Week of 2/1/16 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

 

​ In 1999, the Five-acre property on which Desert Haven Animal Refuge ​was subsequently built from the ground up was purchased by the Sierra County Humane Society with funds unselfishly donated by a handful of animal loving people determined to start a much-needed no-kill movement in this corner of the Desert Southwest. And here we are in 2016 – Desert Haven​ is​ up and in operation for a while now. This year, one o​f the goals of the SCHS Leadership is to revamp and upgrade the​ ​16 years old​ sanctuary. 

Trisha giving out treats

 This winter, the no-kill sanctuary is fortunate to be home to a very special group of work-camping folks from all over – a “Dream ​ Team” indeed. Kevin of Colorado, Bob & Trisha of Texas and Cindy & Cathy of Ohio, have all been making things happen since their recent arrival at Desert Haven. They all have positive energy and extensive skills and as importantly, the dedication ​and the focus that makes them a very special team indeed. Dog​Town, Birdland and The Neighborhood are all in the process of receiving some much needed repairs and long-awaited upgrades. Birdland is being revamped to provide more comfortable ​& spacious living quarters for the feathered residents. Inside the Neighborhood, all the felines are taking advantage of the new walkways and perches recently built around the perimeter of the Cat Walks and inside the Feline Dorm.​ ​We are ​currently actively looking for new or used construction material, including plywood​ and wooden posts. Call us at 575-894-2639 or e-mail weR4pets@gmail.com.  

Interested in adopting through our​ ​free ​Adopt-a-Pet Referral program?​ ​This sterilized 2 year old female Bull Terrier-Bulldog mix is Kid & Pet friendly and has ​always been very gentle with everyone -​ Call John at 575-740-3114. A three years old Husky-Mix, sterilized with all his shots​ -Call 740-4126. Harley is very sweet, affectionate and house-trained​ -Call Laura at 712-212-3902.  Sugar is a young cuddly, very smart and affectionate feline, solid black with green/yellow eyes. She enjoys indoor/outdoor living and she is also great with the litter box​-Call Colette at 808-280-0860.  Photos ​of these fur-boys and girls in need of a new home are posted on Petfinder, also Facebook at www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven and www.Facebook.com/PawsnClawsThriftShoppe. Visit us at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge. ​Contact us at PO Box 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942.

Week of 1/17/16 Humane Happenings

Harley needs a home!

by Eliana Aubin 

The Sierra County Humane Society is a non-profit 501-c-3 animal welfare organization that gives a voice to local companion animals down-on-their-luck. It offers crucial community oriented programs, including a comprehensive sterilization program that also includes stray & feral cats. Its Adopt-a-Pet Referral program offers dog and cat owners who can no longer care for them an opportunity to connect with individuals wanting to share their home and their life with one. This is how it works: Do you need to give-up your companion animal? Provide us with a photo or two and as much information as possible. We will post it on our Desert Haven Petfinder page, also on both our Facebook pages at www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven and www.Facebook.com/PawsnClawsThriftShoppe. Potential adopters who visit Desert Haven can also check our on-going list of dogs and cats available through the program. It is posted at the sanctuary. Are you ready to give a Forever Home to a fur-boy or girl in need of one? Do you need more information on this program? Contact us at 575-894-1694 or 2639 or e-mail us at weR4pets@gmail.com. You can also visit Paws & Claws thrift Shoppe to drop-off your information – we will help out in any way we can.  

Harley needs a new home. He is a 2 ½ years old lab/Airedale cross. He weighs 60 pounds. He has been microchipped, neutered, and is up to date on all of his vaccinations. He is very sweet and affectionate and is house trained. His human is not able to keep him because of a divorce. For more information on Harley, contact Laura at 712-212-3902.  We have posted Harley’s photos and information on Petfinder and our Facebook pages as well. 

Our animal welfare organization collects aluminum cans and Bullocks receipts. The funds they provide when redeemed go towards our Spay-Neuter and Spay-a-Stray program. To learn more about these crucial programs, contact us at 575-894-1694. Our Can Corral is located adjacent to Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe. We have Bullocks receipts drop-off boxes at the TorC public library, the Williamsburg Post Office, Desert Haven animal Refuge and also at Paws & Claws, next to Family Dollar in TorC.

Desert Haven is open to visitors and potential adopters every Tuesday from 9 AM to 4 PM. You can also write to us at POB 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942.

Week of 1/9/16 Humane Happenings

 by Eliana Aubin

Ed and Camille Pronovost

This week, the Sierra County Humane Society wishes to honor a very special professional lady who currently resides in Florida, with her husband Ed. Camille has been very dear to our heart ever since the couple work-camped at Desert Haven quite a few years back. Their stay at the sanctuary was only temporary, but their commitment to companion animals in need and to our animal welfare organization especially continues to stay strong year after year.

Before the couple moved on to a new commitment in Arizona, Camille very generously offered to take on the responsibility of creating and, as importantly, of maintaining a professional looking web site for Desert Haven:  (www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com).

And here we are, already January 2016. It’s been over 10 years since Camille & Ed made their mark at Desert Haven. Among many acts of kindness over the years, this professional lady set-up a Facebook page for Desert Haven (www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven) and also Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe ( www.Facebook.com/PawsnClawsThriftShoppe, both of which she is the responsible admin. Quite an impressive lady indeed! 

The Christmas spirit is still alive and well at Desert Haven. Ringgo’s Mom and Dad who live in Texas sent several boxes of needed items including hand-made -and very much needed – labels with strings for Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe. This wonderful couple continues to help our organization whenever possible and we are extremely grateful to both of them for their generosity over the years.

San Francisco CA residents Earl and Courtney, together with their fur-boy Elvis, recently sent to the sanctuary several big boxes via Amazon. It was so enjoyable for the Desert Haven volunteers to open the boxes this past Tuesday: Milk bones for all the furry residents of DogTown, and also enough sturdy doggie coats to keep warm and comfortable the several small dogs who very recently were rescued at the sanctuary. Thank-you Earl & Courtney!  

Local residents and visitors to our area, please continue to save your Bullocks receipts for our organization. Kingston resident and Charter member of our animal welfare organization – Josephine - picks them up regularly from several drop-off locations, including the T or C Public Library, the Williamsburg Post Office and Paws & Claws thrift Shoppe.  Bullocks very generously donates to our 501-c-3 non-profit organization $2 per every thousand dollars that Josephine tallies. The money donated by Bullocks goes towards our Spay-Neuter and Spay-a-Stray programs, in existence since 1991 and 1995 respectively.  Applications for local residents to participate in this very important program can be picked-up at the T or C Police Station.

Desert Haven is open to visitors and potential adopters every Tuesday from 9 AM to 4 PM. Contact us at weR4pets@gmail.com, at 575-894-2639. You can also write to us at POB 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942.

Week of 1/3/16 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

      We are entering into a new year and as the Sierra County Humane Society is closing the last chapter of 2015, there are many reasons to be grateful. Several local businesses & their owners who generously supported our animal welfare organization and Desert Haven Animal Refuge this past year deserve a special thank-you from all our animal loving friends and members:  Suzan, owner and operator of Animas Creek Nursery located near Caballo, NM, Sierra Veterinary Services in T or C, owned and operated by our local veterinarian, Dr Dawkins. There is Bullocks Grocery Store, our friendly “Hometown Grocery Store” located in downtown TorC, also SunValley Hardware. Horsin’ Around Feed & Tack Store in Williamsburg, which by the way closed its doors quietly and permanently this past Tuesday also supported our organization and Desert Haven in 2015. Legal Advisor Attorney John Wheeler and CPA James Bagwell are both very generous with giving of their time and sharing their professional knowledge with us. Last but not least, the local media continues to be very supportive year after year. The space allowed for our weekly HUMANE HAPPENINGS articles, for example, is priceless to our organization, as we share animal oriented information with our readers in both local newspapers. Our members and supporters are from all over. Thanks to their on-going generosity, we at Desert Haven are able to save and give a new lease on life to as many unwanted companion animals as we possibly can, until they are adopted out or to the end of their natural life. A very special “thank-you” goes to Gina of Ruidoso, NM, to William of IN, Larry & Mavis, also of IN, to Earl & Courtney of California, Coqui’s mom Vicki of CT, Duke’s mom and dad of Albuquerque and to Sharon and Bill, also of ABQ, to Ringgo’s mom and dad of Texas, Rick of MA,  Lee of AZ and Jon of VA, and to many others not listed here. Their support started long before 2015 and we are immensely grateful for their on-going kindness over the years.     

      Check out the stories& photos of our little residents on our Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, which, along with www.Facebook.com/PawsnClawsThriftShoppe,   are updated every few days.  

Contact us at POB 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942, at weR4pets@gmail.com, or at 575-894-2639. Visit our web site at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.   Happy New Year, everyone!  

Week of 12/29/15 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

      Desert Haven Animal Refuge, the small no-kill domestic animal sanctuary owned and operated by the Sierra County Humane Society has taken in several new furry residents recently. Jack is an 8 month old Jack Russell (& Schnauzer ?) mix. This little boy-with-personality has already charmed everyone at Desert Haven.

 

Roxie and Holly are both black-and-tan Miniature Pinschers, one and two years old respectively. While Holly is a people person, the youngest and smallest one is still very shy in her new surroundings. Although she enjoys the company of the other little ones her size, she still has some ways to go before she feels completely comfortable around most people. That will obviously require extra-special loving attention and of course plenty of tasty treats readily available. 

 

 Then there is Libby, a three-year old Toy Manchester-Terrier mix who has already made the Puppy Play Yard and its Puppy Club House her home. Two-year old Corgy-Terrier Mix, Foxxy, is the latest arrival at Dog Town. This tiny fur-boy reminds some of us of a miniature Arctic Fox - hence his new name “Foxxy”.  

  

   The new little rescues are now part of the daily life at Dog Town and the other canine residents have already accepted them as one of them. Check out the stories & photos of our newest little rescues at www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven and  www.Facebook.com/PawsnClawsThriftShoppe.

  As soon as they are “vetted”, including shots, sterilization, etc., the little ones will be ready to be adopted out and move into their new homes.  

      All our fur-boys and girls are on their best behavior, especially at this time of the year, in anticipation of special visits that may even lead to wonderful FOREVER HOMES. Desert Haven is open to visitors & potential adopters every Tuesday, between 9 AM and 4 PM.

   The past couple of weeks have been especially productive at the sanctuary. The chain link fencing & posts very generously donated to our organization by Frances of the Sentinel Newspaper have already been put to good use. The major project was completed this past Tuesday. Hurray for Bob, Kevin and Larry, all of whom were involved in the project. Thanks again, Frances, for making it possible.

Contact us at POB 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942, at weR4pets@gmail.com, or at 575-894-2639. Visit our web site at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.