Category Archives: Dog Advocacy

ASPCA Rachael Ray $100K Challenge to Rescue Pets

Congratulations to the Central California SPCA in Fresno for winning the fifth and final year of the Rachael Ray $100K Challenge, which pitted 50 shelters across the country against each other in an effort to save more animals during the summer of 2014 than they did over the same time period in 2013.

CCSPCA’s website cites the following accomplishments achieved during the Challenge:

  • Saved nearly 3,000 animals’ lives!
  • Led the nation in lives saved for 2 months – June & July.
  • August 31 had the most adoptions ever recorded in a single day – 94. 42 of those 94 were offsite.
  • Last week of August (25-31) had the most adoptions ever recorded in a single week. 334 adoptions were made with 66 of those being offsite.
  • Both July adoptions of 757 and August adoptions of 1087 surpassed any previous month’s adoptions ever recorded.
  • Most adoption spay/neuter surgeries performed in one day ever recorded – 74 on July 25.
  • Most spay/neuter surgeries in one month ever recorded – 969 in August.
  • But one of our MOST IMPORTANT accomplishments was that no euthanasia was performed for space or time for an entire 3 months!

Way to go , Fresno!

Since 2010, hundreds of contestants have dedicated themselves to this three month contest to increase their adoption numbers over the same period the previous year. In this final year of the challenge, the competing shelters saved more than 68,000 lives in just three months. In five years total, challengers saved more than a QUARTER OF A MILLION lives – an increase of nearly 60,000 cats and dogs – with dozens of animal shelters increasing their adoptions by 100% or more compared to previous years.

Kudos to all 50 of the shelters who participated in the challenge.

Until next time,

Good day, and good dog!

Which Hero for Homeless Pets are You?

Big Paws McGraw courtesy PetSmart Charities
Big Paws McGraw courtesy PetSmart Charities
Find out which hero for homeless pets you are by taking PetSmart Charities’ interactive quiz.

I came up as Big Paws McGraw, with an embarrassingly low 57% correct on the 7-question quiz. I KNOW my readers can beat that!

Take the quiz and let me know how you do!

Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!

#SaveTheWhiteDog

If you’re following this hashtag on Twitter, you already know the story. If not, you’ll want to watch this video. The LA Times and KTLA are reporting on a small white dog, who we have since found out is named Gordo, was hit by a van being chased by the highway patrol.

The video is not overly gory, but it does show the dog being hit. Gordo was rushed to an emergency vet and is now recovering nicely, although he did lose a leg.

The video is on its way to going viral, as is the hashtag #SaveTheWhiteDog. A donation fund has been set up. If you’d like to contribute, please visit Access Animal Hospitals‘ site.

Doggies.com extends our best wishes to Gordo for a speedy recovery! Feel better soon little guy. Your Daddy misses you!

Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!

Tuesday Top Ten: Breed-Specific Insurance Rates

shutterstock_89404294Many homeowners insurance carriers are loathe to provide insurance to homes that include certain breeds of dogs that they deem more likely to bite and cause injuries. Although the laws in many jurisdictions are finally reflecting the fact that it’s not necessarily the breed so much as the way the dog is raised, insurance companies still, in many cases, use breed-specific rating systems to either deny insurance or to require a higher premium, regardless of the individual dog’s behavioral history.
Continue reading Tuesday Top Ten: Breed-Specific Insurance Rates

Dog Tag Art’s Rescue Project

Shelter tagsIf you’ve been following along, you know that I highly recommend dog identification tag provider DogTagArt.com Their high-quality tags are available in a wide variety of styles, and they last forever! (Or just about. I’ve never replaced one.)

Today I found another reason to love this company. Here’s how they describe their latest project:

We are travelling across the country on a To the Rescue: Superhero Pet Tour, in a custom Sprinter van. What are we doing? Performing Random Acts of Kindness by donating to shelter and rescue programs!

After deciding we wanted nothing more than to take our pet ID tag-making on the road to visit and support rescue pets around the U.S., we bought a van and dubbed our new mobile tag-making machine the Taggin’ Wagon! We found an Asheville-based doggie cape maker, Amazing Capes, and asked her to create a few capes for us to take on the road and head out on our mission to help rescue pets across the United States.

Check out their blog for a photo gallery of their stops around the country.

The picture above shows just a few of the designs they sell related to dog adoption and rescue.

Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!