Did America Become a “No Kill” Nation and No One Noticed? Or Did No One Care?

September 12th, 2024 | Posted by KMdirector2* in Animal Rescue | Uncategorized - (Comments Off on Did America Become a “No Kill” Nation and No One Noticed? Or Did No One Care?)

Written by Karel Minor, Humane Pennsylvania President & CEO

A drowning man may be forgiven for not reflecting on the size of the body of water in which he’s drowning. After all, drowning in the ocean, a lake, or a bathtub is still drowning. The volume of the body of water is irrelevant when you’re inhaling it and trying your best to survive.

But let’s say this proverbial man is in a bathtub and that bathtub has been draining steadily, yet he’s still crying out that he’s drowning. Suppose we say to him, “Hey, buddy, there’s only four inches of water in that tub. Try lifting your head up,” and he responds, “Last year there was two inches, so there’s twice as much water now, and it only takes an inch of water to drown!” Would we be wrong to wonder why he insists on drowning, splits statistical hairs, and engages in pedantry over methods and means of drowning, rather than acknowledging that he’s very definitely flailing in a puddle, not in an ocean?

I think this is an apt metaphor for what has happened this year in animal sheltering. You’ve probably seen the headlines screaming that shelters are overrun and facing massive percentage increases in intake. Many of these headlines resulted from press releases of shelter data that showed double-digit percentage increases in shelter intake and euthanasia (note that “percentage” was twice emphasized). According to the news, and many, many voices in animal welfare, shelters are drowning in an ocean of animals and that ocean has become profoundly deeper- just look at that double-digit statistical increase over three years ago!

I’m here to tell you that those statistics are true. But the narrative they imply is a lie.

Someone clever once said there are three kinds of lies: Lies, damned lies, and statistics. And the heavy use of statistics over numbers, and in a vacuum of context, is often a good indicator of which kind of lie it is. In May 2007, I posted a blog under that title announcing that HPA (then Berks Humane) would be the first sheltering organization in Pennsylvania to post its raw shelter intake and outcome data. I made the case that animal shelters were then using statistics to make their circumstances and outcomes seem better than they were.

Today the opposite appears to be the case. The broader sheltering community is using carefully selected statistics with carefully chosen time spans to make things appear worse for shelters than they are. These statistics are often taken from the Shelter Animals Count reporting, the largest publicly available aggregation of intake and outcome data. They reported that in the first half of 2024, “live outcomes” outcomes for approximately 3.8 million cats and dogs entering shelters was 91% for cats and 90% for dogs.

Sorry, did I bury the lede? Allow me to scream that like it should be screamed, “Fewer than 10% of shelter cats and dogs died in shelters making America a No-Kill nation!” Why isn’t that the headline? If this had happened ten years ago, or in 2007 when I warned of squishy statistics hiding bad news, I feel like we’d have had an explosion of positive press. Instead, we get told of all the ways animals are worse off.

Here’s the deal: All of these statistics are compared against the aberrant intake numbers that occurred during COVID when shelters essentially closed their doors to the public (and, no, it was NOT a huge number of adoptions that led to empty kennels covered by the press, it was caused by locked doors). That precipitous 2020 decline took a couple of years to rebound back up by 2023. But 2023 was lower than the numbers pre-COVID. In fact, the number of animals entering shelters and dying in shelters has been on the decline for the past 50 years, from shelter deaths of 15 million or higher to only 850,000 in 2023. If that’s the case, why can anyone be claiming double-digit increases, and what do I mean by “only” 850,000? That seems like a lot of dead animals.

That’s one of the problems with success and one of the problems with the arbitrary 90% save rate defining no-kill status promoted so heavily by some national groups. First, if we want to know if 90% is no-kill, don’t ask the 9 out of 10 animals that lived, ask the one that died in a shelter. I bet that one feels like it wasn’t a no-kill shelter. The definition of “No-Kill” has always come with troublesome baggage. How do we define killing and what’s real euthanasia? When we were drowning in an ocean of dead shelter animals, we could be forgiven if we didn’t quibble over percentages while we tried to tread water. But now we are in a bathtub arguing over what counts as drowning and still clinging to the old press terror tactics our industry has relied on for decades.

Second, numeric success can fuel statistical failure. Saving 90% of a million animals might be considered no-kill, despite 100,000 dead animals. But what happens when the number drops really low? What if only two animals enter a shelter and one is euthanized? That’s a 50% euthanasia rate. It’s also 99,999 fewer than the one that achieved 90%. I know what community I’d rather live in.

We see these games played with crime statistics on the news. We have historically low crime so any blip of a low number yields large percentage increases or decreases. But numerically it’s not relevant. The whole, good, picture is lost in the statistical trickery. Is that a lie? It might depend on intent, it might be due to ignorance, or it might be lazy journalism. You decide.

To be clear, some parts of the country are much worse off than others. And if you are a euthanized animal or the victim of a crime, your rate of death and crime are 100%, and big pictures or long-term trends are cold comfort.

No-kill advocates used to berate “open-admission” shelters for their high intake and euthanasia rates and compare them against their artificially low managed intake numbers and low euthanasia rates that came courtesy of screening out problematic animals. Now “open-admission” shelters are using statistical variation to berate no-kill shelters for not doing enough to help them handle their tsunami of incoming animals. Both play games with semantics, definitions, and statistics and neither narrative has ever been truly and fundamentally honest. No-Kill shelters have always employed some measure of intake management. And open-admission shelters have never taken in every single animal presented to them. Do “Sorry, no ID, not our municipality, it bit within the last ten days, we can’t reach the owner, etc.” ring a bell?

I believe both sides of this argument suffer from the same problem of lack of imagination and inability to see the forest for the trees. An arbitrary 10% death rate is assuredly not no-kill. But a few percent up and down variation off a historically low number is not drowning in animals and certainly not a return to 1970/80/90/2000 numbers. Instead of agreeing that we have made amazing progress as an industry and a nation, but we still have work to do, we keep fighting the same battles, using the same tired and outdated arguments. Only now it is “open-door” shelters using statistics to make things look worse than they are and no-kill shelters under fire for Pollyanna claims of success while standing on a pile of dead animals.

We should not accept that any level of death in shelters is OK, even if most people can agree that some may be unavoidable or even appropriate. Sometimes euthanasia is the right choice to prevent suffering but it’s certainly not successful. We also shouldn’t pretend that every shelter death is unavoidable or appropriate. Some shelters are just bad at their jobs. Now no-kill shelters are trapped by a definition of success that doesn’t ring true to the real world. Open-door shelters are trapped in an existential crisis. What do all these shelters do when there are 90% fewer animals entering shelters than 50 years ago?

Humane PA saw this March of Dimes moment- when the problem you combat is solved- coming nearly two decades ago and we started to expand what we did to include a myriad of ways to help animals and people other than just being the dump for community animals. We have a small fraction of the intake and shelter death we did twenty years ago, but it’s still not zero. Others can and have found new directions and approaches of their own. Many still cling desperately to rigid, old models, and will survive for a while. Some organizations may, and probably should, dissolve.

Metaphors are useful because they allow a person to “get” your point via a example that is more universally understood or experienced without having to engage in extensive exposition and explanation.  If I may be forgiven beating this drowning metaphor to death, if shelters were people and they were drowning, what might they do?  If someone was swimming with other people they might call for- and accept- help.  If someone found herself in a rip current, she might change her approach, stop trying to swim back to shore, and instead swim across the current until the rip current subsided and her old swim strokes were once again effective.  Sometimes one might find himself not swimming, but being carried away in deadly floodwaters.  But floods are rare and they are transient.  We should never claim every swim is in a flood, any more than we should mistake a bathtub for an ocean.  And finally in this tortured metaphor, if people can’t swim, maybe they should stay out of the water.

Unlike English poet Stevie Smith’s “larking chap”, most shelters aren’t drowning, they’re waving.

 

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Dr. Alicia Simoneau’s 15 Year Work Anniversary!

August 23rd, 2024 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Animal Health | Animal Welfare | Healthy Pets | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania | Humane Veterinary Hospitals - (Comments Off on Dr. Alicia Simoneau’s 15 Year Work Anniversary!)

Dr. Alicia Simoneau’s 15-year journey with Humane Pennsylvania has been marked by a deep commitment to animal welfare and an unwavering passion for her work. As she celebrates this milestone, it’s clear that Dr. Simoneau’s contributions have been pivotal in shaping the compassionate and dynamic environment that defines Humane Pennsylvania today.

What do you love most about working for Humane Pennsylvania?

One of the things I really enjoy about my work is the variety it offers. Each day brings something new, which keeps things interesting and engaging. I also take great satisfaction in the fact that I get to assist animals in many different ways. Additionally, it’s incredibly rewarding to see the diverse ways we support both people and their pets.

How has the organization changed/evolved since you started working for HPA? And what keeps you motivated to do the great work you’ve been doing for the past 15 years?

Over the years, we’ve refined our mission to provide increasingly comprehensive levels of care. For instance, our Spay/Neuter Clinic (SNC) began in a small trailer with just a few animals, and now we’ve grown significantly from those early days. Additionally, I find the evolution of veterinary medicine to be incredibly exciting. The continuous development of new techniques and treatments offers constant opportunities for learning and growth in our field.

Are you a dog, cat, or critter person?

I’d say I’m primarily a cat person, but I also have a strong affinity for horses.

Who has influenced you most when it comes to how you approach your work?

Humane Pennsylvania’s Veterinary Team Director, Jennifer Henne, has had the most significant influence on me, particularly through her expertise in behavior. I’ve learned a great deal from her and apply those skills to better handle and care for my patients.

What’s one thing you’re learning now, and why is it important?

Currently, I’m focused on learning about new pain management techniques. This is important because it will enhance my ability to provide better care and improve the quality of life for my patients.

What do you see as your biggest accomplishment since your start with Humane Pennsylvania?

My biggest accomplishment since joining Humane Pennsylvania has been taking our CEO’s vision for the Healthy Pets Walk-In Clinic and turning it into the successful, impactful program that it is today. 

What’s one of your favorite Humane Pennsylvania memories from the past year?

One of my favorite memories from the past year was having my daughters come to work with me. It’s been a joy to see their excitement and enthusiasm as they watch what I do.

What three words would your coworkers use to describe you?

I think my coworkers would describe me as fun, uplifting, and helpful. 

What’s one fun fact about you that we might not already know?

One thing you might not know about me is that I’m a bit of a Chihuahua whisperer. I have this knack for making friends with almost any Chihuahua I meet – they seem to take an instant liking to me!

Thank you, Dr. Simoneau, for all you have done and continue to do for Humane Pennsylvania and the animals in our care!

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National Make-A-Will Month: Secure Your Legacy

August 8th, 2024 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Humane Pennsylvania - (Comments Off on National Make-A-Will Month: Secure Your Legacy)

One meaningful way to show up for the people and animals you love is to make a plan for them in your will. August is National Make-A-Will Month, and you can start the month off on the right paw by creating a plan for the future.

Humane Pennsylvania is proud to help make this important task more accessible to our caring community and all those who need to write a plan. Make-A-Will Month offers a moment to take stock of the people and causes we love and make sure their futures are provided for when we are no longer able to care for them.

Write my will today

Creating a legal will is an opportunity to craft intentional plans that protect your loved ones and eternalize the values that have guided your life, like compassion and caring for animals in need. Legacy support is an easy way to be a part of the solution for years to come.

And, contrary to popular belief, writing your will doesn’t have to be expensive, time-consuming, or scary. This free online tool from our friends at FreeWill makes the process quick and easy, allowing you to complete your will in just 20 minutes from the comfort of your home.

If you don’t have an up-to-date will, we invite you to use FreeWill to create your plan this month, and to consider including a legacy gift for Humane Pennsylvania. It’s an easy way to make your mark — in a good way!

If you have already created a lasting legacy with Humane Pennsylvania, please fill out our online form to let us know about your gift! We would love to thank you for supporting area animals in such a powerful way.

Take Control of Your Legacy

 Why should you make a will?

No matter your circumstances, every person who is 18 or older needs a legal will in place to plan for the future and make a lasting commitment to the people and causes that matter most to them. Writing a will is a vital part of protecting your loved ones — including your animal companions — and making a plan for how your assets are to be distributed.

Why use this free estate planning tool?

Making a will doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive, but many people avoid the task because they assume it will be. Our friends at FreeWill make the process easy, intuitive, and free. In less than 20 minutes your will can be completed and ready for your signature. You don’t have to submit any sensitive personal information, and you’ll finish with a PDF of your will that is valid in all 50 states.

Why should you begin your legacy with Humane Pennsylvania?

Creating a legacy with Humane Pennsylvania is a powerful way to transform the lives of animals and their caretakers, for generations to come. It represents your lasting commitment to saving animal lives and being part of the solution — today, tomorrow, and forever.

If an immediate cash gift isn’t right for you, or if you want to make a profound long-term investment in the welfare of area animals, we encourage you to consider including a gift to Humane Pennsylvania in your will. Your support would mean so much!

Get started creating your free will today.

If you have questions about FreeWill or planned giving at Humane Pennsylvania, please contact our Director of Development, Lauren Henderson Pignetti at 610-750-6100 ext. 211 or [email protected].

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Karel Minor’s 20 Year Work Anniversary!

July 15th, 2024 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Animal Welfare | Feel Good Story | Healthy Pets | Humane Pennsylvania - (Comments Off on Karel Minor’s 20 Year Work Anniversary!)

After spending over 30 years in the animal welfare world, Humane Pennsylvania (HPA) President & CEO Karel Minor knows a thing or two about helping animals and their caretakers who love them. As the second longest-tenured leader in animal sheltering in Pennsylvania, he is looking back at the progress made and strides taken over his 20 years as CEO of Humane PA.

What do you love most about working for Humane Pennsylvania?

What I love most about working at Humane PA is our culture of asking, “What needs to be done and how can we do it?” HPA isn’t bogged down in dogma (no pun intended!) about how we’ve done things or how things “must” be done.  If it works, we continue doing it and try to improve. If it doesn’t work, we try new things until it does. That may seem like an obvious approach but it’s still all too rare in animal welfare.

How has the organization changed/evolved since you started working for HPA? And what keeps you motivated to do the great work you’ve been doing for the past 20 years?

Over twenty years ago, I left animal welfare because the industry as a whole seemed like it was fixated on explaining why things couldn’t be done, usually with no real data to back it up, just opinion and gut feeling.  Animal welfare felt hopeless and fatalistic and if you suggested we could save animals’ lives and help people try new things, our peers looked at us like we were stupid.  If you suggested adopting cats at Halloween, waiving adoption fees, or adopting at Christmas, people thought you were insane. Twenty years ago, when I started at HPA, which was known as Berks Humane Society at that time, I met a core of staff, board, volunteers, and donors who were willing to be open-minded. They saw that what we had been doing wasn’t working- at least not for the 4,000 animals being euthanized each year- and they took the risk with me to try new and even taboo approaches. It worked, we kept it up, and we helped spread that attitude around the country.

Are you a dog, cat, or critter person?

I don’t have to choose so I don’t!  My family is currently supervised by four cats (Susu, Monkey, Thud, and Winnie), a baby turtle rescued from death in a parking lot (Ulysses S. Grant Wood Turtle), and three Costa Rican dart frogs. We are dogless after losing Treetop, the world’s best Labrador, to old age a few years ago.

Who has influenced you most when it comes to how you approach your work?

My greatest influence in animal welfare is Dr. Michael Moyer, who hired me at my first shelter 32 years ago.  Back then, he was the extremely rare executive director who happened to be a veterinarian.  He approached animal welfare like a scientist, used data, and encouraged me to do the same.  However, my biggest professional influence is my wife, Dr. Kim Minor, who was one of the extremely rare educators who is a genuine genius, uses data and genuinely cares about doing what’s best for kids, even when it’s hard or personally risky.  There is a bizarre similarity to how the education system writes off a lot of kids just like many animal shelters do with animals.  Her example of doing what is right for each individual child and how that improves the well-being of children as a population has always motivated me to do the same for animals and the families they are attached to.

What’s one thing you’re learning now, and why is it important?

The thing I think I’ve had to grapple with in the last few years is that no amount of planning, willpower, or even unlimited resources can make some things work. When there are numerically too few vets for the number of open positions, a pandemic shuts down construction projects, or bad laws get passed all you can do is make the best of things.  HPA has accomplished so many things exactly the way we planned that it can be a rude awakening when sometimes all you can do is make things better, but better is still better.

What do you see as your biggest accomplishment since your start with Humane Pennsylvania?

I think “my” biggest accomplishment is creating a team responsible for “our” accomplishments.  We have talented, dedicated staff who have been with HPA ranging from just one year to nearly twenty years.  One person can’t succeed alone and we have built a group who take their work seriously and know they can make a concrete positive difference for the animals and people in our community.

What’s one of your favorite Humane Pennsylvania memories from the past year?

We recently dismantled a closed Rite Aid store to get $100,000 worth of gondola shelving for our new warehouse store-style pet food pantry and upcoming thrift shop. It was a stupid amount of work for three days but we saved $96,000 and it was a reminder that when we need to we can buckle down and get the work done ourselves!

What three words would your coworkers use to describe you?

I shudder to think!  It probably depends on who you ask, but I think one word few would argue with is, “intense.”

What’s one fun fact about you that we might not already know?

I love art. I love making it, seeing it, and learning about it. I agree with Nietzsche: “We have art so that we shall not die of reality.” That doesn’t sound fun, does it?  Like I said, intense describes me, I guess.

Thank you, Karel, for all you have done and continue to do for Humane Pennsylvania and the animals in our care!

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Keep You And Your Pet Safe With These July 4th Safety Tips

June 25th, 2024 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Animal Health | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania | Microchipping - (Comments Off on Keep You And Your Pet Safe With These July 4th Safety Tips)

Each year many of us celebrate Independence Day with friends and family; enjoying barbeques and lively firework shows. However, these traditions can frighten and at times be dangerous to your pets. Follow these useful tips to keep your pets safe during the festive summer holiday.

NEVER Use Fireworks Around Pets

  • Lit fireworks can be extremely dangerous to pets. Sparks from the fireworks can cause severe burns and/or trauma to the face, paws, and skin.
  • Never use fireworks around your pets as many types contain potentially toxic substances, including potassium nitrate, arsenic, and other heavy metals.

Leave Pets at Home

  • While most humans enjoy summer parties, most pets do not. Loud noises, crowded areas, and unfamiliar settings, can frighten pets and cause them to become stressed and disoriented.
  • For your pet’s safety, refrain from taking them to Fourth of July festivities, instead leave them at home, away from direct noises, in their own environment in which they feel safe.

Keep ID Current

  • Loud noises from fireworks and other festivities may scare your pet and cause them to escape from your yard or home, if they are not safely enclosed. Be sure your pet is always wearing a collar with an ID tag that includes; your name, current phone number and any other relevant contact information.
  • July 1 is National ID Your Pet Day, which serves as an annual check-in to make sure your pets’ identification tags and microchip information is up to date. Have your pet microchipped to increase the likelihood that they will be returned to you safely if a separation were to occur.
  • Visit HumanePA.org to learn more about our Healthy Pets Initiative, which provides microchip services to keep pets safe and happy in their homes.

Avoid These Poison Hazards

Create Barbeque Boundaries

  • Barbeques are a lot of fun, full of delicious foods and drinks…for humans. However, some of these items can be deadly to your pets. Be sure your pets can not get in to any alcoholic beverages. Also keep in mind that many human foods are not meant for pets, pet treats are always better to give your pets than human food, as human foods can cause severe digestive issues for pets.
  • Be sure to avoid avocado, raisins, grapes, onions, chocolate and products with the sweetener xylitol.

No Glow Jewelry for Pets

  • While it might look cute to put glow jewelry or glow sticks on your pets, the plastic and chemicals inside the tube are hazardous to pets if ingested.
  • If your pet chews and/or swallows the plastic attachments or chemicals, they can be at risk for excessive drooling and gastrointestinal irritation, as well as intestinal blockage from swallowing large pieces of the plastic.

Safely Store Matches and Lighter Fluid

  • Certain types of matches contain chlorates, which, if ingested, can be hazardous to pets. Lighter fluid, meanwhile, can be irritating to your pet’s skin, and, if swallowed, can cause gastrointestinal irritation, and other issues.
  • Be sure to store all matches and lighter fluid in a safe place where pets cannot access the items by jumping or climbing.

If your pet ingest a poisonous substance, like the ones listed above, contact your veterinarian or the Pet Poison Helpline (800-213-6680) immediately. Do not induce vomiting or give anything orally to your pet unless specifically directed to do so by your veterinarian.

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By Dr. Alicia Simoneau, Humane Pennsylvania Chief Veterinary Officer

April is National Heartworm Awareness Month! To make sure all dogs are protected from this serious disease, Dr. Simoneau has provided some valuable information for you and your pets.

A pervasive, serious medical condition, heartworm disease affects more than 1 million dogs in the U.S. every year. The disease can cause irreparable organ damage, but it can be both treated and prevented. Cats and ferrets may also be affected by heartworms, but usually not to the same extent as dogs.

What Causes Heartworms?

Heartworm disease is caused by an internal blood parasite, Dirofilaria immitis. Adult heartworms produce a pre-larval stage of the parasite, called microfilaria, which is passed from one dog to another by mosquitos.

How Does Heartworm Disease Spread and Develop?

In geographic areas where mosquitos thrive year-round, heartworm disease remains endemic. Heartworms are diagnosed nationwide, but the Southeastern states harbor mosquitos that carry heartworm. Dogs are frequently taken from the south to the northeast, and people take their pets on vacation.

When a mosquito has a blood meal from a dog that has adult heartworms, the microfilaria is taken in by the mosquito and undergoes transformation to a larval stage, which can now be a source of infection for another dog. This larval stage parasite is injected from the mosquito to another dog with the next blood meal the mosquito takes.

Inside the canine host, the larval stage parasite matures into the adult stage. If not prevented by medication, the worms continue developing. As the parasite molts in the dog, it migrates through its tissue and travels into the bloodstream. The parasite finds the heart and blood vessels to the lungs, where it stays permanently lodged and is now a mature adult. The process from the larval stage to the adult stage takes about 7 months, and adult heartworms can live for 5 to 7 years.

Untreated heartworm disease results in congestive heart failure in the dog. However, the heartworm infection causes scar tissue and severe inflammation to develop even before the end-stage disease. These effects can occur as early as 7 to 12 months after a dog is bitten by an infective mosquito.

How Can Heartworms Be Prevented?

The larval stages are susceptible to medication known as heartworm preventative, which kills them and prevents them from developing into adult worms. Heartworm preventatives work to kill the heartworm larva in the dog’s tissues the day they are given. The aim is to prevent the current infection from advancing, i.e., prevent the parasite larva from developing into adults.

Heartworm preventatives do not have lasting effects, however. They clear larval heartworm infections once every 30 days. As such, they must be administered to the dog every 30 days.

It is recommended to work with a vet to get a dog on a testing schedule and give medication that kills the larval stage of the heartworm before it has the chance to mature into an adult worm and cause excessive damage.

Screening tests look for antigens that are produced by adult female heartworms. The heartworm doesn’t make the antigen the test is looking for until the heartworm is mature, and maturity occurs 7 months after an infective mosquito transmits the larval stage of heartworm via a blood meal. This is why puppies don’t need a heartworm test to start the medication that kills the larval stage.

There is no way of knowing if immature worms exist, so testing is recommended 4 to 7 months after exposure. In young dogs at higher risk, testing twice in the first year is recommended. For adult dogs that are given year-round heartworm preventative monthly, or for other lower-risk patients that are given the preventative yearly, testing is often the recommendation.

How Is Heartworm Disease in Dogs Treated?

Once a dog is diagnosed with adult heartworms, the treatment is a year-long process. A series of oral and injectable medications are administered under the observation and guidance of a veterinarian, and stringent exercise restriction is necessary for many months.

Once the active infection is cleared, the dead adult heartworms continue to break down and be removed by the dog’s body. Scar tissue will always remain in the dog’s lung vessels and heart.

The Bottom Line

This internal blood parasite has life-threatening consequences for dogs — and those who consider them to be a family member — and it is prevalent in the United States. Heartworm disease in dogs is much easier to prevent than treat, so it is imperative to work with a veterinarian to develop a heartworm prevention plan specific to your dog to keep them healthy and happy.

Schedule an appointment and develop a heartworm prevention plan by visiting https://hvhospitals.org/contact-us/!

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February is Spay/Neuter Awareness Month!

February 20th, 2024 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Animal Health | Animal Welfare | Healthy Pets | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania | Humane Veterinary Hospitals | Uncategorized - (Comments Off on February is Spay/Neuter Awareness Month!)

Spay/Neuter Awareness Month: The Benefits of Spaying and Neutering Your Pets

Written by Humane Pennsylvania Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr. Alicia Simoneau 

Thursday, February 23, 2024, is World Spay Day, and Humane Pennsylvania is observing the holiday by speaking on the benefits of spaying and neutering your pets. Companion animals not only help us stay happy and healthy, but they are like members of our families. They must receive necessary medical care so that we can enjoy as much time with them as possible. Maintaining your pet’s well-being can be achieved through preventative measures such as regular veterinary exams, vaccinations, antiparasitic medications, and spay/neuter procedures.

Humane Pennsylvania’s Healthy Pets Initiative aims to provide access to affordable veterinary care for all pet owners and their furry companions. Our primary focus has been preventative care to avoid future illnesses, especially those with substantial price tags. We proudly announce that Humane Pennsylvania now offers affordable spay and neuter procedures at our Freedom Center for Animal Life-Saving and Lancaster Center for Animal Life-Saving.  Spaying and neutering your pet is another way to prevent future medical problems while decreasing the number of homeless pets entering our shelters.

What Does it Mean to Spay or Neuter Your Pet? 

Spaying and neutering are surgical procedures that will prevent your pet from reproducing. These procedures are usually performed at six months of age and under anesthesia with appropriate pain medication. Spaying is an abdominal surgery in which the female reproductive organs, including the uterus and ovaries, are removed. Neutering means removing both testicles through a small incision at or above the scrotum.

What are the Medical Benefits of Sterilization?

Spaying or neutering your pet doesn’t just prevent unwanted puppies or kittens, but it also has many medical benefits. Dogs and cats spayed earlier in life are less likely to develop mammary cancer. In addition, this procedure will prevent ovarian cancer and life-threatening infections within the reproductive tract. These illnesses are painful, and treatments can be very costly. Spaying your pet will also avoid high-risk pregnancies or birth complications that require emergency care. Neutering your pets can prevent prostate issues and testicular cancer.

Sterilization can reduce or eliminate unwanted behaviors such as urine marking and aggression. Unneutered male dogs and cats are more likely to roam, putting them at risk of getting lost or hit by a car.

How does Spay/Neuter Help our Community? 

Controlling the population of unwanted dogs and cats in our communities can save lives! Shelters like ours do our best to offer every animal a warm bed, a full belly, and the necessary medical care to ensure the best quality of life. Unfortunately, the more homeless animals in our community, the harder it is for us to help each one find the homes they deserve. Spaying and neutering companion animals keep them safe, healthy, and at home with you – the caretakers who love them.

Humane Pennsylvania’s Affordable Spay/Neuter Clinic is now taking appointments every Tuesday in Reading and every Thursday in Lancaster, and offers sterilization packages that include vaccines, microchips, and antiparasitic medications. Providing this high-quality, low-cost option for surgery will decrease the number of homeless pets in our community and our shelters. In addition, spaying and neutering your pets will prevent future costly issues such as uterine infections, cancers, and behavioral problems. For more information or to make an appointment, please visit our website: Affordable Spay/Neuter – Humane Pennsylvania (humanepa.org)

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Written By: Humane Pennsylvania Animal Care Technician, Linne Ortiz

Working at HPA for the past 6 years, I have come across many cats – young, old, sick, or disabled. I’ve always had this thing for senior cats or “crunchy cats” as I like to call them. Having two of my crunchy cats pass away this year at 19 and 20 years old, I decided to adopt a few new additions to join my fur family – all being disabled, needing hospice, or having specific medical needs.

Back in February, I came across a kitten with severe CH or the wobbly cat syndrome. She was brought in due to her health. She came in spicy! She was very scared and swatted at anyone who got near her. She couldn’t walk. She could only crawl. I immediately fell in love with her so I took her home. Admittedly, I was a bit worried about how she would adapt at home. How will she get around? How will she use the litter box? How will she get to her food and water? It’s been exactly one year and she is the happiest cat ever. We named her Wasabi, the spicy kitten.

In July I was introduced to Willie, an 8-year-old munchkin with chronic constipation and a chronic respiratory infection among other things. After her vet check, it was recommended to adopt her out as hospice care. I decided to adopt her knowing I might not have her for long. Sadly, she passed away four months later, but I made sure she spent the last few months of her life happy and loved.

One September morning a cat was abandoned at the shelter. We scanned the cat and found out she was adopted from our organization 15 years ago. She was frail and extremely underweight. Her name was Rapunzel but I called her Princess Thumbs because she was a polydactyl cat.  After getting her blood work done it turned out that she had hyperthyroidism and needed to be on medication and a special diet. After doing some research about the disease, I adopted her. I was not sure of the outcome since she was so thin and I had no idea how long she was in this condition but I was determined to try. Unfortunately, her illness was too far gone, but she did give me two wonderful weeks. She was truly an amazing cat. I miss you, my crunchy princess.

In October I got a message from one of the staff members at the Freedom Center for Animal Life-Saving that a 15-year-old tripod cat was surrendered for meowing too much. Her name was Marigold. She was super sweet and did indeed “talk” a lot, which made me love her even more. After getting blood work done for her, results showed that she had hyperthyroidism. I was a little nervous because I was worried I would lose her too. I still decided to adopt her and give her a chance. Well, she is now a happy cat that “talks too much” if her bowl is empty. She will hop after you like a rabbit making sure you hear her loud and clear.

During our annual 12 Days of Adoptions event during the holidays, the majority of the cats at the shelter were finding homes. There was one cat I was hoping would find her furever home since she had been overlooked for 8 months. Her name was Karma, an adorable Orange and white cat with the cutest “RBF” squishy face. Karma had a few medical issues. She was FIV+, had an old ankle injury that made her limp, and experienced bladder issues which  would require a special diet and medication for life. When Christmas Eve and the last day of the adoption special arrived, I told Karma “It’s time to go home”. It’s been two months since she came home and I’m so happy I made that decision. Her health has since improved and she couldn’t be happier in her new home.

Choosing to welcome a specially-abled cat into your home is a rewarding, yet challenging decision. It is a huge commitment that will take up a lot of your free time. It can be costly and will test your emotions. Some will require extra attention, medication, special diets, and more. However, although it does take extra effort, they too deserve a second chance to live a happy and fulfilling life.

 

 

 

 

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How to Support the Animals on Change A Pet’s Life Day (January 24th)

January 22nd, 2024 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Adopt A Shelter Pet | Animal Rescue | Animal Welfare | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania - (Comments Off on How to Support the Animals on Change A Pet’s Life Day (January 24th))
Written By: Humane Pennsylvania Media Coordinator, Maggie McDevitt

Every year on January 24th, animal lovers and advocates everywhere celebrate Change A Pet’s Life Day, which is a special day for encouraging people to adopt shelter pets and raise awareness in the community about vulnerable animals in need. In fact, Humane PA is hosting a four-day fee-waived adoption event in celebration of Change A Pet’s Life Day, generously sponsored by Silverbox Creative Studio.

There are many ways to celebrate and change a shelter pet’s life for the better. Although adoptions are encouraged, and many shelters including Humane Pennsylvania do reduce adoption fees to celebrate, you don’t necessarily have to adopt a new pet every year to make a positive impact on Change A Pet’s Life Day.

Here are seven ways you can support Humane PA and improve a shelter pet’s life on Change A Pet’s Life Day.

Adopt, Of Course!

Many shelters and adoption centers, including Humane PA, have reduced or waived adoption fees for Change A Pet’s Life Day, so it’s an excellent time to look into adopting! Check out our Adoptable Pets page, or visit your closest Humane PA adoption center to see what dogs, cats, and critters we have available for adoption.

Foster a Shelter Pet

Fostering a shelter pet is a great way to make an impact on an animal’s life. Adopting is a big commitment, so it’s natural to feel unprepared. If you aren’t in the right position to adopt just yet, you can foster a Humane PA shelter pet instead. Foster families provide a life-saving second chance to animals in need. Foster animals can range from puppies and kittens too young to be put up for adoption, those recovering from surgery, animals who find it difficult to adjust to the shelter, etc.

As a foster volunteer, you are not financially responsible for the animal. All vet care and supplies are provided by Humane PA and there is always a staff member available to help with questions. Fosters also help other animals by freeing up shelter space and resources, so new intakes can get the care they need and have a better chance at finding a forever home.

More information about fostering a shelter pet, including our foster application, can be found on the Foster Care page of the Humane PA website.

Make a One-Time or Monthly Donation

When running a shelter, costs tend to add up quickly. As a non-profit, we rely on donations from animal lovers everywhere so we can take care of as many animals as possible. By donating to Humane PA for Change A Pet’s Life Day, you are ensuring that animals in need receive food, medical care, vaccines, microchips, and everything else they require to live a happy and healthy life in their new home.

A bonus? Most donations to the shelter can be written off on your taxes!

Volunteer Your Time

Our Berks and Lancaster shelter campuses are always in need of volunteers to help walk dogs, clean kennels and attend to the animals while they wait for their forever homes. Volunteering your time helps the shelter care for all the animals they look after, and it benefits the animal to get some much-needed socialization, which helps the animal become a better candidate for adoption. Volunteering makes an immense difference in the lives of animals waiting to find their new families.

You can learn more about becoming a Humane PA Volunteer and other available volunteer opportunities here!

Raise Awareness

Help Humane PA spread the word about Change A Pet’s Life Day, and our fee-waived adoption event happening from January 24th to January 27th at both HPA adoption centers in Berks County and Lancaster County.

Spread the word to all your friends, and make our upcoming adoption event a fun way to touch base with the people you care about for a good cause. The animals will appreciate it, and you’ll get even more people involved.

Share Your Story

A simple way to encourage others to make a difference in an animal’s life is to share your own story. Where did you meet your animal? Were they adopted from HPA? Was it love at first sight? What were the hardest obstacles? How has your pet changed your life for the better and vice versa?

Showing the positive impact your pet has brought into your life is a great way to show others the benefits of having a pet. You’ll be helping to encourage adoptions, and it’s an easy opportunity to brag about your pet, which is something we pet lovers are always obliged to.

Change Your Pet’s Routine

You may have already adopted a pet of your own, and that’s always the first step in changing an animal’s life for the better. However, you can always make changes to your pet’s lifestyle and ways to improve your own bond with your pet.

Try teaching your pet some new tricks, or get into a new exercise routine, while utilizing the Humane PA Danielle Ruiz-Murphy Dog Park. Find ways to connect with your pet on a deeper level. Time for a check-up? Bring your pet to one of our Humane Veterinary Hospitals, Affordable Walk-In ClinicsPay-What-You-Can Clinics, or Affordable Spay/Neuter Clinics to make sure your pet is happy and healthy, as part of our Healthy Pets Initiative.

Making positive changes to your pet’s routine will also have you double-checking your own wellness.

In what ways will you be making a difference for Change A Pet’s Life Day? Do you have a life-changing adoption story to share? Let us know in the comments!

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Credit Where Credit’s Due and Plans for 2024

December 20th, 2023 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Animal Welfare | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania - (Comments Off on Credit Where Credit’s Due and Plans for 2024)

Written by: Humane Pennsylvania CEO & President, Karel Minor

I  joined Humane Pennsylvania (then Humane Society of Berks County) as executive director nearly twenty years ago. I had previously worked at a larger and better-funded animal shelter. But when I compared the output of the two organizations, I was surprised to find our little animal shelter did more and provided more of some services than the other, bigger shelter, despite having fewer resources.

I started comparing our numbers to other organizations. We did more adoptions annually than some big-name, nationally known shelters, and without a 7 (or 8 or 9) digit annual budget. We handled more animals annually than a nationally known animal sanctuary. Later, we discovered that we were one of only 15 or 20 non-profit, full-service veterinary hospitals in the nation- despite having only 2% to 20% of those other organizations’ annual budgets.

Necessity can be the mother of invention or an excuse to do less. Humane PA has always worked to be inventive, make the most of our limited resources, and do the most good with the donations you share. Our operations are five times bigger now. But we do more than five times as much good work. And we still outpace the quantity and quality of good work of many more prominent organizations.

Our innovative veterinary services deliver tens of thousands of client visits, surgeries, and services to animals and people from all walks of life and economic circumstances each year. Our pet food pantry distributes a couple hundred thousand pounds of food and supplies annually. We have created programs that do more and do it more effectively than places that are entirely out of our league in size and resources.

Our staff and volunteers have a lot to be proud of. We sometimes forget to crow about how much we do in our community because we are always so focused on doing more or finding the next solution. Sometimes, stopping and marveling at how much we accomplish is good. When we have our annual numbers finalized early next year, we will share them because we want you to know what we are doing for animals and people on your behalf. We also want our staff to understand how well they do compared to organizations we often look to as leaders in our work.

However, we know not to be too prideful or smug in those comparisons because we work with many organizations that do more with less than we do on our best days. We can take credit where it’s due and give it to others, bigger or smaller, too. Other organization’s innovations and ideas help us build on our own and avoid complacency. So that leads us to our plans for 2024….

Humane PA is focusing on three things:

  • Identifying and filling service and resource gaps
  • Revisiting previously intractable and unsolvable problems
  • Making giant leaps in the quality of our facilities and client experience.

These three things often overlap or reinforce each other for good or bad. So, we are identifying some new approaches that will check all three boxes, are sustainable, and serve the current needs of our community rather than past needs. These include:

  • Expanding our Spike Pet Food Pantry capacity with an audacious but achievable goal of one million pounds of pet food and supplies distributed to more communities annually.
  • Expanding our unique and uniquely effective approach to supporting community and free-roaming cats and their caretakers to end our communities’ needless cycle of death.
  • Adding community pet boarding services via our new Spike & Tilly’s Pet Resort and significantly expanding our emergency boarding program via our award-winning PetNet program.
  • Dramatically improving all aspects of our facilities and processes to ensure animals and clients have the best possible experience when they stay, visit, or engage with Humane PA.

                

These initiatives will help more animals and people, save lives, save resources, and serve as models for other organizations who might look to us for inspiration, just as we look to others for new ideas and approaches. Every year (month, day!), the world changes, and the needs of animals and people in our community change, too. You can’t be prepared for everything, but a culture of growth and innovation makes it easier to respond to the unexpected and to change paths when needs change. That path has helped us survive major economic downtowns and a pandemic.  It’s also allowed us to recognize needs and problems before they are widely recognized as such.

Being part of a culture of growth and innovation, with a focus on effectiveness and efficacy as the best path to life-saving, is some credit I will gladly accept and share with our staff, volunteers, and donors.

 

 

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