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City Living: Among the Animals – Adopting Pets is Easy in Seattle

May 25, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized

Precious at the Seattle Animal Shelter

Printed in City Living, Seattle
May 24, 2011
Copyright Pacific Publishing Company

As many of us know, the responsibility of pet ownership is a commitment to care for an animal for a lifetime. But when it’s time to expand your family to include some furry (or in some cases, scaly) friends, what are the options for meeting a new family member?
Since I’m a new resident of the city of Seattle, I decided to investigate some pet-adoption opportunities close to home.
When folks consider adopting an animal, they may immediately think of their local animal shelter — in our case, the Seattle Animal Shelter. This facility, located in the Interbay neighborhood, is snuggled in the valley between Queen Anne and Magnolia. It’s easily accessible from Fremont, Ballard, Belltown and downtown for that special day when it’s right for you or your family to find a cat, dog, rabbit, ferret, snake or guinea pig.
In fact, the Seattle Animal Shelter houses nearly any domesticated animal in distress, but they primarily have cats, dogs and rodents for adoption. However, I did meet a couple of snakes during my recent visit to the city shelter.

Seattle Animal Shelter
Mike Kokernak, animal-care officer at the Seattle Animal Shelter, said that people should do their own research before adopting a pet. Families and individuals need to consider the exercise and nutritional needs for animals they are considering adopting.

"Star", the guinea pig at the Seattle Animal Shelter

New pet owners should understand the time commitment required and the financial commitment to buy all necessary pet supplies, pay for veterinary care and cover any emergency costs that arise.

Once you have identified a potential type of pet for your lifestyle, you can meet the cats, rabbits and rodents and inquire about the dogs at the Seattle Animal Shelter (adoption hours are noon to 6 p. m., Wednesday through Sunday). Typically, there are around 30 cats and 15 dogs at the shelter, but the Seattle Animal Shelter utilizes a network of dedicated foster families who provide care for an additional 100 cats and 15 dogs.

While more suitable families are always needed for pet adoption, the Seattle Animal Shelter has implemented an aggressive spay/neuter program to avoid the animal overpopulation crisis that affects so many municipal shelters in the US.  As is typical for pet adoption, you will fill out an adoption application and discuss your choice with a shelter staff member. When everyone agrees a certain pet is a good match for your home, it will be time for the exciting trip home.  Information on adoptable pets can be found on-line at www.seattle.gov/animalshelter.

Max Mobile
The city shelter is far from the only source of wonderful pets. The Seattle Humane Society (SHS), located in Bellevue, holds meet, greet and adoption events in Seattle neighborhoods using its Max Mobile. This 38-foot adoption center on wheels makes afternoon visits to stores such as Whole Foods locations (including stores in University District and South Lake Union on Thursday, May 26, and Friday, May 27, respectively).

The Max Mobile will also be at pet supply stores in West Seattle, Queen Anne and Madison Park neighborhoods in June.
On a recent Saturday morning, the Max Mobile was parked in front of Mighty-O Donuts in Tangletown (Wallingford). Potential adopters greeted cats and dogs alike. The friendly, little dogs got a chance to stretch their legs during their day out on the town, and community members had the opportunity to meet some wonderful pets awaiting homes.

The Seattle Humane Society has about 140 cats and 70 dogs currently for adoption, and while the SHS knows that it can’t claim to save every animal, it has been successful in saving 95 percent of all animals that come into its care with the help of foster homes and transfers of animals to sanctuaries and fellow rescue groups. In this way, the SHS continues its mission to find safe and appropriate, permanent homes for their animals.

Check out the Seattle Humane Society Max Mobile schedule to find out when the mobile adoption center will be in your neighborhood. The schedule is on-line at www.seattlehumane.org/explore/events.

Komal at PAWS Cat City

PAWS
The Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) provides adoption services for homeless dogs and cats out of its Lynnwood facility. However, PAWS also operates a bright and airy adoption center in Seattle’s University District. This satellite location, known as PAWS Cat City, provides a stimulating environment for cats, including complex scratching posts, loft sleeping areas and big windows for feline sun bathing.
New adopters meet with the PAWS staff to fill out a “Meet Your Match” form, an animal-adoption program designed by the ASPCA to help PAWS staff identify a feline temperament that would best match your lifestyle and personality.
According to Mark Coleman, PAWS community-relations manager, the organization has had excellent success matching cats and people using this program. In one such case, a medical doctor with very little free time was matched with an exceptionally independent cat that only wished to be petted once a day.

O'Ryan at PAWS Cat City

PAWS has more than 60 cats who await adoption, although not all are living at PAWS Cat City. Last year, PAWS adopted out 2,200 cats and 781 dogs through Cat City and its Lynwood PAWS location.
Check out PAWS Cat City at 5200 Roosevelt Way N. E., Suite B, in Seattle, or view all animals for adoption on-line at http://www.paws.org.

Other groups
While the convenience of local shelters and adoption centers provide a wonderful resource for Seattle residents, you can also find adoptable pets through smaller rescue groups. Many of these groups post their animals for adoption on-line at www.petfinder.com.

When the day comes for you and your family to seek out a new companion, take a moment to visit these websites to learn about the specific needs of the type of pet you are considering and then enjoy the search.

Christie Lagally is a freelance pet columnist who writes a blog at christielagally.wordpress.com.

Copyright Pacific Publishing Company.

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Retail sales of puppies ends today in Richmond, BC!

May 1, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized

It’s a milestone, a happy day and a huge relief in the fight against animal homelessness, overpopulation and the cruelty of puppy mills.

The long anticipated day has arrived, and the City of Richmond’s new bylaw to ban the sale of dogs in pet stores takes effect today, May 1, 2011! It’s a happy day indeed.  It’s a day to celebrate, and also a day to reflect.  This retail puppy sale ban was a long-time in coming — almost 4 years to be exact.  While the roots of this ban started in the hearts and minds of city councillors and animal advocates in Richmond, BC, it was and is widely supported by communities across Canada and the United States.

This ban has even held up against complainants in the BC Supreme court, where the Honorable Judge Savage wrote:

The decision to prohibit the sale of dogs in pet stores falls within a range of acceptable outcomes that are defensible with regard to the facts and law. There is rational connection between the Bylaw and its objective.

With that ruling, this ban will now pave the way for future cities to encourage or require their pet stores to make the humane decision and the ethical decision not to sell animals in retail outlets.

Yippee!

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BC Court upholds Richmond’s ban on the sale of dogs in pet stores!

April 17, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged , , ,

Bebe and Spider at the Richmond Animal Shelter

A new day has arrived for the ongoing fight to stop the retail sale of dogs in pet stores and reduce the number of unwanted pets in Richmond, in Canada and in North America! On April 14, Justice John Savage ruled that the  City of Richmond had good reason to enact this bylaw, and that it was a justified action to take to reduce the large number of abandoned pets in the city.   See the Richmond Review article, but it’s below as well.

Also see our updated website page:  Puppy Ban Media Coverage.

Court upholds Richmond’s ban

on retail sale of dogs

By Matthew Hoekstra – Richmond Review
Published: April 15, 2011 3:00 PM
Updated: April 15, 2011 3:43 PM

A B.C. Supreme Court has dismissed a petition launched by three Richmond pet stores seeking to quash a bylaw restricting the sale of dogs in retail outlets.

In a judgement released yesterday, Justice John Savage ruled Richmond council’s decision to ban the retail sale of dogs was a reasonable move to reduce unwanted and abandoned pets.

Last fall city council approved the bylaw, which is set to take effect later this month. That raised the ire of Pet Habitat, PJ’s Pets and Pets Wonderland, which jointly launched legal action against the city.

Pets Wonderland sells approximately 150 dogs per year, netting the store $700 to $2,500 each, while PJ’s sells approximately 50 dogs annually.

In the lead-up to the approval of the bylaw, the city received plenty of written submissions, including two petitions: a 2,160-signature petition supporting the ban, another 1,174-signature petition opposing it.

The pet stores argued the bylaw wouldn’t reduce unwanted and abandoned dogs and Richmond acted in bad faith. The judge disagreed.

“In my view Richmond had a valid municipal purpose in enacting the bylaw, reducing the number of unwanted and abandoned dogs in Richmond,” wrote Savage.

Pet stores also argued the bylaw discriminated against them because breeders, kennels and others are still able to sell through the Internet. They further stated there was no clear evidence relating to the impulse buying of pets, which the city sought to stop.

“People do most things on impulse including getting married. There is no connection established that people who do things on impulse change their minds. To the contrary decisions made very quickly can be every bit as good as decisions made cautiously and deliberately,” argued the petition.

But Justice Savage ruled the bylaw would only be discriminatory if the bylaw didn’t act within the public interest.

“Here council distinguished between businesses which made it relatively easy to purchase a dog and those which made it more difficult. There was some evidence

that it was easier to purchase a dog from a pet store; it was possible to buy the dog and take it home the same day with little screening. Breeders and kennels had stricter criteria and often there was a delay between choosing a dog and taking it home.”

Savage concluded the pet stores “overstated their case.”

“The decision to prohibit the sale of dogs in pet stores falls within a range of acceptable outcomes that are defensible with regard to the facts and law. There is a rational connection between the bylaw and its objective.”

The bylaw, initiated by Coun. Ken Johnston, goes into effect April 30.

See: http://www.bclocalnews.com/richmond_southdelta/richmondreview/news/119949494.html

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Made it to Seattle…cat and all

April 14, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged

Seattle Space Needle circa 1960-ish

As many of you know, my husband, two dogs and cat crossed the Canadian border and returned home to Seattle at the end of March.  What we expected to be a difficult border crossing with one reactive dog in one car and a protective dog in the other, proved to be a simple border crossing except for the cat. Our cat Buca, who is not accustomed to long distance travel, was not a pleasant travel companion according to my husband, Eric, who drove her to Seattle.

Typically we let Buca roam the car rather than make her stay in her crate.  This avoids the constant meows of complaint.  But Buca took the opportunity to explore the half-pack car and found herself stuck under the driver’s seat half-way to Seattle.  My husband banned her to the crate for the rest of the trip, and another whole hour of meowing ensued.  I don’t think Eric has recovered yet.

However, we are now nicely settled in our temporary home in Edmonds, WA where Toby and Duchess (our dogs) have visited the dog friendly beach almost every day.  Duchess, our 16 yr old miracle of nature, runs up and down the beach as if she were 6 instead of 16.

Toby on the beach

Toby is fascinated by his new surroundings, having never really been outside of Richmond, BC.  Down the street from our temporary house is a cat colony at a woman’s home.  She feeds and cares for the population, and they are a constant reminder to me of all the rescue work required to take care of so many domestic animals.  Toby finds the many cats fascinating and practically holds his breath as we come around the corner and he prepares to bark at the sleeping fur balls in the driveway.  Remarkably, the cats are undisturbed by Toby’s ‘comments’.  I guess they had seen it all before.

We took Duchess and Toby for donuts and coffee  on Saturday morning to our favorite vegan donut house, Mighty O Donuts, in Tangletown.  Toby and Duchess did great with the crowds and bright happy vegan donut eaters passing by.  It was a wonderful way to have breakfast.  But the warm, fuzzy feeling we always had about going to Mighty O was enhanced even more that morning when the Seattle Humane Society adoption truck pulled up for an adoption event outside the donut shop.  Somehow, I felt we’d found some kindred souls as the volunteers walked the little dogs for adoption and answered questions from passersby.

Duchess chewing a 'stick'

Duchess chewing a "stick"

Our donut morning was concluded with a ‘power walk’ (as my friend Sonya used to call it) with the dogs in a close heal around the heavily canine trafficked Greenlake Park in Seattle.  Yes, Toby was shocked by joggers, dogs of all sizes, people on rollerblades, skateboards, mini-golf players and brave ducks that had no intention of moving out-of-the-way of foot traffic.  It was Toby’s first visit to a city park like this, so who can blame him for being a little reactive.  Also, Toby has never seen so many squirrels.  But the most notable part of our visit to Greenlake Park (that my husband and I discussed on the way home) was that each and every dog was on a leash.  Yes, there were some, like Toby and Duchess, who were not perfectly behaved, but all were on leash.  Duchess, Toby, Eric and I were all calmer to be around a universal group of responsible dog owners.

Edmonds, WA

Yes, I think we’re gonna like it here…

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Actions Speak Louder (ASL) Calgary gets heard despite industry pressure

March 26, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized

You can’t really muzzle the truth (no pun intended), and Actions Speak Louder Calgary, a coalition of rescue groups advocating for the ban on the sale of dogs in pet stores in Calgary, made sure their message was heard at this weekends Pet Expo.

While the organization was and is scheduled to run a booth at the Expo, the organization was told they couldn’t have their petition at the booth to collect signatures to support their cause.  It didn’t really matter though.  CTV published this story about how the Expo tried to keep the issue quiet, when in fact, their random regulations only highlighted that the pet industry needs to reform and stop the retail sale of dogs and other animals.

See the CTV article here!  Be sure to visit Actions Speak Louder Calgary and let them know how much you support their efforts to stop the sale of puppy mill dogs through pet stores.

 

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Well, we’re moving to Seattle…

March 12, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized

Buca the cat

My husband, dogs, cat and I are packing up and moving to Seattle.  We’ll be saying goodbye to BC, Richmond and all the wonderful rescue groups, people and dear, sweet animals we’ve met here.  Thank you all for the work you do to help animals.   I hope to continue to write about the wonderful advocacy in BC and in Canada, and also to start learning about animal rescue and welfare in the Seattle area.  Thank you to all of you for sharing your struggles to help animals with me.  Always keep in touch.  I may be slow to respond for the next few months, but I’m still listening to you.  But in the meantime, enjoy this great blog post by the author of Hyperbole and a Half called Dogs Don’t Understand Basic Concepts Like Moving.   Here’s what I have to look forward to with my sweet doggies… but I’ll through a cat in the mix as well.

Take care and stay in touch.

~Christie Lagally

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Actions Speak Louder…in Calgary!

March 6, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized

Click here to visit the website

Indeed it’s true.  Actions so often speak louder than words, and rescue groups  in Calgary have organized to stop the sale of dogs and cats in Calgary pet stores.  Actions Speak Louder Calgary is ready to fight the good fight and stop the abuse that retail animals sales cause – whether literally, figuratively or economically.

This weekend, Actions Speak Louder Calgary has launched their campaign against pet sales with a multi-rescue group adopt-a-thon.   Stay tuned for ways you can support our friends on the front lines in Calgary!

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Why stop at dogs, bunnies when banning pet sales?

March 4, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged ,

Christie and Eric's cat Buca

Original article in the Richmond News.

By Christie Lagally, Richmond News

March 4, 2011 6:02 AM

Just like in Richmond, Austin, Texas, recently banned the sale of dogs in pet stores. But it didn’t stop at just dogs. Austin city councillors implemented a new law to ban the sale of cats, too, and to require private breeders to spay or neuter their animals before sale.

The councillors had a goal in mind: to reduce the euthanasia rate of animals in its local shelter and run the facility as no-kill.

It’s working. According to the Austin Public Information Office, its animal shelter had a live outcome rate of 75 per cent prior to the implementation of the new law. One month later and after the closing of a large pet store, the live outcome rate at the city shelter soared to 88 per cent. That’s a huge impact for one bylaw to make, and the live outcome rate includes all animals in the shelter – not just dogs and cats.

On April 30, Richmond’s bylaw banning dog sales in pet stores comes into effect.

While the Richmond Animal Protection Society already runs our local shelter as no-kill, the pressure to stop retail puppy sales was also spurred by the large number of surrendered pet store dogs.

Reptile at the Richmond Reptile, Education & Adoption Society

The problem is Richmond’s ban only applies to the sale of bunnies and dogs. Kittens and cats, the most abundant pet for adoption in Richmond, will still be sold in pet stores. (See cats for adoption here in Richmond here.)

Furthermore, rescue groups such as Greyhaven Exotic Bird Sanctuary and Richmond Reptile Education and Adoption Society are taking in record numbers of birds and reptiles – most of which were originally bought at pet stores.

Why are sales of kittens, birds and reptiles any different than dogs and bunnies? Fundamentally, the same problems of impulse pet buying and animal abandonment or surrender exists.

Macaw at Greyhaven's Sanctuary

Because RAPS takes in nearly every homeless cat and provides a cat sanctuary (on No. 6 Road) for unadoptable cats, while Greyhaven and Richmond Reptile care for every bird and reptile in their care, the political pressure to stop the sale of these animals isn’t heard as loudly.

But it should be. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend the figurative ‘rally’ for birds, reptiles and cats in Richmond.

Next week my husband, two dogs and cat will be packing up and resettling in Seattle. Sadly, I will have to say goodbye to writing my Richmond News pet column.

In the meantime, I want to say how proud I am that Richmond residents have made this city the most humane city in Canada.

Toby and

Toby and Duchess ready to head south to Seattle

Your efforts to ban the retail sale of dogs and bunnies, require cage-free eggs in city facilities and support a no-kill city animal shelter are what makes Richmond a true gem of a place to live for animal lovers.

And until birds, reptiles and cats have the same protection from our bylaws as dogs and bunnies, please support and advocate for those groups dearest to my heart – RAPS, Greyhaven Exotic Bird Sanctuary and the Richmond Reptile Rescue and Adoption Society. Like many other wonderful rescue groups in B.C., they are the ones fighting on the front lines against animal homelessness, neglect, abuse and indiscriminate sales in Richmond.

Christie Lagally is a volunteer pet columnist and founder of the Animal Welfare Advocacy Coalition. She will continue to write her blog (christielagally.wordpress.com) from her new home in Seattle.

© Copyright (c) Richmond News
Read more: http://www.richmond-news.com/travel/stop+dogs+bunnies+when+banning+sales/4383347/story.html#ixzz1FeJ5O3dX

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Winnipeg looking to right some wrongs for pets

February 27, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged , , , ,

The City of Winnipeg, Manitoba is considering a ban on the sale of dogs in pet stores to stop the financial support of puppy-mills by local retail outlets. Check out this CTV article. (A special thanks to my friend Helen for sending me this information!)

Winnipeg has quite a few stores that sell animals, including puppies, so this law would go a long way to stopping the range of problems caused by retail sales of puppies and other animals.  Amongst many pet stores, a Petland chain store is also located in Winnipeg.  Petland is notorious for their sale of puppy-mill bred dogs (see: US Humane Society) and their connection with Hunte Corporation.  Furthermore, in 2008, the US Humane Society sued Petland and the Hunte Corporation for racketeering and misleading customers.  A quote from the lawsuit is below:

The lawsuit, filed in federal district court in Phoenix, alleges that Petland violated the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and numerous state consumer protection laws by misleading thousands of consumers across the country into believing that the puppies sold in Petland stores are healthy and come from high-quality breeders.  Read more…

In 2008, two former Petland franchisees sued Petland and the Hunte Corporation for their horrific business practices (see:  Animal Law Coalition).

The lawsuit, filed in federal district court in Phoenix, alleges that Petland violated the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and numerous state consumer protection laws by misleading thousands of consumers across the country into believing that the puppies sold in Petland stores are healthy and come from high-quality breeders.

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Don’t waste pet’s poo (May 6, 2009, Richmond News)

February 22, 2011 · Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged , , ,

Dog Poo Composter at the Richmond Animal Shelter (from Careen’s Rescue Blog)

This article is one that I wrote nearly two years ago about ‘greening’ the Richmond Animal Shelter.  Since Spring will be coming up fast, I thought I’d put it on my blog to help people deal with their pet’s waste this season.
See original article in the Richmond News.

By Christie Lagally, Richmond News Wednesday, May 06, 2009

I was recently inspired by the Vancouver compost demonstration garden (see http://youtu.be/sud1JgBSc1Y) to install dog waste composters at the Richmond Animal Shelter.

Metro Vancouver recommends this composting method to dispose of canine waste so that it does not end up in our soon-to-close landfill in Delta. As you can imagine the 20 or so dogs at the Richmond Animal Shelter produce a lot of waste, so a few weekends ago, I gathered three old flat bottom trash cans, a shovel, some clippers and called BC One Call to find out where it was safe to dig to install the composters.

Once I got the OK from local utilities, I dug three large holes, cut off the bottom of each trash can, and inserted the cans as lining into the holes. A dog waste composter consists of placing the dog waste into a lined hole in the ground (with a cover) and regularly adding Septonic, a biodegradable septic system activator, along with some water and a few dry leaves or grass.

After a couple of weeks, during which I kept track of the waste being put in, the shelter composters were working perfectly. There was no smell from the dog waste because the Septonic breaks down the molecules that cause the smell.

The remaining material from a dog waste composter can’t be used on vegetable gardens because of the risk of bacterial contamination. (Note that it is safe to use on shrubs and flower beds.) However, at the Richmond Animal Shelter, we have an abundance of rabbit waste that is excellent on vegetable gardens, in orchards or in planters.

The cages of 40 rabbits at the shelter produce a lot of waste that is ideal for gardens, and rather than put it in the trash, RAPS has begun a program to distribute rabbit waste to local gardeners.

Simply bring a box or bin to the shelter to pick up the rabbit waste between 4 and 5 p.m. any day of the week. It’s free, it’s fantastic for your garden and you’ll be helping to keep organic waste out of our landfill.

There are even more eco-projects on the horizon for the shelter. On Saturday, June 20 (2009!), RAPS is holding an Animal Shelter Clean-Up Day and Volunteer BBQ to get the shelter ready for summer renovation projects.

Families, groups and individuals can participate in the Clean-up Day. Call RAPS at 604-275-2036 or see http://www.rapsociety.com to sign up.

Read more: http://www.richmond-news.com/life/waste/2878343/story.html#ixzz1Ej4G5WQU

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