Humane Pennsylvania Blog

Dog Adoptions Return to Lancaster!

April 17th, 2025 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Adopt A Shelter Pet | Animal Rescue | Animal Welfare | Humane Pennsylvania - (Comments Off)

Written by Karel Minor, Humane Pennsylvania President & CEO

Despite news stories and animal shelter full-tilt freakout press releases to the contrary, the war on pet overpopulation and needless shelter euthanasia has been a wild success. In 1970, up to 26 million cats and dogs entered animal shelters, and up to 20 million of those were euthanized. To put that in context, in 1970 there were only 65 million cats and dogs in the U.S. So, in 1970, as much as 40% of the cats and dogs alive in the U.S. passed through shelters, and as many as 1 in 3.25 pets alive at the time were killed in animal shelters every year.

Fast forward to 2025. The U.S. is estimated to have 199 million cats and dogs. Estimates for the number of cats and dogs entering America’s shelters range between six million and four million (depending on who you ask and how you count). The number of cats and dogs euthanized in shelters is between a high estimate of 3 million and a low of under 800,000. That’s a numeric intake reduction of between 77% and 84%. The reduction in euthanasia since 1970 is between 85% to 96%.

As a percentage of the U.S. cat and dog population, the number of animals killed in shelters compared to the total number of animals has dropped from up to 40% in 1970 to a high of 1.5%, or a low estimate of one-half of one percent of animals alive in 2024. If that’s not good news—if that’s not an outright victory—I don’t know what is.

Now, I know some of you reading may be yelling, “You lie! Those numbers are false!” That’s fine—you can Google the scientific papers and multiple national shelter population surveys that back this information up. If you need something to support the narrative that shelters are still drowning in pets, just jump in your car and drive until you go over the edge of the flat Earth. You might find the facts you want to find there.

While this is great news in the aggregate, one animal that dies needlessly is a tragedy—and animals still die needlessly sometimes. Also, some parts of the U.S. have greater challenges than others. But by and large, a shelter focus on adoption over death, access to sterilization, vet care, proper nutrition, changes in the perception of acceptable pet care responsibilities, social media, microchip ID, and radically changed animal control models have improved the world for pets and their families for the better.

What the heck does this have to do with dog adoptions in Lancaster? Everything. The animal shelter infrastructure in Lancaster and Berks County, where Humane PA has adoption centers, was created in the 1970s to handle 1970s realities. As recently as 20 years ago, the combined shelter intake for the Humane League of Lancaster County and the Humane Society of Berks County was 21,000 cats and dogs a year. Over 14,000 of those animals were euthanized.

Ten years ago, these two forward-thinking and innovative organizations merged to become Humane Pennsylvania. Thanks to our industry-leading and groundbreaking work—combined with an already-happening sea change in the status of pet animals in the U.S.—in the past year, our shelters only took in 1,970 animals, and only 135 were euthanized. That’s just about 6% of total intake, and solely for true medical necessity and to relieve genuine suffering—just like many of us have had to do for our own elderly, sick, or severely injured pets. That’s also less than one-tenth of one percent of the number euthanized in our shelters twenty years ago.

That’s one of the reasons Humane PA decided to move the increasingly small number of dogs we have for adoption in Lancaster to just one of our adoption centers: the newly renovated adoption center in Reading. We also renovated the Lancaster kennels to open Spike & Tilly’s Pet Resort, which offers increasingly hard-to-find affordable pet boarding services. This new service is in line with our pioneering creation of affordable vet care programs over the past 18 years.

It left a lot of kennels empty—kennels that were built to deal with the 1970 tsunami of pets, but were no longer being filled by homeless pets for adoption in our community. But we hate resources going to waste.

Sometimes, opportunity connects resources and need and opens the door for something wonderful and unexpected. That’s what happened in Lancaster! While we’ve been breaking new ground creating affordable, accessible services for pets in the home, our great friends at Brandywine Valley SPCA have been doing incredible, pioneering work that has been transforming animal control services to help animals out on the streets. Most recently, they were asked to take over animal control services for all of Washington, D.C., and while they renovate animal care facilities down there, they needed a place for animals to be safely housed and adopted.

Guess who had the space available? We did! We couldn’t be more excited to be sharing our available resources with our friends at BVSPCA while they bring improved services to a major city in need. We’re also thrilled to be able to help them bring a welcome supply of dogs in need of homes to our community!

BVSPCA’s dog adoption center is located in HPA’s kennel facility at our Lancaster Campus. The adoption center is run entirely by their staff and has its own entrance and hours (visit BVSPCA.org for details). If you are in Lancaster County and looking for a dog to adopt, check it out!

Of course, while you’re at it, check out Humane PA’s Lancaster Cat & Critter Adoption Center, The Thrifty Kitty Thrift Boutique, and Spike and Tilly’s Pet Resort for affordable pet boarding! If it’s for animals, HPA’s Lancaster campus has it all!

While we’ve got your eyeballs, consider helping as a volunteer! HPA has opportunities from working in the new thrift shop to animal care, events, admin support, gardening, and so much more! Volunteers make our work possible—and we make it easy, fun, and meaningful.

To recap: The well-being of animals is incontrovertibly better compared to 50 years ago—and getting better all the time. But it’s not perfect. Through hard work, creative programs that focus on the needs of today and tomorrow (instead of yesterday’s), highly effective partnerships like the one with BVSPCA, and the volunteer and financial support of people like you, we are creating the best communities anywhere to be an animal or an animal caretaker. Thank you!

Pet Poison Awareness Month

By: Humane Veterinary Hospitals – Reading Staff

Each year, more than 100,000 pets are accidentally exposed to toxins, resulting in emergency trips to the veterinarian or phone calls to Pet Poison Control hotlines.

What are the most common poisons and toxins ingested by pets, and where are they found?

Not surprisingly, the greatest risks to pets are found around the home. Plants, foods, human medications, cleaning supplies, and automotive products are responsible for the vast majority of pet poisoning cases reported to veterinarians and poison control centers.

Here are a few of the most common, as reported by the Pet Poison Helpline and the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center:

More than 1,000 common plants can be toxic to pets. While not all toxic exposures are life-threatening, it is important to take any potentially harmful exposure seriously.

Lilies, azaleas, aloe vera, sago palm, English ivy, philodendron, hydrangea, poinsettia, dieffenbachia, and oleander are among the leading causes of poisoning among pets and should be avoided.

Many foods that we commonly eat can also present a poisoning risk to pets. Highest on the list are products containing alcohol or caffeine. Caffeine-containing products such as coffee, coffee beans, and chocolate can result in life-threatening conditions, including tremors, arrhythmias, seizures, and death.

Other common foods pets should avoid include avocado, citrus fruits, grapes, raisins, coconut, nuts, garlic, onions, yeast dough, and any processed foods containing the sweetener Xylitol.

If you believe your pet has ingested any of these substances, contact your vet or local animal poison control center.

Household & Automotive Products. Many household and automotive products also pose a poisoning risk to pets. Bleach, ammonia, household cleansers, jewelry cleaner, and antifreeze that contains ethylene glycol are highly dangerous to pets and should be stored in sealed containers where pets cannot access them.

Many common cosmetic products — such as soap, mouthwash, deodorant, nail polish, nail polish remover, nail glue, sunscreen, toothpaste, and shampoo — also present a poisoning risk to pets and should be stored away from places your dog or cat (or rabbit, ferret, or other furry friends) can reach.

Human Medications. Many of these drugs are not appropriate for use by animals. Human doses of medications are often too potent to be safely ingested by pets.

In Case of a Pet Poisoning Emergency

If you suspect that your pet has ingested a toxic substance, do not wait for symptoms to appear. Immediately call your veterinarian, the local vet emergency hospital, the Pet Poison Helpline at (855) 764-7661, or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435.

To ensure your pet’s overall health, visit hvhospitals.org and schedule a routine checkup, today!

Feeding Hope: Humane Pennsylvania’s Spike’s Pet Food Pantry Program

March 4th, 2025 | Posted by Maggie McDevitt in Animal Welfare | Healthy Pets | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania - (Comments Off)

Spike Pet Food Pantry serves more than just animals in need.

Written by Sarah Matarella, Courtesy of Berks County Living

When families face financial hardship, the ripple effects often touch every member of the household, including their four-legged companions. Recognizing the critical role pets play as cherished family members, Humane Pennsylvania’s Spike’s Pet Food Pantry Program has emerged as a lifeline.

Karel Minor, CEO of Humane Pennsylvania, recalled the program’s early days. “We started doing our pantry work in late 2004 or early 2005. We were seeing animals coming into shelters not because their owners didn’t care but because they couldn’t afford to keep them,” says Minor.

By asking a simple yet transformative question — “What do you need to keep your pet at home?” — the organization, which operates out of the Community Resource Center in Reading, quickly identified the gaps that often led to surrender. In many cases, the solution was as straightforward as providing a bag of dog food. What began as an informal effort grew into a full-fledged program by 2007, a trailblazing model in the industry at the time.

“It was uncommon and even controversial,” says Minor. “We heard criticism like, ‘Why support people who can’t afford pets?’ But we knew the alternative of animals dying in shelters and people losing their pets was unacceptable.”

Today, Spike’s Pet Food Pantry stands as a testament to the power of empathy and innovation. The program has distributed more than 241,979 pounds of food, equating to nearly one million meals for pets in need.

“Pets are part of the family,” Minor emphasizes. “No child or adult should have to lose their pet simply because of temporary financial difficulties. Our mission is to empower people to care for their animals, not take them away.”

The program’s evolution includes thoughtful touches to encourage participation. Clients receive a member card, making the experience feel like shopping at a wholesale club. In addition, there are free and low-cost options so that residents can apply for membership regardless of economic status.

“Many of the previous programs were a little chiding. We’re not engaging in that,” says Minor. “People come before animals in our mission statement now because we recognize that animals can’t feed themselves. We need to make sure that people are capable, and if they don’t know how to be, we teach them. If they know but don’t have access, we give them access. And if they ultimately can’t keep an animal, then we’re here for that animal. But we don’t start the conversation with, ‘When would you like to bring it to our shelter?’ We start conversations with, ‘What do you need to keep it from coming to our shelter?’”

Looking ahead, Minor envisions even greater milestones, including expanding the pantry’s reach and potentially tackling the ambitious goal of distributing over one million pounds of pet food annually. “It sounds daunting, but it’s achievable,” he says. “As more people understand the importance of these services, the support grows.”

While the one-million-pound goal was reached this past year, Humane Pennsylvania is also tackling systemic challenges beyond food with initiatives like low-cost veterinary services and community education.

“When we started, Berks and Lancaster counties were taking in nearly 30,000 animals a year. Now that number is under 3,000,” says Minor.

This remarkable reduction is attributed to proactive programs that address the root causes of surrender, from spay/neuter services to access to affordable care. The organization also encourages community involvement through volunteering, donations and initiatives like the soon-to-be launched Thrifty Kitty thrift boutique in Lancaster.

Fun Facts

The Impact. Spike’s Food Pantry has approximately 100 pet food clients any given month. Learn more about membership details and see the pantry schedule at humanepa.org.

Help People and Pets Stay Together. Whether it’s time, money or donated items, there are many ways you can show your support for Humane Pennsylvania’s mission.

Humane PA 2024: A Look Back (And Forward!)

January 10th, 2025 | Posted by KMdirector2* in Animal Welfare | Healthy Pets Initiative | Humane Pennsylvania | Humane Veterinary Hospitals - (Comments Off)

Written by Karel Minor, Humane Pennsylvania President & CEO

Wow. 2024 was one of those years when so much good stuff happened that I had to refer back to my calendar to make sure I remembered everything! We had improvements and expansions of programs, services, and facilities at all our locations and beyond, so let’s dive in. There’s a lot to cover – grab a cup of tea and a comfy chair!

We thought it was great when our communities donated 440,000 pet meals to our pet food donation campaign in 2023. That was so great we took the brazen step of raising our sights – a lot. In 2024 we asked you to help us meet a Million Meal Challenge. You came through. As I type, we are up to 1.47 million meals donated, and counting! That’s nearly triple the previous year!

Why is this important? HPA has long known, and more recently proven via surveys providing high-level data, that economic and food uncertainty is one of the greatest drivers of pet relinquishment and family stress. Frequently, short-term problems from job loss or some other crisis lead to the permanent decision to give up a pet. Why should a pet or family face this when temporary food support would prevent it? It’s a no-brainer approach – affordable, community-supported, and a long-term impact for a short-term input of help.

That leads to a couple more exciting upgrades to HPA’s Spike’s Pet Food Pantry (SPP) services. First, the main SPP distribution location at the Giorgi Family Community Resource Center (CRC) received a makeover and expansion. SPP services had been limited due to bottlenecks from limited space and limited supplies. With the help of several dedicated volunteers and staff, we converted about 2,000 square feet of the CRC into a full-on “pet supply store” to serve our SPP clients. With shopping carts, a retail-style checkout counter and register, and extended hours, the new space is allowing us to distribute nearly triple the amount of food, with fewer staff and volunteers needed (saving time and money), and avoiding lines and waiting for our clients.

We also know that time and travel are two major hurdles for those struggling financially. So we have begun installing Spike’s Pet Food Pantry Kiosks in our Adoption Centers. These are SPP “light” with a more limited selection but open seven days a week, making access easier.

We also finalized our test run of using SPP “member” cards to streamline and speed up enrollment, tracking, and distribution. Each client receives a personalized bar-coded member card that can be scanned at checkout for tracking and verification. Watch out Sam’s Club, we’re coming for you! Clients are enrolled for one year based on financial need and have access to pet food and supplies. Most items are provided for 25 cents per pound, making them extremely affordable and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the program. Our clients have made it clear that most do not need or want a hand-out, they need a hand up. For those who are unable to pay even this small amount, food is made available at no charge. The cards also give discounts for low-cost veterinary care at our clinics.

Although programs like this are no longer as controversial as they used to be – 16 years ago we got hate mail for distributing food! – we make sure that donor generosity isn’t being abused. Fortunately, the vast majority of people are good, and our data shows that most people only use this program for a short period. Those who need more help get direct, intensive support. The exceptionally small number who are scammers get booted and banned. I’m glad to know that this program is there for any of us who might need it in a pinch.

You might be wondering where we got all that sweet shelving and I’m glad you asked! Thanks to some dumb luck and a great deal of sweat, early last year HPA was able to buy about $100,000 worth of retail display and shelving from a Rite Aid closing auction for $4,000! It took staff and volunteers three days to break it down and transport it to our warehouse, but we now have shelving for many more projects inventoried and in storage at our Lititz warehouse.

Not familiar with that location? It’s new, too! In order to add space needed for all our programs and distribution work, we purchased a warehouse in Lancaster County which gives us the extra space we need to receive and sort large donations arriving by tractor-trailer. It’s one of the ways we have been able to expand capacity without having to add staff or overload existing space.

All this extra warehouse and workspace also allowed us to expand our statewide emergency response support. HPA has a support MOU with the Great Pennsylvania Red Cross chapter serving 8.7 million people in 61 counties. HPA’s innovative Pet Emergency Pallets (PEP’s) are now distributed throughout PA for ready and rapid access in the case of emergencies. The pallets have all the care items needed for the emergency sheltering ten cats or ten dogs (or mixed), ensuring there is no delay in waiting for the cavalry to arrive. Why should someone have to give up or hand off their pet to a stranger when they can care for it themselves? The best time to help someone’s pet is now, the best person to care for that pet is the caretaker, and the best solutions are local! Since most emergencies are smaller in scale, these PEP’s are the perfect size to meet the need. If it’s a bigger or longer-term need, they also offer crucial time to allow HPA or other groups to get to the scene to assist further.

These PEP’s have also allowed us to blow past our goal of ensuring the capacity to provide care for 1,000 animals in a large-scale emergency. This goal, which was already reached a few years ago through a combination of HPA’s direct sheltering capacity and partnerships with other organizations, was established as part of the Healthy Pets Initiative grant received from the Giorgi Family Foundation. That grant transformed our work and informed new approaches to animal welfare nationwide. It also continues to inspire HPA to find better – bigger and sometimes smaller – ways to do more, for more people and animals, and more affordably. Thanks again to the Giorgi Family!

I hope that chair is comfy because there’s so much more! In 2024 HPA added a new affordable community service: Spike & Tilly’s Pet Resort, PA’s first affordable, non-profit pet boarding service! We were hearing from our community that they were getting priced out of swanky boarding facilities, often having a boarding bill that was more expensive than their vacation. Why should someone have to choose between traveling with family or having a pet because of the cost of boarding? With Spike & Tilly’s Pet Resort, they don’t need to. Pets of all kinds can stay safely with HPA, affordably and comfortably, with all the bells and whistles of a fancy place if you want them, but without the mandates and restrictions now so common. Not all dogs like playgroups, and some pets need special handling and care. We are literally the experts with over 100 years of experience. With online booking and two locations (Reading and Lancaster), we began booking up and are now expanding to meet the growing need!

Way back in March, we opened the stunning new Adoption Center for Cats & Critters at our Lancaster campus. It’s awesome. With walk-in group cat rooms, dedicated critter space, a big-a** turtle tank, and even a jukebox full of animal-related rock songs – because who doesn’t want to donate a quarter and listen to “Crocodile Rock”? – it’s really cool. Most of the lighting and fixtures are vintage and donated or found at auctions or Facebook Marketplace. This allowed us to save money, make it way more interesting and eclectic, and reinforce the idea that sometimes the best “new” thing is an older thing. Get it? Like a pet? If you haven’t visited, you should.

As soon as it warms up a little, we will be excited to have the public rededication of the center in honor of two of our very best friends and supporters, Betsy & Ted Lewin. Betsy is a legendary – yep, I’m going with legendary – children’s book illustrator and has been one of the longest-donating artists to our Art for Arf’s Sake Auction. You’ve probably seen her art, and if you have kids you probably have her books in your house right now. I am honored that she is allowing us to recognize her and her late husband, Ted, for their generosity, kindness, and the joy they have given to so many for so long. Stay tuned for the invitation to join us this Spring!

But wait, there’s more! It took a few months longer than we planned, but The Thrifty Kitty Thrift Boutique opened its doors at the end of the year at our Lancaster Campus! Technically, it may be a reopening since the Humane League used to have a thrift shop. You probably know thrift shops are all the rage. You may not know that although PA’s thrift shops are dominated by Goodwill, religious, and for-profit thrift shops, many parts of the US are dominated by thrift shops benefitting animal shelters.

We spoke to several organizations with thrift shops that were contributing HUGE amounts of money into their charitable work to discover the secret sauce to achieve success. It may come as no surprise but it boils down three big factors we thought we could cover:

Free or super cheap rent (Check! We had an underutilized building on our campus already).
Sell only donated items (Check! We have so much stuff donated that we could start up fully stocked with great stuff).
As much volunteer staffing as possible (Check! Mostly – we have volunteers beginning to work in the shop and we have staff volunteering time as we fill the schedule – me included!).

The Thrifty Kitty is open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, and we’ve got everything and are adding more items until it’s packed to the gills. Stop by and consider volunteering. All volunteers get a discount and shop volunteers get to spot the good stuff as it arrives!

One of the last accomplishments of the past year is also a bit of a heartbreak at the moment. HPA has been quietly providing a unique approach to sterilizing free-roaming cats. Based on our data-driven models and intense intervention approaches of our Healthy Pets Initiative, we broke from the standard model of providing sterilization access. The standard model is to spread the available surgery spots as widely as possible. In the name of being “fair”, everyone was given one or two of the available spots. However, if you have twenty cats in a colony and can only sterilize two per month, all the remaining cats keep breeding and you never get 100% sterilization.

Instead, we offered all available surgical slots to a single colony manager, along with assistance and training for mass trapping, to allow us to get as many in at one time as possible. We also went the extra step of ensuring that any that were missed could be funneled into our regular surgery schedule to get any stragglers. We’d also push in any new cats that wandered in the colony in the future. Once we got them all, we’d move on to the next. Did it work? Boy, did it ever. Between March 2023 and November 2024, about 75 colonies ranging in size from just a couple to dozens of cats were fully sterilized. That’s an accomplishment that has never been achieved in our region before and we subsequently found out that this approach is now being taught in advanced trainings as the way to actually overcome the breeding cycles of free-roaming cats. It turns out we figured it out on our own while others were!

Sadly, this program was paused at the end of the year because the grant that had been funding it was unexpectedly cut. While we are keeping our commitments to ongoing support for sterilized colonies, until we replace the funding this wildly successful program will be shut down. Maybe The Thrifty Kitty can help out with that?

OK, no chair is that comfortable. I’m not even done and this is almost 2,200 words long. That’s the big stuff and we did even so much more than that. Thank you to all the volunteers who helped with any of these accomplishments, as well as to the donors who made it possible and our dedicated staff. We’ve got a lot on the horizon for 2025 and I hope you’ll be a part of it. Please consider volunteering for any of our events or programs. If you can’t volunteer, please consider making a donation in support of the amazing work we are doing for animals and people in Pennsylvania. I didn’t add links in the blog so I could keep you hostage but links to all the mentions are below. Please take a minute to check them out!

Your proud partner in building the best communities anywhere to be an animal of animal caretaker,

Karel Minor, CEO
Humane Pennsylvania

No Pet Hungry: Million Meal Challenge

Spike’s Pet Food Pantry

Emergency Response & Disaster Relief

Spike & Tilly’s Pet Resort

Betsy & Ted Lewin Adoption Center for Cats & Critters

The Thrifty Kitty Thrift Boutique

Free Roaming & Community Cat Solutions

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!

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)

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!

Preventing Heartworm Disease in Dogs

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/!

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)

Linne’s Crunchy Cats

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.

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 24^th, 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 Clinics, Pay-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!