Category: Newsletter 1

Low-cost Clinics

In each newsletter we will list various shelters and organizations that provide low-cost veterinary services, such as vaccines, microchipping, and spay/neuter to individuals who may need financial assistance affording vet care for their companion animal(s).

Animal Protective Foundation (APF) – Located at 53 Maple Avenue in Scotia, the APF provides lower-cost spay/neuter clinics.  Appointments must be made in advance by calling 374-3944, ext. 121 or 125 (please leave a message) or email: afpclinic@animalprotective.org.  For more details go to: www.animalprotective.org

Mohawk Hudson Humane Society – Lower-fee spay and neuter for individuals with limited income. Appointments must be made in advance by calling the Menands shelter at 434-8128 or the Saratoga shelter at 886-9645. For more details go to: www.mohawkhumane.org/spayneuter.html

SCRUFF – Provides low-cost spay/neuter services for feral and stray cats. Details at: www.scruffcats.org

Tractor Supply Company (TSC) – Offers monthly preventative vet care visits at many of their locations in the Capital District, Washington County, and Bennington County, Vermont.  The clinics are operated by VIP Petcare Mobile Clinics with a licensed vet on staff. No appointment is needed and there is only a charge for the vaccinations. Contact your local TSC for dates and times.

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Grrreat Reads! By Deb Lilley

Growing up I loved the hour right before bedtime. That was the time that my sister and I would get to pick out one of the many books we borrowed from the library that week for our dad to read to us.  Now this was a special time. We got to sit on our parent’s bed with dad – me on the left and my sister on the right – just waiting for him to open the cover and read to us. As we got older, we were able to read the stories to him. Our most favorite book, “The Mellops Go Spelunking”, was about a family of pigs who had amazing adventures together. We had read it so many times we could recite it by heart. Thus began my life-long love of reading.

In this section titled “Grrreat Reads!” readers young, old, and young-at-heart will be introduced to a variety of books about animals. Many of these books will make you laugh, or cry, or smile, sometimes all three in the same book. Maybe they’ll bring back memories of a favorite childhood pet, or maybe they’ll inspire a young person’s dream to be a vet, or maybe even a spelunker! But no matter what emotions, memories, or dreams these books may inspire, I certainly hope that they’ll inspire togetherness and sharing, because you never know where a book will take you or who you’ll meet inside…or who will be reading along right by your side.

Since we’re on the subject of pigs, this issue’s Grrreat Read is about “Some Pig”. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White is a pig tale for all ages. It tells the story of friendship between a pig named Wilbur and a spider named Charlotte who lives on a web overlooking the pig enclosure on the Zuckerman farm. When Wilbur overhears that he is heading for market, Charlotte writes messages praising Wilbur in order to convince the farmer to let him live. Spoiler Alert! Charlotte dies near the end of the book. If you are reading this book to or with young children, you may need to take time to talk with them or answer questions as they may be upset by Charlotte’s death.RETURN TO TASP NEWSLETTER

Government Actions Helping Animals

Credit Terri Osborne of Investigation Discovery – Queens County District Attorney Richard Brown has done something that has never been done in the city of New York: formed the city’s first Animal Cruelty Prosecutions Unit. The unit, which will be led by Attorney Nicoletta Cafierri, will focus on investigating and prosecuting animal abuse cases in the NYC borough of Queens.
They will also work in conjunction with the newly developed Animal Cruelty Investigations Squad in the NYPD (which also serves the law enforcement function for the ASPCA as of July 2014) in educational efforts in the community that will be geared toward helping residents’ spot animal abuse. This new unit will condense animal abuse cases into one department. In the past, such cases had been handled by different areas of the DA’s office.  For more information and additional links on this subject go to:
http://crimefeed.com/2016/01/historic-animal-cruelty-prosecutions-unit-formed-new-york-city/

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Have you ever wondered the best way to introduce your dog to another? Have you ever thought about adding another dog to your family? Exploring new places with your canine friend can be a great way to exercise and bond.  Safety is important too.  To make this activity most enjoyable and to teach your dog to become a good citizen,  we’d like to suggest some great resources for helping your dog meet others along the walking trail…..

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/11_1/features/Proper-Dog-Introductions-and-Canine-Socializing_15996-1.html

https://www.animalhumanesociety.org/training/introducing-new-dog-resident-dog

http://bestfriends.org/resources/dogs/introducing-dogs-each-other

Some Good Reads Are:

1)Brenda Aloff’s books on Canine Body Language and Canine Aggression:

Aggression in Dogs: Practical Management, Prevention & Behaviour Modification

Canine Body Language: A Photographic Guide : Interpreting the Native Language of the Domestic Dog

2) Patricia McConnell’s classic:

The Other End of the Leash: Why We Do What We Do Around Dogs

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Chapter Four: The lady who drove told me her name was Foster Mom. She told me I would need to live in this cage for two weeks before I could come live with the other animals in her house. She called this cage, Isolation. I remained in Isolation for the two weeks, just like she said. All the while, she would visit me dressed in a funny white suit and wearing blue gloves. She would bring my food and water, but she also brought me lots of delicious treats. We had peanut butter morning and night and Kongs and bones during the day to keep me busy and happy. While I was in Isolation, I coughed and coughed and I had a runny nose. But before too long, the coughing stopped and my nose dried. Then one day, the door opened and I was allowed to run in the yard!

The days and nights after that turned out to be happier ones. I had other dogs nearby to visit with and I went for walks every day with Foster Mom. I slept in a warm cage in the house at night and in the daytime, I played outdoors. I must say, Foster Mom was not one to be taken advantage of. She said, “Nothing in life is free.” For a treat, she asked me to sit. And for a chance to go out or in, she asked me to sit and stay. She said soon, I would show Alana and my family my good manners; and she was right! One day my family came to visit. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE HAPPY VIDEO. They stayed all afternoon visiting with me and playing in the yard, talking with me and playing games. When they left I was very sad again. But something about the way the day went gave me hope.

Since that time, I now understand. I have a Foster Mom and a Foster Dad. They are taking care of me at the Foster Home until my own Mom and Dad and BFF and kids can take me to our own home again. My family comes to visit me now and then and each time, I play games and learn new tricks and cuddle with my BFF, Alana. Things certainly have changed, but I know its ok. I am NOT up for adoption. I have a family who loves me, a family who wants me back. We just have to wait until they have a home where dogs are welcome. Until then, my Foster family cares for me and keeps me safe. They give me love and they help me learn new tricks that I can teach to Alana when she visits.

This world is such an interesting place, don’t you think? Just when things look the darkest, a door to a brighter future opens. Some things change and some remain the same. Family and love connect us and hold us together even when we’re apart. And kind strangers open their arms and their hearts to help make miracles happen.

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Chapter three: Each morning, a person comes into the shelter and brings all of us fresh bowls filled with food and water. Then they clean our cages, turn out the lights in the shelter and leave. I take a nap then and every nap fills me with dreams of Alana, my kids and Mom and Dad. I wake up wondering what might happen next. And then I find out. After the week, I’m taken from my cage to a very strange-smelling room with very bright lights. A nice lady puts me on a table and shaves the fur off part of my arm while another lady plays with lots of strange looking metal toys. I feel a pinch in the back of my neck and then I get soooooo sleeeeeeepppppppyyyyyy!

When I wake up my stomach feels funny. I move a little and feel sore inside and out.  I decide to go back to sleep for awhile. The next time I wake up, I feel a little better. I take a nice drink of water and just sleep the rest of the night away.

When morning came, all the people in the shelter were smiling at me. They hustled around filling out papers and putting a new collar on me. I wondered, Am I being adopted? A man hooked his leash to me and walked me out of our shelter room and into another room where….I….saw…..ALANA! And Mom!

My BFF and my Mom came back for me! I danced all around and jumped for joy and almost knocked Alana over with all my hugs and sloppy kisses. Alana and I took a walk outside while Mom and another lady signed some papers and then, just like that, Alana put me into a strange car. It smelled like dogs, too. She shut the door on me and the lady who had been signing papers with Mom got into the front seat. I watched Alana and Mom get into our family car and drive away! Wait, I cried. I don’t want to be adopted! I have a family and there they go, driving away!

As my family drove out of sight, I settled into the back seat of the car I was in. I watched out the window as we drove to the country. The air smelled sweet and I saw cows and horses standing in their yards. Soon we pulled up to a building and I could hear dogs barking inside. The lady who drove the car put a leash on me and brought me into the house. It had cages all along the walls and in each cage was a dog. So, I must be in another shelter, I thought. I stayed at that house for a few days until the lady who drove came back and put me into her car again. When we got a little farther into the country, she pulled up to a cage that had its own little roof and walls, surrounded by a bigger cage. We went into the central cage and I was unleashed. At the time it was raining really hard and it was cold. I was SO afraid and SO tired of all the changes that had been happening since the big fire. I just wanted to go back to my home with my family! READ MORE

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Hi, my name’s Bria. What’s yours? I’m a 3 year old purebred Labrador Retriever who’s seen some pretty interesting times lately………..heheheh, well THAT’s the understatement of the year!

Life for me was pretty routine up till just before Christmas. I lived the family life with my BFF, Alana, her sister and brother and Mom and Dad. We were a typical American family with jobs and school and sports and stuff. Each day, just before everyone would leave for their respective destinations, I’d pick out a good toy, climb into my crate, and commence to doing my job, napping till school was over and the kids came home. And on the weekends, I’d do the same if the family was headed out for church or games or shopping. Simple, eh?

Well, one December Sunday, I awoke from my nap to a smell I didn’t quite recognize. It kinda smelled like when Dad’s friend lights up one of his stinky cigars…….but it was something else; something I’d never smelled before. The smell got stronger and stronger and it started to make my nose itch and burn. Then, the noise started. First, it was one siren, then more….and more! The shouting began and then the sound of something like rain, but louder. The rain kept getting louder and louder and the shouting and sirens blended with it to make one big mess of a noise. Meantime, the smell got stronger and stronger and smoke started coming through the walls and windows.

I saw a man climb up to the parlor window. He was dressed in a heavy coat and a funny hat shaped like an upside-down pan. He had something in his hand that he pointed into the window and then, WOW! Water everywhere! I had my own personal Singin’ in the Rain storm inside my own home! The man outside just drenched the whole place! Another man dressed like the first smashed our front door to pieces and came running into the parlor. By that time, I was soaking wet from playing in all that rain in my crate (I LOVE water, y’know; it’s my nature).  The man took me by my collar; he pulled me out of my crate, into his arms, and out the door we went. And that’s just the first chapter of my story! READ MORE

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Chapter two: Picture this! Me, standing on the sidewalk in front of our house. Fire is coming from the building down the street; and I realize that’s where the funny smell was coming from. The people standing in the street say the neighbor’s house is on fire….. and the fire is starting to spread to the houses on both sides……and one of those houses is OURS! Don’t believe me? Then CLICK HERE to check out the news!

After what seems like hours, Mom and Dad drive up with the kids. They all rush up and hug me, thanking the man in the funny suit for saving me. Heck, I was having fun playing in all that water, but just not to embarrass them, I play along and let them cry on me and cuddle me as we watch our house get drowned by the water being sprayed on it by all the men in their funny suits and pan-hats.

Then suddenly, before I know it, my family puts me into a van with a strange man. The van smells like dogs. I watch my family standing huddled together in the street as we drive off in that van, and I start to cry so hard, my tears could put out that fire! Why would they desert  me and give me to this strange person? Where is he taking me? What will happen to Alana and the rest of my family?
As we drive up to a big white building, the man stops the van and takes me out with a leash. He tells me not to worry and that everything will be fine now that I am at the shelter. So THIS is a shelter? I’d heard of shelters before from some of the dogs I played with around my home. Some of them used to live at the shelter. They said the place was full of animals in cages and the animals were cared for by nice people until they were adopted. I tell the man I’m not going to be adopted; I already have a family, thankyouverymuch! But I don’t think he understands me. Lots of people seem to have trouble understanding what I’m telling them…….but never Alana. Anyway, I’m put into a cage, given dishes with food and water, and left alone with the other dogs in cages. It’s about the saddest time I’ve ever had in all my three years – not because I don’t like the place or the other animals (it doesn’t take much to make me happy), but because I miss Alana and my family. What will become of me now? READ MORE

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