"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

After 14 Months, Karen Finds a Home

If you've visited our cat room in the past 14 months, you probably saw Karen, a black and white cat in one of our kitty "apartments." We tried to keep her separate from other cats because she really didn't like them. She could be affectionate, but on her own terms. She didn't particularly like to be picked up. Over those 14 months hundreds of other cats were adopted, but Karen remained with us. Our kids' camp children had even written "Adopt Karen" in chalk on our sidewalk. We were beginning to think there was no one out there for her.

But last weekend a miracle occurred. A woman came in looking for an independent, adult cat. One of our tireless cat room volunteers, CarolAnne, showed her Karen. She explained Karen's temperament and behavior, and the woman was not put off. After Karen settled down in the visiting room, she jumped up on the bench where the woman was sitting. Then she climbed in her lap and licked her face! CarolAnne was amazed. The woman loved Karen's independent nature and decided to adopt her.

The next day CarolAnne couldn't wait to find out how Karen was doing in her new home so she called the adopter. She reported that Karen had made herself completely comfortable in her new surroundings and was at that moment sitting in her lap. Everyone at the shelter is overjoyed. We knew Karen would be a great companion for the right person. We are so thankful for our adopters who open their hearts and their homes to animals that need them so much.

Local Radio Highlights Animal Shelters

This morning I turned on my car radio to WAMU 88.5 and was thrilled to hear a story about local animal shelters. The reporter interviewed representatives from the Washington Humane Society and Montgomery County Animal Services about the tremendous influx of cats and dogs in the spring and summer months and the shortage of people interested in adopting them.

The interviews pointed up the sadness and frustration that shelter workers experience when animals keep pouring in (up to 100 cats per day in Washington) and there aren’t enough homes for them. It’s great to hear the news media presenting an animal story from the shelter workers’ point of view. These are the people on the front lines of animal welfare who must cope with the consequences of their community’s failure to spay and neuter their pets.

We in Arlington are fortunate to have animals coming into the shelter in much smaller numbers than in Washington, but summer crowding is always a problem. We currently have 54 cats available for adoption, some of which have been with us for months. If any WAMU listeners are inspired to adopt a pet from a local animal shelter or to spay and neuter their current pets, then the story was a huge benefit to animal welfare in our community.

Adopt-a-Cat Month in Arlington

We’re all excited about the challenge we have set for ourselves this month: find permanent, loving homes for 100 cats! June marks the beginning of the season when kittens are brought in to the League in droves, and we still receive plenty of adult cats. Our cat room gets very full, and many of our adult cats don’t get visitors’ attention because of all the cute kittens. So we’re creating incentives to find adopters for all of them!

On June 7 the League will host the Saturday Scoop. Visitors that day will get free ice cream and a 20% discount on any retail purchase. Also, anyone who finalizes the adoption of an adult cat will get 50% off the normal cat adoption fee on this day only. So come in, get some ice cream, and take a look at our adult cats that are waiting so patiently for someone to give them a loving home.

Also, all month cat adopters’ names will be put in a bowl, and at the end of June we will draw names to receive terrific prizes, including a pair of Nationals’ tickets. So June is a great time to find a new love: one that will be forever grateful that you opened your heart and your home.

One great example is Misty pictured above. She is approaching an anniversary. She has been with us for almost a full year. Why has she been overlooked by all our visitors? She is quiet and a little shy, but very friendly when she gets to know you. We hope that someone with a kind heart will want to take Misty home this month.

Wildlife Aid Brigade to the Rescue

On Sunday, May 17, volunteers rescued a mother and four baby ducks in the launch of a pilot program called the Wildlife Aid Brigade. The project involves volunteers interested in directly helping wild animals. It was created by Sue Lunson Farinato, a Maryland wildlife rehabilitator, to protect wild animals and to assist animal shelters with the wildlife calls that they receive every day.

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington is the first shelter in the metro region to implement the new program. So far one AWLA volunteer has completed the wildlife training and two more are in progress.

On Sunday afternoon a caller from a pool at a large high-rise apartment complex in Arlington reported that a mallard female and her ducklings were unable to get out of the pool. Our Wildlife Aid Brigade volunteer, Tracy Coppola, accompanied by Sue Farinato, responded. Sue described the rescue:

The staff at the apartment complex was very helpful and accommodated our every request. We rigged up a raft in the corner, covered it with towels and waited for the babies to find it. They were getting tired, and mother kept hopping in and out of the pool. Finally she got out of the pool near the raft and the ducklings hopped onto the raft then out of the pool.

Meanwhile I had contacted Lee Prouty, one of the WAB instructors very experienced in waterfowl rescue. She called a Virginia rehabber, Jim Snyder, who came out to assist us. We could not leave the mother and babies there, because the pool ourtyard was entirely surrounded by a 3' wall. The mother could not have led the babies to food, and there was nothing but concrete inside the courtyard. Jim arrived and we came up with a plan for capturing them.

Extremely careful work allowed us to get within a few feet of the mother, and Jim netted her. Tracy and I caught the babies, and they all were put in the same carrier for transport to Roaches Run Waterfowl Sanctuary, only a short distance away. …. While we can't actually relocate most species, waterfowl is one which we can!

This rescue demonstrates the time, care, and knowledge required to help wildlife in our urban environment. We hope more volunteers will join this exciting program.

Rabid Fox in Arlington

A gray fox ran up to a woman in her south Arlington yard and bit her on May 9. A neighbor drove the fox away by throwing an oil can at it. Police, emergency medical technicians, and animal control responded. When animal control officers arrived, the fox was under an emergency vehicle biting the mud flaps. Officers netted the fox and brought it back to the shelter and euthanized it. It was sent for testing at the Virginia state laboratory, and on May 13 the lab reported that the fox tested positive for rabies.

The woman who was bitten is receiving anti-rabies treatment and is expected to have no long-term effects from the bite. The Arlington County Public Health Division sent an alert to local Civic Associations to identify any other people or animals who may have been exposed. While a rabid fox attack is extremely rare in Arlington, it illustrates the importance of keeping our distance from wildlife.

“Rabies is endemic in our area. People need to be aware that there are wild animals, including foxes, in many of our neighborhoods,” said Richard Cole, chief of the County’s Environmental Health Bureau.

We receive calls every day from Arlington residents concerned about wildlife. As more and more land is built over, wild animals are forced to live closer to human beings. Wild animals play an important role in our environment: for example, bats eat mosquitoes and foxes eat insects, rats, and mice. Also, observing our native species is an exciting way to connect with our natural world.


Residents can take steps to discourage wildlife from living in their yards: remove attractions, such as garbage or pet food, and keep your yard free of debris that could serve as habitat. Neighbors can work together to make their community less inviting to wildlife. If your neighbor is leaving pet food outdoors or intentionally feeding wildlife, educate them about the danger of coming into close contact with some wildlife. Even bird seed that falls on the ground can attract mice and rats, and these attract foxes. We can also take the essential step of keeping our dogs and cats current on rabies vaccinations.

The likelihood of encountering a rabid animal is extremely rare, but there are cases of rabies every year. Animals that test positive most often are raccoons and feral cats. We haven’t had a rabid fox in Arlington in years. The great majority of wildlife seen in Arlington is healthy, but signs of illness include having trouble walking, walking in circles, and staggering. If you see an animal exhibiting these signs of illness, call the League immediately at 703-931-9241.