EBHS Unleashed

Recently, a cat made national news (on CNN to Regis and Kelly) from a local shelter in the state of New Jersey.  I think everyone heard about this cat, not because it was a stray, but, because it weighed in at 44 pounds. Which, for a cat, is a lot. My dog is only 30 pounds.  The suitcase I brought on my flight home was under 44 pounds.

What really amazed me about this situation was not that this cat was grossly overweight (so much so that they initially thought it was a female because the fat covered his naughty bits), not that he was 10 years old, and certainly not his average markings or personality, but that over 500 people applied to adopt this cat. Even people from England had contacted this shelter to adopt the cat. I could not get over it. Five-hundred people. 5-0-0 people. For one cat! Who is 10 years old, and in serious need of a diet! People can be pretty grumpy on a diet, I imagine a cat on a diet is no picnic to live with.

I have a shelter full of cats and kittens, who are all unique and special individuals. Some with amazing markings. Some with fun personalities. Some young, some old. Some were even brought here as strays and victims of the economy (like Mr. 44 pounds). Yet, they linger here for months at a time waiting for a new home.

Sadly, the part of the story that did not make the news is that not one of the 500 people that applied to adopt this cat offered to take home one of the more than 200 other cats and kittens that were housed in this very same shelter at the time. The shelter said that they had to euthanize about 1/3 of the approximately 1000 cats they take in every year.

Since we are located in Wisconsin, I cannot get our cats booked onto Live with Regis and Kelly. I thought about creating a fat suit, or making a cardboard cutout of the fat cat and having their photos taken to look like they were enormous so that people might be interested in them. I do not know what I can do to make our cats more appealing to adopters. In fact, our cats are pretty darn appealing all on their own!

My time here at the shelter has taught me that people find cats pretty easy to part with. Certainly we see all kinds of animals surrendered here for many reasons, but cats really seem to be the ones people can walk in and say "He is 12 years old, and a wonderful cat, but I would like to travel now, so you should find him a nice home" or "Yes, they are 10 and 11 years old, but I am pregnant now, so I should not have a cat anymore". When we ask for a donation at the time of the animal being surrendered we get people that will respond "I will let him out on the side of the road before I give you money to take him. You are just going to make money on his adoption, so why should I give you anything?".

We have so many cats and kittens at the shelter at the moment, we have cut our adoption fees in half to help get them adopted. They are no less valuable to us. It is just that we want people to be able to use the money they save on making sure their new best friend gets the best food, and necessities to get them started on the right paw in their new family.

Even though our cats were not on TV, and none of them are grossly overweight, they are all celebrities to the staff and volunteers here. More than anything else, we want them to find great families that will always love them and give them a home forever - not just when it is convenient, or when it provides 15 minutes of fame.

Your prayers and kind wishes must have helped because the puppy that I wrote about yesterday has made a miraculous recovery. She was bright eyed this morning, had eaten and taken water on her own during the night, and was wagging her tail like crazy. When I went to check on her this afternoon she had eaten all the food I left for her in her crate and wanted a bunch more. She seems like she will make a complete recovery. A happy ending! Thank you for all of your well wishes! Now she just has to get over her upper respiratory infection and she will be able to be made available for adoption.

Now, I am going to wish for some more happy endings, like tons of people coming to our event this Thursday night! If you are free, you have to come to our Giggles Fundraiser this Thursday night. Giggles Comedy Pub in the Sendik's Towne Center is hosting a fundraiser for us, doors open at 5:30 and the show starts at 7pm. I will be at the door greeting our guests. Tickets will be available at the door! We are going to have a great time!

Also, I need you to vote for us for the WISN A-List. It is not as simple as just clicking a button, but it is a really easy registration process. I get turned off immediately if there is a bunch of blanks to fill in to do something, but it was easy to do. You get an email to confirm that you are a real person, and then you click the link and you are done. We have been working really hard to get the word out about how great EBHS is, and this is just another way to have more people recognize our name and help support our beloved shelter. Here is the link to vote:

http://wisn.cityvoter.com/contests/a-list-on-wisn-com/1858/pets/animal-shelters

If we win, we will have a big party at the shelter to celebrate.

Some more great news is that we are welcoming the kids from Lad Lake back to the shelter. Lad Lake is a great organization out in Dousman that provides positive learning experiences for at-risk young men in our area. We have had some wonderful experiences with these kids and are looking forward to working with them again. They will be back on August 26 when school starts for them. The kids help us with cleaning in the morning and then work with the animals who need training and socialization. It is a win-win for all of us. It will be nice to have some more men around the shelter, as for some reason, most of our staff and volunteers are women.

This has been a great day! Thanks again for all of your wishes! I will post a picture of Minnie, the Parvo puppy as soon as I can! 

On Friday, I did something very few shelter or rescue people would do. I took home a puppy with Parvo.

Parvo is a deadly disease that mainly affects puppies, but is deadly to all dogs without a vaccination. This little dog was transferred in from another shelter. She is about 9 weeks old. Some kind of golden colored mixed breed. We sent her into foster care when she seemed to have an upper respiratory infection. The next day she started vomiting and we knew even before the test came back positive what it was going to tell us.

Many puppies, if treated early enough, can recover from Parvo. She is so little, so weak, so emaciated. She was that way when we got her, but she is now just a whisper of a dog.

I am usually very pragmatic in situations like this. Irish people are genetically pragmatic, it is in our DNA.  To quote one of my fellow Irish-Americans, the late Tip O'Neill, "To be Irish is to know that, in the end, the world will break your heart". Maybe that is how I am able to work in a shelter and not cry myself to sleep every single night. Because the world is supposed to be this way. Bad things happen to good people and innocent animals all the time, for no good reason.

Many shelters would not have given her a chance. It is dangerous to have a dog with Parvo in a shelter. Maybe she should have been euthanized when we found out how bad it really was. I do understand what other shelters would do in this situation, and why it should be done. But I could not do it. She seemed like she wanted to fight. So I figured that I should let her.

I took her home and have set up a makeshift hospice where she could be isolated from my dogs and family to minimize the risk of her infecting other dogs and the environment. I have been administering subcutaneous fluids, as an IV was unable to be inserted due to her weak condition and collapsing veins. I have been keeping her warm, clean and dry. I have been giving her nutritional supplements. I have been trying to keep her spirits up. Every time I think she is done for, she seems to read my mind and gather up all of her strength to get up and walk around so I can see she is not ready to go, yet.

Somewhere along the line I became a person who cannot bear a sad ending. I am not sure when this started, but I will not read a book or watch a movie anymore unless I can be certain of a happy ending. After living a pessimistic life where not only was my glass half-empty, but the liquid left in it was arsenic, I have turned into a believer.

I am the person who watches the wildlife shows on TV who roots for the wildebeest crossing the river with the crocodiles waiting nearby. I shout encouragement to the baby seals in South Africa, as they dodge the teeth of the Killer Whales. I know all about the circle of life, I saw The Lion King. But, while in my world, the zebra escapes to run another day from the pride of lions who are now happily munching on a dead animal they took from the hyenas off camera. I root for the underdogs. I root for the lowly and meek. Heck, I even root for the Mets.

I believe that this little puppy will somehow make it, and pull through this disease. Despite her weak condition. Despite her bad odds. Despite everything. I have done all I can do for her. It is up to her now. She has to be strong. She has to accept my medications, and needle pricks. She has to want to live as badly as I want her to.

I am praying for one more happy ending tonight.

The other day I wandered out into the reception area and was greeted by a young lady, about 9 years old, armed with a notebook and a pencil. She told me she had a couple of questions for me. I thought maybe she was a young, budding reporter or journalist, and I was not going to take any chances on a bad press story in a school newspaper so I immediately sat down and prepared myself to be grilled.

See, I have met the budding Tim Russerts and Barbara Walters from our community before. Unlike a seasoned reporter, who will try and gently gain your confidence and get you to spill your information about a certain topic, these youngsters immediately ask the tough questions about euthanasia, declawing, and adoption policies without giving you a nice warm up question first.

Fortunately for me, this young lady had only one question for me "How old do I have to be to volunteer?"  I get this question a lot, too. Most elementary school kids, especially the girls, would love to spend every hour of the day here. The catch is that if you are between 10 and 15, you must volunteer with a parent. Now, I work at the shelter, so it is easy for me to have my kids involved here. But most parents work a 40 hour work week and do not get excited at the thought of coming in after work or on weekends to clean, do laundry, or socialize animals.

Since this young lady was not old enough to volunteer, I did give her an application to hold on to for her birthday, and asked if she would like a tour of the shelter. Not just the viewing areas, the whole building. She was excited so we went to find her mom and sister to get permission and to invite them along. I cannot tell you how much I enjoy giving tours to kids that are really interested in the shelter.

I took them first to the laundry room which before looked like a regular old laundry room, but through the eyes of these two young ladies it became this exciting hub of domestic activity. Then we went and saw where we house the stray animals, and the animals that will be coming up on to the adoption floor in a few days. They were full of questions about where the animals came from, how they are taken care of, and were excited to see so many animals that they could have never guessed were even in the building.

On to the surgery room and recovery area which in reality is nothing like the really cool operating rooms on Animal Planet, but showing the space to these two kids, it suddenly seemed like it. They were fascinated and interested and asked more questions than most adult visitors to the room. I took them to our outside kennel areas, and they were really impressed with how much time the animals got to spend outside, and loved that they all had their own pool to hang out in.

I had a great time with my new friends, Rae and Anna, and even though I was totally swamped when I ran into them, I genuinely enjoyed every minute I spent with them and was thankful for the respite. Seeing the shelter through the eyes of a visitor is always interesting, but seeing the shelter through their eyes proved to be much more exciting. My place of "work" suddenly became the coolest place in Brookfield, and I was all the more proud to be here.

I was in a meeting the next day when they stopped in, though I would have gladly stepped out for a second to say hello. Instead, I was greeted by two beautiful pictures drawn by them with really nice notes on the back. I hung them on my office door as a reminder of the fun I had that day, and a reminder of how cool the shelter really is for the people we serve.

 I was unable to write yesterday, as I had to run out to take my kids for back to school hair appointments, since they have to take class pictures in August. I also just had my dogs to the groomer last weekend. I would like to share my top 10 reasons why taking your companion to the groomer is much more pleasant than getting back to school haircuts:

10. Your dog cannot ask for their hair to be styled like their favorite Disney teen celebrity, or cartoon character after you return to the waiting area.

9. You can drop your dog off and come back in a little while and not have to fear your dog telling the groomer things like "Mommy likes wine in the morning" or "Mommy does not wear pants to bed"

8. Often your groomer has a nice selection of things you actually will buy and use, unlike the hair products at a salon that they recommend to make your child's hair look like they do when you pick them up and will invariably age like fine wine under the sink until they dry up on their own.

7. Your dog cannot tell the hairdresser that you would love it if they had a permanent pink stripe of hair like Avril Lavigne.

6. Groomers sometimes make housecalls.

5. Your dog does not get mad at you if they get a haircut they do not like. Heck, they are just so happy to see you they could care less what their hair looks like.

4. The mani-pedi is included with the grooming - they will even brush your dogs teeth! Try getting the stylist at Master Cuts to brush your kid's teeth!

3. Your dog usually is on their best behavior at the groomer. Unlike my 14 year old who perfected her dirty looks in the mirror each time the stylist tried to engage in lively chit-chat. Gotta love teenage girls!

2. Your groomer does not judge you for your bad interim "trim jobs", but your child's stylist looks at you with pity upon seeing your amateur bang trim job on your young child.

1. When you get home from the groomer, your dog will not hog the bathroom for 3 hours rewashing and styling their new do.

Thanks to all the groomers out there who put up with us fussy moms and dads! I suppose I should thank all the stylists too, as they sure do a better job cutting my family's hair than I do. Although, I did marry a man who cut his own hair right before a job interview and he kind of looked like Pee Wee Herman when he was done. He did get the job, but that is a story for another blog...

The other day I had to accept that I am getting old. Surely the expanding waistline and the growing crow's feet were a sure sign of that, but I am usually able to hide those things with clever outfits or cosmetics. But this week is the 20th anniversary of Shark Week on the Discovery Channel. I cannot seem to comprehend that I have lived long enough to have done something 20 years ago.

As with most animal lovers, I not only occupy myself with the trials and tribulations of the family companions. I have a thirst for knowledge about all kinds of animals. I often amaze friends with a plethora of facts such as the gestation period for an African Elephant (22 months), the top speeds of emus and ostrich (30mph), and which types of sharks lay eggs or have live births. This type of knowledge might be useful on Jeopardy but has otherwise not gotten me very far in life.

I have loved sharks since I was a kid on Long Island. Back when I was growing up there were still fish and a thriving fishing industry in the area. There were always fish tales about sharks getting stuck in nets and ripping holes in them, or sharks eating a hooked fish right off the line. Many a child from Long Island was threatened with becoming "chum" for shark fishing when we were naughty. I did a science project for school on sharks when I was in 7th grade which got me a 2nd place ribbon for a state science fair competition.

So, naturally, when the first Shark Week came on 20 years ago, I was rapt with awe at the amazing discoveries in the world of sharks since the time of my 7th grade triumph. I lived with my Aunt and my Grandmother at the time, and me and Gram would watch Shark Week programming all evening. I have watched it faithfully every year since. It has never gotten boring.

It is hard to remember what my life was like at the time.

I was still in school. I was working in an animal hospital as a Vet Tech. I was fostering "Lincoln" for a local shelter, he was a Lab mix with a stump for a tail. I also was the proud owner of Pete the cat, who became mine when my Grandfather passed away. If someone told me then that I would be living in Wisconsin and working in an animal shelter in 20 years, I would have told them that they were crazy.

Twenty years is a long time. I think back on all of the animals that I have had the good fortune to become acquainted with and the people who loved them. I can remember all of the dogs that I have fostered and helped find new and permanent homes, the many kittens I bottle fed. It can almost be discouraging to know that I have worked so hard on behalf of so many animals, and I know so many people who have worked so much harder and it seems like there is still so much more to be done.

At the end of the day, I am pretty happy that life took me to Elmbrook Humane Society. It is hard work, the hours are long, and I will not retire a millionaire. But I am really proud to be a part of something so special. The staff and volunteers amaze me every day. The animals are always wonderful. The work we do is so important, and so necessary.

Today we had a couple of great adoptions, Bailey the Lab went to a new home with a super nice couple. Paddy the Standard Poodle got a great new home. I even got to take a puppy and a kitten to a photo shoot for an animal health product that will be in veterinary magazines. I will be here a bit longer finishing up a couple of projects, then go home to my kids and dogs, and Shark Week!

Have you purchased your Waggin' Wheels Car Raffle tickets yet? Call me (262-754-6597)! I have plenty!

First of all, I would like to send a really big thanks to Bob and Stephanie Soerens, the father-daughter team who own, and put all their passion into the family business, Soerens Ford right here in Brookfield. We spent the day with them on Sunday selling raffle tickets for our Waggin' Wheels Car raffle on Sunday. They helped us put up our tent, they kept our spirits up, they auctioned off a hat for us, and at the end of the day helped us raise about $1,700 for the shelter. Not only is Soerens a great dealership, but they are longtime supporters of EBHS and animal lovers as well!

Second, I wanted to ask for the help of everyone who reads this (Yes, you!).

We are trying to sell raffle tickets to raise money for the shelter. The winner will get to pick their choice of a brand new Ford Mustang Convertible, or a brand new Ford Edge. Each ticket is only $20 (my church car raffle tickets were $50!) and we need to sell 5,000 of them by November 8, 2008. We have the drawing that day at Soerens Ford at noon.

We need help selling tickets! If you are having an event where we can sell tickets, call me! If you will let me come up to your place of employment at lunch time and sell tickets, call me! If you would like some tickets to sell to help us reach our goal, call me! I always hear how it takes a village to raise a child, or train a dog. It will take several villages, towns and cities to help EBHS reach this goal. I keep going over the math in my head - it will take 100 people to sell 50 tickets - or 50 people to sell 100 tickets. That does not seem so impossible, does it?

If you are interested in buying a ticket - call me! I do make house calls (within reason - gas is pricey you know!).

If we sell more than 3,000 tickets (we only have 5,000 to sell) we can give away the car - if we cannot get to 3,000 we will split the money 50/50 with the winner instead. I am not above begging, so if you can help us - please call me! I can be reached at 262-754-6597.

We have been doing so many adoptions lately, for which we are very thankful! It is so great to be finding homes for so many wonderful animals. This has to be the best summer ever for EBHS in the adoption/animal department. We have one of the best groups of animals we have ever had available lately. We have also had some really great new families come into the shelter looking to expand their families.

One dog I am really hoping to find a new home for soon is Remmington. Remmington is a super loving Australian Shepherd mix. He does not like to be left alone in a kennel, and is quite adept at escaping from them. It is kind of cute to be sitting at my desk alone one minute and then the next minute find our Remmington curled up at my feet. He seems super sweet, and very eager to be around people. He should be up on the web page with a picture soon so you can see a photo of this loveable dog. If I had room at my house, and did not have a husband to keep me in line, I would love to bring that sweetie home with me, myself!

We still have many kittens available for adoption, so I hope if you have been thinking about a new kitten, you will stop in and see us. We have two black and two tortoiseshell kittens right in our lobby that would love to meet you!

Remember - think Waggin' Wheels raffle! It is a great opportunity to win a new car and help out the animals we take care of here at the shelter. Heck - even if you do not need a car, you can win it and sell it, and with better odds than the lottery - it is worth taking a chance. Don't you think?

Many of you have been hearing about different shelter activities in the news, both at Elmbrook Humane Society and the Wisconsin Humane Society. Since we have been taking many calls about it, I wanted to let you know what the situation is in regard to the WHS puppy mill dogs.

Yes, Wisconsin Humane Society was able to purchase the puppy mill business of Wallace Havens, the self-proclaimed "inventor" of the Puggle. They purchased not only his facility, but his breeding stock and remaining "inventory" as well. This of course is an excellent development for the almost 1,200 animals that called Puppy Havens home.

Wisconsin Humane has now set upon the daunting task of rehoming all of these animals. The young puppies will be the easiest to place, as they were the least traumatized by the experience. The adults, however, will be a much harder endeavor.

Supporters of Elmbrook Humane Society already know how hard it is to rehabilitate an animal that has had little human contact, no proper socialization, and years of neglect. The adult dogs rescued from this facility have a long road ahead of them. Fortunately, most dogs from puppy mills can lead relatively normal lives, if not fully recover. They will need to be in homes with no small children, with another dog already in residence to help them learn to trust people and help them learn how to be a family member instead of a breeding machine. They are also very difficult to housebreak and can have food aggression issues.

There are a few that never recover enough to be what we consider "normal" pets, but they still deserve a chance to try and live a life that most of our own animals enjoy. A life full of love, food, treats and a warm place to call home.

We will be taking animals from Wisconsin Humane Society as we can, and as they need assistance. WHS will be placing most of these animals directly through their own shelter. The puppies will be easily adopted. Some adults will also be easy to place. Some adults will go to breed rescues. Others will be in long term foster care. They are all safe now.

We heard that Wisconsin Humane Society had to open early for the many people lined up down Wisconsin Avenue who came in to adopt one of these puppies. Just remember these animals are not the only animals in Wisconsin in need of a home. There are shelters and rescue groups all across the state with wonderful animals who need a home to call their own as well.

Many of these animals reside right here at Elmbrook Humane Society.

I love public speaking. I am, in real life, a very gregarious person who is always the life of a party, and never at a loss for words. However, my bravado was taken down several (hundred) notches at a recent meeting at Brookfield City Hall.

I was invited to speak to the Licensing Committee in regard to some shelter statistics on complaints we had received in regard to the number of pets people had living in their home. The first item on the agenda was in regard to "animals at large". I was taking copious notes on the story of an unhappy citizen when she uttered the words "So, I called the Humane Society". What followed was very audible snickering, rumbling, laughing and the person behind me said "What a joke". I could feel my face turn red with shame. I had no idea what people thought of Humane Societies. Or maybe I just thought that people loved Elmbrook but thought other Humane Societies were not as great as we are.

Surely I am biased, as I spend about 60 hours a week here, and I know all the good we do for the community, and the animals here. But, it was very hard to hear, and I started praying that they would forget to call me up to the podium. Unfortunately, they did not forget me, and the walk up to the podium seemed to take about 20 minutes. Once up there, all of my saliva dried up and I had a cracking voice while trying to mutter out the statistics I came to present. I prayed for one of those large vaudeville hooks to creep in and yank me out a side door. I stumbled through a few questions, then returned to my seat.

After some more discussion, I was again asked to come up to the podium. Fortunately, my genetics had kicked in and I got my Irish up, and was able to return to the podium and speak more eloquently about the subject at hand, give more information, and hopefully my input will lead to a fair resolution of the question of animal limit laws in the City of Brookfield. I have to add, that I work and live in the City of Brookfield, and would never leave the city limits if not for the draw of Mayfair Mall and the occasional Brewer game.

But, the meeting did leave me rattled after taking in the public perception of what a Humane Society is. In fact, we even had an adopter refer to us as "dog jail" the other day. Now, if we are going to compare Elmbrook Humane Society to a prison, it would surely be one of those nice white collar prisons up in Connecticut, not one of those horrible ones on MSNBC's "Lock Up".

The animals here are confined for a portion of each day, no doubt. However, you will not find a cleaner, odor free establishment in Wisconsin - and that includes places without animals. Plus, the dogs, cats and rabbits here get more outside time than any prisoner in any jail in this country! We have dog walkers, and even dog runners who take the dogs out for plenty of play time. The cat socializers spend countless hours playing with the cats in a playroom. Even the rabbit volunteers make sure the rabbits get plenty of floor time and set up ramps for them to climb and explore play areas.

When I was a kid, the local humane society was a sea of chain link fences, barking dogs with dirty cages, and lethargic looking cats. Those days are over. Elmbrook is a happy place, with happy animals, happy employees, and happy endings each and every day. Even if you are not looking to adopt a new family member, I strongly encourage you to come to Elmbrook Humane Society and see for yourself what a great place we really are. I am very proud to work here, and I know you will be proud to know how much the people in your community care about the animals here as they helped us build this place and their support allows us to continue this work.

As a child I remember summer as being the lazy time of the year. We got to ride bikes, swim, chase fireflies and the days seemed so carefree. Flash-forward to adulthood. Summer is the craziest time of the year! I am busier in the summer than I am the whole rest of the year! I feel like I could work 24 hours a day and never catch up! At least that is the excuse I am using for not posting here for a week!

The shelter is also very busy, which is a good thing. We have lots of dogs, cats, and tons of kittens all looking for new homes! We have 6 parakeets, and 3 finches waiting for new homes as well. If you are looking for a small bird to keep company with, we are sure to have one that will be a great fit for you!

I do have good news to share! The rats and guinea pigs are finally starting to find new homes. One adopter, a sweet kid named Molly, came in to adopt 2 rats with her family. She said she had waited months and had to talk her parents into it. While rats may seem like an unorthodox choice, they actually make excellent companions. Molly told us she did her research into small animals, and had to choose between rabbits, hamsters and rats, and rats won paws down! She decided that since rats were extremely intelligent and loved to be held and interact with people, that a rat would be her best bet!  She sure looks pretty happy, and we are happy to know that our rats are going to a great home! Is there anything cuter than a picture of a girl and her rats?

We are in need of foster homes for kittens! Kittens under 8-10 weeks of age need a mother or human surrogate to care for them. They are very vulnerable at this age in a shelter environment and have the best chance of survival in a foster home setting. Fostering is hard work but caring for a life in need can be a wonderful, rewarding experience.

If you are interested in fostering a kitten, or three, or four, please contact Carol Sumbry at 262-782-9261 or via email at carol@ebhs.org.

How many years have we heard not to lock a dog in a hot car? I have been hearing that since childhood as well, yet I see dogs locked in hot cars all the time. We got a call for one today, in fact. This enterprising person thought that cracking the windows and leaving the dog a bowl of water while they were at work for 8 hours would be a good idea. The morning was cloudy, but this afternoon got sunny and hot fast.

If we say "Please" will you stop locking your dog in a hot car? Even in 70 degree weather the inside of a car can get up to 90 degrees. In the sun, a car's temperature can reach 160 degrees in just 15 minutes. Even in the shade. I can barely handle getting into my car on a hot day and waiting for the air conditioning to kick in. Imagine how hot it would be for you to sit in a hot car for 15 minutes. Today when I left work I sat in my car with the windows cracked to see how long I could stand it. It was 6:30pm, and I will tell you, after 7 minutes I had to turn on the air.

I am sure if you asked your dog if they would rather stay in the comfort of their home, or sit in a searing hot car for half an hour while you ran in to get some groceries, they would opt to stay home. I have dogs that live to ride with me in the car, but I do not take them anyplace during the summer where they would have to be left alone. I only use drive-through places in warm weather with my dogs in the car. Or, I leave them home.

There have even been cases of people leaving a dog in the car with the air conditioning running and the car will turn off the air after a certain amount of time when the car is left in idle leaving the poor animal to roast while their humans think they are taking care of them.

Let's all make a pact and not bring our dogs on every errand. Let's leave them home, and safe. I know they miss us. But better to miss us for a little while than to bear losing them in such a painful way. Dogs do not have the ability to make safe choices, so they are counting on us to make these choices for them.

Sometimes, love means having to leave them home for a little while.

If I were a Beagle, I would not be able to count how many times guests came to the shelter and looked at me and said “How cute! But too noisy!” or “They are good for hunting, but they do not make good pets”.

If I were a Beagle, I would walk over to my kennel door and call over these misinformed people and tell them that not only am I cute, but I am no noisier than any other dog in the shelter. The thing is, when a Beagle has something to say, we want to make sure that everyone can hear. Us Beagles do not make small talk – if we are barking, there is something the whole neighborhood should be aware of.

If I were a Beagle, I would further explain that there are few dogs that are better suited for life in a family. Beagles are devoted, loyal, brave and loving and make excellent companions for most families. We are the perfect size for children to pal around with. We love to take walks and be part of your life. It is common (and heartbreaking) knowledge, that Beagles are among the most desired breed of dogs to be used in laboratories because we are compact, adjust easily to confinement, and no matter what you do to a Beagle, our temperament is such that we will still give you a lick on the nose. We have never given up on people because Beagles are the eternal optimists of the dog world.

If I were a Beagle, I would readily admit that we do have some quirks. Once we get our nose on the ground and pick up the trail of a squirrel or rabbit, we can excitedly run to find them, even if our person might be calling our name. We tend to gain weight easily, so if you are a couch potato, a Beagle might be an early warning sign that you need to get up and get some exercise. We also shed, but not as bad as some breeds. Fortunately, we love to sit on your lap for a good brushing.

If I were a Beagle, I would sum up our conversation by saying that Beagles spend way too long in the shelter because people believe the bad press about Beagles. If you see a Beagle in a shelter, take a few moments to take a look into our trademark big, brown and beautiful Beagle eyes. These eyes were specially developed to be so deep and expressive that you might decide to give me a chance to prove what a great companion that I would make for you.

If I were a Beagle, I would not let you down, because a Beagle exists only to make people happy.

Dogs that before could barely jump onto a couch suddenly become able to leap over high fencing in an effort to escape the bombs bursting in air. I have a close friend who had a dog jump out of a second story screen window due to the extreme terror it felt from the fireworks on the street below. Fortunately the dog survived, but had two broken legs and needed to be sedated each subsequent Fourth of July for fear of a repeat performance.

This Fourth of July, there are precautions you can take to make sure your four-legged friends are safe and comfortable:

-- Keep your animals indoors in a secure area during peak fireworks times, and make sure you've

   removed any items that might be harmful if chewed.

-- Having a television or radio playing at low volume can help calm an animal.

-- Check with your vet in advance if you know your animal gets distressed on the 4th as they may

    be able to offer some medications to keep your companion's anxiety to a minimum (this is a last

   resort!).

-- Don't leave your animal outside unattended, even if your yard is fenced! Debris from falling fireworks

    can be fatal if ingested, and your animals can be burned by out of control rockets, or worse,

    become a target for someone who might think it was funny to aim a bottle rocket at a living

    creature.

-- Make sure your animal is wearing identification tags.

-- Leave your dog home if you're going to a fireworks display.

It is best to take the necessary steps now, rather than have a animal injured, or even killed on the road if they escape your control and run into the street.

This is another example of how important it is to expose your puppy or dog to as many things as possible so that they do not develop fears of everyday things, and even unusual things. There is a saying that each puppy should be exposed to 100 different people before it is 6 months old. You should also make sure that you bring adult dogs out for as much socialization that is possible, depending on their personality.

The best advice a vet friend gave me was to make sure your dog got a lot of exercise during the day on Fourth of July so that they can try to sleep through the festivities and fireworks show. I think that is what I will be doing myself!

CarMax really does care! The CarMax Cares volunteer team came out to work with me bright and early Sunday morning. I have to give a shout out to the whole group - Meaghan, Shelley, Nick, Sandra, Andrea, Cheryl, and Bridgett. These nice folks not only came out to the shelter early on a Sunday AM, they worked so hard cleaning, weeding, scrubbing, sorting and assembling a small kennel with absolutely no instructions whatsoever. Not only did they make the place look awesome and get us caught up on some chores that we let get away from us, but they also brought in a bunch of items from our wish list, and then made a very generous donation on the first big check I ever got! They also got to socialize a bunch of the animals and take the dogs for walks. I cannot tell you what a great time I had working with them. A big EBHS thank you to the whole group!

Wisconsin needs more bats! I had to do yard work this weekend, and I am fairly sure that I have contracted either Malaria or West Nile virus right on my front lawn. Where are they treating for mosquitoes? I am going to paint a target on my roof for the next time they fly over with the larvicide! I have no standing water on my property, yet I am covered by mosquitoes from head to toe as soon as I walk out my front door. I had to cover myself with "bug dope", as my husband calls it, just to get the newspaper! I hope my neighbors understand that I will not be doing any yard work until the first frost. I am going to hang some bat houses up in the woods in my yard to attract more of Mother Nature's natural mosquito control to my yard.

Guinea Pigs at the shelter do not really like strawberries! We have been low on fresh veggies at the shelter lately, and a neighbor gave me a bushel of strawberries and someone else told me she liked to feed them to her guinea pigs. So naturally, I brought them in this morning and gave them to all the small and furry animals - rabbits loved them, rats loved them, mice loved them, guinea pigs did not touch them. Lesson learned! I have to hope someone in the neighborhood is growing some greens for the guinea pigs.

People are always surprising! We had a feral cat brought in recently that was to be spayed and given to a foster family to live in a barn. After this cat was spayed we were waiting for the foster to come and get her and then found out that this person had changed their mind. This poor cat had no options and we did not know what we were going to do with her - until someone came in to have another feral cat spayed for them to release in their barn. This nice gentleman was asked if he would like two cats for his barn, instead of just getting the one he brought in and he said YES! So he not only saved one life with his kind gesture, he has now saved two!

Wall-E was a great movie! I highly recommend this movie. As I suspected, cockroaches will survive on the earth no matter how badly we mess it up. Then they get to co-star in a Pixar movie! The little cockroach was cute in the movie, and he made a great companion animal though I do not expect that trend to catch on. As an adult, I loved the movie probably more than my daughter who I took to see the movie (it was all a ruse, I really wanted to see the movie myself and I made my husband take her to Kung-Fu Panda so I could see Wall-E).

EBHS will have a lot of Chihuahuas available in 6 - 9 months! One of the trailers before the Wall-E movie was for another animated movie starring about 500 Chihuahuas. Typically, when an animal is featured in a movie (101 Dalmations, Air-Bud) people run out and get that breed of puppy and then when the animals are not as charming as the one in the movie they will bring them to a shelter, or try to re-home them personally. Chihuahuas are a great breed of dog, but they are not for everyone. I heard several children, including my own ask to get one right in the theater...Ay Carumba!

Atticus is a beautiful 4-year-old cat that came to us as a stray from the Milwaukee County Domestic Animal Control Center. He is a really striking cat, very large, and fearless. He also seems to not realize that he is a cat. He also happens to be our current front office mascot. This is a picture of Atticus.

At the shelter we typically keep one cat up in the front office for company and for the cat to get some extra attention from potential adopters. We have had a quite a few characters in the front office, like Gomer, who did not like dogs and would attack them like a lion would attack a water buffalo.  He loved people but anytime a dog would happen to be in our reception area, Gomer went into predator mode. He did not care if the dog was a tiny Chihuahua or an enormous German Shepherd. In Gomer's mind, they were going down.

Another cat was Charlie. Charlie really liked people food, and if he heard any kind of wrapper or cellophane noise he would be on your lap in seconds. My favorite Charlie episode was once when I heard one of the front office gals shout the name "Charlie" and I looked up from what I was doing to see Charlie run past me with a sandwich in his mouth. He somehow managed to unzipper a lunch bag and remove the chicken sandwich inside that was right at the feet of this gal without her even knowing it. That is pretty talented for an animal without opposable thumbs!

We had another cat named Christy up front and she was the clumsiest cat ever. She had access to the whole front office at the shelter and thought nothing of jumping up onto your desk and walking around, drinking out of your coffee, then slipping on papers which would send everything on your desk flying onto the floor. Or she would run across your keyboard and close files that were not saved, or send incomplete emails. She knocked so many coffee mugs down that we are still finding broken bits from them under things when we clean.

Our Atticus has already proved he has a very unique personality as he was a model for a recent photoshoot with other EBHS shelter animals. He was a natural at working the camera, despite other cats and dogs around him, flashes going off and all kinds of commotion around him. He was so good that he will appear in some animal health advertisements for Abbott Labs. A star was born that day, and Atticus is not letting any of us forget it!

Atticus has had a very full first day up here in the front office. Like I mentioned, he is super friendly, and follows us all around like a dog would. He forced me to relocate my Guinea Pig maternity ward as he was relentlessly trying to get past the gate that I keep across my office and was making the guinea pigs afraid. Then someone came into surrender a dog, and he thought he should go say hello and try to play with this dog who was very stressed and did not appreciate Atticus' attempts to engage in friendly play. He has been at our side answering phones, stamping mail, doing data entry and even kept a handyman company while he was fixing the toilet in our lobby area today.

We had to move a bunch of birds into a front office where they would get some sunshine and hopefully more exposure to potential adopters. Atticus wanted to get a better look at the finches and he knocked down a water bowl and caused fur and feathers to fly. While there were no injuries, Atticus lost a little dignity as he had a wet head for a little while and the birds got a good laugh at his expense.

Atticus is available for adoption, and he is waiting for a new family that will appreciate his unique outlook on life as a person in a cat suit. Many people feel like a cat is a cat, but I can assure you that every cat is has their own well defined personality and can add so much to your life.

Today I received a call from a gentleman who wanted to know how much money another animal charity gave to us from the money he sent to them each year. He stated that he sent money to an animal welfare organization based in New York, and that he received appeal letters from them every year, and he sent money to them thinking that these funds would be given to animal charities in Wisconsin, specifically to Elmbrook Humane Society. He also said that they mailed him return address labels and he felt he needed to pay for them by sending money to this charity.

Many of us receive lots of mail from charities all over the state, and even the country. I seem to get a lot from animal welfare organizations, which I presume is in response to getting on mailing lists from products I buy or places I sign up to go to with my dogs, and through my professional affiliations. I also see a lot of television commercials on at night with sweet little animal faces, and sick puppies for national animal charities. The sad music plays and there are slow motion shots of sick, injured or sullen dogs and it is hard for you not to run over to your check book or grab your credit card and call the number on the screen.

I want to set the record straight for all local animal charities and rescues. We do NOT get any funds from any national, regional, or state animal welfare organizations. If you send money to a charity based in New York, that money will go to further the mission of that group in New York, and while it may help animals, it will not change the life of one animal in Wisconsin. Also, if you send money to a state animal welfare organization, it does not get distributed to the other smaller organizations in that state. Make sure you donate DIRECTLY to the animal welfare organization of your choosing. If you want to help local animals, donate directly to a shelter or rescue near you!

Now, this is just my own personal opinion, but I feel that if a charity can send you something in the mail  like labels, or magnets, or other goodies in a solicitation letter they might not need the money as badly as another charity who cannot afford to send an expensive mailing like that. Trust me, just mailing a plain old bulk letter these days is pretty pricey. If there is an additional goody in there - that is the Cadillac of solicitation letters.

I am a big fan of the old slogan - "Think Globally, Act Locally". I try to shop at local businesses instead of big chains. I try to support local school and youth organizations and local civic charities. Since there are so many ways that charities can reach out to people now (internet, television, direct mail, phone solicitation), make sure you know who you are donating to, and exactly where and how the money will be used.

Because of the current economic climate, there will be pleas from many organizations this year so you should be extra vigilant to make sure your donation dollar will do the most good!

 It is raining cats at EBHS. Today we took in 10 cats from a hoarding situation in a home where there were 180 cats. The cats are stinky, and some have ear mites, but they are all friendly and once they have been cleaned up, and are spayed and neutered and receive medical treatment, they will be made available for adoption. This hoarding situation was bad, but since the animals seem to be placeable this tragedy will not be made worse by having to euthanize the animals, which is the unfortunate result of many similar cases.

Many people are quick to condemn animal hoarders. It is very difficult for most of us to understand how someone can go from one or two animals to 180, while living in the conditions that 180 animals create in a home. There has been extensive research done on people who hoard animals and there are three types of personalities found in hoarders:

1. The Expert: This is a person who feels that they are an expert in animal care and need to be in control of the animals they have in residence. These people tend to reject outside concern, help and intervention. 

2. The Rescuer: This is an individual who feels that they are the only person capable of providing the proper care and home for an animal in need. Often these individuals start off with one animal in the hope of rescuing and then rehoming the animal, but find that they are unable to let that one go, so they get another and the same situation arises which leads to a cyclical bringing in of animals and none are ever let go.

3. The Overwhelmed Caregiver: These are the most common type of hoarder, and they tend to be more socially isolated and the animals fill up the void in their lives. The hoarding in this situation is usually triggered by a change in circumstances, such as the death of a spouse, or retirement.

Animal hoarding situations are very emotional on so many levels, and it is not the job of a Humane Society to judge people that hoard. The people and the animals in these situations need our help, and that is what we are committed to doing. If you have a relative or neighbor that you are concerned about, please first understand that hoarding is a type of obsessive compulsive disorder, and they honestly cannot help themselves. Simply removing the animals from a home is just the first step in a long path that a hoarder must take and they will need support and care so as not to repeat the cycle again. There is an extremely high rate of recidivism with hoarders, so it is critical that there is ongoing support and monitoring by family and friends.

We can all do our part to protect animals and help hoarders by notifying the local humane society and authorities if you suspect someone might be hoarding animals. Also, if you are considering surrendering your companion animal to a private rescue, make sure to visit the residence where the animals will be kept to make sure it is not a hoarding situation.

Hoarding situations prove that it is all too possible to love animals to death.

Mondays are such a busy day at the shelter! We have had a ton of visitors, lots of phone calls, and one really upset lady with a fox problem. It seems that a family of fox had taken up residence in the yard of a neighbor who was out of town, and she wanted us to come and remove them immediately. She also said that this fox family had eaten all of the cats, squirrels, chipmunks and other small animals in the neighborhood. She had been on the phone all morning with the DNR, and the police, and felt that someone ought to come out and remove these animals and could not understand why no one would. She hung up on me and I felt badly that she was so frustrated and felt like no one would help her.

Elmbrook Humane Society will always respond to phone calls about injured wildlife. It is out job to pick those animals up and make sure they receive the proper medical care. Often times, we will transfer injured wildlife to our good friends in Oconomowoc, Wildlife In Need. We will also come over and remove an animal if a resident finds a wild animal inside of their home. This occasionally happens with raccoons down chimneys, and sometimes bats.

However, when we get a call from a resident saying that wild animals are living near their home there is nothing that we can do unless the animal is injured or exhibiting visible signs of disease. We are not permitted by state law to trap wild animals and relocate them, which is what most people would like us to do. In fact, simply removing one wild animal, such as a fox only creates the opportunity for another fox to move in on the territory. In the spring and early summer we actually discourage residents from trapping wild animals. Trapping and moving a wild animal during this time often creates a family of orphaned babies left to die, or to need hand rearing until they can be rehabilitated and released by a professional animal rehabilitator.

We are so lucky to live in an area that is so rich in wildlife. When I was a kid, I lived in suburbia on Long Island and I never saw any wild animals other than bird, squirrels, and the occasional deceased raccoon on the side of the road. Living in Brookfield, I routinely see deer, turkeys, fox, coyotes, all kinds of raptors, reptiles, and the occasional skunk or opossum. Wild animals are around us all the time, probably many more than we are even aware of. Most will pass through our yards without us even noticing.

Now, other than my dogs rolling in deer droppings, and the occasional raccoon ripping open my trash, I have not had any real problems with wild animals. But I know that many residents are not as charmed by the sight of a family of fox, or coyotes in their yard. The best way to avoid having wild animals decide to take up residence near your home is to make it as unwelcoming as possible. Here are some tips:

1. Make sure the exterior of your home has no holes, cracks or broken attic/basement windows where a wild animal might be able to gain access and start raising a family.

2. Keep brush piles and wood piles far from your house, as these can make attractive places to hide for denning animals such as coyotes and fox.

3. Wild animals prefer quiet, secluded places to have and raise babies. Make sure that your backyard is well used and well lit in the evenings to discourage wild animals from lingering around.

4. Feeding birds and squirrels in your yard will attract predators such as coyotes and fox, who live off small animals. If you stop attracting prey, you will also be less likely to have predators in your yard.

5. Make sure your trash is always secure. Nothing delights a wild animal like a buffet of table scraps!

Wild animals are here to stay in Brookfield and our neighboring communities, and while it can be trying sometimes, we have to learn how to live with each other. Please do not hesitate to contact EBHS if you need some tips on your own special issues with wildlife. We will do all we can to help keep your family, and family companion animals safe, and tell you the best ways to deter wild animals from becoming homesteaders on your land.

One last reminder - Please keep your cats indoors and do not let your dogs roam around unattended. They can easily fall victim to a wild animal!

Milez went home today! Many of you are already familiar with the plight of Milez. He is a 5 year old Husky that was recently surrendered to the shelter when his owners could no longer afford to pay for his seizure medications (about $50 a month). On top of everything else, poor Milez is about 30 pounds overweight.

Fortunately, a super lady came in today and fell in love with this beautiful dog. She is committed to maintaining his medications, and exercising him, and we know that he has found the perfect forever home. A few tears of happiness were shed when he left today. Shelter animals already have so many things stacked against them, and to have a medical condition, with a weight problem would definitely be a hindrance to most adopters. We love people that can love an animal the way our animals love us - with all of our faults, problems, and bad habits. There are no perfect people, and no perfect animals, but there sure are many people and animals that are perfect for each other! Here are photos of Milez, and Milez and his new mom!

My office at the shelter has now turned into a Guinea Pig maternity ward. We recently had a few young guinea pigs surrendered here to the shelter, and today our vet who comes in once a week advised us that two of them seem to be in the family way. I will keep everyone apprised on when the stork arrives here. I have never spent much time around a Guinea Pig, but they seem to be nice office mates. They do not mind being stared at by my foster dog, and they make all kinds of little happy noises when I give them hay.

Do you have a dirty bird feeder? Have I got the opportunity for you! This Saturday volunteers from Elmbrook Humane Society will be at Wild Birds Unlimited at 19555 W. Bluemound Avenue washing out bird feeders just in time for the summer feeding frenzy. We hope to see you out there.

If this is the first time you are reading EBHS Unleashed (or the EBHS Insider from our webpage) we welcome you to our shelter blog! This blog helps keep the community involved in the day to day goings on at Elmbrook Humane Society, your local animal shelter. We have some happy stories, some sad stories, but we always have animal stories to share. We hope all animal lovers will enjoy being a part of world!

Today was a rather exciting day for a few of our animals. Three of our cats, and one of our dogs were asked to participate in a photo shoot for Abbott Labs Animal Health Division. O'Malley, Atticus, Ginger and Larry were photographed at the Saturn Lounge Photography Studio, and all of them did very well. They all seem to know that they are stars now!

Pictured above are some of our animal celebrities, Atticus, Ginger and O'Malley...

If you are interested in adopting a kitten, we hope you will come in to see us on Friday. We will have many new cuties available for adoption this Friday.

We were happy to see Ferris, a West Highland Terrier go home with a new family today. We are still hoping to find new homes for three parakeets and a pair of cockatiels. We also have several Guinea Pigs looking for new families. If you know of anyone looking to add a small animal or a bird to their family, please tell them to come visit us!