her baby before she had kids, and he was fun “while it lasted.”  She had an expression on her face as if she was looking for accolades from me for supporting the ARL!  With all of my might, I thanked her for choosing the ARL but told her that “my pets are for life” and walked away – or else I may have said something more.  The ARL and other shelters exist because of this kind of selfishness and evidence of a toss away society.

I just don’t understand that mentality of a “temporary pet.”  Yes, I understand that with the recent economic issues, people are strapped for money.  If there’s no other choice but to surrender a pet, it can be a heart-wrenching and difficult decision for some people.  But this woman showed no emotion at all over giving up “her baby.”  How can someone live with a pet for years, say they love the pet, and then just hand it over to strangers to face an unknown fate?  There’s a big difference between surrendering a pet out of necessity versus no longer wanting to bother with it.  This incident shows the huge dichotomy in our society – the pampered dogs in the dog show and the strays left to fend for themselves because someone couldn’t be bothered.  How sad. 

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.