Furry is the new green!

Earth Day is 4/21, and if you're both eco-conscious and a pet-lover, it probably fills you with a mixture of joy and guilt. Pets get a seriously bad rap in the green community, and not without reason: they require lots of resources, they make lots of waste, and they can be hard on native ecosystems. Don't ever let anyone tell you you have to choose between your pet and your planet, though - there are simple ways that you can make your furry friends more eco-friendly (and as an added bonus, you'll make 'em healthier too).

Spay/Neuter, Spay/Neuter, Spay/Neuter!
Biggest reason that pets are hard on the environment? There are way too many of them, and there aren't homes for them all; we would love it if people would spay/neuter us right out of business! Overpopulation is rough on the environment simply because the more animals there are, the more resources they require, but we should also consider the impact of roaming populations of strays or ferals: although they're not necessarily creating demand for petroleum-based pet toys or factory-farmed pet foods, they can decimate local wildlife populations. If you've got an unaltered pet at home, the greenest thing you can do is get him/her fixed immediately. It's also important to be a team player in your community and take steps to get roaming ferals fixed as well - most humane societies have trap-neuter-return programs that provide very low-cost or even free surgeries for unowned animals.

Don't shop, adopt
At the risk of sounding like shameless self-promoters (actually, we are pretty shameless about promoting adoption), the easiest way to get a green pet is to get a recycled one! Adopting a second-hand pet means you're certain you're not encouraging irresponsible breeding operations to continue bringing litter after litter into the world for the sake of making a buck, and that's a big deal: not only are you standing up against inhumane breeding practices, you're also doing your part to discourage operations that go through vast amounts of poor-quality pet food...pet food that uses ingredients from unsustainable, definitely NOT eco-friendly or humane farming operations. Which leads us nicely to our next point:

Feed good-quality food
It's easy to not give a second thought to what goes into your pet's food, but it's worth doing your homework for the sake of your pet and your planet. Poor-quality pet foods contain the worst kinds of ingredients that are at best nutritionally useless and at worst physically harmful for your pet, simply because they are the cheapest. The meat, grains, and (shudder) by-products that go into these foods come from huge factory farms that use tons of pesticides, hormones, preservatives, and who-knows-what-else to keep their yields and profits high; they're bad for the environment and they're bad for your pet. High-quality pet foods aren't hard to find if you know what you're looking for (see our nutrition guide here), and as a rule they're a lot gentler on Mother Earth: look for foods that boast organic ingredients and humane practices with livestock, and you're heading the right direction!

If you've spent as much time as we have taking care of animals, the logical next step after talking about food is talking about...

Poo!
As we all learned as toddlers, everybody poops. How we deal with our pets' poo is what makes the difference, though! Dog poo collected in plastic bags and thrown away becomes dog poo that sits in plastic bags in landfills for literally decades, because those bags don't break down, but leaving it out to wash away isn't an eco-friendly solution either; fecal matter that washes into storm drains goes directly into our rivers and streams, and fills them with dangerous fecal coliform bacteria (the most famous of which is the dastardly E. coli). Clean up after your pooch with biodegradable bags so his droppings can decompose naturally, or, if you're feeling especially adventurous, build a dog-poo compost bin in your yard! Just don't use that compost on any plants you plan on eating...remember E. coli?

We would definitely be remiss if we ignored cat poo here, and the biggest offender on that front is litter. Clay litter (the kind made up of little gray rocks) is more or less a disaster, both from the perspective of your cat's health and from the perspective of the environment. The dust that billows up from clay litter is a known carcinogen (strike one), and clumping litter is a serious health risk because it can clump inside your cat's intestines and cause a fatal blockage (strike two). Oh, and did we mention that much of the clay is harvested through strip mining (serious strike three)? Luckily, all-natural cat litters are becoming more and more popular, and there's an ever-broadening selection available at just about any pet supply store. Here at WHS we use pine pellet litter; it's healthier, it's cheaper, and the pine totally wipes out pee smell. Added bonus: it's biodegradable and septic- and sewer-safe, so you can flush your cat's poo instead of bagging it up and sending it to the landfill! Other options include litters made from wheat, corn, and recycled newspaper. For more info, see our guide to all things litter here.

If you've gotten this far, you're a pretty dedicated blog-reader. Although we could go on for days (seriously, days) about other ways to green your pets, we'll wrap up with one last, extremely important tip:


Keep your pets indoors
Cats in particular get blasted by environmentalists all the time for the damage they do to native bird populations, and while we're quick to come to their defense, outdoor cats are pretty much guilty as charged: in the state of Wisconsin alone, Fish and Wildlife credits cats with the demise of about 39 million birds every year, and they've helped nudge 41 species of birds to the brink of extinction. It's not really their fault - they're just being cats - so it's time for us cat-lovers to do the responsible thing and keep our cats indoors. The indoor life protects your cat against predation by larger animals (dogs, coyotes), traffic, and fatal diseases, too...we think your cat will be ok with trading a few feathery meals for the average 12+ years extra life expectancy that comes with living strictly indoors. Dog owners, you're not off the hook on this one either - although dogs don't make as big of a dent on native wildlife as their feline counterparts, they can still do a number on small mammals.

Alright, we won't burden you with any more words - just get out there and green your pets so you can celebrate Earth Day with pet-lover pride this year! Drop us a note if you want more info on keeping your pets eco-friendly, or any other pet care questions, and we'll be happy to help you out.

Spay/Neuter Saves Lives!

Spay Day USA is an annual event that takes place on the last Tuesday of February (February 22nd, this year) across the country, and although we're always talking about the benefits of altering your pets anyway, Spay Day gives us a great opportunity to really dust off the old spay/neuter soapbox! There are so many reasons to spay or neuter your pet; it's good for them, it's good for you, and it's good for us.

Spay and neuter surgeries are very routine procedures, and although they may seem invasive to us, they are simple and virtually bloodless. While any surgical procedure is stressful for a pet, the risks associated with spay/neuter surgeries are so minimal that the benefits easily blow them out of the water!

An altered pet won't:
-Go into heat. If you've ever been around a cat in heat, you know exactly why this is a good thing! If you've never experienced a pet's heat cycle, think about this: your dog or cat is a mammal, and like human mammals, they have periods, complete with all the usual mess and bizarre behavior. 'Nuff said. (I'm a woman, by the way, so I'm allowed to say we behave bizarrely...male readers, quote me with caution.)
-Develop cancers of the reproductive organs. Uterine, ovarian, and testicular cancer are common in unaltered pets, are expensive to treat, and are frequently fatal.
-Be as territorial. While some pets are a little territorial by nature, spaying/neutering reduces urine marking behavior and overprotective aggression towards people and other pets.
-Be as likely to escape and roam. Roaming behavior is usually tied to searching for a mate, and those escapes can be expensive and dangerous.
-Lose its gender identity. We encounter this most often with male pet owners, and we refer to it as the "Dude Factor;" while you might associate your identity with your gender, pets simply don't think that way! They don't have any inherent gender identity to lose. Neutering a male dog doesn't make him a sissy; in fact, he won't even realize that anything has changed. Don't think about how you would feel if you were in your pet's position, because you aren't; instead, think about the extra years you're adding to his life by preventing serious illnesses and reducing his desire to pick fights.

An altered pet will:
-Be the same energetic, active pet he or she was prior to the surgery. There is a big myth that spayed/neutered pets get lazy and fat, but the fact of the matter is that weight gain is caused by feeding and exercise habits, not by any surgical procedure.
-Play better with others. The reduced desire to defend territory makes for an easier-going pet, which means you can rescue another one from your local humane society!
-Live longer. On average, spayed/neutered pets live 3-5 years longer than intact ones.
-Love you unconditionally, just like he or she did prior to surgery.

If you don't see a good enough reason there to alter your pet for his sake, consider altering your pet for the sake of all of the homeless pets that walk through our doors each day. Every year in the United States 4-6 million pets enter shelters, rescues, and humane societies; only half of them ever find homes. The fact of the matter is that pet overpopulation is a very real, very serious problem in this country and across the world and there simply aren't homes for them all. Allowing a pet to reproduce, even just once, brings 3-8 more lives into the world when there are already millions of unwanted pets waiting for homes. So save a life this February: Spay or neuter your pet, and spread the word. That simple surgery is the biggest step you can take to help us work toward a world in which there are no more homeless pets!

To find out more about the benefits, importance, and "how-to" of getting your pet altered, give us a call or drop us a line: 859.873.5491 or manager@woodfordhumane.org. Low-cost options are available, and we'll do what we can to help you get that pet fixed!

If you feel as strongly about spaying and neutering as we do, please donate to our Spay/Neuter Fund and help us continue to provide low-cost surgeries to families in need.

2011 Feline Frenzy: A Purrfect Start to the Year!

We're happy to report that our 2011 Feline Frenzy promotion was a huge success! Donated cleaning supplies from adopters are keeping us looking (and smelling) our best, but more importantly, a whopping 51 cats found their forever homes during those exciting weeks! Those lucky felines came from every walk of life - kittens and seniors, lap-cats and strays - and they're all finally enjoying the loving homes they deserve! Here are a few of their stories:

Popsicle and Slurpee came to us in a litter of 6 orphaned kittens; they arrived in a cardboard box, and they were feeble and cold. We didn't know it at the time, but we soon found out that they also all had distemper, a serious illness that is usually fatal for kittens of their size. Despite the care of surrogate moms and veterinarians alike, only Popsicle and Slurpee survived; Slurpee struggled with neurological complications from his illness, and Popsicle lost an eye. Despite their rocky start, though, this adorable brother and sister grew into affectionate, playful youngsters with so much to offer any family - and this January, that family found them! It would just be silly to break up such a perfect pair, so naturally Popsicle and Slurpee were adopted together.

Loki had a little bit of a rough start the first day he arrived - he was a four-year-old stray cat who was shy of people and used to living on his own, and was understandably scared after being trapped in a crate and brought in! We let Loki relax a little in our exam room, and after spending a little time crouched on top of the filing cabinet, he let us coax him into a few cuddles. It was all up-hill from there! Before long, Loki was as cuddly as can be, and by the time he went home in January he was a completely different cat - confident, easy-going, and keen to make friends with cats and people alike. He was also considerably rounder than the almost-emaciated cat that walked in the door (in fact, his new mom reports that he is now on a diet)!

Coraline and Clover weren't strays, and they weren't surrendered by an owner...they were born at Woodford Humane! Their sweet mom, Calista, came to us from animal control one Monday, and we knew right away that she was pregnant; what we didn't realize is that she would give birth that very night! Calista and her babies spent several weeks with a loving foster family, and one by one the kittens got adopted. Coraline and Clover, the tortoiseshell twins, were the last two in the litter, and their forever home is twice as nice for taking these sisters home together!

We're all refreshed by a big adoption month like January, and we're excited to see what comes next. Help us keep those adoption numbers high in February: take advantage of our Sweethearts promotion! We love to send pets home in pairs, and Sweethearts lets us do just that: cat and kitten adoption fees are two-for-one, and if you adopt a dog you can take home a cat for free!

A long wait for a perfect match

Mercedes first walked through our doors here at Woodford Humane on January 21st, 2009 - exactly two years ago. This adorable brindle and white girl came to us with her sister, Queenie, as an energetic one-year-old with a constantly-wagging tail, a big heart, and a thirst for adventure! Queenie and so many other dogs have found their Forever Homes since January 21st, 2009, but Mercedes is still waiting patiently for her perfect match to walk through the kennel door.

She may be 2 years older now, but the description still fits her to a tee: Mercedes is always so excited to see her favorite volunteers and go out for a long walk, and she's always willing to share her heart with a new friend! We form special bonds with every pet that finds its way through our doors, but Mercedes truly has a special place in all of our hearts. She's a beautiful, vivacious dog who has so much to offer, and we don't want to see her wait here any longer! It's a wonderful testament to the staff and the mission of Woodford Humane that we can keep a dog like Mercedes happy and healthy for years on end, but we know that nothing beats a real home.

Mercedes is the perfect fit for an active home; she loves to play in the yard and go for long walks or jogs, and we're sure she would be a great hiking companion. All the hard stuff is done: Mercedes is already house trained and knows basic commands! She would be happiest in a single-pet home where she can hog all the attention of her loving parents and cuddle to her heart's content.

Please help us give Mercedes the life she deserves: Share her story with your family and friends! We don't want Mercedes to celebrate another anniversary here at Woodford Humane; instead, we want her to be celebrating each and every day in her Forever Home.

Get swept up in the 2011 Feline Frenzy!

To start off 2011 right, we're doing something a little bit special for our cats and all you cat lovers out there! Cuties like Dealer (top left) and Ferdinand (bottom left) can go home for just $20.11 with a donation of large, heavy-duty garbage bags, lemon-scented Pine-Sol, or liquid laundry detergent! (And an approved adoption application, of course!) The donated supplies help us keep all of our homeless pets happy and healthy, but better yet, we're hoping it helps us find wonderful homes for many of the cats in our care. Spread the word, and help us get the fur flying...right out the door!

The 2011 Feline Frenzy ends January 31, 2011, so don't miss out: find your new best friend with us today! Our Adoption Center opens every day at noon, and we're here until 6pm on weekdays and 5pm Saturdays and Sundays.

Goodbye, 2010, Hello, 2011!

Happy New Year! With 2010 behind us and 2011 off to a fresh start, we want to take a minute to look back and look ahead; 2010 was a year of many Forever homes and other joys, and 2011 is shaping up to be another great one!

Highlights from 2010:

• Over the course of the year, we took in about 900 homeless pets, and found Forever homes for 700, including many special needs pets, seniors, and long-term residents. Despite an extra-busy kitten season and a rough economy creating a tough environment for many pet owners and adopters, we are going strong!

• On March 25th, Woodford Humane turned 35 years old! Thanks for the fighting spirit of our founders and the steadfast support of our community, we hope to be celebrating our birthday for many, many more years.

• Our first annual Woodford Wag 5k run/2k dog walk was a big hit! Hundreds of walkers, runners, and volunteers turned out for a beautiful day in the Woodford County countryside. Looks like this event is a keeper!
  

• Freedom Fest, hosted by Annestes Farms, was a huge success, and the highlight of the event came when a generous donor paid off the remaining cost of our new Adoption Center, constructed in 2006.
  

• Our 60 Cats in 60 Days and '09 K9 promotions found homes for many of our longest-term resident pets, who had been with us as long as three years! 45 long-term resident cats and 4 long-term resident dogs found their homes after waiting with us so patiently for that new best friend to walk through the door.

While every adoption is special, there are some from 2010 that really stick with us. Rocco, a handsome (and HUGE) black lab/rottweiler mix, came to us unsocialized, terrified, and thin; on top of everything, he also had severe hip dysplasia at just one year old and needed full hip replacement surgery. After being here for about a week without letting anyone handle him, we came in one morning to find Rocco a completely different dog: he reached out a paw to give us a nudge, and from then on he was the goofiest puppy possible! He was still hard to find a home for, though: as you might imagine, hip replacement surgery is neither easy nor cheap, even with help from our CHAMPS medical fund. But one beautiful day, a young couple walked through the door and asked for him by name! They already had a beautiful lab/rottie mix girl who was even bigger than Rocco, and were looking for a playmate. There was no sight so beautiful as two hundred-pound rottie mixes bouncing around together like puppies! Rocco went home with them that day, and found the loving home he should have had all along.

Aiko came to us in late Autumn, and she was just about the most pitiful sight imaginable: this elderly, long-haired calico cat was declawed on all four paws, and had been abandoned outdoors. Her fur was so badly matted that she had to be shaved, and without any claws she had been unable to hunt; on intake, Aiko weighed less than 5 pounds. But despite the gross neglect she had suffered, Aiko came into our lives with a huge, sassy personality and an easy purr! We all thought Aiko was one of those pets who would live out the rest of her days as our office cat - after all, not many people come in looking for a 15 year old cat - but we were wrong: just before Christmas, Aiko captured the heart of a wonderful adopter who also took home our then-longest resident cat, Eira. Aiko and Eira are now the best of friends, and spend their afternoons cuddled up together, enjoying the good life.

Coming up in 2011:
Despite a wonderful year in 2010 and a very busy adoption season over the holidays, we are, of course, still serving as the temporary home for many homeless pets. Here's to another year of great adoptions in 2011! With the continued support of the volunteers, adopters, fosters, and donors who keep us going, we're going to continue following our motto of SAVE - Spay/neuter, Adopt, Volunteer, and Educate - to get us one step closer to the goal of no more homeless pets. If you're already a part of our Woodford Humane family, thank you for making 2010 so great, and we can't wait to see you in 2011! If you're checking Woodford Humane out for the first time, drop by our Adoption Center for a visit, or just give us a call. We can't wait to show you what we're all about! And hey, we just might find you a new best friend while we're at it.

Black Friday finds homes for black pets!

The day before Thanksgiving, we decided to create a promo for Black Friday: for one day only, we waived Adoption Fees for our pets with black fur!

Six pets:

Cats: Jinx & Alister,

Senior Cockerpoo: Heath

Kitten: Cairo

Lab/Boxer mix: Tiana

Kitten Pax (no pic)

were all adopted!