By Tanya M. Ursual

From The Lanark Animal Welfare Society (LAWS) L.A.W.S., P.O. Box 156, Smiths Falls, ON, K7A 4T1:

Understanding how a shelter works

Readers of this column might be interested to learn even more about our shelter and how it works. Over the next month we will cover the day to day workings of our shelter by tracking the course of animal from the moment it arrives right through to its adoption. This week we will focus on how animals come to find themselves at our shelter. Animals arrive at LAWS in one of three ways; as a stray (primarily through local animal control officers); as a give-up-of-ownership from a family/owner that is no longer willing or able to care for them; or through our Animal Cruelty Inspector as a result of an OSPCA investigation. If you find a stray animal it is important to contact your local animal control Officer. A list of these ACO’s can be found on our website or by calling your local municipal office. Your local municipality employs this Animal Control Officer to keep stray animals off the streets and to ensure that pets safely find their way back home. ACO’s can provide important stray animal statistics back to the municipality and an animal is more likely to be reunited with its owner when an ACO is involved. ONLY when ACO’s bring a stray animal to the shelter does LAWS receive a small pound fee from the township, which goes towards the care of the animal. The law requires all stray animals be held for 72 hours to give them the best chance of possibly reuniting with their owner. Once the animal arrives at LAWS it is scanned for a microchip, photographed, logged into our system, fed and cared for. Over the course of the following days, our staff will observe the animal for signs of aggression, illness and general personality. Stay tuned to next week’s article as we cover the animals care during its time at LAWS……..

Understanding how a shelter works….part 2:

Last week‘s article discussed the three ways in which animals arrive at LAWS; as a stray; as a give-up-of-ownership (owner that is no longer able to care for them); or through our Animal Cruelty Inspector as a result of an OSPCA investigation. Upon arrival, all animals are logged into our system, given a number and information sheet. At our own time and expense, LAWS will vaccinate every cat/dog and, if necessary, will bath the animal, clip its nails, clean its ears, treat it for fleas and more. If an animal appears unhealthy it will be taken to a vet for appropriate treatment. We often deal with tragic emergencies and handle them on a case by case basis. So now the animal is ready for adoption and must begin its long wait. If it is lucky it might be adopted in the first few days. Sadly, others have a wait as long as six months before finding a new home. Every day, our staff arrive at LAWS at 8am to begin the task of caring for over 100 cats and between 10-20 dogs. Pens and cages are cleaned, all bedding is washed (they are hung on the line so we can avoid the dryer to save on our hydro bill), food bowls are replenished, prescribed medications are administered, food and litter are restocked and more. On a good day, volunteers have arrived and animal care is completed by 11 am (in 3 hours) at which time the staff turn their attention to dealing with the public. There are many phone calls to answer, paperwork to complete, cleaning to be done, spay/neuters to be scheduled and more. Thanks to our readers, we often receive cat/dog food donations saving us from having to purchase food. We rarely receive donations of non-clumping cat litter so that is something we must purchase each week. The shelter can be a very stressful place for some animals and most of the pets that arrive at LAWS already have weakened immune systems from poor nutrition and not having received proper vaccinations. Cats, especially, can become ill in a shelter environment. Foster homes can be critically important in the cases of pregnant or nursing cats or animals that are depressed or recuperating from illness or surgery. LAWS has taken the unprecedented step of spaying/neutering every cat before they are adopted (if they are old enough). It is part of our commitment to control the cat population. Any animal adopted from LAWS that is not already spayed/neutered receives a free certificate to have that done. LAWS has one of the lowest adoption fees of any shelter in North America. On average, a cat/dog that has come through our shelter usually costs LAWS twice the cost of its adoption fee. Our priority is to find new homes for animals, provide them with care while they wait for that forever home and ensure that spay/neuters are a priority. That is where we rely on our supporters who make regular donations to our shelter. Without them, LAWS could not exist. It is important that readers understand that we receive NO government funding. LAWS’ only source of revenue comes from its adoption/shelter fees and the generosity of our supporters.

Stay tuned to next week’s article as we discuss a shelter animals wait for a home…..

Understanding how a shelter works, part 3.………..

Hello, my name is Buster the cat and I am going to share my story with you as part of our continuing series on how our shelter works. In the last two weeks we covered how animals arrive at LAWS, and some of the challenges that face the shelter in caring for so many unfortunate animals. Here is my story. I am about two-years-old and I was roaming the streets of Smiths Falls. I did have a family and a home when I was a young kitten but as I grew older and bigger my family decided I wasn’t as cute anymore. They moved away and simply left me behind. I was hungry and scared and didn’t know what to do. I wandered around and approached a nice looking lady who gave me a pet and something to eat. I heard her on the phone inside where she called a man to come and get me. A gentleman in a uniform showed up and offered me a delicious can of tuna. The next thing I knew he put me in a cage and we were moving in his car. He carried me into a building and filled out some paperwork and I heard him talking to some friends about me. Pretty soon they opened the door to my carrier and encouraged me to come out. They were really nice to me and decided they would call me Buster. They looked me all over and gave me cuddles which I really enjoyed. Then they carried me to another room where they put me in my very own cage. They gave me a litter box, lots of delicious food and water and a nice cozy blanket. I decided things weren’t that bad so I had something to eat and settled down for a snooze. I couldn’t believe it, every day they gave me more food and cleaned my litter box, they let me run around for a bit (but I just wanted to cuddle) and I was warm and safe. After a while a really nice lady opened my cage and cleaned my ears for me, she clipped my nails and made sure I was looking my handsomest. Everyday some strangers came in and they took me out of my cage and played with me and cuddled me. That was my favourite part of the day and I showed them my appreciation by purring as loudly as I could. One day I was put back in the carrier and taken to the vet. I don’t remember much because I was asleep but I kind of think they did something to my wee-wee. A few days later I was fit as a fiddle and they put me in a different room. There were lots of people coming and going in this room and I just loved all the activity. I kept trying to put my hand up and meow to them to say hi but they seemed more interested in the other cats in the room. Every morning I would wake up and look forward to my breakfast and a cuddle and each day people would come and go. Then, one day, it happened! This really nice person opened the cage door and picked me, little old me. She whispered in my ear and told me that I was going to go live with her and that we were going to be special friends. The nice ladies at LAWS helped her fill out some paperwork and asked her some questions to make sure she would really love me. Then I was off in her car and to my new home. That was many months ago and now I am settled in my forever home with my best friend in the whole world. We cuddle, we play and I keep her company every day. I hope she knows how much I love her. I especially want to say thank you to everyone at LAWS for looking after me. If it weren’t for them I never would have found my new wonderful home where I am so happy and so loved. So, that concludes my story and I have to run because I think I hear the can opener………………Stay tuned to next week’s article ....