from "Trish"
SaveTheDogs@rcn.com themcd1998 Mason County Animal Shelter
A Big Holiday THANK YOU!Since the transition back to county control, you have
helped us save so many animals!
When the announcement was made this past summer
that the shelter was going from no kill back to kill/county control,
the rescue and adoptive community responded in droves.
Hundreds of dogs and cats were placed in foster care within
weeks, most of whom have since found forever homes.
Best Friends assisted by sending announcements
out to their network, which greatly increased the
exposure these animals were getting to the animal
loving community nationwide.
They also helped us find local volunteer help and sent a
team down to Pt Pleasant to meet with the county, staff,
and volunteers. Additionally, they worked tirelessly
behind the scenes for several weeks after the transition
to ensure the release of dogs that were being held
for a court case...to make sure they would not be euthanized.
THANK YOU!
As a parting gift, the group of volunteers that was running
the shelter as no kill took a bunch of the "leftover" dogs
home on the night prior to transition, to ensure they would
not be put down. THANK YOU! No one knew for sure
what the county's intentions where with regard to the
batch of mostly large black dogs that had not found
homes yet...and rescuers know that big black adult dogs
are less likely to be adopted. They still have
some of those dogs...please visit their website
to see if there is anyone you would like to adopt:
http://www.petfinde r.com/shelters/ WV128.htmlThe county provided basic shots for dogs upon intake at no
charge to rescues and was kind enough to let an online
volunteer maintain the Petfinder website to ensure
that it would be kept up to date. THANK YOU!
A new volunteer team stepped in to assist the new
shelter director with continuing (and expanding) the
rescue program. THANK YOU! It never ceases to amaze
us how energized you all are, and how willing you are
to step in and help as needed. We are very lucky
to have all of you as volunteers!
A volunteer rescue coordinator spends 6-8 hours online
and on the phone daily to keep in touch with rescues
and answer their inquiries and keep
Betty, the shelter director, informed as to which
animals are confirmed for rescue.
She also keeps our Petfinder person informed
on who needs to be moved to adopted status and
has worked tirelessly to develop/enhance
the southern portion of our transport route by
finding new drivers. THANK YOU CANDICE!
For months after the transition, Betty didn't have
a camera, so Julie (a local volunteer) visited the
shelter weekly to photograph new animals for
Petfinder. THANK YOU!
Another "on the ground" volunteer, Trish P, has been
an invaluable source of help for both Betty and Candice,
stepping in to help out wherever needed. THANK YOU!
Just when Candice decided she couldn't keep up
with the rescue applications, Carolyn joined the
online volunteer team and
stepped up to help process these apps and keep the rescue
program going strong. THANK YOU!
Sponsors continued to help us by covering the cost of
vetting for cats and dogs so they can go to rescue fully
vetted for free. They have also donated
money to help us get treatment covered for
heartworm positive dogs. THANK YOU!
Generous supporters donated Kuranda dog beds so our
dogs could be off the cold, hard concrete floor. THANK YOU!
We still need more beds...please visit our website and click on "Donate
a Kuranda Bed" or visit
http://www.kuranda. com/catalog/ donate_landing. php?intShelterID =3113if you would like
to ship a bed to our shelter.
Help For Animals, the low-cost spay/neuter clinic,
continued to provide care for the animals despite the fact
that they were left with an outstanding vetting bill of
over $8,500 at the time of the transition. THANK YOU!
(They still need $5,975 to be paid off, please contact
Vanessa at
800-953-7297 to contribute.
Donations made to
HFA are tax deductible. They are a 501c3
non-profit organization. ) THANK YOU to the
donors who have already contributed several
thousand dollars toward this outstanding bill.
Volunteer drivers regularly assisted with transporting
dogs and cats to rescues. THANK YOU! Special thanks go
out to Julie and Nicole who often drive long legs
on transports to get the Mason animals to safety.
Rescues throughout the northeast always managed to find
a space for "just one more" dog or cat whenever the shelter
started to reach capacity. THANK YOU!
Volunteer crossposters tirelessly networked online
to get the word out about animals needing homes
at our shelter. THANK YOU!
Thank you to Betty, our BLOGGER. Please visit her
Mason BLOG at
http://itsrainingca tsdogsglixman. blogspot. com/The end result of all of this hard work has been that since
July 2007, 225 dogs and cats have been rescued or adopted.
And another 9 dogs and cats are awaiting
transport to rescues.It has been an amazing group effort and we wanted to
take some time out during this busy holiday season to
thank all of you who have supported or helped us in any way.
We look forward to your continued support and
assistance in the future.
To quote Margaret Mead,
"Never doubt that a small group of
thoughtful, committed citizens can change
the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."Our dedicated supporters have definitely changed the
world for these animals.
YOU are living proof
that rural shelters CAN find homes for
their animals and DO NOT need to be high kill.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU
from the bottoms of our hearts!
We wish all of you a safe, happy, healthy holiday season.
If you have adopted or are fostering a Mason dog or cat,
please give them a hug from us!To see the dogs and cats that are currently
at our shelter and in need of homes,
please visithttp://masoncounty. petfinder. comPlease give us a foster or forever home
for the holidays!
Action Alert!!!!!
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