Archive for the ‘Animals That Need Homes’ Category

Remember in a previous post I talked about URI dogs?  All of the dogs in this post are URI (Upper Respiratory Infection) dogs.  It’s important to know they exist (in a separate section from the front of the shelter) so if you are looking into adopting a pet, consider a dog that is sick, help get them treatment and give them a chance to have a happy life!  We take care of sick children, lets take care of our sick animals!  Get the word out to others that this part of the shelter exists.  Once someone looks at the dogs in the front part of the shelter they can ask to view the URI dogs but cannot go back into the front part again as to not infect the healthier dogs.

This is Buddy.  He’s a 3 year old Rottweiler that’s looking for a home.  {A404933} He is heartworm positive so he will need medication which FOJA may be able to assist with since they do assist the shelter with medical care.  He’s been in the shelter since 4/11/11.

A few unexpected things happened this week during my trip to the shelter.  I discovered one dog {Spider} I wanted to feature is going to be put down because he got into a fight with another dog and bit a volunteer that tried to help break it up.  This is Spider.  Lets say a prayer for him to have a peaceful passing.

I ran into another dog that has no name {A404987} but was found on 4/12/11 wandering in a field.  It looks to me like she has mange but the redness could actually be caused by many different things.  Did you know there are 3 types of mange are not all are contagious?  Mange is caused by tiny mites that burrow beneath the skin…basically it’s like human scabies.

This cute little thing is a grandma {name unknown, A405820}!  She’s a 10 year old Toy Poodle and will hopefully get rescued.  She was so sweet I had to add her.  Every one of her teeth are yellow/brown = rotten. I hope she’s able to get the dental help she needs.  She’s to old to deal with this stuff!

Alright folks that’s it for this post.  Hope everyone has a happy weekend and a Happy Easter!

~ Carmen

This weeks dog pics are all in black & white.  If anyone wants the originals in color for dog promotion just email me.  This time I took a few pics of dogs in the regular “population” (for lack of a better word).  Here they are.  The first puppy doesn’t have a name yet (that I know of).  She is 3 months old and is a Lab mix.  She came into the shelter as an “owner surrender” and had a wound on her leg from a BB gun.  :(  Pffft.  Some people.  This is how I found her in her cage…

Another volunteer and I took her out and played with her in a room especially for puppies and small dogs.  She is very sweet and cuddly.

I had to be artsy with this one.  :)

Obviously I took a lot of photos of this one.  :)

This is Bullet.  He is 2 years old.  Mastiff mix.

Meet Havanah.  {I wonder how they come up with these names?}  She’s 8 months old.  Pit mix.

…and this is Knuckles.  He’s so interesting looking.  Pit Bull mix.

Now for the URI dogs.  If you want to learn more about the shelter and pricing you can click here.

The following dogs are in the URI population and are being treated for some sort of infection.  Sometimes a cough or a fever, etc.  Either way they aren’t usually seen by people that walk-in the shelter to see dogs as the URI dogs are in a different section. So, it’s up to the volunteers to get their pics out so they are seen!

This is Prince.  Prince is such a beautiful dog with busy, furry paws. His owner was evicted and ACPS picked him up.  He has fleas pretty bad and will need something for flea control upon adoption.  Very very sweet dog!  He’s a 2 year old flat coat retriever.

Meet Rocket.  First of all, adorable.  Secondly, look again-adorable.  For real-Rocket is an English Bulldog mix.  He’s 3.

This is Kona. She is being treated for a cough.  She is 11 months and is a Pointer/Bulldog mix.  So sweet & playful.

Okay, at this point I am pupped out.  ;)

~ Carmen

My family is a family of helpers. As a matter of fact, helpfulness is a part of our core value system.  My grandmother is a retired teacher and my grandfather is a retired minister and therapist.  My mother is an RN and my father is a retired firefighter (the main photo for this blog is my father).  My sister and I are both teachers.  See a pattern?

I have volunteered in my community since I was 16 years old when I started donating a week out of my summers to roof & paint people’s homes through the Lake Wales Care Center.  I did that for 5 years in a row and ended up going on a mission trip to Haiti when I was 18.  It was an amazing trip and experience.  My group stayed at the House of Blessings orphanage located in Port Au Prince for a few weeks.  It was wonderful experiencing a new culture of kind people.  Not only that, it really opened my mind to new worlds and provided me with lifelong friendships.

While I was in college I wanted a place to volunteer and my grandfather suggested Hospice.  I thought that was a great idea so I filled out the volunteer application and showed up for the first day of orientation.  After attending the orientation and watching videos of people dying (ugh, I can still remember the people in the video) I cried all day (and night) and decided Hospice wasn’t for me.  I went back to my grandpa to get some ideas and he told me about the Guardian ad Litem Program. For the next 5 years I was an advocate for abused or neglected (or both) children that were unfortunately part of our state’s child welfare system.  That was also a very eye-opening and rewarding experience.

While attending college I also volunteered at 2 local night schools where I tutored adult students in English & Math.  The last time I volunteered was…well, it was a very long time ago.  Work & school got in the way.  Now that I am finally done with school (for now) I have the time and energy to get back to what I have missed…volunteering.

Along with the {P(et)O(f)T(he)W(eek)} a new idea spawned.  Why not incorporate a photo of a shelter pet?  Great idea!  After talking to some people that didn’t follow through I found some people that did and it’s been pretty crazy since Saturday.  Here’s an example of what I’ve been able to do thus far to try to save Tiffany, who is going to be (cringe) euthanized if she isn’t adopted by Saturday.  Their flyer is on the left and mine on the right.

My hope is that my flyer is able to catch a few more glimpses than the old one.  My hope is that a few more animals are saved because of my photos and flyer creations.  I am blessed with a gift and I am so grateful I am able to share it.  I am even more grateful to my family for showing me just how important that is.

~ Carmen

P.S – Jonathan at Vanity Furs was actually the person that connected me with Kim from {ACPS} Animal Care & Protective Services.  He grooms my Chewy!

P.P.S – Cute cat photos to follow soon.  I’ve been so extremely busy with teaching and creating flyers and doing photo shoots that I am having to play some serious catchup.

P.P.P.S – I promise I will try not to ever create a blog this long again. (*-*)