{"id":1906,"date":"2016-05-13T19:00:34","date_gmt":"2016-05-13T19:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lbpost.com\/articles\/life\/pets\/pet-projects-big-shout-out-to-big-hearts\/"},"modified":"2016-05-13T19:00:34","modified_gmt":"2016-05-13T19:00:34","slug":"pet-projects-big-shout-out-to-big-hearts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/pets\/pet-projects-big-shout-out-to-big-hearts","title":{"rendered":"Pet Projects: Big Shout-Out to Big Hearts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Please send any Long Beach or Seal Beach pet-related events or projects to\u00a0pets@lbpost.com<\/a>. Posting subject to approval.<\/p>\n

Virtually Pets<\/h1>\n

Usually, the weekend Pet Projects features shelter or rescue animals up for adoption. This time, it\u2019s pets found on the street by good guys who are going the extra step\u2014sometimes entire blocks\u2014to get the cats and dogs vetted and find them loving homes with equally dedicated humans.<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s a factor of increased social media, more pets being abandoned or born in the wild, or public awareness, there seems to be a growing lot of them. Posts on community websites like NextDoor<\/a>\u00a0have subject heads reading \u201cAnyone Missing This Cat?\u201d and \u201cFound Dog,\u201d and the thread can wind up as much with trying to adopt out the animal as finding the pet\u2019s person. Facebook page Community Bulletin Board: Cats Needing Homes<\/a>\u00a0features abandoned cats and found litters of kittens, particularly now during kitten season<\/a>; other FB pages devoted to lost and found pets feature as many animals who\u2019ve been picked up from the streets as it does lost pets; again, it often ends up with finding a home for the pets. That\u2019s always the case for kittens.<\/p>\n

Here are three examples of foundlings rescued and cared for by good people who regularly find themselves doing this for no reason other than the welfare of a cat or a dog. If any of these little fellows win your heart, please contact the rescuers below.<\/p>\n

Gratitude and admiration go out to everyone in the community who has rescued at least one pet from an unfortunate ending. Sadly, these animals are only a small sample of ones that are abandoned to or born on the street. Thankfully, there also seems to be a growing number of good guys.<\/p>\n

\"Shoestring<\/p>\n

These pretty little kittens were rescued from a pallet of cardboard; if they hadn\u2019t been, they would have been crushed by the refuse company. However, a refuse employee pulled them out, and a volunteer from the Shoestring City Ranch<\/a>\u00a0brought them over to the ranch. The personnel and volunteers bottle-fed the kittens and kept them warm and healthy. They\u2019re now ready to go home, particularly the little guy who seems ready to kiss a hand.<\/p>\n

Shoestring City Ranch is located on Carson Street in Lakewood. The ranch is an educational organization that permanently houses rescued horses and farm animals, cares for them, and invites the public\u2014urban schoolkids in particular\u2014to learn about care and experience a way of life that they wouldn\u2019t otherwise have seen. Their good works extend to other animals, and the kittens are an example. Karen Thompson, Shoestring\u2019s founder and director, had only one comment: \u201cPlease spay and neuter your cats!\u201d Nothing more needs to be said.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re interested in adoption or foster, text 562.818.7930 or contact Thompson at kteamthompson@aol.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"SammyDog1\"<\/p>\n

\"SAmmyDog2\"<\/p>\n

This sweet boy was found in North Long Beach by a couple of young good Sams\u2014and his caregivers named him Sammy. The vet that they brought Sammy to said that it was his lucky day as he would not have lasted much longer on the street alone.<\/p>\n

Sammy\u2019s a senior dog who has been suffering from extreme malnutrition and severe arthritis. He\u2019s in constant pain. He\u2019s also looking for someone with a heart to give him a warm, loving home and live the rest of his life pain free. He also has a donation page for vet bills; if you want to help in this effort, please visit this link<\/a>. If you want to adopt Sammy, please e-mail the rescuers at pfevolunteers@gmail.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Sammy1\"<\/p>\n

\"Sammy2\"<\/p>\n

This funny little face just appeared on a local cat person\u2019s doorstep one evening. She opened a can of food for him, and of course, you know what happened next. His rescuer got him to a vet immediately to have him neutered, and they also tested him for the feline FIV\/FELv (he was negative on both). He also has gotten his starter vaccination and an appointment for his next vacs next month. He is very sweet and a little on the timid side, but he\u2019s a true lover and seems to get along with his rescuer\u2019s other three cats. Four is too many, and she\u2019d love to find him a good home.<\/p>\n

The rescuer named him Felix for obvious reasons. Felix is a 10-month-old tux and doesn\u2019t respond to his name yet, so if you\u2019re interested in him, you can give him one that sticks. Email ekobliha@rocketmail.com<\/a>\u00a0if you\u2019re interested in adopting him.<\/p>\n

Once again, thank you, everyone who act as more than a voice for animals.<\/p>\n

Mark Your Calendars (the People Way)<\/h1>\n

\"FOLBA\"<\/p>\n

Friends of Long Beach Animals\u2019<\/a>\u00a0(FOLBA) Student Essay\/Poetry Contest<\/strong><\/p>\n

Entries accepted until June 1; email entries to <\/strong>deborah@folba.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Free to enter<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you know a young person who has a passion for animal welfare, this competition is a great way to start him or her on the path to communicating the importance of it to others. This year\u2019s theme, \u201cBe Kind to Animals,\u201d is open to students in two categories, and cash prizes of $100 for first place, $50 for second place and $25 for third place will be offered for each category. Each entry may be no more than 250 words and one page in length; only one entry per student will be accepted. Be sure to include the following: first and last names, home address, phone number, grade level and school name (indicate if homeschooled).<\/p>\n

All winners will receive award certificates, and all participants will receive certificates of participation. Winners will be contacted by\u00a0June 10 and will be invited to read their essay or poem at the FOLBA membership meeting on Thursday, June 16. Winning essays and poems will be published on the FOLBA website<\/a>.
<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Pussy<\/strong><\/p>\n

CATalina Wine Mixer<\/strong><\/p>\n

May 14, Saturday, Pussy & Pooch Pet Lifestyle Center, 9388 S. Santa Monica Boulevard, Beverly Hills<\/strong><\/p>\n

$50 general, $75 VIP<\/strong><\/p>\n

Want to hobnob with the coolest cats in town? Pet boutique and veritable animal social club Pussy & Pooch is presenting this elegant (the cats will have it no other way) fund-raiser for FixNation<\/a>, another great TNR organization, located in Sun Valley. Sip the night away, listen to some good jazz, participate in raffles, and know that your donation is making a difference to the lives of cats who frequently don\u2019t have the option of enjoying a good home. The flyer says that cats are welcome, but you\u2019d better check with Fluffy first\u2014cats usually like to stay in their pajamas at home. Tickets can be purchased here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Bowling<\/p>\n

Helen Sanders CatPAWS Bowling Fund-Raiser<\/strong><\/p>\n

Saturday, May 14; 2:00PM\u20135:00PM, Westminster Lanes, 6471 Westminster Boulevard, Westminster<\/strong><\/p>\n

Donations requested<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hit a strike for the “spare” kitties that Helen Sanders CatPAWS has waiting with their foster humans! You don’t have to be a champion bowler to join in–every ball can go into the gutter as long as you’re there to have a great time, enjoy an opportunity drawing, and fund-raise for these wonderful cats, many of whom were pulled from shelters to find them permanent, loving homes. Check out the information on the flyer.<\/p>\n

\"Frostbites<\/p>\n

Frostbites Fund-Raiser for spcaLA<\/a><\/strong>
<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Wednesday and Thursday, May 18 and 19, noon to 11:00PM, Frostbites, 1827 Ximeno Avenue, Long Beach<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prices according to menu<\/strong><\/p>\n

Oh, ice cream, ice cream! Who doesn\u2019t love it! This is the greatest way, aside from adopting one yourself, to support the pets at spcaLA at the Pitchford Companion Animal Village. Bring in the flyer below or show it on your mobile device from the cashier, and 20 percent of your purchase will be donated to spcaLA. Get four scoops!<\/p>\n

\"Fix\u00a0\u00a0\"Hope<\/p>\n

Fix Long Beach (FLB)<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0Spay\/Neuter Clinic, dogs only for spay\/neuter; cats and dogs welcome for shots and microchips. This month\u2019s clinic is generously sponsored by the Second and Third districts<\/strong><\/p>\n

Saturday, May 21, 7:30AM\u20134:00PM, Houghton Park, 6500 Atlantic Avenue (near Jordan High), Long Beach<\/strong><\/p>\n

Free to qualifying residents<\/strong><\/p>\n

The grassroots free spay\/neuter organization<\/strong> Fix Long Beach invites you to make an appointment for your unfixed dog, or get vouchers for free procedures for them! These clinics are generously sponsored through Hope for Paws\u00a0and Eldad Hagar<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Guidelines for FLB clinics are as follows:<\/p>\n