HOGAN'S HEARTWORM HEROES
You may have heard about one of our current shelter dogs named Hogan. We've profiled his case on our social media pages and more prominently on our Gloucester Pride Stride team page where a group of dedicated supporters is walking to raise funds for his medical expenses. The team has cleverly named themselves 'Hogan's Heartworm Heroes'. (At this moment, just over $700.00 of the estimated $1,000 needed to cover the expenses of Hogan's care has been raised.Thank you!)


But what exactly is heartworm and how is it treated? We've fielded a number of questions from our volunteers and supporters regarding this condition over the past few weeks. The answers are important -- and now more than ever-- because we just got some bad news...another dog in our care has tested positive for heartworm. That's right, hot off the heels of Hogan's treatment, Bella, a one-year-old Rhodesian Ridgeback mix with a goofy smile and a contagious zest for life, is just beginning her treatment. Detailed and more clinical explanations about heartworm can be found here. But for this blog post, we'll break it down more simply. 

Treatment and care for Bella over the next 2-3 months will look like this:

1. One month on a dose of antibiotics and steroids to weaken the heartworms, kill any bacteria they may have introduced, and reduce inflammation in preparation of treatment.
2. Two intramuscular injections to kill the adult heartworms. 
3. Six to eight weeks of continued exercise restriction. Heartworms can be up to a foot long and are living in the heart, lungs, and blood vessels. Exercise and physical exertion of any kind can increase the rate of damage in these organs, posing increased threat to the animal's well-being. 

Our goal is to place Bella into a foster home with one of our current staff members or volunteers. Because of the activity restrictions and medical needs, we are not always able to find suitable foster care. If that is the case, Bella will remain at our shelter, just like Hogan did. Regardless, we will be sure that she gets plenty of cuddles and care from all of us here at the shelter! 

Visit our Christopher Cutler Rich Animal Shelter this Friday or Saturday and you won’t just see animals in the dog and cat adoption areas, you’ll see people too!

That's right, one employee, two board members, and two volunteers will be spending 24 hours in our adoption areas without the comforts of their home, family, or cell phone. They will live in the dog runs and cat colony rooms, experiencing meal times, play times, and socialization much like the animals awaiting adoption. Their goal? To experience a night without family and the comforts of home, putting themselves into the 'paws' of homeless animals to help raise awareness and funds for our Enrichment Program, which supports the behavioral and emotional health of shelter animals.

After the last Night Without A Family event, participants wrote down their thoughts and feelings in response to the exercise, providing excellent insight into the sensations and emotions that shelter animals may be experiencing. “We’ve made some changes to our daily animal care routines as a response to this event and the feedback we received,” says Sunniva Buck, Executive Director of Cape Ann Animal Aid. “We have made it a real priority to get shelter dogs out for regular off-site adventures and have created different visual barriers in the animal housing areas to help calm those that may be anxious or overwhelmed.”

Last year, we found loving homes for 1,440 animals and we expect that number to grow by at least 10% this year. Through all of this, our focus continues to be not just on providing food, shelter, and medical care for animals in need, but also on their mental and physical well-being. The Enrichment Fund provides things like interactive toys and feeders, obedience classes, behavior evaluations, agility equipment, play yard and trail maintenance, and calming supplements.

“By definition, the Enrichment Fund really does focus on enriching the lives of homeless animals, helping them to feel comfortable, learn new skills, and prevent boredom through things like play therapy, socialization, and training games while they are awaiting adoption,” says Buck. “As an added bonus, these activities also help make for more well-adjusted pets in their new homes.”

Night Without A Family participants have created online fundraising pages to help meet their collective goal of raising $5,000 for the Enrichment Fund. Donations are encouraged online, in person, or via mail and can be made in sponsorship of an individual participant or of the group as a whole. We are thrilled to share that just this morning, we hit the halfway mark in our fundraising goal!

The 24 hour experience begins at 3pm on Friday, March 2nd and will conclude at 3pm on Saturday, March 3rd. See the tentative schedule posted below! Members of the public are invited to visit with both the animal and human occupants during normal open hours. Of course, our staff will be ready to process adoptions of real shelter animals too, hoping that many will find homes at the same time. Updates and live broadcasts will be posted throughout the 24 hour stay on our Facebook and Instagram pages. 

We are looking forward to an exciting weekend ahead. If all goes well, we hope to continue this event in future years, eventually including members of the public and even public officials in the immersive and unique event. What do you think of this event? Sound off in the comments below and stop by and visit this weekend!

Any time our organization can join forces with a local business to spread the word about animal adoption and help homeless animals make lasting connections and find loving homes, we call that a win-win! We are proud to share word of a new partnership with Four Points by Sheraton Wakefield Boston Hotel & Conference Center. Read the official press release below for all the details! 

​(Wakefield, MA, February 1, 2018) -- When several hurricanes made landfall in the Atlantic Basin last fall, the management and employees of The Four Points Wakefield Boston wanted to join the efforts to help. Thinking globally and acting locally, they kept an eye out for areas of specific need within their own community that would also play a role in helping hurricane-hit regions.
 
Meanwhile, Cape Ann Animal Aid, a non-profit, no-kill animal shelter located in Gloucester, was mobilizing its response to the hurricanes. Already familiar with the plight of homeless animals in those areas, the organization had been transporting and finding new homes for dogs and cats from those regions for nearly ten years. In the aftermath of the hurricanes, the need for rescue and transportation hit an unprecedented high. The Animal Aid filled its sheltering facility to the brim, and worked overtime to coordinate, fundraise, and intake animals through rescue partners in Texas, Puerto Rico, and Turks and Caicos.
 
“We heard what they were doing to help and we were inspired,” says Donna McManus and Talia Osgood, Directors at Four Points Wakefield. “Recognizing the passion our employees have for animals, being a pet-friendly hotel, and truly believing in the good work of Cape Ann Animal Aid, we knew we wanted to partner with them”, adds Four Points General Manager Steve Merrill.
 
The result was the creation of the hotel’s Foster Dog Program. Situated next to the new MarketStreet Lynnfield shopping plaza, and centrally located between the North Shore and Boston, The Four Points hotel is a great place to reach potential new adopters and visitors in the area.
 
“We feel that community outreach is a crucial part of running a successful business. Knowing that we are making a difference and helping not only communities down south, but also helping families in our region find loving animal companions, this program has brought so much joy to our staff and guests,” says Merrill.
 
Cape Ann Animal Aid works closely with hotel staff to identify a foster dog that would do well in the busy and social environment of the hotel. Then, the dog is introduced to the hotel team and settles in to live at the hotel until adoption. Someone is always on duty so the dog is never alone, even through the overnight hours. Potential adopters can visit the dog and fill out an application at the hotel, completing the final paperwork at Cape Ann Animal Aid and taking their new furry-friend home.

Since the program launched in January, four dogs have already found their forever-homes. Currently, the hotel is fostering Wilhemina, a three-year-old hound mix that was originally rescued as a stray in Alabama. If it wasn’t for rescue and transport to Massachusetts, she likely would have been euthanized at an over-crowded animal shelter in Alabama.
 
“The partnership with this hotel has allowed us to reach a new market of potential adopters,” says Cape Ann Animal Aid’s Executive Director, Sunniva Buck. “By showcasing the foster pup on the hotel Facebook page and word spreading from excited hotel staff members and guests, we have seen a lot of interest in these dogs. Together, we are increasing awareness about the plight of animals in other regions of the country and the importance of animal adoption.”
 
To learn more about the hotel’s Foster Dog Program, or to meet the dog currently available for adoption, stop by the Four Points Wakefield Boston Hotel, located at One Audubon Road in Wakefield or call (781) 245-9300.

The heartbreak and damage left behind in the wake of the recent hurricanes left all of us here at Cape Ann Animal Aid wishing we could do more to help. Supporters like you helped us fund animal rescue trips and get much needed supplies to rescue partners in Texas, the Virgin Island, Turks and Caicos, and Puerto Rico.

The students at Methuen High School wanted to help, too. Particularly struck by the plight of animals in Puerto Rico, several groups within the school worked together under the leadership of teacher, Malik Howshan, and created a plan to help. They would make posters and set up donation bins to collect much needed animal care supplies, food, and treats.

Because shipping items to Puerto Rico was a costly endeavor, they looked for a way to help the cause indirectly and on a more local level. That's where Cape Ann Animal Aid came into the picture. Referred by our rescue partners at All Sato Rescue of Puerto Rico, the boxes and boxes of donations collected by this upstanding group of students made their way to our shelter. As documented in earlier blog posts, several animals rescued in Puerto Rico were transported into our care in the months following the hurricanes. The donation drive at Methuen High School benefited these and other animals at our Christopher Cutler Rich Animal Shelter. Not only that, but with extra supplies on hand, more funds could be allocated to help with transportation and animal vet care costs for these rescued animals.

On November 17, 2017, I had the pleasure of meeting the amazing students that turned their desire to help into a mission of action (See slideshow below). Cape Ann Animal Aid volunteer, Pamela Ciccone, helped with the pickup and we even brought a few puppies along for the visit. The pups were originally found as newborns, abandoned in a ditch in Texas with their mother. They were wonderful (and cute!) ambassadors of thanks on behalf of the cause. I truly enjoyed meeting the students, hearing the pride in their voices as they spoke about the project, and learning more about their project process. Seeing the mutual joy shared by all involved -- including the puppies, who soaked up every ounce of attention -- is something I will not soon forget.

On behalf of all of the animals at Cape Ann Animal Aid, we send many thanks to the students of Methuen High School; teachers Malik Howshan and Johanna Fawcett; Tod Amazeen; Twig Mowatt; and all who made this project possible.

THREE CHEERS FOR THE INSPIRATIONAL AND GENEROUS YOUTH OF OUR COMMUNITY!
Here at Cape Ann Animal Aid's Christopher Cutler Rich Animal Shelter, we are fortunate enough to experience the kindness of an animal-loving, selfless, and generous children and teenagers on a regular basis. This holiday season has brought an exceptional response from the youth of our community, much to the great benefit of homeless dogs and cats in our care. While it's hard to find the perfect words to extend thanks to these upstanding individuals, we try our best to honor their good deeds. At a time when their focus might be pulled to other endeavors, they have carved out time in their days and room in their hearts for our collective furry friends. From neighborhood bake sales to school-wide donation drives, birthday party collections to service projects, these kids teach us all a lesson in thinking global and acting local. Be sure to check out our Facebook page for more photos and stories about child-organized donation efforts on a regular basis.