Friday, June 27, 2008

Uncle Sam Speaks...finally!

This little tidbit may not be appreciated by anyone lacking the experience of having called, written, waited, called again, cursed a little, waited and called many many more times to the IRS. Although our experience is limited, it does seem that the IRS is significantly more responsive when they want something from YOU, instead of vice versa.

But here's the news -at long last the IRS determination letter has come. We are hereby officially designated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation in the beady eyes of the US government tax officials.

Wow - this calls for a Milk Bone!!

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Meeting Date Change

Heads up on our meeting date change. In July we will be meeting on WEDNESDAY, July 16, same time and place. We changed it because the primary voting is Tuesday (our usual meeting night) and we wanted to make sure everybody gets their ballot cast. So if you don't exercise your civic duty that night, you can't blame us!

B.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Tossing Pennies

Today we have another episode of our popular series "1000 Ways to Waste Hard-Earned Money on Your Pet."


How about this handy talking bowl? Called the Chatterbowl, it records your voice so everytime your pet comes to the bowl to eat or drink, they'll hear your soothing ten second recording. Only $13.

My professional dog opinion? It's like those oinking pigs people put in their refrigerator. Pleez - we just want to eat or drink. No dialogue is necessary. Two paws down.

How about the Yuppy Puppy Treat Dispenser? It's like a gumball machine, but with treats inside and designed so dogs can work it themselves. Only $34. My opinion? One paw down. Just leave an open box of Milk Bones on the floor.





The Tick-Tock Teaser will excite the predator in your cat, the catalog says. For only $17 you can put this thing on the floor, then watch your cat play with an empty grocery sack. Three paws down.



The Furcedes Plush Dog Bed lets us sleep in style. Only $260 for a good night's snooze. Class all the way. Three paws up.



The Ultrasonic CatStop. A built-in motion sensor sends a high-decible alarm (inaudible to humans) when cats approach, frightening them away and keeping them out of gardens or other areas. Only $49. I've got 4 around my bed - best money I ever spent! Four paws up.

Want more? Check out http://www.petgadgets.com/.



Thursday, June 19, 2008

Dog Days are coming

We're heading toward the Dog Days of Summer - my favorite time of year. I'm not thrilled with the heat or outcropping of fleas that comes along with it, but at least us canines have a season in recognition of our superiority. You don't see any Cat Days on the calendar, do you?

WAG's got some stuff coming up, too. In August we'll be at the city of Between's anniversary on August 16 with some fun events for pet owners to participate in.

We're also working out details on several community assistance programs. For example, coming up for seniors we've got Animeals on Wheels, helping the pets of seniors in the Meals on Wheels program; our Golden Pairs program, a subsidized assistance program making adoptions and follow-up pet care more affordable for seniors. Our education committee will be creating a pet care program to help our local Boy/Girl Scouts earn animal care badges. And, of course, the spay/neuter program is still going strong. Soon we'll be outlining an application process to make it available to more people who need it.

Just a reminder - Kittens can still be adopted at Boss Brothers Country Store and also at West Walton Feed. They're vaccinated, spayed/neutered and waiting for new homes. Thanks to both BB and WWF for fostering these guys, rather than having them creep all around my house each night!


B.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Paw Power

Before outlining my personal woes, I have to comment on WAG's State of the Animals Report and meeting on June 17. Wow! A packed house of nearly 100 people came to hear some of the details about dogs and cats in Walton County. The enthusiastic, engaged group also had the opportunity to hear from commission chairman Kevin Little about future plans for the shelter and issues of concern like feral cats, dogfighting, etc. We are grateful to him for spending the evening with us during a busy election season.

The turnout was a great surprise, but not really. Over 63% of households in Walton County own pets, and that's over 17,000 homes. So those 100 or so folks that came are a drop in the bucket of people interested in animal issues. The fact that these people took the time to drive their cars to the library shows how deep their concern goes. And for every person that came there are probably 10 more who would have liked to been there but had other commitments. So there you go - Power of the Paw-Lovers will take us far!

Here's a few interesting tidbits we learned. We have about 16,932 cats and 15,919 dogs living with their families in Walton County. There are probably more than 9,800 feral cats roaming around our area. In most communities, an estimated 12% of the population feeds an average of 4 stray cats. So if you're feeding a few unowned kitties, you're not alone.

Animal Control handled nearly 3,700 animals last year. Unfortunately 81% of them never found homes and were euthanized, so clearly we have some work ahead. But we're already moving down the river of change, so the view will get better soon.

So - I hate to complain, particuarly after detailing the plight of homeless animals. But I have to explain my lack of attention to this blog.

I made the huge mistake of going for a group ride in the family van, but guess where we ended up? The kennel!

Normally, going for a ride is a lot of fun. Sometimes we stop for hamburgers, chips or cookies. So when we all piled in the van early one morning, it seemed like good times were ahead.

OK, I should have suspected something, because the weiner dogs were in a crate. That's usually a bad sign, but frankly I was too wrapped up thinking about our upcoming treats.

We were seriously misled.

It was a long two weeks in the kennel, but we're finally back home. It's gonna take time to feel normal again, particularly because the kennel people gave me a bath and blowdry before I left. Geez!! I smell like a perfumed Poodle. I've been rolling in the dirt like crazy since getting home, trying to get rid of that awful "pleasant" aroma. Humans and their poorly evolved sniffers. Blech!!

'Til later



Buddy

Saturday, June 14, 2008

And now a pause for this brief message

I can't believe it's been so long between posts. But gimme a few more days - I've been out of commission, but will fill you in on the horrendous details when I get back. In the meantime, plan on coming out for the Walton Animal Guild's June 17 State of the Animals Report, 6:30 pm at the Monroe-Walton Library. Lots of important info, and our special guest is Walton Co. Commission Chairman Kevin Little.

I'll have to miss it, but you shouldn't!

'Til later,

Buddy