No-Kill Austin & More

It's been busy around here--last week I spent a whole day in Austin, TX (a three-hour hike from my house) attending the "No-Kill Austin" conference, which promised appearances by Nathan Winograd and other big names in the "No-Kill Community".  Winograd couldn't attend, but the roster of speakers offered several hands-on topics by folks from various Shelters, including The Animal Ark, of Hastings, MN.  I had to find pet-sitting for my two dogs and one foster (thanks so much, Ms. Anne, a wonderful animal advocate!) and arrange for my 16-year-old daughter to pick my dogs up in the evening.  I rode up with two volunteers from the Shelter, including my dear friend, Ms. M., who has been the Off-Site Team Coordinator for the Shelter volunteers.


Ms. M. has, after a great deal of thought and with sadness, decided to step down as Coordinator, a volunteer position she's held (actually, more like has "lived") for two years.  Ms. M. has spent more than four years dedicated to the animals of the Montgomery County Animal Shelter.  It's better to let her explain things herself, as written in her formal resignation letter to the volunteers:

For four years, I have been working to lower the killing at this facility by volunteering.  For the last two years, I have been supporting the shelter’s stated goal of becoming a no-kill* facility by leading a team of volunteers working to establish a key component, a Comprehensive Adoption Program.   Let me stop here and say thank you to all of you that have worked along side toward this goal.  We would not have been successful without you.

September ended my second year in this team lead role.  The team has accomplished much in the last two years

-- We have built a team of 300+ adoption volunteers and 53 trained off-site adoption coordinators.
-- Over 2700 animals are now “out-of-shelter” from off-site venues due to our efforts.
-- More than $20,000 in donations and merchandise has been raised for MCAS animals. 
-- We have held over 1000 adoption events throughout Montgomery County. 
-- Our adoption coordinators have contributed over 2 man-years of service to the County (just physically sitting at adoption events).
-- We have worked with over 80 businesses and agencies in Montgomery County. 
-- Our second year we have increased performance in each of the above categories over first year results. 
--We have planned events, arranged animal transport, solicited donations of all equipment, tracked our results, participated in marketing, and maintained websites to communicate event schedules to fosters and volunteers
-- We have, as a team, made a concerted effort to help MCAS staff with adoption support functions like help with kennel cards, animal inventories, tracking long-term animals, heartworm and FeLuk testing, on-line inquiries and data input for off-site adoptions.

However, I cannot support the current change in direction to a “low-kill” goal.  We can do better and the animals depend on us to do so.   A no-kill goal is non-negotiable.  Our resources are too valuable to expend on a lesser goal. 

We need: 

--Leadership that believes it is possible to save all savable animals while maintaining quality of life for each and is dedicated to achieving this goal. 

--Full implementation all of the programs as identified in the No-Kill Equation (http://www.nokilladvocacycenter.org/pdf/Equation_000.pdf). 

--A means by which volunteers can participate in the development of policies and programs for their shelter. 

--An adoption program that is a primary shelter program with substantive shelter support. 

Animal inventories that are accurate (including fail-proof identification of animals) and used as the basis for formulating needed programs & marketing strategies. 

--Kennel cards that are complete, informative (including owner turn-in information) and accurate.

--Promised adoption services provided in an efficient manner so that animals can be competitively marketed to the public. 

--A fail-proof system to assure Spay/Neuter compliance. 

-- Appropriate goals set and progress toward them measured and communicated publicly.

It is time to get serious about implementing the only programs shown to be effective in saving all savable animals while maintaining quality of life.  Shelters that have accomplished this say that it does not take four years or five years nor does it does require privatization.  It does require the right goals, a determined, accountable management & staff and an engaged public, working diligently, and with integrity, to organize this shelter to support all necessary programs.  I’m sure that this is possible for MCAS.

-*-

The selfish part of me wants her to continue.  But Ms. M. is adamant that the management of the MC Animal Shelter has reneged on promises to dedicate resources toward making the Shelter no-kill.  I understand her concerns, and hope that I'll be able to work with her in her next endeavor.  For the moment, she plans to take a well-deserved sabbatical and spend time with her family.

I have had the honor of working with Ms. M. for almost two years, and her dedication and energy has always amazed me.  I will miss doing Off-Sites with her.  It won't be the same.

At any rate, I'm not exactly sure what my future with the Shelter will be--right now I am in a "hold" pattern due to High School Band commitments through the end of October.

I have one foster dog, the awesome Chihuahua senior, Mrs. Puff.  I'm working to find her a home.  She is a great dog who deserves her own home.  Of course, she thinks she already has a home.  Here she is scratching a food dish to let me know that a treat might be appropriate.


My other Chihuahua foster, the incorrigible but cute "L'il Dude" is now with Dakota Rescue.  He'll get neutered then he'll be put up for adoption.  I delivered him to his new foster mom in late September.  I'll post an update when I have one.

Meanwhile, my own dog, Chopper, recently adopted from the Shelter, came inside one day with a severe squint in his left eye.  I figured he'd poked himself on the shrubbery while trying to get at the neighbor's Labradoodle on the other side of the fence.  When the squint didn't ease up, I decided to take him to my Vet.  Dr. Williams did a stain and we saw a 2mm "hole" in the cornea.  I had to administered antibiotic eye drops and tablets, but the hole has healed quickly and Chopper is back to his normal self.

The Chihuahua Whisperer

She's short, pudgy and middle-aged.  Tiny dogs adore her.  Their teeth and barking are only temporary obstacles.  She takes these little critters with huge Napoleon complexes and teaches them how to be loving lap dogs.  She is...The Chihuahua Whisperer.

BTW, these are the Chi's I've fostered since I started working with The Montgomery County, Texas, Animal Shelter (MCTAS).  I've also adopted out other Chihuahuas and Chi-mixes at Off-Site events.  I admit it:  I am addicted to tiny dogs. :)

More Chihuahua Mayhem

This elegant old lady Chi is one of my foster dogs--and I've named her "Mrs. Puff". 

I don't know why we've had so many Chihuahuas and Chi-mixes come through the Shelter as of late--but these tiny dogs seem to be everywhere.  Mrs. Puff is the most even-tempered Chi I've ever seen--she doesn't quake, shake, nip, snarl, cringe or growl.  Instead, she sits as serene as a queen, and steps right up to be petted by men, women and courteous children.  An owner surrender, Mrs. Puff was one of our "Red Carpet" dogs who attended a publicity event held at our local cineplex to coincide with the opening of the movie "Cats and Dogs 2:  The Revenge of Kitty Galore."  Mrs. Puff strolled down the carpet with the grace of a true diva.

Mrs. Puff was dignified and calm during our "Red Carpet" Event.

 
So what if her teeth are not so great, and she's got the beginnings of cataracts, and she's got the luxating patella thing so common with small dogs. Mrs. Puff is but is chipper and alert.  Her hearing is excellent and what she likes best is to sit under the computer desk in a cozy bed (she's there right now) or camp out on the couch.  She's not the prettiest or smallest Chihuahua, but she's got some good years left.  As one of the Shelter workers quipped, "She could spend the next five years walking toward the white light."  I thought I'd found a family for her, but they decided she was too old.  She's probably about 10.  Mrs. Puff would make a great couch companion for a retired person or couple and she'd be happy to let the grandkids (under direction) love on her.

This cute little "Chuggle" got adopted during our "Red Carpet" Event.

We're seeing a lot of Chi-mixes--the craze for "designer dogs" seems to have no end.  We've had Chuggles (Chihuahua-Pug) and "Chi-weenies" (Chihuahua-Dachshund) and plenty of BYB stock.

A typical "oversize" Chihuahua at our Fourth of July event.  This guy has a new home.

A cute little Chi-Weenie struts her Red Carpet style.

Little Teencie, now "Bella" (which happens to be the most popular dog name EVER, thanks, no doubt, to the Twilight enterprise!) has found her home, and according to reports, she had to be "disciplined" (i.e., removed from her new owner's lap and put on the floor for a stern scolding) when she started getting too bossy.

 "Teencie" with her new owner at the FM 1488, PetsMart, Magnolia, TX.

And she's only four pounds of Chihuahua fierceness.  Teencie was the one the Shelter staff nick-named "Piranha" for her nippy ways.

And we get the sad cases like this poor, toothless old Chihuahua, photographed by a Shelter worker.

 This kind of surrender is the sort that infuriates the Shelter staff and volunteers--tossing away a dog at the end of its days. I believe this dog went to rescue.

As for the rumor that all we have at our Shelter are big Lab-mixes and Pit Bulls, I'm here to say, if you want a small dog--including Rat Terriers, Dachshunds, small terriers or other "toy" breeds, you can find them at the Montgomery County Texas Animal Shelter.

I Have a Dilemma

Tucker, a little butterscotch-colored terrier mix, has been in foster care since May 3rd, but he has some major issues.  On the plus side, he's a little guy, under 20 pounds.  He is loving, playful and lives to chase squirrels (he has a huge beagle-like bark for such a small dog). We treated Tucker for heartworms with the 2-shot protocol, and he's well-recovered from that experience, but he has proven to be unreliable as far as housebreaking.

He stayed at my house from May through the middle of June.  I had a lot of trouble with him at my house, in spite of crating, in spite of walking him on leash, in spite of taking him out on a sensible schedule and watching to make sure he did his business.  I'm not a beginner in the housebreaking department, but this was a dog who was a poop-making machine and a two-to-three time pee-er with each outside visit.  And he would still mark or poop inside.  And sometimes, he would poop in his crate.  While there could be some underlying health issue, we're stuck--the Shelter doesn't run labs for routine things and there hasn't been money for comprehensive workups on an otherwise apparently healthy dog.  But Tucker's potty habits aren't the only problem.

Tucker is also a chewer.  He loves rawhides, and Nylabones, although I eliminated those right off while trying to solve the poop problems.  But in the two months he was at my house, he could slip away, just for a few minutes, and find stuff to chew up--earbuds, earphones, underpants--the usual stuff dogs love.  However, he also chewed up a vintage stuffed toy animal that was from my childhood.  He did this while I let him nap with me on top of my bed one rainy afternoon.  He somehow did this while snuggled in my arms without me realizing it--and I'm not that hard of a sleeper!  Okay, so that was my bad, and I learned that he can't sleep on or in the bed.

In addition to these tough but normally manageable bad habits, Tucker has some odd anxieties.

He seemed to "forget" every single day that my husband lived in the house.  He would charge, barking and lunging (all 15-pounds of him) at my husband each evening when he came home. Or each time he came in door on the weekend.

The normal approaches to this fearfulness didn't work.  Leashing and correcting didn't seem to make a difference.  We'd do the calm correction routine (like the successful parts on "The Dog Whisperer") at the door, and during the repetitions, and gradual movement to my husband walking in the door, Tucker would do fine.  Then he'd lapse again the next day.  Like a memory slip.

He was fine in the crate and okay on the leash with my husband--although my husband noted several times that Tucker seemed like an unusually clumsy and uncoordinated dog.  I, too,  noticed that Tucker could not keep to a heel without getting tangled in the leash, no matter how I held it.

When my son arrived home from college, Tucker treated him like he was the biggest, baddest, scariest guy on the planet.  And my son, who loves dogs and is a big soft-hearted lug of a kid, was crushed.  He took it personally, and got upset.  In fact, he practically cried over it one point, wailing, "Why doesn't this dog like me, Mom?"

 My son likes to hold a dog and surf the web or play video games.

Tucker's inability to adjust to my husband and son made it impossible to keep him in my house as a foster, especially when combined with the housebreaking and chewing.  I figured that I was the one at fault and hoped that Ms. N., Tucker's "sub-foster" since June 17th, could help Tucker with his issues.  She has a very anxious Aussie mix girl and  a deaf Aussie boy, and has brought both of these dogs around.  She is an experienced dog person.

I gave Ms. N. pretty much full disclosure (I left out the vintage toy animal bit) and she was confident she could work with him.  She got his stools firmed up (not only was the quantity amazing, his stools remained soft even after the heartworm treatment was finished) with cottage cheese and pumpkin.  She got him to keep his crate clean.  He was having fewer accidents.  He loved playing with Ms. N.'s dogs

However, Ms. N., brought home another foster.  This guy was newly fixed and marked a few times, so Tucker began marking again.  Or so Ms. N. thought.  Now Tucker has completely backslid.  He's peeing and pooping in the house again.  He's torn up blinds and cushions, and is falling apart if he is crated.  We have to decide what we are going to do next.

The problem is that he is still a Shelter dog.  The Shelter doesn't do exploratory lab work, or behavior-rehab or place dogs in sanctuaries.  The Shelter dogs get basic vetting and a rough behavioral review (not a real evaluation by an expert). As it stands, Tucker is not readily adoptable at this point unless he is consigned to living outside (which is probably all he had done before in his short life--he's less than two years old).

We have to select an option that doesn't involve a lot of money.  I'm going to to go over Tucker's case in full detail with Ms. N. One nagging fear that I've had ever since I brought Tucker home is that he is a distemper survivor.  He has always seemed just a little off in a neurological sense.  I don't know what it takes (besides more money than I have to spend on him) to determine what is behind his behavior, but we have to do something.

If you have had experience with a dog like Tucker and can offer any suggestions, please leave me a comment.

Saturday Shelter Snapshots

Time for another round-up of Shelter snapshots:

1.      Hawt Dogs & Hot Dogs.  Dedicated volunteers donated money, PR and time to help mount the “Hawt Dogs & Hot Dogs” mega-adoption event on July 24^th.  Sleek, pointy-topped white catering tents sprang up in front of the Shelter, while café umbrellas sprouted in the fenced-in play area. Balloons and banners announced the event and a full complement of volunteers and Shelter employees flung up the Shelter to highlight the dogs and cats needing new homes. 

Long-term dogs, our “Diamonds in the Ruff” were available at special adoption rates, and hot dogs donated by our local James Coney Island franchise were available (donations encouraged) as snacks.  Sixty-nine animals left the Shelter on Saturday, including 14 foster animal placements and three animals transferred to rescues.  About 10 of our long-term animals found new homes.

2.      Overheard at the Shelter.  A college-age girl, with her parents in tow, was looking for a dog—preferably a Chihuahua.  The dog had to be under 5 pounds.  When I asked about the severe weight restriction (a necessity since our average Chihuahua weighs in around 8 pounds), the girl said that her Sorority in Austin didn’t allow any dog over 5 pounds. 

A vision of Paris Hilton and her little Chi flashed through my head, and I couldn’t stop myself from asking if the girl realized how challenging it would be to care for a dog while she’s in college.  “We’ve got four dogs!” the girl replied.  When I asked if she realized that Chihuahuas are prone to house-breaking difficulties, her mother snapped, “We’ve got a 21-year-old Chihuahua and he never has accidents.”  In my experience, it’s the rare Chi that is truly, fully housebroken.  We didn’t have anything that small (fortunately) and so I turned the family over to a different volunteer before I really said something snarky.  The last thing a college-age kid in a Sorority house needs is a dog.  As I passed by the girl’s father, he said, “Thank you,” in a low, grateful voice that let me know he and I were in agreement.

3.      Pyrenees-Anatolian Shepherd Mixes.  Both the Great Pyrenees and the Antolian Shepherd are common big dog breeds in our part of Texas, used primarily to guard goats and sheep.  Our local Craigslist generally has at least one listing for “Great Pyrenees-Anatolian Shepherd mixes".  Recently, a young Anatolian mix came in as a stray at the Shelter.  You could tell from the dome of his head and the fluffy coat that Rufus (his kennel name) was a Pyrenees mix. 

Great Pyrs and Anatolians are just too damn smart, and they do poorly in the Shelter, quickly becoming despondent.  This big, young guy had closed down with depression.  He had lost weight and was suffering from abscessed areas near his dewclaws.  Two volunteers gave him a much-needed bath and spent an hour combing out his tangles.  Although Rufus perked up, he wouldn’t eat any canned food.  I was transporting for an Off-Site, so the Coordinator decided to take Rufus with us.  Our goal was to find him a foster home.  We had to drag him into PetsMart and I was concerned the managers would think we were bringing a sick dog to an Off-Site.  The dog flopped down into his crate, and stared dimly out into space. 

However, a couple came by and were immediately smitten.  They offered to foster him, and after filling out the paperwork , the husband had to pick up the dog and carry him to the parking lot.  He spread his army fatigues across the back cargo area of his SUV, explaining he was a former Green Beret.  Then he hefted the dog into the rear cargo space, patted him softly and said, “Now we we’re off to Best Friends [a local Veternarian’s office] before they close.  Thank goodness for those who step up to help dogs like Rufus.

-*-

Photos courtesy of the MCAS Facebook page, located here

D.C. with Dogs

We are on vacation, and my little dog and all my fosters are at their get-away digs, too!  In fact, the MinPin, "Sam" is now back at my house with my college-age son, who had to head home to work. Sam's foster mom said he was well-behaved at her house (she has seven dogs, including fosters and rescue transients).

We spent four days in New York City and are now in Washington, D.C., staying with my sister-in-law, who works high up in the FBI.  This cute little Chihuahua was on tour with his owner at the Lincoln Memorial.  His owner says he goes out to see the D.C. sights almost every weekend, riding along in her backpack.

My daughter said I just had to have a "dog fix".  She was right--I felt better after seeing this cute little guy. re We' heading out to visit Arlington Cemetery today to pay our respect to those who have died for our freedom, then we're off to Mount Vernon.  Did George Washington have a favorite dog?  I plan to find out.

On The Hunt

Sometimes in the course of events it becomes necessary to take an excursion with members of the family.  As this is one of those times, I'll be away from my off-sites.  My own dog, Cross (AKA The Cutest Dog in the World) has gone to my Mom's house, to join the Chihuahua Pack.  Teencie and Tucker are still vacationing with their BFFs the Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mixes.  "Sam," the Miniature Pinscher who was my Rusty-look-alike is going to visit another MinPin named "Jake."  So, we'll BRB.

It's Raining Chihuahuas

We're not quite in a drought here in North Houston, but it's been raining Chihuahuas at the Montgomery County Animal Shelter where I volunteer.  Here are three owner-surrender Chi's, reluctantly turned in by an elderly man who could no longer afford to keep them.  They were very sweet, so once they are checked over (and spayed/neutered if needed) I'm sure they will find homes.  We've had Chihuahua puppies and assortment of adult Chihuahuas, along with Teencie, my tiny little foster Chi.

 I don't know if our Chihuahua frenzy is due to fall-out from the popularity of these dogs in the media as "purse dogs" and movie stars (Beverly Hills Chihuahua), but one thing for sure is that these cute little dogs come with their own special needs.

Meanwhile, Little Teencie has come a long ways.  She is still very skittish and will dodge and nip if she feels threatened, and she has a typical, sharp Chihuahua bark, but she has been sleeping with my daughter or with me (she started howling at night when crated) and this has helped her warm up considerably.

My what big eyes you have, Tucker!

Both Teencie and Tucker are going to spend the next four days with a different foster volunteer--I'm leaving tomorrow for an Art Retreat in Waxahachie, and these two dogs are more work than my family is willing to provide.  Tucker has already had one stint at a foster's house and it was very good for his confidence.  Tucker still has issues with men.  He gets panicky when my big college-age son is around, so I have to crate him to keep him from barking fearfully.  If my son would work with me, I could get Tucker to settle down, but my son takes it personally--he's still missing our dog, Taco, and thinks Tucker is just stupid.

Tucker is doing good with his heartworm treatment and will start going to off-sites soon.  BTW, the Shelter lists him as a Chihuahua mix, but at 15 pounds and with his long Whippet-like legs and Beagle-bugle bark, I don't think there's much Chihuahua in him!

-*- Top photo by T.H.