Positive Changes at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington

After ten months on the job, I am happy to report some very positive changes that have taken place for the animals at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. First and foremost, euthanasias have decreased by 60% over the previous fiscal year. Our positive outcome rate for dogs has increased from 80% to 91%; for cats from 70% to 85%; and for small companion animals from 79% to 97%. Our fiscal year statistics are posted on our Web site.

We have successfully treated 21 cats for ringworm and found them new homes and have adopted 45 adult cats for no adoption fee. Free adoptions of adult cats have helped reduce the time adult cats stay in the shelter and have helped prevent overcrowding which leads to disease.

Although we have had many dogs with behavioral challenges, our adoptions team and volunteers have worked with them diligently on behavior modification and have given them extended periods of exercise to help them be more comfortable and relaxed in the shelter. Wonderful people have contributed their professional expertise in training and photography to help make all of our dogs more appealing to potential adopters. And as always our adoptions staff gives follow-up support to adopters whenever needed. We continue to develop positive relationships with local rescue groups. Our recently formed Pit Crew, consisting of shelter volunteers with a staff liaison, actively promotes a positive image of the breed to help raise our adoption of pit bulls.

Through a generous donation from two dedicated volunteers, we created a Very Important Pet (VIP) Lounge in our front office to bring attention to animals that have not gained attention from potential adopters. Dogs that do not show well in our kennel receive extra socialization and are seen in a more home-like environment in the Lounge. You may also sometimes find one of our bunnies enjoying the spacious play area in the VIP Lounge.

Our Trap-Neuter-Return program for helping community cats avoids the euthanasia of healthy cats while preventing an increase in the number of feral cats in our community. We hold information workshops regularly to educate residents on the program.

These positive changes have been a group effort among staff, volunteers, board members, and donors. Every one of you can surely take pride in the part you have played in these improvements. Thank you so much for your help and support. I hope you will continue to be a part of our work in the months ahead as we continue to strive toward giving every animal in our care the best possible experience and ultimately save more lives.

Sincerely,

Neil Trent
Executive Director
Animal Welfare League of Arlington
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League Adoption Featured in novadog Magazine

Read about an adoption success story in the Spring 2010 issue of novadog magazine. Shadow came to the League in March 2009 because his owner could no longer care for him. He was five years old, thin, and had a chronic skin condition that caused patches of fur to fall out. After we shaved down his fur, began treating the skin condition, and neutered him, he became available for adoption. But few potential adopters took interest in him.

Finally, at the end of June 2009, an experienced chow chow owner saw Shadow on our Web site. She came in to meet him and fell in love with his mellow personality. Since July 2009 Shadow has enjoyed a stable and loving home.

Thanks to novadog for promoting shelter adoptions!

51 Spay Day Surgeries

Thanks to the generous support of donors to our Hantke Memorial Spay/Neuter Fund we have subsidized surgeries for 51 cats and dogs for Spay Day 2010. Low-income pet parents paid only $25 for the surgery and the Hantke Fund paid the remainder. The Washington Metropolitan Spay/Neuter Center and Fairfax Animal Hospital performed the surgeries at very low cost for us. We plan to do four more surgeries on Friday at Arlington Animal Hospital.

While Spay Day brings attention to the need for low-cost surgery in February each year, the League offers reduced cost spay and neuter year-round. The best way to solve the pet overpopulation problem is prevention!

Cairn Terriers Get New Lives

In mid-December an owner brought in two older Cairn terriers (10 and 12 years old) and requested that they be humanely euthanized. Because they were older dogs and the family could no longer care for them, he thought euthanasia was the only choice. We noticed that although older, the dogs seemed in good condition. We explained that we would like to investigate the dogs’ health and possibly place them in an adoptive home, and he was glad for us to try.


Both dogs were slightly overweight, had matted coats, and had severe dental disease. After examinations by one of our volunteer visiting veterinarians, they went to a local animal hospital for blood tests and dental cleanings. Our Woody and Mickey Healthy Pet Fund provided the $600 needed for their treatment. A volunteer groomer gave them baths and new haircuts. They looked like different dogs!


After all their treatments, Skye and Brie went up for adoption as a bonded pair that needed to be adopted together. Probably because of their age, there wasn’t much adoption interest. Fortunately, the Cairn Rescue League, a national nonprofit based in New Hampshire, saw the dogs on Petfinder and contacted us. The rescue group found an available foster home in New Hampshire and even found a driver who would pick them up and take them to their new home.


Six weeks after arriving at the League, Skye and Brie left for their new lives in the northeast. Years ago this rescue probably would not have been possible. Our Healthy Pet Fund allows us to determine older pets’ health with diagnostic tests and to treat them for correctable problems. The growth of rescue groups devoted to specific breeds and types of animals often makes it possible to find homes even for animals with manageable medical or behavioral issues. Our adoption team has devoted a great deal of effort establishing relationships with rescue groups and will continue to work for the best outcome for every animal in our care.

TV Appearance Results in Adoption

Last October an owner surrendered two five-year-old Siberian huskies because of moving. Muska (male) and Sierra (female) turned out to be sweethearts. They needed to be spayed and neutered and Muska had an eye abnormality called entropian. We had the neutering surgery done and at the same time Muska's entropian was repaired thanks to our Woody and Mickey Healthy Pet Fund. We were all so excited when the pair were adopted in mid-November.

But two days after their adoption, the huskies were returned. They had whimpered and cried and had housetraining accidents in their new home. Although this behavior is not that unusual during a period of adjustment, the adopter did not think that he/she could work through it. Everyone here was disappointed but we believed that our lovable pair could do well with someone who could be patient with them.

On November 30 we had the chance to bring animals on Fox 5 TV and we chose to bring Muska and Sierra. Of course, they charmed everyone at the TV studio and showed off their adorable natures on camera. We posted the video on the dogs' detail pages on our Web site and also on Petfinder.

Miles away in Long Island, New York, a man searched Petfinder for a Siberian husky and found Muska and Sierra. He told us that as soon as he saw the video, he thought, "those are my dogs." He contacted us right away about adoption. We don't usually place animals that far away, but no one locally had shown interest in adopting them. The husky lover in New York sent us a reference from his veterinarian (he had owned a husky before) and sent us a video showing us his home.

On December 16 the man and his son drove down from Long Island and had their face-to-face meeting with the dogs and an interview with our adoption manager. They took Muska and Sierra home that day! They have since sent us reports that the dogs have settled into their new home beautifully--and they love all the snow!

Technology has made it a small world, and we're grateful for all the means available now to find that perfect home for a deserving animal.

A Reason to be Thankful

Top: Madge with her adopter. Bottom: Madge when she arrived at the shelter.


Whenever an adopter comes in to visit at the shelter, we are thrilled to see one of our "graduates." Today the visiting graduate made us especially excited. Madge came to us last May from an owner who could not care for her. She had bald patches due to mange and an ulcer on one eye. After extensive medical treatment paid for by our Woody and Mickey Health Pet Fund, Madge found a new home in August. She is in great health and as happy and wiggly as can be. Her adopter is crazy about her and very proud to show her off.

We are so thankful to the donors that make the Healthy Pet Fund possible and to adopters who open their hearts and homes to animals that need them.

Pet-Friendly Sheltering Exercise

Today we had the honor to participate in a pet-friendly sheltering exercise sponsored by Fairfax County and the Northern Virginia Regional Commission. The exercise was a drill designed to test the pet-friendly sheltering model first established in this area by the Animal Welfare League of Arlington.

The exercise took place at the Prince William County Fairgrounds and involved participants from Prince William County, the City of Manassas, the City of Falls Church, Fairfax County, and the City of Alexandria. Animal Welfare League of Arlington staff served as evaluators. We also brought along our disaster trailer so that our supplies could be used in the exercise.

The exercise went very smoothly. All the participating (stuffed) dogs, cats, and other animals were successfully registered and housed. Each jurisdiction that participated took home valuable lessons. The best part of the experience was the cooperation among so many different sheltering groups. It definitely bodes well for Northern Virginia pets if there should be a real disaster.

Busy Weekend for Pets

Wow! Lots of activities this weekend promoted pet adoptions! First, the League's third annual Barks 'n Beer Festival brought out League friends and their dogs on Saturday. They enjoyed free hotdogs and root beer, contests, prizes, reduced price retail items, and doggie baths and nail trims. Despite the wet weather, lots of people and dogs enjoyed the afternoon. And whether related to the event or not, nine cats found new adoptive homes!


Then on Sunday, Oct. 25, we joined some other rescue groups at the Caring Hands Animal Hospital Open House. Link, a Brittany Spaniel, was one of our shelter dogs that visited with people at the open house. We hope he made an impression on someone who will decide to adopt him.

North Carolina Puppies Get New Homes

This past May Dr. Laura Chadwick, a veterinarian with the Asheville (North Carolina) Humane Society, contacted us to see if we could take some of the many dogs (primarily puppies) currently at her shelter. We agreed and Dr. Chadwick has transported 15 dogs to us since then. Fourteen of them have already been adopted, including "Butter" pictured above. The fifteenth, a beagle named Bugler, is currently available for adoption.

To read more about our transfer program with shelter partners, read the latest issue of Pawpourri.

Dr. Chadwick recently sent the following note to our adoptions manager:

I can't thank you and your staff enough for helping place some of our Asheville dogs. I know you have plenty of animals to help already, so your willingness to go out of your way for a few more means so much to us (and of course to the doggies!). I hope one day our community will be able to find homes for most of the pets that need our help. Until then, we are so grateful to you and the AWLA.

Sincerely,
Laura Chadwick, DVM

With a Little Help from Our Friends

Yesterday I was reminded that there are so many people in our community that want to help homeless animals. Robin Burkett of Pawprints Photography has sponsored many of the League's events, but she wanted to do something more for the animals. She volunteered to come to the shelter and take photos of our dogs available for adoption. Although we try to take good photos, we're certainly not going to turn down the chance to have a professional put our animals in their best light.

We are also lucky to have another photographer, Allison DeSilva, who comes in weekly to photograph our cats and sometimes other animals. When people lend their expertise to help animals that need homes, everyone wins.

Robin arrived at 8:30 and we took dogs outside in our backyard one at a time for their photo shoot. I learned that making really weird noises is a good way to get a dog to look at the camera. We even had a bonded pair to work with. It's really hard to get a good photo of two dogs together! But Robin did it!

After working her magic on the photos at her office, Robin e-mailed them to me and I got them up on the Web site. They are fabulous! Thank you so much, Robin. She even posted the photos on her own blog.

With help from friends like these, we can do a better job of letting people know about the animals here at the shelter that are just waiting for them to come in and adopt.

Best Friends Praises League Policy

Best Friends Animal Society noticed our story on pit bulls in our latest issue of Pawpourri. In the story we explain that the League Board of Directors changed a 20-year-old policy preventing the adoption of pit bulls. The Best Friends online network has a section devoted to ending breed-specific bans.

In the League policy's first year of implementation we found homes for 13 pit bulls, including Sina pictured above with her new mom. Both the dogs and their new families seem to be happy, and we have taken another step toward finding homes for all adoptable animals in our care.

70 Animals Neutered for $25 Each

Staff wears their Spay Day t-shirts to welcome pet owners on Friday morning.

We have had a fantastic response to our Spay Day offer of spaying/neutering cats and dogs for $25 plus getting a free microchip. Low-income owners of 70 pets in our community have taken advantage of this opportunity to protect their pets' health and prevent unwanted litters!

The League is subsidizing the cost of the surgeries and we are providing the microchips for free. We are lucky to have the National Capital Spay Neuter Center and Fairfax Animal Hospital as our partners in this vital community service. The funds for subsidizing the surgeries comes from our Hantke Memorial Spay Neuter Fund.

Last Friday at 6:30am we loaded up 30 animals in our van and drove them to the Spay Neuter Center. By 9:00pm that night all of the pets had been returned to their owners newly neutered and microchipped. We're doing it again this Friday! We had so much interest in the program that several other pets will be getting the same services at Fairfax Animal Hospital.

While we offer low-cost neutering all year round, this special applies only to our participation in Spay Day. It's great to see so many loved companions getting such a needed service.

Marley and Us

Five Animal Welfare League of Arlington dogs got to meet a Hollywood star today, Brownie, the yellow Labrador starring in Marley and Me. The movie is an adaptation of the bestselling book of the same name by John Grogan. It’s the story of a very badly behaved dog and the people who love him anyway. Of course, Brownie, the acting dog, is very well behaved.

Our dogs got their brush with stardom on the Ellipse in front of the White House at a publicity event for the new movie being released in December. The American Humane Association and the movie’s producers are promoting pet adoptions in 15 cities after being inspired by president-elect Obama’s stated desire to adopt a dog for his daughters. The event showcased four area shelters and some of the hundreds of dogs in the metro area that need homes.

We hope that publicity about this event will encourage more people to consider adopting dogs, cats, rabbit, birds, ferrets, and other companion animals from shelters rather than buying pets.

"Howl-oween" Helps Homeless Animals

a.k.a. spot The Pet's Shop and photographer Brian McGahren held a holiday fundraiser for the League on Saturday, October 25. Customers brought their best animal friends (in costume) and had their photos made for a contribution of $5.00. a.k.a. spot then matched the amount raised from photos to give a $400 donation to the League.

We send a big thank you to Lucy McCausland of a.k.a. spot for sponsoring this great event and for donating to help homeless animals in our community.

Friends for Life

We recently received two stories from adopters about the "friends for life" that they found at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. These stories illustrate ideal outcomes of our work: animals that found loving, permanent homes for their entire lives. We salute these and all of our adopters who make a loving commitment for their companions' lifetime.

I wanted to take a moment to write the Animal Welfare League of Arlington and thank you for your hard work. In 1995, I adopted a young dog from your shelter. Yesterday, at the age of 14, we put our shep-chow-mix, Shelby to sleep.

About Shelby: I named her after (red-head) Julia Roberts character in Steel Magnolia's. She was a great dog: incredibly obedient (a Canine Good Citizen), smart, athletic, and protective. She taught me a lot about patience. As a mixed-breed, she had few health problems. When I was a teacher for students with special needs, she came to school with me every Friday and was loved by students and staff -- she even made the yearbook.

I wasn't always a good owner but she was always a good dog.

Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for letting a wet-behind-the-ears 23 year old adopt a pet. Below is a pic of Shelby with my husband.

Lauren

Butch Carpenter-Peters, beloved companion of Ernest Carpenter, died October 9, 2008, by injection at All Creatures Animal Hospital in Naples, Fla. He had been ill for several weeks and treated unsuccessfully for several maladies.

Butch, a mix of poodle and cocker spaniel, was born April 11, 1997, in Fredericksburg, Va. His first “owners” named him Nickelodeon, or Nikki, but gave him up to the Animal Welfare League of Arlington after a few months because of inability to train him. It was at that point in his life, on Sept. 11, 1997, at exactly age five months, that he was adopted by partners Ernest Carpenter and William Peters, who renamed him “Butch,” to better suit his more active, Type A personality.

For many years, Butch resided in the Lake Barcroft area of Falls Church, Va., with the Carpenter-Peters household, making many neighborhood friends there and officiating as greeter at the household’s frequent pool parties and other gatherings. In 2000, he was joined in the household by Brittany, a Tibetan terrier, with whom he became life-long friends. Brittany, too, was adopted from the Animal Welfare League of Arlington.

In 2005, with breakup of the Carpenter-Peters household, Butch moved to Florida with Mr. Carpenter, who retired in Naples. Brittany remained in northern Virginia with Mr. Peters. In early 2008, Brittany visited Butch for three months in Naples, and in late May and early June Butch visited Brittany in Virginia. That was the last time they saw each other.

In early September, Butch became mildly ill but his condition worsened throughout the month. After frequent visits to the veterinarian and a number of medications, Butch lost his vitality but never his appetite. His last food was a small bowl of vanilla ice cream, his favorite but rare treat. Butch will be sorely missed by his many friends in Naples and the Washington, D.C., area.

Ernie

German Shepherd Rescued

One of our current shelter residents is Nicky, a young German shepherd mix that has had quite an eventful life so far. He started coming in to our shelter in 2006 when he was only a puppy. He kept running loose and being brought in as a stray. We returned him to his owner four times before the owner decided that he couldn’t take care of Nicky and decided to surrender the dog to us to find him a new home. That was in November 2007. That same month one of our volunteer visiting veterinarians examined Nicky and found problems with both his knee caps.

The malady is called LUXATING PATELLA. The patella is the knee cap which glides up and down when the knee joint is bent and protects the knee joint. It also guides the action of the quadriceps muscle in the lower leg. A normal dog knee will have two bony ridges that form a fairly deep groove in which the patella is supposed to slide up and down. If this groove is shallow,
either because of malformation or trauma, the knee cap will jump out of the groove and move sideways instead of up and down.

When the patella luxates from the groove of the femur, it usually cannot return to its normal position until the quadriceps (muscle in lower leg) relaxes and increases in length. This explains why the affected dog may be forced to hold his leg up for a few minutes or so after the initial incident. While the muscles are contracted and the patella is luxated from its correct position, the joint is held in the flexed or bent position. The dog will feel pain caused by the knee cap sliding across the bony ridges of the femur. Once out of position, the animal feels no discomfort and continues his activity.

If not corrected, the groove will become even shallower and the dog will become progressively lamer. Arthritis will prematurely affect the joint, causing a permanently swollen knee with poor mobility. Surgerymay be required and is the treatment of choice, but is not necessary in every dog with this condition.

A grade 2 luxating patella, which is what Nicky had, means there is frequent patellar luxation, which, in some cases, becomes more or less permanent. We kept him on medications for pain and inflammation.

Nicky had been available for adoption for since last November, but no adopter wanted to take on the expense of surgery. The League decided to use our Woody and Mickey Healthy Pet Fund to get the surgery that Nicky needed. We investigated several options and worked out a reasonable cost with the Washington Animal Rescue League Medical Center for the surgery.

On February 29 Nicky received his needed knee surgery. After surgery he spent a week of cage rest at Ballston Animal Hospital where he could be checked regularly by a veterinarian. Then he came back to the shelter. But he needed very special treatment for his recovery.

Nicky needs STRICT CONFINEMENT which means he must be kept in a crate for 30 days and ONLY taken out to eliminate. He is staying in a large dog crate in our Kennel Manager’s office. Assigned staff and volunteers walk him directly outside for bathroom trips and bring him immediately inside once he is done. At first they used a sling under his tummy to help keep weight off his leg.

Nicky had his sutures removed on March 14. After suture removal, we began passive physical therapy including limb flexation and extension for one minute 3-4 times a day.

After the 30 day strict confinement, Nicky will need an additional four weeks of confinement with low impact, non-acrobatic activity and slow progressive leash walks to build muscle and stamina.

Through his entire ordeal Nicky has remained happy, friendly, and eager to please. Our biggest problem at first was keeping him still when he saw anyone that he recognized. He would wag his tail and try to stand up if he saw one of his favorite volunteers. He tolerates the physical therapy without complaint.

I am happy to report that he is now available for adoption again. He is still in his crate in an office, and we will escort interested applicants to meet him there. We hope someone will respond to his sweet personality and take him home to complete his recovery. He’ll make a wonderful companion.

Spay Day in Arlington

Today some of our staff arrived at 6:00am to check-in low-income clients who had registered their pets for low-cost neutering surgery through our Spay Day USA program. To do our share of the national Spay Day USA program run by the Humane Society of the United States, the League offered spays and neuters for cats and dogs for only $25. We also offered a microchip and registration for free for these pets.

We are subsidizing the costs not covered by the $25 fee from our Hantke Memorial Spay-Neuter Fund. We use this fund to offer low-cost neutering all year round.



This morning people showed up with 15 cats and eight dogs for surgery. They signed permission forms, paid $25 for each pet, and loaded them into crates in our transport van. Two League staffers drove the pets to the National Capital Area Spay Neuter Center. The Washington Humane Society and their partners created the center to provide low-cost surgeries for cats and dogs in the metro area.

Another staffer will drive downtown to pick up the animals this evening. The owners will retrieve their pets from the League in Arlington tonight. We will give them post-operative instructions for the care of their pets along with pain medication needed for three days.

On Friday we will repeat the entire process for 25 more pets of low-to-moderate-income people. This effort means that almost 50 cats and dogs in our community will NOT contribute to the pet overpopulation problem. They will NOT create litters upon litters that may end up homeless. They WILL be more likely to remain in their homes because they will not have the behavior or medical problems that can occur with unneutered pets.

We think Spay Day is a win-win situation for our community: the pets and the people.

Meaningful Ways to Celebrate Milestones in Your Life

Two friends of animals recently found creative ways to celebrate important occasions in their lives and benefit homeless animals by raising funds for the League.

Kevin Marsh used our personal giving page to honor his friend Nan Tucker’s retirement. You can create a page to memoriolize a beloved person or pet, or to celebrate a birthday, wedding anniversary, or any special occasion. Kevin filled out an easy form and then e-mailed notices to Nan’s co-workers and clients asking them to send her a message and make a donation to the League in her honor. To date the celebration has raised $1,100 for animal welfare!

Erin and Chris

Another person who cares for animals combined fundraising with her love of bringing people together for celebrations. Erin Mumma has a long history of volunteering and donating to worthy causes. For several years she hosted large birthday parties for herself and then realized that she could bring friends and family together to celebrate and support something more than just her birthday. So she started hosting charity fundraising parties.

Her first fundraiser benefited the American Red Cross – Arlington Chapter, and she raised $1,000! Shortly after that she met her boyfriend Chris, who, amazingly, has the exact same birthday as Erin. They hosted the next year’s party together and raised funds for Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation.

For their party in January 2008, they chose the League as their cause. Being the proud owners of a rescue dog in Arlington, they wanted to benefit all the animals in our community. They raised more than $1,200 this year for the League!

Erin says that hosting these parties is a great way to get all of your close friends and family together for a good cause. Each year she finds a venue that will rent some space for a set bar price. She works out a deal with the venue to have a drink special/deal, and everyone pays a cover charge that goes toward the charity donation. They place posters, newsletters, and brochures from the charitable cause all around the bar for people to peruse. They also raffle off door prizes: some are donated items from the honorary charity such as tee shirts, water bottles, etc. While the bulk of the donations are made at the party, they also get a number of donations by mail from those that can’t attend.

What fantastic ways to have fun, celebrate special occasions, and help animals!

Working together for animal rescue

We just had a success story of two groups working together for animal rescue. Odin is a three-year-old Doberman Pinscher whose owner brought him to us at the end of December 2007 because he was moving and could not take Odin with him. We assessed Odin medically and behaviorally, vaccinated him, and had him neutered. He was made available for adoption with the recommendation that he would be best suited to adopters who are fit and experienced, in a household with no young children or cats. He appeared on our Web site, Petfinder.com, PetHarbor.com, 1-800-Save-a-Pet.com, and on our Adopt-a-Pet program on Arlington Cable TV. In five weeks he got three adoption applications, but no one completed their application. In one case, the applicant’s apartment complex did not allow Dobermans.

During his stay at our shelter, DARE (Doberman Assistance, Rescue & Education) contacted our Adoptions Manager about Odin. DARE began looking for a foster home while we continued to accept adoption applications. By February 18, Odin still had no pending applications, so we transferred him to his new foster parent through DARE.

While the great majority of our dogs are adopted directly from the League, we actively seek rescue partners for dogs that prove difficult to place. We require rescue groups to complete a questionnaire and to sign a memorandum of understanding with us. We take our responsibility for the animals in our care very seriously and work with rescue partners that are well run and have high standards of animal care.

Odin’s story is a great example of how shelters and rescue groups can work together cooperatively for the best outcome for the animals in our care.

Our Community's Generosity

We are reminded on a daily basis how many people in our community support the mission of promoting animal welfare. Last week a wonderful group of girl scouts brought us pet beds that they had sewn by hand for our shelter animals. They got the idea from the Snuggles Project. When they delivered these wonderful gifts, one of our shelter residents, Bella the collie, posed with the girls for a group photo.

Another enterprising animal lover created hand-made holiday cards, sold them, and donated part of the sales to the League. One of our volunteers gratefully accepted the check.

People bring us items from our wishlist almost every day. Cat carriers and dog crates in particular can be used to transport our animals each week for spay or neuter surgery or we can sell the used crates to raise money. Without the kindness and generosity of our community, we could not do nearly as much for our shelter residents.