Humane Happenings

Caballo Mountains behind Old West Pacita

by Dolly Loftus

The Caballo Mountains continue to be a perpetual Kodak moment as the season and our weather gradually change. We are very excited about three new sets of work campers that will be arriving within the week. Our new local volunteers, Art and Pat, have really stepped up to help when most needed. With new people on board, there work should be a little easier. We could not operate without volunteers, and at times there is a critical need for them. Right now, we could use an administrative assistant to handle basic computer work, file and do light correspondence. Another position, a little more challenging is a financial assistant. This volunteer should be familiar with Excel and like numbers. If you feel that you have expertise in sorting and pricing, Paws & Claws could be your place to volunteer. We need help with clothing, appliances, furniture, electronics, collectibles, books, records, and jewelry.

The Quilt Raffle drawing was held on Halloween and the winner was Pat Faulkner. The beautiful blue jeans quilt was handmade and generously donated to Sierra County Humane Society by Linda Christopherson. Mary Jane and Bill Clelland recently donated a computer and regularly give us cash donations each month for animal food. Roger and Diana Doss of Champagne Hills gave a cash donation for pet food and also a sewing machine in excellent condition. Woof! Woof! Meow!


Cool Cat Neighborhood

Our wish list for this week: kitty cuddlers for an average of 30 cats residing at the Cool Cat Neighborhood, a spacious feline gated community; someone with heavy equipment to help us level some of the RV sites damaged by the recent rains; someone with a truck to help us transport donated furniture and large items; dry and canned cat food; helpers at Paws & Claws. Visit our website: www.deserthavenanimalrefuge.com for information on contacting us.

Week of 10/26/08 Humane Happenings

Bullock's Shur-Save Supermarket
630 Broadway
Truth or Consequences, NM 87901
575 894-6622 /fax 575 894-6620


The Cash-for-clubs program is on again, thanks to the generosity of our local community-minded grocery store – Bullocks in T or C. Bullocks receipts, when redeemed by The Sierra County Humane Society, benefit both SCHS Spay-& Neuter and Spay-a-Stray programs. When you shop at Bullocks, consider saving your receipts for us. Our collection stations are: the T or C Public Library, Williamsburg Post Office or also Paws & Claws thrift shop, located across from Family Dollar. Since the program started some years ago, Josephine Varnum has picked them up regularly from those locations and tallied them for our organization.

Saving Bullocks receipts for our animal welfare organization is a great way for caring individuals to help the local domestic animal population. The money donated by Bullocks through those receipts – over $3500 this past year alone – is used exclusively to help Sierra County folks who want to have their pet sterilized. Last year, our organization spent over $8,000 on the Spay-Neuter program alone.
To help fund the program, we also collect aluminum cans, which are routinely transported by Deb Peters to the local recycling center. Our drop-off location is the Can’s Corral, adjacent to where the “old” thrift shop used to be - 109 E-First St in T or C. You can also drop them off directly at the “new” thrift shop when it is open for business, from Wed through Sat each week. A word from Deb: If you crush your donated cans you will receive brownie points! Crushed cans take much less space in her little truck and she can transport so many more that way at one time!
Accolade of the week: Alan and Teira Buckeridge of T or C, for their generous “Thanksgiving” donation of canned dog food.

Kind reminder: Unless your donated printers and computers come to us with their respective software and cables, they are useless to us. Also, if not brought directly to us inside the shop, they may be destroyed by rain or be stolen.
Old units or those without software, etc, can be dropped off at Radio Shack for recycling.
This week’s wish list: A mannequin & clothes racks for Paws & Claws thrift shop - Large grocery bags for our bag sales - Dog walkers and kitty cuddlers at Desert Haven - Cleaning supply, dust mops, sponges, brushes, etc. Helpers at Paws & Claws -
Interested in helping in some way or perhaps you would like to visit some of the non-human residents of DHAR outside of business hours? Contact us at 894-2778. You can also check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

Week of 10/19/08 Humane Happenings

Deb and Dolly with Mexican sunflowers in bloom at Desert Haven

At this time of the year, Desert Haven Animal Refuge is experiencing a shortage of active volunteers to last until the winter crew of RV’ing helpers arrives at the sanctuary from throughout the US. Recently, several work campers moved out of DHAR and into town at about the same time, and the DHAR crew wishes them well as they start a new life in their respective new homes. When DHAR struggles through a lack of adequate volunteer help, so does Paws & Claws thrift shop, especially now that the size of the new shop is more than three times that of the old shop on First Street, and also since the in-kind donations have grown as well.

This week’s kudos go to Dolly Loftus of Elephant Butte. Dolly is the Sierra County Humane Society Executive Secretary and her office is at Desert Haven. As the newest member of the Board of Directors, she is now increasingly involved in the many facets of management of our non-profit organization. Among other responsibilities, Dolly now shares - together with Eliana Aubin and Freddie Loveless - the responsibility of making the work camper program a success at DHAR. She also regularly volunteers at Paws & Claws thrift shop. Since she has taken responsibility for “The Book Nook” at the shop, her efforts have made that section very popular among our community’s avid readers. Thanks to Dolly’s generosity this past Tuesday, the DHAR office’s second computer, generously donated by George and DiAnna Schenetzer some months ago, is now on-line and running.


Eliana, Bootz & Erin in the "Book Nook"

Dolly, a former English teacher and also a working partner in her late husband’s business, is a perfect example that one can be retired and still be very productive. Many worthwhile local organizations need volunteer help – one only needs to look around and find one’s niche. Dolly is invaluable to our organization and we consider ourselves fortunate to have such a person of substance on our volunteer team.


Dolly, with John & Deb, tries out the new bench at Desert Haven

A pat on the back goes to Ken, a technician at Radio Shack, for helping solve our software problem last Tuesday. Mary Roden and Ann Pruit, "thank-you" for your generous donation and yes, it will go towards pet food as promised.

Wish list: Canned dog and cat food. We add moist food to our dogs and cats diet during the winter months. Interested in helping in some way? Wishing to visit an animal at DHAR outside of open hours? Contact us at 505-594-2778 or check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com

Week of 10/12/08 Humane Happenings

Ralph

Welcome to Desert Haven, Dick and Jeanette Thomas – “Dick & Jane” for short. This friendly RVing couple is planning to stay at the domestic animal sanctuary throughout the next few weeks and the crew had a chance to meet them this past Tuesday. They, in turn, are slowly getting acquainted with the human and non-human residents. We hope that their stay in our area will be as interesting and fulfilling as they wish it to be.


Benji

The newest residents of Dog Town at DHAR include Benji, a very cute young Wheaton Hair terrier and his buddy Tater, a one year old brindle Dachshund Chihuahua mix who longs to be someone’s lap dog. Both of them have a sweet disposition and enjoy the company of people and of other dogs.


Tater

Tater also loves to ride in cars. There is also young Ralph, a friendly Spaniel mix, and Chocolat, a young Chihuahua who loves toys and who is intensively training to become the “ultimate” in home protection. To visit these dogs and other DHAR companion animals, contact us at 894-2778 for an appointment or visit Desert Haven on a Tuesday, when the refuge is open for visitors.


Chocolat

Judy Ray, who has been Desert Haven’s Administrative Assistant Extraordinaire for some months now, is moving on to experience new RVing adventures. Anyone with office skills, a couple of hours to give on Tuesdays and the willingness to help a good cause is invited to help us fill the need. We sure could use their help on Tuesday mornings.

This week’s wish list: Canned pet food, deck brush, cleaning supplies - Dog Walkers and Kitty Cuddlers - Also several volunteers to help set up the Bag Sale Boutique that is now open at Paws & Claws thrift shop every Third Friday of the month? We always need large grocery bags for that specific sale.
Interested in helping in some way or perhaps in adopting a companion animal? Contact us at 894-2778. You can also check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

Week of 10/8/08 Humane Happenings

Desert Haven Animal Refuge, owned and operated by the Sierra County Humane Society, will celebrate the birthday of St Francis, patron saint of the animals, on Saturday October 11. “The Blessing of the Animals” will be held at Rainbow Bridge Pet Cemetery from noon to one PM, with Father Peter Cacoperdo of St Paul Episcopal Church officiating. All companion animals attending with their owner will be blessed individually.

Desert Haven was very quiet last Tuesday morning, with a smaller crew than usual. The chicken and rice prepared by Margaret Cacoperdo of Elephant Butte was enjoyed by everyone present. Margaret, who came with Father Peter’s mother, Lucy, is a long-time friend of DHAR and it’s always a pleasure to see them.

The several large beautiful furniture pieces recently donated by Lynn Neglia brought a lot of attention at Paws & Claws until they were sold that same week. We also appreciate the generous nice couple who dropped off a gorgeous entertainment center. Again, we wish to acknowledge all the nice folks who donate so many new and like-new items, some of them still in their original gift-box.

A big “Thank-you” goes to Jeanette Galliard who recently drove to DHAR an entire truck load of hay all the way from Albuquerque where she lives and works. The hay is used in Dog Town to line the dog houses as well as in Birdland & Animal House, where it insulates insulate the guinea pig and rabbits habitats and the nests for our doves, chickens and peacocks.

Keep the bags of aluminum cans coming. An extra pat on the back is in order to those nice folks who crush them before they drop them off. Deb Peters of Palomas is truly special for transporting them regularly to the local recycling center. The proceeds from the cans help our Spay-Neuter program.

The Cash-for-clubs program has started again, thanks to the generosity of Bullocks Grocery. Bullocks receipts, when redeemed by our organization, benefit our SCHS Spay-& Neuter program. They can be dropped off at Paws & Claws thrift shop, also at the T or C public library and Williamsburg Post office. If you prefer, you can send them to us at the SCHS, Post Office Box 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942

This week’s wish list: pet food, dry and canned - A mannequin for Paws & Claws thrift shop - Large grocery bags to be used for the upcoming bag sale - Dog walkers and kitty cuddlers at Desert Haven - Helpers at Paws & Claws - Cleaning supply, dust mops, sponges, brushes, etc.

Interested in helping in some way or perhaps you would like to visit some of the non-human residents of DHAR outside of open hours? Contact us at 894-2778. You can also check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

Week of 10/1/08 Humane Happenings

"Hold me tight, Bootz!"

This week, the Sierra County Humane Society kudos are due to Ellen Farrester - Bootz – of Williamsburg. This special lady started volunteering on a regular basis with the Desert Haven crew several years ago, when the shortage of available helpers was great one summer. Along the way and until she adopted a dog of her own, Bootz became a foster mom for several DHAR dogs and she helped teach them the ways all good dogs should know. Last year, she was elected vice president of the Sierra County Humane Society. When the shop recently moved to its present location across the alley from Family Dollar, Bootz saw the need for extra helpers there and she started volunteering there a couple of days a week. Bootz, together with her husband Jack, also makes many of the interesting old-fashioned signs for DHAR. Thanks, Bootz, for all that you do. It is recognized and appreciated.


Old West Placita

Photo buffs, do we have the place for you! Desert Haven, with its Old West flair, is a haven for photo enthusiasts. Especially at this time of the year, when the wild flowers are in full bloom and all the vegetation is at its best, Desert Haven, with its rustic atmosphere and its animals living happily in comfortable habitats, provides many photo opportunities not found anywhere else. The Old West Placita – the center of DHAR - is building character each year. Built with barn wood collected from all over, it has been decorated over time with interesting items donated by animal loving friends from all over.


Old West Entrance to Rainbow Bridge

From time to time, someone adds a special touch to the Old West scene. A large cast iron pot and an assortment of some old cooking equipment add that special Frontier Town touch to the front entrance of The Lonesome Dove Hotel -the large aviary housing peacocks, white and domesticated ring-neck doves. A wooden barrel container sits at the corner of the entrance gate to Birdland, which is built with barn wood donated from several local old homesteads. Large rocks were recently moved to their current location and now outline the walkways, giving them a feeling of always having been there. Little by little, garden decorations and statuaries, also donated by local residents, can be seen here and there as they add to the country charm of the entire DHAR property. Mother Nature is doing its part as well and this year, The Old West DHAR Placita is an attraction in itself.


The Old West Placita

This week, we wish to thank all our friends, local and also from all over the US, who are generously supporting our organization in as many ways they can. We could not do the work we do without their on-going support, financial and otherwise. Many thanks to Desmond Hughes for his generous donation of dog food and treats. We always can use pet food. The canned pet food becomes a crucial addition to the diet of the residents of Dog Town and the Cool Cat Neighborhood, with the nights getting colder at this time of the year in our South-Central New Mexico Desert.

Interested in helping, or perhaps just finding out more about us? Check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com or call us at 575-894-2778.

Week of 9/28/08 Humane Happenings

Jody Koch

The Sierra County Humane Society, Inc. has been operating since November 1989 and the service that it provides to the community is crucial. It is entirely funded through personal and corporate donations and receives no support from any government entities, local or otherwise. Contrary to popular belief, the SCHS receives no support from larger humane organizations, such as the Humane Society of the US or the ASPCA. Each animal welfare organization operates on its own. Consequently, Paws & Claws thrift shop - operated by the Society – is necessary to our organization’s success. Paws & Claws thrift shop helps cover the costs of the Spay-Neuter, Spay-a-Stray and Adopt-a-Classroom programs. It also helps operate and maintain Desert Haven, Sierra County’s no-kill domestic animal sanctuary, where every rescued animal can be guaranteed a new home or a good life without fear of ever being euthanized, except under extreme circumstances.

The Humane Society crew spent last Tuesday afternoon at Paws & Claws thrift shop, either sorting through donated items or putting-up steel shelving to be used for the shop’s once a month bag sale, to start on the third Friday in October. If you have not yet visited our newly set-up shop at its current location, consider doing so. It’s conveniently located across the alley from Family Dollar in T or C.

While you are at the shop, take time to say “hi” to Jody Koch, the shop’s new volunteer cashier. For several years now, Jody has served in our organization as its recording secretary and her new volunteer activity at Paws & Claws has been a tremendous help to all of us. Jody, who suffers from Spina Bifida, a birth defect that confines her to a wheelchair, is an inspiration to all of us who know her. We are very grateful for her help each week and extremely proud to count her as one of us.

This week, we wish to thank the anonymous contributor of a large bulletin Board to be used at Paws & Claws. It will soon help publicize our dogs and cats available for adoption, as well as become a useful information board for our community’s current events.

Special thanks go to Barbara Dreyfus who has been a strong supporter of DHAR over the years. Her recent donation of several bags of pet food was very much appreciated. We continue to need helping hands at Desert Haven and also at Paws & Claws. For more information, contact us at 505-894-2778 or check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

by Eliana Aubin

“A chained dog can only watch as life goes by…Please don’t chain your dog.”

Week of 9/23/08 Humane Happenings

Diana Rivera at Paws & Claws Thrift Shop

This past Tuesday, Desert Haven was buzzing with activity as the clean-up after the latest heavy rain storms began. Kat, Jerry and John made a huge difference as they repaired some of the damage created by the heavy rains that had washed out a section of the driveway. The latest rains came at a very bad time for DHAR, as the heavy damage created by an earlier rain storm had just been repaired by heavy equipment contracted the day before.

Terry and Sharon Howell have now left Desert Haven for new adventures on wheels, after spending the entire summer at the sanctuary. This friendly and very helpful couple was well worth knowing and the members of our Desert Haven extended family have fond memories of their stay. Terry and Sharon will be hard to replace. We trust that in the not-so-distant future, they will be able to visit Desert Haven and its inhabitants again, on their way to or from one of their destination.

This past Tuesday, both Diana Rivera and Eliana Aubin were treated by the Paws & Claws and Desert Haven crew to a Birthday cake with plenty of candles. Ginny Nylen’s Hawaii Dream Cake was a huge success – exactly the type of “gooey” cake Eliana is especially fond of. Thanks, Ginny. Diana has been involved at Paws & Claws thrift shop for over four years now. Three years ago, she became the recipient of the Volunteer of the Year Award at the Sierra County Humane Society yearly get-together dinner. Her time and efforts are very much welcomed and appreciated.

The local media continues to be great to our non-profit organization. We could not spread the word about everything that we do and how we help the community through our programs without the on-going support of the media in printing our Humane Happenings as a PSA in the weekly newspaper - totally free of charge to us.

Paws & Claws thrift shop, located across the alley from Family Dollar, needs volunteers to help sort clothes and recycled items and also to help display electronics and move large donated items. Volunteers are also needed to set up steel shelving in the open storage area reserved for the to-be-sorted donations and that is adjacent to the DHAR building.

Anyone with a grader and small bobcat interested in helping us repair the heavy damage created at DHAR by the recent rains, especially on the driveway? An hour of the time of an operator and his grader would do wonders to repair our major damage. We realize we are not alone in this, since Sierra County was declared a disaster area after the latest rain storms. Regardless, the damage is real and not easy to assimilate by our volunteer organization. The road repairs contracted for out of necessity last week were washed away the following night, by the walls of water that came rolling down from the adjacent hills, through the neighboring property and into Desert Haven. Such a shame that none of us can predict the immediate future, most especially when it comes to the weather in New Mexico!

Anyone interested in donating statuaries, wind chimes, perhaps a bird bath to enhance Central Bark, the garden area adjacent to the main building? We welcome any piece of old equipment to add more character to the DHAR Old West Placita.

Interested in helping in some way? Wishing to visit an animal at DHAR outside of open hours? Contact us at 894-2778 or check us out at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

“Doesn’t every dog deserve a warm bed?”

Week of 9/7/09 Humane Happenings

Gene Trelewicz

Desert Haven Animal Refuge, Sierra County’s no-kill domestic animal sanctuary, became the recipient of a large set of wind chimes this past Tuesday. It was built and donated by local resident Gene Trelewicz in memory of his wife Mary, who passed away in 1997.

Gene became part of the DHAR work crew several months after the land was purchased by the Sierra County Humane Society in 1999. The work crew consisted at the time of Jerry and Eliana Aubin, Leonard Bullington and Chuck & Linda Davis. It was faced with a huge undertaking in cleaning up the five-acre property of accumulated trash and debris from many years of neglect, then in removing a dead orchard, one tree at a time, also taking down and removing an old dilapidated fence, post by post. Gene’s expertise was soon put to use and he became instrumental in sorting the newly acquired tools at the sanctuary, fixing them as needed and keeping them in good state of repairs. Gene also restored some of the older donated machinery that is now housed in the large, recently completed work shop located on the property.

Local school teacher Molly Williams is moving out of the area. We are asking someone in the community to help us fill the huge gap that this dedicated animal loving lady is leaving behind. Molly is special to all of us at Desert Haven. When she adopted Trisha, a young DHAR dog, Molly realized that she could help our cause in some special ways - and she did. Aside from helping care for DHAR non-human residents when the need is crucial, Molly also regularly picks up and launders the dog and cat bedding. A beautiful park bench that she donated in memory of her mother Bessie William is sitting under a group of mesquite trees at Rainbow Bridge Pet Cemetery, facing the Caballo Mountains. If any of our animal loving readers wishes to help take care of some of our canine and feline laundry, please contact Freddie Loveless at 894-2778.

This week, we wish to thank T or C resident Bill Rogers for taking the time to visit Dog Town at Desert Haven whenever his health permits. Bill walks some of our little dogs and they love the treats he brings for them.

Deb Peters donated the use of her vehicle as well as her time this past Tuesday, to pick-up a number of RV windows donated by CJ Ellis of Caballo RV Park. Deb, a former DHAR work-camper who became a local permanent resident a few months ago, continues to support the cause of the animals of Sierra County in many ways. She generously divides her time with her employment in town and the sanctuary’s extended human and non-human family which would not be complete without her.

Anyone interested in helping keep the grounds weed-free at Rainbow Bridge? This worthwhile undertaking could also perhaps become a team project taken on by small groups of local youth. We can use your plastic containers to help with sorting and displaying recyclable items at P & C and also in the P&C storage. Pet food, canned and dry, is always a high priority.

Bullocks receipts, a community service project of our local food store, are collected again through the Cash-for-Clubs program. This year, with the new retail giant in the area, the efforts of our animal loving friends in saving and collecting Bullocks receipts for the SCHS and DHAR are even more crucial since Bullocks is the only business in our area with a program such as the Cash for Club program. This program translates into cash that helps fund the SCHS Spay-Neuter program. Applications to receive a S&N rebate from our organization can be picked up at the T or C Police station, Paws & Claws thrift shop, El Rancho Poodles and Hot Springs Animal Clinic, a local business owned and operated by Doctor Cardwell, the local veterinarian. For more information our organization, please contact us at 894-2778 or 894-1694, or visit us at http://www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

Week of 9/1/08 Humane Happenings

A young customer at Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe

As of September First, Bullocks Receipts are being collected again for The Sierra County Humane Society, Inc. and Desert Haven Animal Refuge. The Cash-for- Clubs program allows Bullocks’ Grocery Store to serve the community in yet another way – by financially supporting local organizations that are also supported by the public. The program -now in its 16th year of existence - is designed to let loyal Bullocks customers decide where Bullocks’ donations should be directed, offering local organizations a cash donation equal to 2% of the cash receipts totals that are collected between September 1 and July 31. This is how it works: your Bullocks receipts earn $$$$$ for our organization when you drop them off in one of our collection boxes located at the T or C public library, Williamsburg Post Office, Cielo Vista RV Park, and Paws & Claws Thrift Shop in T or C.

This year again, through the program, the SCHS and Desert Haven have received, by far, the largest amount donated by Bullocks. Sierra County residents are obviously very supportive of our organization and we are grateful. The money collected each year is earmarked for the comprehensive Spay-Neuter program offered by our organization, with a price tag of over $8,000 each year.

Margaret Cacoperdo’s renowned spaghetti and meat ball dish was much appreciated last Tuesday, when the crew gathered for lunch at Desert Haven. Margaret is no stranger to our organization, as she and Father Peter of St Paul’s Episcopal Church in T or C regularly donated much time and efforts when they first moved to the area several years ago.

A huge “Thank-you” is in order this week to Mark Humble of Elephant Butte, Jo Brewer of New Hampshire, Mike Carson and Barbara Dreyfus of T or C for their donation of pet food or cash to purchase pet food. A very special thank-you goes to the anonymous person who so generously covered our latest pet food expense at Sierra Feeds in T or C.

Interested in visiting Desert Haven? Come out on Tuesdays, or call us at 575-894-2778 for an appointment. If you wish to adopt a dog or a cat directly from the owner, contact our Adopt-a-Pet Referral program coordinator, Stan, at 575-895-5551. Courtesy of the SCHS and thanks to the efforts of Stan Brodsky of Hillsboro, five three-month-old Calico mix kittens can be adopted out through the program. Contact the owner for more information at 575-743-3107.

This week’s wish List: Clothes racks for use at Paws & Claws – thrift shop volunteers –Statuaries and garden tools for Desert Haven. And of course our high priority : Dog and cat food, canned and dry.
By the way “Have you hugged your dog today?”

Week of 8/24/08 Humane Happenings

Ed & Camille Pronovost

In December of 2006, because of the efforts of Camille Pronovost (who spent a couple of weeks at Desert Haven Animal Refuge with her husband Ed on their way from Connecticut to their seasonal work camping station in Arizona) The Sierra County Humane Society’s weekly newspaper column “Humane Happenings”, went on line here at http://deserthavenanimalrefuge.blogspot.com.

The Desert Haven Animal Refuge web log, or “blog” for short, is the way for our supporters world-wide to keep up with the news of the Sierra County Humane Society. Over time, we added an occasional “Featured Pet” and tributes to some of our beloved companion animals that crossed the Rainbow Bridge; we also included letters from readers, photos of DHAR and its volunteers, and more. From the positive comments that we are receiving on an on-going basis, the blog is proving to be an efficient way for us to share information with animal loving folks from all over.

If you have never visited us on line, we invite you to do so. Join us in making our cyber-space more community-focused and interactive. Do you have a question or concern about pet issues? Write to us at aubin29@zianet.com. You are also welcome to comment on anything we write in Humane Happenings. Give us your input; share your own experiences regarding situations involving companion animals, that you feel may be informative to other animal loving folks in this area. At the bottom of each post, click on “comments” to write a note and to read what others have written.

Soon after her visit to Desert Haven, Camille also volunteered to be the organization’s web master. She maintains the Society’s web site at
http://www. DeserthavenAnimalRefuge.com. We urge our computer-oriented readers to check it out. It’s professional, full of interesting photos and it is updated regularly. The web site also has a link to the blog and to our Petfinder list of companion animals available for adoption, either directly from Desert Haven or from the Adopt-a-Pet Referral program offered to local folks by The Sierra County Humane Society. Stan Brodsky of Hillsboro regularly updates the Petfinder section of our web site and his on-going efforts are greatly improving the adoption rate of local companion animals.
This week’s Wish list: priority one: Dog and Cat food, dry and moist - Dog Walkers and Kitty Cuddlers at Desert Haven - Volunteer helpers at Paws & Claws thrift shop - We welcome any piece of furniture our readers wish to donate, either to be used at Desert Haven or to sell at Paws & Claws thrift shop. We can be contacted at 575-894-2778 or 894-1694 for more information.

Once I was a Lonely Dog

Submitted by Robbin Brodsky, Desert Haven volunteer



Once I was a lonely dog,
Just looking for a home.
I had no place to go,
No one to call my own.

I wandered up and down the streets,
in rain in heat and snow.
I ate what ever I could find,
I was always on the go.

My skin would itch, my feet were sore,
My body ached with pain.
And no one stopped to give a pat
Or to gently say my name.

I never saw a loving glance,
I was always on the run.
For people thought that hurting me
was really lots of fun.

And then one day I heard a voice
So gentle, kind and sweet,
And arms so soft reached down to me
And took me off my feet.

"No one again will hurt you"
Was whispered in my ear.
You'll have a home to call your own
where you will know no fear."

"You will be dry, you will be warm,
you'll have enough to eat
And rest assured that when you sleep,
your dreams will all be sweet."

I was afraid I must admit,
I've lived so long in fear.
I can't remember when I let
A human come so near.

And as she tended to my wounds
And bathed and brushed my fur
She told me 'bout the rescue group
And what it meant to her.

She said, "We are a circle,
A line that never ends.
And in the center there is you
protected by new friends."

"And all around you are
the ones that check the pounds,
And those that share their home
after you've been found."

"And all the other folk
are searching near and far.
To find the perfect home for you,
where you can be a star."

She said, "There is a family,
that's waiting patiently,
and pretty soon we'll find them,
just you wait and see."

"And then they'll join our circle
they'll help to make it grow,
so there'll be room for more like you,
who have no place to go."

I waited very patiently,
The days they came and went.
Today's the day I thought,
my family will be sent.

Then just when I began to think
It wasn't meant to be,
there were people standing there
just gazing down at me.

I knew them in a heart beat,
I could tell they felt it too.
They said, "We have been waiting
for a special dog like you."

Now every night I say a prayer
to all the gods that be.
"Thank you for the life I live
and all you've given me.

But most of all protect the dogs
in the pound and on the street.
And send a Rescue Person
to lift them off their feet."

Dedicated to those that make a difference in the lives of animals, everyday! Thank you for all you do.