Week of 1/11/09 Humane Happenings

Tom & John work as a team on the Tuesday project


Desert Haven ( DHAR), Sierra County’s No-Kill domestic animal sanctuary, is a very special place for the unwanted animals seeking refuge there, but also for the folks who commit weeks, months and even years of their life to help give those innocent creatures new hope and a new worthwhile existence. Tuesdays are special at DHAR for many reasons. Most of the folks involved at the sanctuary work together on projects that day, and when everyone gathers for the 1 PM pot-luck lunch, there is an atmosphere of camaraderie and kinship that can’t be beat.


Ron in the kitchen

Also, many of the pot-luck lunches could rival some of the best restaurants in our area. Deb Peter’s recent pasta bar was absolutely delicious. Everyone pitched in with a specialty sauce, salad or dessert, including Ron Gjurovich who delighted the seafood lovers with his superb clam sauce. Last Tuesday, Ron's brisket slices on a bun was a winner. It takes a lot of food to feed an average of 22 hungry folks every Tuesdays, and everyone pitches in, in a way that is remarkable.

This week's Kudos go to Dr Cardwell, owner and operator of Hot Spring Clinic and Sierra Animal Shelter, who for many years now, has supported both Spay-Neuter and Spay-a -Stray programs instituted by our organization in 1990 and 1994 respectively. His support does not stop there; when we opened DHAR to dogs and cats with no other place to go, Dr Cardwell accepted to sterilize our DHAR animals at a lower fee, and to also lower his prices on some of the shots. Without his gesture, sterilizing our animals and keeping their shots up-to-date would have been very difficult to assimilate for our small organization.

Because of Dr. Cardwell’s generosity, our animal welfare organization is able to offer one spay-neuter each month to one local resident with an animal in need of sterilization. Our organization chooses the lucky recipient each month and the surgery is performed, courtesy of Dr Cardwell. A very nice gesture on the part of a very busy veterinarian. Thank-you, Dr. Cardwell.

We need help at Paws & Claws, our humane society thrift shop. Deb Peters needs the services of someone interested in helping her check donated electronics and small electrical appliances in the shop. If some of our readers can spare a couple of hours either Wednesdays or Fridays, please contact Freddie at 894-2778 for more information. We sure need help in that department, either Wednesdays between 12 and 4 PM, or Fridays, between 10 and 4 PM.

Interested in finding out about us, contact us at 575-894-2778, visit Desert Haven on Tuesday or by appointment, or check us out at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.