{"id":2650,"date":"2015-05-04T07:11:53","date_gmt":"2015-05-04T07:11:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lbpost.com\/articles\/life\/pets\/community-callout-tonight-for-pet-volunteers-2\/"},"modified":"2015-05-04T07:11:53","modified_gmt":"2015-05-04T07:11:53","slug":"community-callout-tonight-for-pet-volunteers-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/pets\/community-callout-tonight-for-pet-volunteers-2","title":{"rendered":"Community Callout Tonight for Pet Volunteers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Support<\/p>\n

Sorry for the short notice, but one of our \u00fcber-rescuers\u2014that\u2019s redundant, because if you rescue at all, you\u2019re either already \u00fcber or will be shortly\u2014decided to cobble together a pet-community meeting sort of at the last minute. This is my first chance to write it up, so I cobbled something together in a huge hurry because I want everyone to be there who can be there.<\/p>\n

Emily Haden is the founder of the Live Love Animal Rescue<\/a> in Long Beach. As do all animal advocates, she\u2019s the one who gets the call, e-mail or Facebook post when a litter of newborn kittens is found dumped in a trash can or someone picks up a starving, scruffy dog is found running in the streets: \u201cCan you help? Can you take this guy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Haden and other Long Beach pet people who are seriously full to capacity\u2014not just in available housing but also in body and mind but not in spirit\u2014want to turn this around maybe 45 degrees and involve pet lovers in the community who want to do something but may not know how, what or where they can find time. With this in mind, a community meeting will be held tonight (Monday, May 4) from 7:00 to 8:30 PM at the Bay Shore Community Church, 5100 The Toledo, Long Beach. The meeting will focus on creating more adoption events and placing volunteers in them, networking on social media, volunteering at the shelter, and getting more pets placed in foster homes.<\/p>\n

Speakers will include Animal Care Services<\/a> (ACS) manager Ted Stevens community organizer Justin Rudd of Community Action Team<\/a> and Haute Dogs<\/a>, and Anna Wong, volunteer for Stray Cat Alliance<\/a>, an L.A.-based advocacy for feral and stray cats (community cats). Fifth-District Councilmember Stacy Mungo has also given her support.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m honored to help organize and promote the event,\u201d Rudd said. \u201cI want the public to be knowledgeable about ACS\u2019s effort to get animals adopted and how the public can use their time and talent to help market these available animals. And I look forward to the Q & A portion of the evening that will allow the public to ask Long Beach animal-related questions that may be on their hearts and minds.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the meeting, Haden will talk about community involvement, Wong will discuss the TNR program that Stray Cat Alliance and other organizations use to stem the feral and stray cat population and will explain how cat colonies are maintained, and Stevens will discuss shelter volunteerism and will answer questions. There will be an appearance by a special guest; his name is Scout, and he\u2019s a little terrier mix that Haden rescued as a stray and is now fostering. Scout\u2019s hoping to hook up with the love of his life at the meeting.<\/p>\n

ACS\u2019s motto is \u201cOne Too Many\u201d\u2014one too many unwanted pets, animal cruelty incidents, euthanasia procedures\u2014and there are more than one too many animals that are adoptable, but Haden hopes that there aren\u2019t more than one too few placements for them. As of now, even with intake numbers dropping through the facilitation of free or low-cost spay\/neuter procedures provided by Friends of Long Beach Animals<\/a> and Fix Long Beach<\/a> and rescue organizations like Haden\u2019s that pull pets from the shelter, the shelter still takes in more pets than they can adopt out or send to rescue.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that [ACS goes] through a lot of emotional distress on that,\u201d Haden said. \u201cWe get a lot of tearful phone calls saying that they\u2019re completely full and a lot of animals need to find placement immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Stevens, the weekly intake of cats and dogs at the shelter averages about 160; it increases greatly at cat breeding season, and it\u2019s already starting to rain kittens.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t have the exact numbers on me from last year, but I think we had roughly 4,100 dogs and 4,200 cats last year,\u201d Stevens said.<\/p>\n

Haden wants to inspire more volunteers from the community to participate in activities in the Long Beach area that will increase homing animals. People wanting to help work toward this goal can exercise pets, groom them, do laundry for rescues, and temporarily foster cats and dogs in their homes. Rescue organizations would back the fosters and take care of medical issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith more foster homes, more lives are saved,\u201d Haden said.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s nothing on TV tonight that you can\u2019t DVR, football season\u2019s over (isn\u2019t it?), and the meeting\u2019s scheduled for after the dinner hour, so if you\u2019ve been saying, \u201cWell, I really <\/i>want to do something, but I don\u2019t know whom to ask,\u201d ask away. If you absolutely cannot come but want to find out how to help, e-mail Emily Haden at Emily@livelovepetcare.com<\/a> or ACS volunteer coordinator Kathy Roddy at animalcare@longbeach,gov<\/a>, and one of them will get you connected. But do try to come in person. You may even wind up with Scout. And that would be a doggone good thing for both of you.<\/p>\n

Me: How can I help you?<\/i><\/p>\n

Her: Yes, I would like to get some information about getting my dog fixed<\/i><\/p>\n

Me: How old is your dog?<\/i><\/p>\n

Her: I think about a year old. This is all new to me. When she has her cycle, does that mean she’s in heat?<\/i><\/p>\n

Me: Yes, it can mean that.<\/i><\/p>\n

Her: Would being in heat cause her to be grumpy and needy?<\/i><\/p>\n

Me: Do you remember when you first started having your cycle and how it felt?<\/i><\/p>\n

Her: Oh, Lordy, poor thing! Can I come get a voucher tomorrow?<\/i><\/p>\n

~ Phone conversation between a Fix Long Beach client and Pam Rainsdon, another \u00fcbervolunteer<\/i><\/p>\n

Virtually Pets<\/strong><\/p>\n

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

This is Scout,<\/strong> whom you will meet this evening. True to his terrier genes, Scout\u2019s all heart! Despite the rough life Emily Haden presumes he had based on his appearance when rescued as a stray, he’s a sweet little man with lots of love to give. He\u2019s now healing from skin issues, a strong indication that he wasn\u2019t cared for wherever he lived. When you spend some time with Scout, you’ll see that he’s a happy boy who loves attention and belly rubs. He doesn\u2019t show any aggression toward people or other animals despite what he must have endured, and he\u2019ll jump into your arms with pure joy.<\/p>\n

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

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

Fred<\/strong> (gray kitty) and Ethel<\/strong> (black kitty) were bottle-fed as newborns by yet another \u00fcbervolunteer, Patty Williams, one of the local feline surrogate moms. The siblings are 11 weeks old and fully vetted. Adoption fee info and meet-n-greet can be obtained by e-mailing Patty at mydocuments2go@gmail.com<\/a>. Wish her happy Mother\u2019s Day while you\u2019re at it.<\/p>\n

Pet Projects<\/strong><\/p>\n

Friends of Long Beach Animals Humane Education Program, Free, Ongoing until July<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reserve a date for this necessary program now, as it will go on hiatus in mid-June. Friends of Long Beach Animals (FOLBA<\/a> stands by its word when it says it actively supports teaching children kindness to and respect for animals. FOLBA has provided several copies of humane books to all of the libraries in the Long Beach Unified School District, all the Public Libraries in Long Beach and Signal Hill, as well as to Raising-a-Reader and to Mary Bethune Transitional Center (assisting homeless children who need reading improvement so they can attend regular LBUSD classes). This interactive humane education program is free to all schools in the Long Beach Unified School District, Girl and Boy Scout Troops, Long Beach Parks and Libraries and Community Groups. Basic elements of the program are as follows:<\/p>\n