Social Media Wave Assists the New County Shelter

FOTAS is on the Social Media bandwagon using facebook, twitter, YouTube, BLOGS and the FOTAS website. These tools are used for better communication. Events like the MuttStrut Walk for the Animals at Woofstock on Nov 10th, PetSmart Adoption Days, or the need for dog and cat food or stuffed animals for our shelter pups; all are online.

Our website continues to evolve and is now connected to other Social Media tools.

With your online participation, we could be so much more effective in reaching our audience: all residents and businesses from the entire Aiken County Community. We want to tell you all about current programs, needs, the new County Shelter and the services it will provide.

Social media has a great impact here. It can be fun and easy to spread the word to the entire County.

With 880+ facebook followers, FOTAS can reach upwards of 10,000 people viewing our posts in any given week. Our posts are shared and our message spreads!

How amazing that we can “speak” to you and to people you know and then to their friends and friends of their friends, all from one message posted on our FOTAS facebook page, our website or a Twitter “tweet”. It’s like the Telephone Game without the distortion of the message!

Like Us on facebook to receive FOTAS updates along with friends updates. Follow us on Twitter. Visit our website for more information and direct access to these sites.

Share our latest message! When we post something of interest, like our Capital Campaign, a cute kitten or great dog, share it on your facebook page or with individual friends who may share your interest in animals or just tweet it out. Think of the possibilities and all the people we could reach! If they want to help they can, if not, no harm, no foul. No phone calls or personal pleas for help involved. People can choose to read our message or not. No annoying spam like emails need be sent out through this process.

One of our dogs was adopted by a family in Louisiana due to a shared post! All Events and adoptable animals’ photos are on our website, facebook and Petfinder thanks to Annette, Susan and Elizabeth.

These powerful tools have led to pet adoptions, assistance from and partnerships with other organizations, brought in donations for specific needs and even helped find lost pets. Feel free to tweet messages from @FotasAiken and reach even more people!

Our website has a moving YouTube video tour of our current shelter, as well as fun videos from past events like last years Fall Steeplechase!

Please use these powerful tools to help FOTAS reach the entire Community that the Aiken County Animals Shelter serves.

With your help, we can reach those with the interest and resources to help us attain our biggest goal yet: to build and outfit a new Aiken County Animal Shelter by the end of 2013! Let’s help the abandoned animals of OUR County.

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”

October 8th thru 15^th   

Received: 96 dogs! and 38 cats!

Adopted: 14 dogs and 3 cats!

Euthanized: 32 dogs and 33 cats

Aiken County Shelter “Pets of the Week!” So much LOVE for so little! 

 

BESS-1+ yr Choc. Lab mix Sweet gal Looking to love you! A special price of only $35!

 

CHANCE-3 yr Loyal Australian Cattle -Blue Healer cross. A bargain at Only $35!

 

What a Day for FOTAS at the Chocolate Festival

If you slid into the 24^th Annual Chocolate Festival off of Fairfield Avenue last week, between the Karaoke Bandstand and the big bouncy slide, you encountered the enthusiastic representatives of FOTAS. 

Sergio, DaVinci, Joanie, Ritchie and Rex, five unique adoptable dogs from the Aiken County Shelter, represented us the best.  They were the stars.  At very least, many attendees stopped to lavish attention on those lovable dogs; at best, two of them were adopted, Sergio and DaVinci, and went home with their new families. 

Occasionally, it seemed like Rex, Ritchie and Joanie were going to be chosen, too.  But it wasn’t their day.  Check them out on Petfinder.com, and see for yourself how special they truly are.

The Serteen animal-lovers, Katie, Jada, Madison, Justine, Carly and their supervisor, Valorie, came to help show off the dogs. The Serteens have become regular ambassadors for the animals at the County Shelter, and FOTAS has learned to count on them as valued members of our family.

The new edition of the “FOTAS Dogfather” tee-shirt and the brand new “Fairy Dogmother” shirt, both conversation starters among dog enthusiasts, went on sale that day.  If sales at the Chocolate Festival are an indication, and you want one, you had better come out to Steeplechase (10/27) or Woofstock (11/10) and get it while supplies last.

The corner assigned to FOTAS was perfect.  It offered a big area to set up dog pens and retail displays for our hats and shirts; two picnic tables for folks to gather around; lots of shade, and many, many attendees walking by.

In our quest to bring the plight of the county’s homeless animals to the public’s attention, and to bring public concern and involvement to our community shelter, FOTAS welcomes the opportunity to participate in community events like ST. Mary’s Chocolate Festival.

This year, we are focused on our Capital Campaign for the new Aiken County Shelter, due to break ground in a few months. Our volunteers work to make the public aware that we exist, that the need is urgent, and that together we can truly make an essential difference.

As people stopped to chat last week, we were amazed again by how many still do not know that there are two local shelters: one private, one public; one state-of-the-art-brand-spanking-new, and one that was grossly inadequate ten years ago, but is obligated to function in service to the public, but not to the animals.

Our next major fundraiser is our second Woofstock Festival on November 10^th.  It kicks of with our first “Mutt Strut,” a family-oriented dog parade that will kick off the festival.  Last Saturday, we had our Mutt Strut posters and flyers out.  If you missed yours, go to the FOTAS website www.fotasaiken.org/woofstock

Register, get friends and family to sponsor you and your dog(s) participation, raise $100, $200 or $300+ dollars and win prizes.  The biggest prize is a chance to win a 64gig iPad.

The Grand Prize is a shelter we can take pride in.  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”

October 1^st thru 7^th   

AVIS-A young adult Calico tabby. Gorgeous markings, sweet dispositions. $35

Received: 76 dogs! and 17 cats!

Adopted: 12 dogs and 10 cats!

Euthanized: 32 dogs and 17 cats

Aiken County Animal Shelter "Pets of the Week!" So much LOVE for so little!

TRAVIS-A handsome gentle bear  who deserves a forever home. $70

 

 

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