{"id":322,"date":"2018-12-21T10:09:55","date_gmt":"2018-12-21T18:09:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/?p=999932050"},"modified":"2018-12-21T10:09:55","modified_gmt":"2018-12-21T18:09:55","slug":"pet-projects-a-literary-holiday-gift-for-rescuers-volunteers-and-shelter-staff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/pets\/pet-projects-a-literary-holiday-gift-for-rescuers-volunteers-and-shelter-staff","title":{"rendered":"A literary holiday gift for rescuers, volunteers and shelter staff"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

Here\u2019s a holiday gift for rescuers, fosters, shelter workers, vet techs, spay\/neuter activists, volunteers, and anyone else who\u2019s spent every penny and ounce of spirit on the never-ceasing effort to get every homeless, dumped, unwanted and abused animal into a loving home, or at least a forever rescue. The gift is a book, Twelve Dogs of Christmas<\/em> by David Rosenfelt (New York: Minotaur Books, October 2016). Because I can\u2019t afford to give everyone a copy, you\u2019ll be happy to know that you can borrow it absolutely free from the Long Beach Public Library. You can buy it from Amazon as well.<\/p>\n

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Twelve Dogs <\/em>is the 15th in Rosenfelt\u2019s Andy Carpenter mystery series. The books feature a New Jersey lawyer who would fit right in here in Long Beach. He\u2019s a dog lover and often takes the part of pet activist in a few cases: A dog who was ordered euthanized by his owner, who turns out not to be his owner and who\u2019s been murdered; a dog owner charged with murder; a homeless man who was attacked along with his dog and is now accused of murder. All the books give a big part to Carpenter\u2019s golden retriever, Tara\u2014she\u2019s a rescue,of course. Tara blessedly acts like a dog and doesn\u2019t usually fetch clues that solve the crimes\u2014she\u2019s allowed to be the dog that Carpenter needs.<\/p>\n

The fictional Tara was named after Rosenfelt and his wife\u2019s beloved retriever. The couple set up a foundation named for Tara, which takes in dogs on their final days in shelters and find them good homes. The Tara Foundation saved a lot of retrievers, some who weren\u2019t retrievers, and quite a few seniors. The Rosenfelts themselves found themselves repeated foster failures. To some of us, this will have a familiar ring, whether dog tags or kitty bells.<\/p>\n

Of course, volunteers, shelter staff and pet rescuers are on Rosenfelt\u2019s good list. He also has experienced the crap they go through and put themselves through for animals. In Twelve Dogs<\/em>, Martha \u201cPups\u201d Boyer goes through a lot of it herself, spending her time and about $60,000 annually visiting the shelter in Passaic County to rescue dogs.<\/p>\n

\u201cPups\u2019s house rarely has fewer than 25 dogs in it, but it\u2019s clean,\u201d reads a descriptive passage. \u201cIt\u2019s an excellent way for these dogs to come into what might otherwise have been a cold and uncaring world. As you might have guessed by now, I am a big fan of Pups. \u2026 She does not bullshit. Ever. She says exactly what\u2019s on her mind.\u201d I\u2019m imagining everyone I volunteer with nodding their heads and saying, \u201cYep, that\u2019s \u2026\u201d and the name of someone who\u2019s spent an entire paycheck on food and vet bills and takes in a desperate case anyway.<\/p>\n

The neighbors are also fine with Pups, except for one person who makes an anonymous complaint to the zoning board. Andy represents Pups in court, where, against counsel, she blurts out the name of the person she suspects of complaining. When he\u2019s murdered and Pups is suspected, Carpenter set out to prove her innocent.<\/p>\n

A glance at the back flyleaf will tell you that Pups didn\u2019t do it, and that\u2019s not a spoiler. But you\u2019ll enjoy finding out who did do it, how they did it, and why. If you are one of the thankfully many animal heroes in Long Beach or anywhere, your heart will warm and you\u2019ll feel heard. That\u2019s my gift to you, but it was Rosenfelt’s in the first place.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe animal shelters in Passaic County leave quite a bit to be desired. They\u2019re not as bad as shelters in some areas of the country, but that\u2019s pretty faint praise. They\u2019re overcrowded, and animals that aren\u2019t adopted can get put down \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s where Pups steps in. She takes the puppies from the shelter, along with their mothers, and she nurses and cares for them until they\u2019re ready to be placed in homes. For a long time now, she has been so well known that people often bring the puppies directly to her. And if instead they bring the puppies to the shelter, the manager \u2026 gently advises them to take the puppies to Pups. He knows that puppies have a much better chance that way.\u201d (Andy Carpenter in The Twelve Dogs of Christmas<\/em>)<\/p>\n

Our shelter at Long Beach Animal Care Services<\/a> (LBACS) isn\u2019t perfect, either. Few are. It gets overcrowded because of strays; abandoned cats, dogs and rabbits; dumped companion animals; and myriad other human-caused problems. But the saving grace is a hardworking staff and volunteer base, all overworked and all doing their best to make the pets there adoptable and letting rescuers know about difficult cases.<\/p>\n

The holiday season, said Andy Carpenter, is a particularly busy time at the Tara Foundation because people want to get a dog as a Christmas present. \u201cWe are not enamored of this type of adoption because dogs are not ties or sweaters or tennis racquets,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Sure, but it\u2019s guaranteed that a pet will be on someone\u2019s Christmas list. So, last week, Pet Projects featured a gift certificate to pay the adoption fee for a rescue or a shelter pet, and LBACS had a voucher worth $50 toward an adoption fee for a friend or family member\u2019s pet adoption at their facility. You, of course, would go with the person to find the new friend, and they\u2019ll be gifts to each other.<\/p>\n

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Two of LBACS\u2019s shelter staff, Jill and Mike, produced these living greeting cards with adoptable pets available at LBACS, 7700 E. Spring St., Long Beach, at the entrance to El Dorado Park (no parking fee for shelter visitors) and at Pet Food Express\u2019s Cat Adoption Center, 4220 Long Beach Blvd., Long Beach.<\/p>\n

Nothing like curling up with a furry buddy and a good book.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LongBeachAnimalCare\/videos\/1969428883152975\/?t=12<\/p>\n

Do you love super-fluffy cats? If you do, here\u2019s the answer to Little Lulu: It\u2019s Big <\/strong>Lew Lew<\/strong>\u00a0(ID#A504055<\/span><\/a>), about 5 years old. This kindhearted bundle of fur has nothing but love to give. Bring him home for the holidays\u2014he\u2019s available from our partner,\u00a0Pet Food Express<\/a>.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LongBeachAnimalCare\/videos\/533536813832816\/<\/p>\n

Flower <\/strong>(#A613542<\/span><\/a>) has a few gifts for a new friend: a waggy tail, a playful nature, a wet tongue and a loving spirit. Watch her and volunteer Ricky having (and tossing) a ball! She\u2019s a pit bull terrier, about 5 years old. She\u2019s waiting at LBACS.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LongBeachAnimalCare\/videos\/1178584985626855\/?t=4<\/p>\n

Oh, Rudolph<\/strong> the gray-nose American shorthair, with his fluffy best bud Frosty<\/strong> \u2026 LBACS\u2019s Bunny Barn has rabbits of more colors and types than ornaments on a tree. Meet them all! Frosty\u2019s ID is #A618604, and Rudolph\u2019s is # A618605. The Bunny Barn is on LBACS\u2019s Krampus\u2014uh, campus.<\/p>\n

Things to do, pets to support<\/h4>\n

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Haute Dogs\u2019 Operation Santa Paws: <\/strong>Saturday, Dec. 22, 11:30 a.m.\u20133:30 p.m., Long Beach Animal Care Services, 3950 Cherry Ave, Long Beach, adoption fees apply.<\/p>\n

Santa Paws himself (you may know him as Justin Rudd) and his helpers (you) will bring toys and goodies to all the good cats, dogs and bunnies and cleaning supplies for the staff in three shelters: Long Beach Animal Care Services<\/a>, spcaLA<\/a>, Seal Beach Animal Care Center<\/a> and Orange County Animal Care<\/a>. (See the wish list here<\/a>.) Participants will meet at LBACS\u2019s parking lot, pass out items at the Long Beach locations, and either caravan to the other shelters or just do Long Beach, if preferred. If you or a business or organization you\u2019re connected with wants to start an independent collection, download a poster here<\/a> and follow the instructions on the Santa Paws website<\/a>. All information is readily available there. Happy holidays to all critters and those of us who love them!<\/p>\n

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CAT CLINIC! Fix Long Beach Free Spay\/Neuter Clinic, sponsored by Friends of Long Beach Animals (FOLBA): <\/strong>Saturday, Feb. 23, 9 a.m.\u20133 p.m., Cherry Park, 1901 E. 45th St., Long Beach, free spay\/neuter for qualifying Long Beach residents; free microchips; shots, flea-med doses, dewormers and nail trimmings $10 each.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the law to fix your pets in Long Beach and many Southern California cities. To add to this, cats can go into heat at 6 months old and have three litters a year, with an average of four kittens per litter. And those kittens have kittens. Who wants to do the math? Fix your cat instead! To provide this costly service to our Long Beach residents who otherwise couldn\u2019t afford it, Fix Long Beach offers this service free of charge. Make an appointment through IM or email at <\/strong>fixlongbeachinfo@gmail.com<\/a>;<\/strong> include (1) your name, (2) address, (3) phone number, (4) pet’s name, (5) age, (6) sex, (7) breed, and (8) weight. Standby available at 8:30 a.m. Vouchers are provided through Long Beach Animal Care Services (ACS) Spay\/Neuter Assistance Voucher Program<\/strong> for pets without appointments or dogs too large to fit on the vehicle\u2014they may be used at specified veterinary clinics. For both spay\/neuter and vaccinations,<\/strong> all dogs must be on sturdy leashes and all cats must be in dedicated carriers<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ongoing<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The following pet-related businesses regularly feature cat, dog and rabbit adoptions. If you\u2019re a Long Beach-area rescue and don\u2019t see your adoption event listed here, please email\u00a0pets@lbpost.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Petco Animal Supplies, Marina Shores,\u00a06500 Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach<\/strong><\/p>\n