Tuesday, February 23rd is World Spay Day, and today we're sharing the impact that spaying and neutering your pet can have on the homeless animal population. Around the globe, litters of homeless puppies and kittens live on vacant properties and roam the streets. In 2020, 1,146 of Cape Ann Animal Aid's 1,195 adopted animals were transferred to us through our Safe Harbor Program, escaping a myriad of situations and possible euthanasia due to overcrowding. Heather from transport partner Road Trip Home Animal Rescue in Georgia, explains: "If everyone in Georgia spayed and neutered their animals, our shelters would not be overflowing, there would not be strays all over the roads losing their lives to cars, and there would be no need for transport rescues! What a glorious day that will be... until then, we continue our mission to help animals find homes no matter how far the journey"
Cookies spay procedure falls on World Spay Day this year, and Cape Ann Animal Aid provides spay surgeries for many dogs just like her every year. In 2020, we spayed over ten mom dogs and cats who had either come to us pregnant, or recently had a litter of unwanted puppies or kittens. Overpopulation doesn't just mean overcrowding - It often means that there aren't enough resources to go around. Speaking on the condition of Cookies and many homeless pets in Georgia, Ruth from Road Trip Home writes: "Another mama with newborn pups surrendered to animal control. Arriving at a shelter scared, hungry, and trying the best that she can to care for her tiny babies. Many of the pups that come into our shelter have health problems or diseases, and have received no health care. It is a struggle every day to fund the care needed to get these babies healthy and send them on to their new homes. The poor mama dogs live their entire lives raising babies and if not saved and brought to a shelter or rescue, succumb to heartworms or neglect."
Aside from the impact on the homeless animal population, there are also medical benefits for having your pets spayed and neutered. Dr. Alex Becket, CAAA Director of shelter medicine, elaborates: "Spaying your female dog will stop her from cycling, and also eliminate the possibility of ovarian and some uterine cancers. In addition, spaying your female dog will drastically decrease her chances of getting mammary cancer. Neutering your male dog will help prevent some undesirable behaviors such as roaming and marking, and will also help prevent problems later in life such as testicular diseases and cancers as well as prostate problems." To prevent overpopulation of cats and dogs in our area, Cape Ann Animal Aid has always spayed and neutered our animals prior to adoption. These surgeries are done as early as 8 weeks, provided the puppy or kitten is healthy, weaned from mom, and over 2.2 lbs.
0 Comments
In celebration of our Winter Ball - Tails of Summer Love, we're sharing your own love tails that you've sent to us! Click a photo below to expand and read how CAAA pets have captured the hearts of our adopters, their children, friends, family, and pets. We are so honored to be a part of your love story! ![]() Few things make our team at Cape Ann Animal Aid happier than watching a dog or cat that we’ve championed for, walk out our shelter doors into the arms of their new family. Thankfully, for many of the 1000 plus rescues we’ve helped this year, their time with us at the shelter is short but for others, this is not the case. Some animals may need more medical attention or behavior support, patience, and love before being adopted. One of those animals is Wally. After a long battle for his life, Wally finally met his new family and greeted them with his signature goofy grin. A great day at Cape Ann Animal Aid but one we worried would not happen. Thanks to your support, Wally will be spending this holiday season in the comfort of a loving home. Shortly after arriving into our care, Wally became extremely ill. Diagnostic testing revealed he had contracted Parvovirus, a highly contagious, often fatal, viral disease, causing severe vomiting, diarrhea and sometimes sepsis. This virus typically affects younger puppies and routine vaccination usually provides protection. At 8 months old, it was unusual for Wally to have this virus and to be so sick. ![]() To save Wally’s life, the CAAA animal care team maintained isolation protocols and took immediate action. He was placed on a regimen of antibiotics, IV fluids, nutritional support, anti-nausea medications, vitamin supplements and around-the-clock care. They created a network of constant communications. Day or night, any time he showed slight improvements, hopes were high. The team cheered and sent videos. But the next day, the quiet worry would begin again because he didn’t move or eat. His weight loss was alarming, and we feared the worst, but our team was not giving up. Treating Parvovirus requires an abundance of medical supplies, time and compassionate care. All of which we had, because of you. Thank you for giving Wally a fighting chance. ![]() For Wally, our team had the resources to act fast and follow medical protocols to fight for his survival. For some, especially older animals, the help they may need requires a different set of skills. Such was the case for 7-year-old, Freya. After many years of living a quiet life with a single adult, Freya’s owner was forced to relocate and needed to surrender her for adoption. In her former home, Freya was reported to be an affectionate, playful yet mellow companion. However, the transition to our shelter was incredibly difficult for her and she let us know. She displayed fear based behavior, which included hiding, hissing, and swatting at staff when they tried to care for her. Our dedicated animal care staff was concerned about Freya’s demeanor and how it would affect her chances of finding a new home, but they refused to give up on her. Community outreach coordinator, Jane Peters, recalls her first attempts at working with Freya. She would hide in a cubby and wouldn’t come out for anything. I would sit as close as she let me and toss her treats. She would hesitantly take the treats, but she swiped at me and hissed if I got too close. Figuring out our best strategy to help Freya took time and lots of patience, but the effort paid off. Once we were able to convince her she was safe, her true personality came forward and she quickly found her human match. Her new family had this to say about her. ![]() Freya has been an absolute love bug since the day I got her. She follows me around all day and curls up next to my head when I fall asleep at night. I am so happy to have adopted her from Cape Ann Animal Aid. She is absolutely the perfect cat for me! Wally and Freya needed a safe place where they could receive the right care. They needed Cape Ann Animal Aid and people like you to champion for them. Together, we can give them the only gift they ask for - a loving home. The unconditional love they give in return can fill up an ocean and your whole heart.
Thank you for being a champion for homeless animals in need! Today, Major is as happy as can be in his forever home. He no longer cowers in fear of the other dogs barking in the shelter kennel and the strange people walking by his run. But it was hard to picture this happy future for him when he first arrived at Cape Ann Animal Aid. Scared and lonely, it took the love and attention that only a home and a family can provide to get this gentle dog out of his shell.
In the shelter, Major struggled to adjust. Stressed and anxious, he cowered in the back of his kennel run, shrinking smaller still when a staff person would approach. He had worn a small sore onto the end of his nose from frantically rubbing it against his kennel. In the yard, he would pace about and whine. It was clear that in order to observe his true personality, he would need to get out of the shelter.
"Everyone knew there was a happy dog in there, we just needed to give him the chance to show us." -Kate Glidden and Jesse Dole, Major's foster family Kate and Jesse, Major's Foster Caregivers, write: "Major is the fifth dog that we have fostered since COVID began back in March. When we were contacted about Major's story, we couldn't say no to trying to relieve some of the stress that the poor boy was experiencing in the shelter environment. Major had lived with the same family in Texas since he was 4 months old and, due to economic circumstances beyond their control, they had to surrender him. The confusion and sadness that he must have felt as he boarded the transport that brought him to Cape Ann Animal Aid is terrible to think about. The photos of Major huddled in the back of his kennel was enough to know that we had to try something different, everyone knew there was a happy dog in there, we just needed to give him the chance to show us."
"Without his time in foster, we wouldn't have been able to share all the fantastic things we learned about him with a potential adopter. We believe his time in foster allowed him to decompress and show us what a good boy he is. We feel very fortunate to have been part of his journey to his forever home."
|
Cape ann animal aid
An opportunity for you to learn more about the mission and programs of Cape Ann Animal Aid. Sharing candid insights, guest columns, breaking news, and of course, adorable photos of shelter animals. Archives
February 2021
Categories
All
|