We’re On A Mission www.animalshelterwrv.org Happy Tails Newsletter We are on a mission to enrich the quality of life in our community by connecting animals and people through innovative programs that inspire and have impact beyond our borders. Winter 2013 Issue Mission We are on a mission to enrich the quality of life in our community by connecting animals and people through innovative programs that inspire and have impact beyond our borders. Vision We envision a compassionate community where all ani- mals are recognized for their inherent value and the human-animal bond is celebrated. Values Compassion for all animals Belief that every animal has intrinsic value and the right to be free from cruelty, neglect, and abuse Commitment to ending pet overpopulation Appreciation of our qualified and committed staff and volunteers The close of 2012 ends our 30th anniversary year and we want to thank all of you who have helped us celebrate this incredible milestone. Milestones like these are important because they allow us to take pause and recognize where we are today and how truly far we have come. They are also opportunities for us to look forward and begin planning for an even more amazing future. We are excited to announce that we have updated our mission and vision to better reflect not only who we are today but where we see the future of the organization going. We are proud of all we have accomplished but know there is still much work to be done. Please join us on the next exciting chapter of our journey!
Transcript
We’re On A Mission
www.animalshelterwrv.org
Happy Tails NewsletterWe are on a mission to enrich the quality of life in our community by connecting animals
and people through innovative programs that inspire and have impact beyond our borders.
Winter 2013 Issue
MissionWe are on a mission to enrich the quality of life in our
community by connecting animals and people through innovative programs that inspire and have impact
beyond our borders.
VisionWe envision a compassionate community where all ani-
mals are recognized for their inherent value and the human-animal bond is celebrated.
ValuesCompassion for all animals
Belief that every animal has intrinsic value and the right to be free from cruelty, neglect, and abuse
Commitment to ending pet overpopulation
Appreciation of our qualifi ed and committed staff and volunteers
The close of 2012 ends our 30th anniversary year and we want to thank all of you who have helped
us celebrate this incredible milestone. Milestones like these are important because they allow us to take pause and recognize where we are today and how truly far we have come. They are also opportunities
for us to look forward and begin planning for an even more amazing future. We are excited to announce
that we have updated our mission and vision to better refl ect not only who we are today but where we see
the future of the organization going. We are proud of all we have accomplished but know there is still much work to be done. Please join us on the next exciting
chapter of our journey!
DIRECTORY
Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley 28th Annual Paw’n Pole 28th Annual Paw’n Pole
X-C and Snowshoe Races With Your Dog
Saturday, February 24, 2013Saturday, February 24, 2013
10am at the new
Croy Nordic Trails Croy Nordic Trails Right across from the Shelter! Right across from the Shelter!
This year’s theme: We Are All Super Heroes!
Best costume and Silly Pet Trick contests.
Race entry fees: $5/child, $10/adult, $25/family
includes lunch and raffl e ticket entry
For more information, please call the
Animal Shelter at (208) 788-4351
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Save the date! Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley
Dog Days of Summer Dog Days of Summer Annual Benefi t Dinner and Auction
Friday July 26, 2013 Beginning at
5:30 PM
Trail Creek Pavilion
in Sun Valley
$175 per person Advanced reservations
required for this
sell-out event
ANIMAL SHELTER OF THE WOOD RIVER VALLEY
A NON-PROFIT CORPORATION ID #82-0351171
100 Croy Creek Road P.O. Box 1496 - Hailey ID 83333
Tue - Fri: 10 am - 6pm Sat: 10 am - 4 pm Sun: Noon - 4 pm
BARKIN’ BASEMENT THRIFT STORE111 S. Main Street
P.O. Box 1496 - Hailey ID 83333Telephone: (208) 788-3854
Hours of Operation:Mon - Sat: 10 am - 6 pm
Sundays noon - 4 pm
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:Rosemary Aquilante, PresidentPriscilla Pittiglio, Vice PresidentChristine Ferguson, Secretary
Sam Christian, TreasurerChris Koch, Member at large
SHELTER MANAGEMENT:
Brooke BonnerDirector of Development & Communications
Jo-Anne Dixon DVM Executive Director/ Medical Director
Nadia Novik LVT Operations Manager
Robin PottsShelter Manager
THRIFT STORE MANAGEMENT: Andrea Parker
Manager
Paul DuffyAssistant Manager
Newsletter Layout & Design Servicesdonated by Christine Ferguson
World Spay Day Event in Honor of Bella and Her Pups
It is hard enough being a lost dog in the bitter cold of winter, but with six little ones to take care of, Bella and her puppies hardly stood a chance alone and cold on the side of the road. Lucky for Bella and her family, a caring citizen picked them up and brought them to the Animal Shelter. While Bella’s owners were eventually located, they could not take care of her or her unplanned litter. We are happy to report that Bella and her six pups received great care at our Shelter, thanks to your support. Mom and pups have all been spayed and neutered and happily placed into new, loving homes.
While the story of Bella and her pups has a happy ending, many stories of unplanned litters do not end so happily. People are often surprised to learn that nationwide more than 3 million cats and dogs are euthanized in shelters each year, the majority of which are healthy, sweet pets who would have made great companions. One of the main reasons we are able to provide a no-kill shelter to this community is our commitment to being part of the solution through spay/neuter services and community education.
This year, World Spay Day is on February 26, and we will once again be participating to help spread awareness about the importance of spay-ing and neutering pets. In conjunction with our regular No-cost Com-munity Spay/Neuter Program, we will have a one-day goal to spay/neuter 26 animals for the community on February 26th, which will double our normal spay/neuter numbers for the month!
The Animal Shelter started the No-Cost Community Spay/Neuter Program in 2006, altering over 2500 dogs and cats for County residents to date, in addition to over 1500 Shelter animals altered. This successful program is a vital step in keeping the local homeless animal population manage-able for the Shelter, ensuring our ability to remain no-kill. We hope this World Spay Day event will shine a spotlight on spay/neuter as a proven means of saving the lives of companion animals and preventing pet overpopulation.
People are often surprised to learn that nationwide more than 3 million cats and dogs are euthanized in
shelters each year, the majority of which are healthy, sweet pets who would have made great companions.
Mama Bella
DJ puppy
Hillary puppy
New Year, New Goals2013 is already shaping up to be an exciting year for the Animal Shelter. Th e successes you helped us create through your generous support last year continue to grow and make change in our community. Whether you donated time or talent, adopted or fostered a homeless pet, or spread the word about our terrifi c programs, you are directly responsible for the good we are able to accomplish on behalf of the amazing dogs and cats in our care.
Here are a few highlights of the exciting improvements and changes you’ll be seeing in our programs and services in 2013:
Volunteer ProgramVolunteers are vital to the success of the Animal Shelter and the quality of life we provide our animals. Caring and committed individuals spend thousands of hours every year giving their time and talent to help the animals. To better steward and sup-port our volunteers, we have created a new full-time Volunteer & Events Coordinator position, and are happy to welcome Brittany Farrell to this new role.
Brittany has been hard at work updating our volunteer program, implementing a new online, easy-to-use interface for people to sign up to volunteer, receive updates on volunteer opportunities, log volunteer hours, access training materials, and more!
Check it out on our website: www.animalshelterwrv.org > How You Can Help > Volunteer.
We will also be holding regular volunteer orientation sessions for new volunteers to ensure everyone working with animals or in other capacities for the Shelter are properly trained and can have the most rewarding volunteer experience possible. The fi rst training was held on January 22 for a group of current and new volunteers, now ready to jump in and make a diff erence in the lives of homeless pets.
If you’re interested in attending a volunteer orientation, contact Brittany at [email protected] or (208) 788-4351.
By providing volunteer opportunities for children and teens, we are helping to teach compassion and unconditional love.
Volunteers are vital to the success of the Animal Shelter and the quality
of life we provide our animals.
Expanded Service HoursIn order to better meet the needs of the community, beginning the fi rst of the year, the Shelter will be open to the public from 10am-5pm on Mondays. The Shelter is now open 7 days a week. Whether to look for a new pet, buy a dog license, learn about volunteer opportunities, or just to visit or walk one of our furry friends, we hope to see you at the Shelter.
Additional Dog Training ClassesOur staff works incredibly hard to make sure all of our dogs are adopt-able, well-mannered, and safe. We have training programs tailored to the specifi c needs of the animals, get to know each dog that comes through our doors, and work with them on learning behaviors to help them fi nd and keep loving homes.
In an eff ort to support our adoptions and help ensure lifelong place-ment of our animals, we recently began off ering introductory adult dog training classes to the public. The classes are designed to help Shelter adopters work with their new pets as well as long-time pet owners hop-ing to improve on a specifi c behavior challenge they may be having with their dog. Because each of the classes we off ered last summer fi lled up immediately, we will be expanding the number of classes off ered this coming summer.
If you’re interested, be sure you’re on our email newsletter list and keep your eyes peeled for the class announcements in early summer. To receive our e-newsletter, visit www.animalshelterwrv.org and click on the “Newsletter Sign-Up” on the left column of our home page.
Focus on Quality of Life and Decreased Length of StayA major part of the Animal Shelter’s operating principles is to provide a high quality of life for the animals in our care. We devote signifi cant time and resources toward the goal of keeping our animals healthy and happy while they live in Shelter. Staff and volunteers spend hours each day working with the dogs and cats, providing training, enrichment, and loving attention to every animal waiting for a home.
However, no matter how well we care for the Shelter population, there is still no substitute for a permanent, loving home. One of the best things we can do for the well being of the animals in our care is to de-crease the amount of time they spend with us in Shelter. We recently began working on additional programs and marketing eff orts to im-prove the speed at which we fi nd animals homes, and these eff orts are paying off . The average length of stay of 44 days in 2012 was a full 30% lower than just two years before. In 2013, we hope to continue this trend while maintaining our commitment to fi nding each animal a loving home, no matter how long it takes. Our experienced staff works with each dog to enhance
their adoptability and teach basic manners.
Volunteers take adoptable animals to events and public locations, helping to socialize them and introduce them
to potential adopters.
Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley Photo Gallery
Thank you to our many adopters who keep in touch with us by email and Facebook,and to the many thoughtful kids that continue to amaze us with their gifts of generosity.
Tallulah - “Lulah” - one year later.Lulah makes us laugh every day. Her beautiful tail is wagging all
the time.
Roxanne
I wanted to send you a photo of Koda the kitty you helped me adopt a few weeks ago. She is the sweetest
kitty and such a snuggler!
Carolea A. Pothier
Here is Animal Shelter alumnus Primrose, now Rosie, in Southern
California. She travels well and makes friends wherever she goes.
Jackie & Peter Anderson
We are so very grateful that we found Rey through the Shelter and added him to our family.
He is our “ray” of sunshine.
Shannon Avery
Apple is so sweet - our family has loved her from the start.
Janna Crist
Gracie is the sweetest and most loyal dog I have ever met and she makes
me smile everyday, even though she is a total bed hog.
Jake Dahlgren
Stacee’s fi rst week in her new home with Oliver and Danku. You have
made our family complete!
Danielle Edelman
Scout and Tundra are great companions - - Scout is a fast
little doggy and keeps Tundra on his toes!
Mike and Katie Aaskov
Alex and Ron Taylor seen here buying doggie treats in town with
their adopted Shelter dog Jake.
Zane Lyon and Wylie Zellers, both 9-year-old students at
Hailey Elementary School. The boys raked leaves for a neighbor
and donated their earnings to the animals at the Shelter.
We adopted our beloved Jodi from ASWRV nine years ago. The minute Jodi and I laid eyes on each other, our fate was sealed, and we have
loved each other ever since.
Andrea Nelson
Stu and I are very happy. He is a great dog (except the 10%
when he is acting like a puppy-WHICH HE IS!!!)
Thank you!!Casey Hanrahan
The Benefi ts of Pet LicensingNearly 1/3 of all pets are lost at some point during their lifetime. Licensing your pet is one of the most important steps you can take to increase your chances of reunifi ca-tion should your pet become lost.
Why does my dog have to be licensed?The goal of licensing programs is two-fold. First, licensing helps prevent against rabies outbreaks by requiring a certifi cate of vaccination for all dogs over the age of 6 months. More importantly, licensing your pet increases the chance that you will be reunited with your pet in the unfortunate event that he or she is lost. When you license your pet, your contact informa-tion is on fi le with the Shelter al-lowing us to contact you if your pet is found by a valley resident or brought to the Shelter.
What is the benefi t to me?If you’re like us, your pet is part of your family. Licensing your pet acts as a form of insurance, enabling the Shelter to contact you if your pet becomes lost.
What is the benefi t to the Animal Shelter?Your license fees are helping solve pet overpopulation and homelessness by directly supporting the Shelter’s spay/neuter and community educa-tion programs.
BARKIN’ BASEMENT THRIFT STORE111 S. Main Street
in downtown Hailey
Telephone: (208) 788-3854
Store Hours:Monday - Saturday:
10 am - 6 pm
Sundays:Noon - 4 pm
Call to schedule a pickup of furniture donations.
Donations can be dropped at the Barkin’ Basement
anytime between 9 am - 5 pm, Monday through Saturday
and noon - 4 pm on Sunday.
THREE WAYS YOU CANSUPPORT THE SHELTER:
SHOPDONATE
OR VOLUNTEERAT OUR THRIFT STORE!
Please contact Barkin’ BasementManager Andrea Parker if you would
