Shelter Stories Sunday's Returns!

Sorry that the SSS has been MIA the last couple weekends. The clinic has been closed; it was closed today but I went in and did some socializing and all around general stuff. I volunteer Sunday afternoon's at The Northwest Organization for Animal Help (NOAH)

Today the featured pet will be a wonderful girl who is rather new to our shelter. She is a Great Pyrenees Mix named Greta. Greta is approximately 3 years old, and weighs in at a measly 100 lbs. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for Pyr's and someday will own one(along with about a zillion other breeds).

I came in for my shift and was going to sign in when I caught sight of a GIANT white dog down at the end of the hall; I quickly signed in and then meandered dashed down the hall to see if my eyes had been tricking me. They had not fooled me and that was when I met Greta. She has a heart of gold and big soulful eyes that melt your heart. She was on her way out for a walk on our trail system, so I made a mental note to stop back later after going and visiting some of our other residents. I wandered off visited some of the cats(seeing as I am supposed to be a 'trained' cat socializer) then came back to see if Greta was back. Well I happened to be in luck! She was there- so I let myself in and spent the next hour or so snuggling this wonderful gentle giant.

I swear I am lucky I left without bringing her home. The most demanding she ever became was to gently lay a paw on my leg as if to remind me that "hey! i'm here! pet me? please?!" She is a little shy but would warm up quickly if given the right enviroment I am sure.

Here are some pics I snapped with my camera phone while hanging out with Greta...

Oh and one I played with a little(and LOVE)

Original

Antique

Black and White

Shelter Sundays

This week shelter sundays is back. It was a interesting week all around today. See I had to take Jack our big boxer in to get the big snip snip done. I got to stay with him, let me tell you, it is a completely different experience to be there when your pet gets it done vs someone elses. I am very intruiged by the process as I want to be a vet someday. I am really lucky that Dr. N is so wonderful with me.

Today's pet of the week is Taz.

Taz is a white and grey cat who has been at NOAH for a while. He is a real sweetheart. I love him to death. He has the sweetest eyes that get you(those puss in boots eyes). Today I was walking by the colony and I slowed down because I saw something moving at the door it was Taz sitting there his paws on the window wiping it with sad eyes. He is a very unique cat who needs someone special to love him.

Sunday Shelter Stories

As many of you know on Sunday afternoon's I spend 4 hours volunteering in the local Animal Shelter's Vet Clinic. I have been volunteering with the shelter for 4 years since they opened in May of 2003. I started out as a 'Cat Kennel Technician', 'Dog Walker', and than moved up to a "Socializer" and am now a "Veterinary Nurse Assistant". This has given me a very interesting insight into the world of animal rescue and how shelters work. Therefore I think each Sunday that I will be doing a series called Shelter Stories. In it I will be sharing antidotes from the past and possibly even the story of one of our animals who is currently there.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Todays story will actually be a tale from today about a dog that came into the shelter. Now normally we don't take dogs directly from the public as we are a 'rescue organization' who saves animals in over crowded shelters from being put to sleep. Well today this nice couple stopped by, with a dog that they had found. Apparently they were driving home from the San Jaun Islands and were getting ready to get on the freeway to head home when they saw this scared looking dog running towards the freeway on-ramp. They quickly pulled over when they noticed that she seemed to be limping and picked her up. They dropped by(as this was nearing closing time) with the dog scared that she'd been hit by a car(because of the limp) or that she had possibly fallen off the back of someone's truck. Since they live a good distance away from where they found her(several hours) they didn't want to take her farther from home than nessacery so they wondered if there was anything we could do for her. The wonderful staff decided that YES we could take her in for the night at least and than if nothing else send her up to the 'regional' shelter in the morning(where her owners are more likely to look for her) so that she can hopefully be found.