Aiken County Animal Services Offers a “No More Homeless Pets” Program

A family moves into a mobile home out in a rural area of the county.  They have a couple of dogs, one indoors and one outdoors.  They tie the outdoor dog up in the yard.  A neighbor dog comes over and impregnates the tethered female.

The mewing sounds come from cardboard boxes, empty buildings and dumpsters.  The county shelter gets overrun with unwanted puppies and kittens.  There are not enough foster homes.  The puppies get sick.  The kittens get sick.  Many caring hearts are broken when the tiny creatures die.

In Aiken County you have no obligation to spay or neuter your pets, so if members of our community allow their animals to breed, and the pregnant animals or their offspring end up at the county shelter, we all pick up the cost.

Currently there are many stakeholders in breaking this tragic, wasteful, irresponsible, immoral cycle.  There are low-and no-cost spay/neuter services like the SPCA Albrecht Center in Aiken and North Augusta’s CSRA Life Saver.  There is the FOTAS SNAP Program currently serving the Wagener area and the Valley, and there is the Aiken County “No More Homeless Pets” Spay and Neuter Program serving qualifying citizens throughout Aiken County.

How does the County Spay/Neuter Program work?  An individual fills out an application providing basic information: name, address, animal data, ownership, liability waivers and household income.  Once qualified by Animal Services, the owner receives a voucher that will be honored by any veterinarian in Aiken County who performs spay/neuter surgeries.

Applications are normally available through any of the following:

·         Aiken County Animal Shelter,

·         Public Works, Department of Social Services

·         County Libraries

·         Animal Control Officers

Applications must be presented in person at the County Animal Shelter to receive the voucher.

There is a $15 co-pay which accompanies the redemption of the voucher with the SPCA Albrecht Center, but the procedure will include a rabies vaccine and micro-chipping.  In some instances even transportation can be arranged.

There really is no good reason to have an intact pet in our households.  There is no reason to allow a female dog or cat to go into heat first, or have “just one litter.”  Male or female, cat or dog, a pet is going to be a happier healthier member of the family, and of the community, if its body’s recurring and incessant demand to breed is gone.

 In the absence of legislated incentives to alter our house pets, it falls upon the entire community to help stem the tides of unwanted puppies and kittens.  If you know of a situation that would be aided by accessible, affordable spay/neuter services, please provide information to the appropriate parties about what opportunities exist and how to access them.

Here is some contact information:

Aiken County Animal Services: (803) 642-1537 or www.fotasaiken.org

SPCA Albrecht Center: (803) 648-6863 or www.spca-albrecht.org

CSRA Life Saver: (803) 215-0559 or (803) 221-8608 or www.csralifesaver.com

FOTAS believes that their lives are in our hands. And, if you are not part of the solution, you may be part of the problem. Please help.

FOTAS Volunteers work with the AIKEN COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER, 411 Wire Road.  For more information, contact info@fotasaiken.org or visit FOTAS on line at www.fotasaiken.org

Aiken County Animal Shelter:  “By the Numbers”

May 13^th thru 19^th, 2013

Brought in:  55 dogs and 41 cats

Adopted:  11 dogs and 6 cats 

Put down:    54 dogs and 56 cats!

Aiken County Shelter “Pets of the Week!” HALF PRICE thru June 8^th!

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PERCY – 5 yrs.  Silver gray with big green eyes.A real lover! 

 MOLLY – 2 yrs. A happy, happy gal! Yours for half-price, only $35! 

 

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*All adoption fees include: Spay/Neuter, heartworm test, all shots, worming, and microchip.

FOTAS Spay/Neuter Program Gaining in the Valley

Between April 1^st and April 28^th this year, 172 unwanted dogs were received at the Aiken County Shelter, and 96 throw-away cats.  These numbers are one snapshot of the magnitude of the problem FOTAS is helping the county address.  Our Spay/Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP), launched last summer in Wagener as a pilot, is proving to be one of our most effective tools to reduce the numbers of unwanted litters of puppies and kittens.

On March 4^th of this year, we opened another SNAP project in the Valley with the help of the Burnettown Mayor’s Office and the SPCA Albrecht Center for Animal Welfare.  We had such an overwhelming response in Wagener that we thought the Burnettown operation would follow suit.

The Wagener Program launched on August 1^st last year and within two days we had enough animals enrolled to fill three large transports.  The participation exhausted the grant with Pawmetto Lifeline in Columbia in three trips.  Thank God for the generosity of the SPCA who picked up the program and enabled us to fix nearly 200 animals by the holidays.

Once the SPCA’s new Albrecht Center opened its high-capacity spay/neuter clinic on Willow Run Road, we had high hopes for SNAP to branch out to targeted areas throughout the county.

Chief Enforcement Officer Bobby Arthurs and his staff help target trouble spots with high numbers of strays and unwanted litters.  The Valley qualified.

Understanding that we are trying to raise the funds to fit, furnish and finish the new county shelter, the SPCA has again been hugely generous with its resources.  Already, they have allotted 75 surgeries for the program.

The Valley SNAP needs more help.  Although the program opened officially on March 4^th, we have had trouble finding an effective means to communicate with Valley residents who need assistance to fix their pets.  We are delighted to have spayed or neutered 28 dogs and 15 cats to date, but we were hoping to do that many by April 1^st.  We need more help.

The process is quite simple. If you or someone you know needs help getting your animals fixed, here are the steps:

• Go to Burnettown Municipal Building (Town Hall) and sign up;
• Fill out an enrollment form that tells us species, gender and a few pertinent facts.
• Wait to be called for a surgery date; and,
• Bring your animal to Burnettown Hall, or take it to the SPCA yourself (you must be enrolled to qualify).

It costs $15 for the surgery and another $5 for a rabies shot if it is not current.  That’s it.

We also are looking for a local resident to volunteer with the administrative tasks: making calls, on-site registration and loading.  You will get to meet the celebrity Herbie Brown who has been drafted by SNAP to transport participants.

Herbie Brown

FOTAS is profoundly grateful to the SPCA Albrecht Center, and we appreciate those who have already participated, or have given to this effort in other ways.  We cannot build enough shelters.  We cannot re-home enough animals.  We have got to pool our time and resources and make SNAP, and equivalent efforts, WORK.

 FOTAS Volunteers work with the AIKEN COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER, 411 Wire Road.  For more information, contact “info@fotasaiken.org” or visit FOTAS on line at www.fotasaiken.org.

Aiken County Animal Shelter:  “By the Numbers”

May 6^th thru 12^th, 2013

Brought in:  81 dogs and 50 cats

Adopted:  6 dogs and 6 cats 

Put down:    26 dogs and 78 cats!

Aiken County Shelter “Pets of the Week!” HALF PRICE!!

 

CAREN – 2yr Bull Terrier mix.  Right out of the Little Rascals.   

42 lbs of fun HALF PRICE!  $35

 

  









BAXTER – A silver baby with big blue eyes! If someone gets him first, there are more kittens! Only $35

  

 

   *All adoption fees include: Spay/Neuter, heartworm test, all shots, worming, and microchip.

 

 

We Need to Adopt Out More SHELTER Cats!

They were on their way to the beach, but the kids were begging to stop at the Aiken County Shelter, promising to walk “just a few dogs.”  They adopted “Paws,” a four-week-old kitten. Ultimately, the kitten went with the family everywhere they traveled.

Last summer, their neighbors packed up for vacation and headed out of town.  When there was no sign of Paws by that evening, the children were hysterical.  The vacationing neighbors were contacted.  Yes, they had seen Paws, but they were absolutely certain he had not hitched a ride.

Four weeks later, a man called from along that same route, three hours from Aiken, and he had found Paws! 

Veterinarians will confirm that cats are better at finding their way home than dogs!  It may take as long as a year, but cats are determined to return to their home and their families, if they can.

Cats make wonderful additions to any household.  They will keep the house, shed, yard and barn free of pests.  They are intelligent and affectionate.  They can learn to live happily with other family pets, even birds!  They can be both good companions: affectionate, playful, and amusing performers.  They have the added advantage of not minding being alone, as long as their surroundings are familiar.

Some additional interesting cat facts are:         
Cats have powerful night vision.
Cats keep themselves very clean.

 It has been scientifically proven that stroking a cat can lower one's blood pressure.

In 1987, cats overtook dogs as the number one pet in America.                

When your cat rubs up against you, she is actually marking you as "hers" with her scent. If your cat pushes his face against your head, it is a sign of acceptance and affection.

Someone who is allergic to one cat may not be allergic to another cat.  It has been proven that male cats shed much greater amounts of allergens than females; however, a neutered male sheds much less than a non-neutered male.

In just 7 years, one un-spayed female cat and one un-neutered male cat and their offspring can result in 420,000 kittens.

The tragic reality reflected in this week’s “By the Numbers” segment is that cats are dying by the hundreds, even thousands, in our own County Shelter.

Most people end up with cats as strays.  It is good that a homeless cat or kitten finds a family, but there is no way of telling what diseases the stray is carrying. 

Most of the wonderful adoptable cats at the County Shelter were also strays, but they have also been tested for Feline Leukemia and AIDS and, for $35, come complete with all their shots, spayed or neutered and microchipped.

Like the kids in our opening story, your children or grandchildren can learn empathy and responsibility caring for their own kitten.

“Cats at the Shelter” aka C.A.T.S., is a lovely, clean, healthy, happy place and, therefore, a wonderful place to find a special cat or kitten to love and be loved by in return.

Last cat fact: cats are better adopted in pairs!

If you absolutely cannot adopt a cat or kitten, participate in our Trap Neuter Release Program!

FOTAS Volunteers work with the AIKEN COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER, 411 Wire Road.  For more information, contact “info@fotasaiken.org” or visit FOTAS on line at www.fotasaiken.org

Aiken County Animal Shelter:  “By the Numbers”

CATS January thru April 2013

CATS Brought in:         472

CATS Adopted:            40        

CATS Put down:    437 or 93%!!

Aiken County Shelter “Pets of the Week!” HALF PRICE!!

 TARA – 1 yr. Elegant and affectionate. Only $35!

 

 

ARTHUR – 3yr Yellow Lab mix with golden eyes.  He is a 60lb lover! Half price = $35

*All adoption fees include: Spay/Neuter, heartworm test, all shots, worming, and microchip.

The Tail that Saved Ansel

Ansel was a stray, but someone must have loved him, because all you had to do was look his way and that tail would wag his whole great big American Bulldog body.  Everything wagged.

A happy dog-tail is a good thing, but in the narrow confines of the shelter pen that tail whacked itself bloody.  The volunteers were concerned. The shelter staff would pull Ansel, clean and bandage his tail, and Ansel would chew the wrapping off.  The solution seemed to be to dock his tail.

County Vet Kim said you can’t dock a tail in a mature dog without risking nerve damage, so she shortened Ansel’s tail a few inches.  But keeping the dog from messing with his wound was hopeless.  A foster placement was needed.

December and Kenny Clark own the Bark Mart in Graniteville, a full-service, locally owned, animal-lover’s paradise.  There is not an animal care product you could want that they don’t carry, plus grooming, boarding, and a low-cost spay/neuter clinic next door.  In the last half-year the Clarks have donated over 6,200 lbs. of high-quality dog food to the county shelter to help keep the dogs healthy.

December agreed to foster Ansel so his tail could heal.

Ansel arrived at the Bark Mart in a muzzle.  It was to keep him away from his tail, but as Chief Arthurs handed December Ansel’s leash, she was already deciding to firmly establish herself as “Queen” in the big dog’s mind.

She took him on rounds of the property as Ansel’s wiggle grew desperate.  He so badly wanted her to like him and to reassure him that he was going to be okay in the new place.  December ignored him.  Finally, tired and confused, Ansel sat.  As soon as his butt hit the floor, December was all over him with loving praise. From that moment on, Ansel was hers to command. 

Highly trainable, Ansel learned to sit with a simple motion of the hand. He never messed his kennel, even when tested for endurance, not once.  She fed him great food and he put on good weight.  He learned to greet every dog in the boarding kennel politely, and he had toys and treats and even a “blankey” that he toted around.

The family that saw Ansel on Petfinder lived two hours away in Pelzer, South Carolina.  December agreed to bring Ansel to meet them.  She bathed him and he buried his big face in her armpit as if he knew he was leaving.  December waivered about letting him go.  They had become good friends.

The Pelzer family; mom, dad, two girls and a boy, arrived at the shelter 90 minutes early.  They passed the time playing with a pit-bull named Theodore.

When Ansel Arrived, It was love at first sight.  They took him for a walk.  The dad had always had American Bulldogs and pits.  “He’s big, but we love him,” the girl-child said.  The next weekend, they came back and adopted Theodore.

The end of this tail is a grand beginning.

tagline:  FOTAS Volunteers work with the AIKEN COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER, 411 Wire Road.  For more information, contact “info@fotasaiken.org” or visit FOTAS on line at www.fotasaiken.org.

Aiken County Animal Shelter:  “By the Numbers”

April 15^th thru 28^th

Brought in:      90 dogs and 49 cats

Adopted:         24 dogs and NO cats!

Put down:        72 dogs and 60 cats

Aiken County Shelter “Pets of the Week!” 

 HYDE – Chow-Chow 2yr. 53 lbs.  Will aim to please his new best friend.  Only $70

HALEY –  Adult female Siamese mix. 9.5 lbs.  Gorgeous blue eyes and mellow-mellow. Only $35!

 

*All adoption fees include: Spay/Neuter, heartworm test, all shots, worming, and microchip.

Sasha and Suzanne, a Love Story

On March 24, 2013, a woman pulled her blue car into the Graniteville Cemetery and led a regal golden German shepherd out on a leash.  The woman walked into the cemetery, unleashed the dog, then ran back to her car and drove away.

The dog waited in the cemetery for the owner to return. She waited. No one could get near her. The story made Crime Watch and Facebook.  Suzanne was at the beach and decided she would see if the dog was still there when she got back to Graniteville.

Suzanne is a nurse, a concealed weapons trainer, and a dog-lovin’ single mom with four children, three under the age of ten.  When she first set eyes on the abandoned dog, she began a vigil at the cemetery.  She would establish ties with the animal.  But Suzanne was not alone, either in her concern for the dog or her attempts to catch her.

“It was like a three-ring circus up there,” she said, “People would come and drop whole bags of dog food on the headstones.  They’d leave pizza, hot wings, and leftover meals.  The cemetery board wanted her out of there.”

One guy brought his wife, a camera and a pit-bull who was to…run the elusive dog down, while his wife caught the heroic capture on camera?

Suzanne, young Jeremiah, Mr. Wayne and her neighbor Mike spent countless hours coaxing the poor dog.  Suzanne would get off work, get the kids, and stay at the cemetery until dark.  They named the dog Sasha.

When Aiken County Animal control was called, Chief Bobby Arthurs enlisted Suzanne’s aid.  She knew where the dog would run.  The first try with a tranquilizer dart sent Sasha to the woods where she disappeared and slept it off.  The next day, it took five men and a net to capture her.

Sasha was impounded.  She would have to be retained for five days.  She would be tested for heartworm.  What if the test was positive? Suzanne was already committed to giving Sasha a home with her, the kids and their other two little rescued dogs.  She didn’t want Sasha to have to stay in the shelter.  Our current shelter cannot keep dogs healthy.  They do the best they can, but it is not a place for vulnerable animals. 

Sasha tested negative for heartworm. Suzanne went to the shelter every one of those five days and took Sasha out of her pen and walked her, petted her, and helped her remember how to play.  When she brought Sasha home she had kennel cough.

Sasha has her own crate, like a private cave, in Suzanne’s bedroom.  The door is usually open.  Sasha is never alone.  She goes to work with Suzanne, if her oldest daughter is not home, and their big Suburban is now Sasha’s car.  She loves the kids and her two “brother dogs.”  But Suzanne is Sasha’s number one human now, and the feeling is obviously mutual. See “Sasha’s Rescue” on Facebook.

 FOTAS Volunteers work with the AIKEN COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER, 411 Wire Road.  For more information, contact “info@fotasaiken.org” or visit FOTAS on line at www.fotasaiken.org.

Aiken County Animal Shelter:  “By the Numbers”

OUR PROGRESS!

MARCH	2012	2013
Received	333	297
Adopted	83	50
Transfers	56	89
Owner return	21	18
Euthanasia %	53%	42%!

Aiken County Shelter “Pets of the Week!” 

SNIPES - Pure Beagle. 1 yr.  22 lbs.  This sweet boy needs to get out of this cage! Only $70

EARTH –  2 yr.  Green-eyed tabby.  He so badly wants a forever home!  Only $35!

 

*All adoption fees include: Spay/Neuter, heartworm test, all shots, worming, and microchip.