Week of 6/15/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Wild Goose Rd. at Desert Haven

For a number of years now, the Sierra County Humane Society (SCHS) has raised funds in many ways to benefit its Spay-Neuter and Spay-a-Stray programs. The SCHS “Pennies for Pets” program is managed by Josephine. She routinely collects donations from our organization’s Doggie Banks located in several local businesses. Tim manages the collection of Aluminum cans which are deposited in the “Can Corral” located next to Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe in TorC. Tina and her husband Randy have recently volunteered to help Tim transport and redeem the cans as needed.

Your Bullocks receipts can bring much needed funding for our organization’s Spay-Neuter program! Save them and ask your friends to save them too! You can drop them off at Paws&Claws, either inside the shop or through the special “Bullocks Receipts” slot located on the front of the large P&C Donation Box. We also have collection boxes at the Williamsburg Post Office and the TorC Public Library. For every bundle of one thousand dollars worth of Bullocks receipts tallied by Josephine, our home-town Grocery Store donates $2 to our organization. It adds up and our Spay-Neuter program benefits greatly from the generous contribution Bullocks routinely makes in this way to our non-profit organization.

A young, smart, housetrained female blue heeler needs a new home. She is sterilized and her shots are up to date; Call 575-497-0310. Lydia at 575-740-3496 needs to find a good home for several black-white kittens. A very small terrier and a young Jack Russell need a new home; Call Cassie at 575-740-5310. A pair of peacocks is available for adoption at Desert Haven; Call 575-894-1694 or contact us at Adoptapet4life@gmail for more information.

This week’s wish list for the sanctuary: heavy duty Shop vacuum in good working condition; leaf blower – preferably gas operated; several remnants of indoor-outdoor carpet for one of our Cool Cat Neighborhood’s priority projects.

Check-out our web site at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com. Chat with us on www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven and also www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe Facebook pages. Desert Haven is open to visitors every Tuesday, between 9AM and 4 PM.

Wek of 6/8/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Eliana Aubin and furry friend

The Sierra County Humane Society operates the Adopt-a-Pet Referral program. It is geared to help out residents of Sierra County who need to give up a companion animal, but hesitate in dropping-off their beloved dog, cat or bird at the T or C City Shelter located on Date Street.

This is how it works: folks who need to give-up a companion animals have the opportunity to be placed in direct contact with others who would like to adopt a specific companion animal or bird directly from the owner. As always, we remind the animal owners to carefully screen anyone wanting to take the animal off their hands. After all, it is public knowledge that too many unscrupulous individuals are traveling throughout our state and beyond in search of “Free to Good Home” dogs and cats. The companion animals obtained in this way are often sold for profit to Research Labs in and around our state. Just as tragic, others end-up at the hands of Dog Fighters. They are used as Bait Dogs to help train Pit Bulls to kill. Let’s not fool ourselves: Dog fighting - although illegal – is still anchored right here in Sierra County.

Through our organization’s Adopt-a-Pet Referral program, we publicize the information on both our Facebook pages at www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven and www.Facebook.com/PawsnClawsThriftShoppe, also in our weekly Humane Happenings article, generously printed by this newspaper. We also post it on our Desert Haven Petfinder page. As always, we keep that information handy whenever someone inquires with our organization about adoptable animals or birds. Contact us at 575-894-1694 or e-mail us at Adoptapet4life@gmail.com.

Several very young black-white kittens need a home. If interested in adopting one or a couple of them, contact Lydia at 575-740-3496. Perhaps you prefer to adopt a very small terrier, or a young adult Jack Russell. Contact Cassie at 575-740-5310. Do you have a large aviary or a fenced area safe from predators? We have a pair of young adult peacocks available for adoption. Contact us at 575-894-1694.

This week’s wish list: Heavy duty Shop Vacuum in good working condition. Leaf blower – preferably gas operated. Indoor-outdoor carpet remnants.

A huge thank-you goes to Camille of Florida, for maintaining our professional looking web site www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com. since 2006.

Week of 5/24/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Kitties new toy

The mission of the Sierra County Humane Society is to protect and care for the abandoned and mistreated companion animals of Sierra County. When we expect it the least and need it the most, Good Fortune usually finds a way of landing on our doorstep.

The Sierra County Humane Society has received a huge boost recently. It is generally difficult for any non-profit organization to find volunteer help. It is even more difficult to find quality volunteers and experienced professional staff. The bulk of the work we do depends on a capable and caring but non-professional volunteer staff. It is a rare bonus to receive volunteers who have a background in the Animal Welfare profession. This fortunate situation is where we are finding ourselves in. With the arrival of two very qualified individuals who recently moved to Desert Haven from Tucson AZ, we currently have an excellent quality staff made up of both back-ground and non-background Animal Welfare people.

Are you interested in adopting a young, very small Terrier mix? Perhaps you prefer to give a loving home to a young adult Jack Russell mix? Contact Cassie at 575-740-5310. Cassie is moving and can no longer keep her little ones. Through our organization’s Adopt-a-Pet Referral program, we connect individuals who need to find a new loving home for their companion animals with those who would like to adopt one. Contact us at 575-894-1694 or e-mail us at Adoptapet4life@gmail.com.

Check our updated web site at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com. Chat with us at: www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 5/17/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin  

At this time of the year, Desert Haven Animal Refuge and the Sierra County Humane Society are transitioning into their routine summer schedule. Indeed, life is going at a slower pace at the sanctuary. The seasonal helpers at Desert Haven and Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe have already moved back to their home states up-North. Local folks who help out on a long-term basis spend much of the summer attending family business or enjoying vacations which more often than not take them out of the area for weeks at a time. During the hot summer months, there are also fewer visitors at the sanctuary. There are fewer adoptions too. It does not make the work-load any less. If anything, with the heat, both at the sanctuary and Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe in TorC, fewer volunteers available translate into more work for a skeleton staff. Regardless, the sanctuary’s furry and feather residents continue to receive the daily care and attention that they require, no matter what.

The Sierra County Humane Society is formally registered with the IRS as a 501-C-3 non-profit charitable organization dedicated to the welfare of animals. Since 1989, we have earned our exemplary reputation through the selfless efforts of many caring volunteers and work-campers, some of whom have come and gone throughout the years. Some of our strongest supporters are reputable home-town businesses who know us and the work we do. Year after year, we continue to be true to our mission of caring for the abandoned and mistreated companion animals of Sierra County.

Thank you, Camille, for maintaining our www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com web site, all the way from your home state of Florida. Your busy career as an RV Sales Consultant for Camping World of Bartow in Florida leaves you with very little free time. Still, you manage to donate some of it to our cause. Over the eight years of your involvement with us as our web master, you have stayed true to your word; year after year, you continue to do what you can to help us help companion animals in our area. You are indeed a remarkable individual, Camille!

Contact us at 575-894-1694, 894-2639 or at weR4pets@gmail.com. Chat with us at: www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 5/11/14 Humane Happenings

Jmes Bagwell, CPA, works on Sierra County Humane Society taxes

 by Eliana Aubin

This week, The Sierra County Humane Society & Desert Haven Animal Refuge acknowledge once again a very supportive community. James Bagwell is a CPA with a busy office in TorC.
 
Year after year, Mr. Bagwell handles our animal welfare organization’s tax returns, completely free-of-charge to us.



 

Atty. John Wheeler at work

Attorney John Wheeler is an equally valuable asset to our organization. We rely on his legal expertise, which he provides to us as needed, also pro-bono. The guidance and services from well-respected professionals such as CPA James Bagwell and Attorney-at-law John Wheeler have been invaluable over the years. We are indeed extremely grateful to count them as some of our organization’s strongest long-term supporters.

Good news about Gummy Bear “Aka Gumbo”, the young female Chihuahua rescued some months ago from a vehicle discarded in a wrecking yard. After several months of rehabilitation at the sanctuary, the little one was fostered by Beth, a TorC winter resident at the time. When Beth recently returned to her home state of Minnesota, Kendall, another winter resident, took Gumbo under her wings and will soon finalize the paperwork to adopt her before returning home.

Desert Haven is known by many to be a spiritual place. Those who share the good work that is accomplished there every day often tell us that they see Desert Haven as a place that is good for the soul. Most of our little rescues arrive with scars, both physical and emotional. Here at the sanctuary, they are treated with kindness, patience, compassion and respect at all times. Theses innocent creatures deserve no less. Our little Gumbo was obviously surrounded by guardian angels. Tim discovered her and rescued her, and Beth took her in her home and furthered her rehabilitation by caring for her with patience and compassion.

Animal loving work-campers and winter residents will slowly return to our area and help out again at Desert Haven next Fall. Until then, we need the help of adult individuals at the sanctuary and at Paws&Claws. Contact us at 575-894-2639 or e-mail us at weR4pets@gmail.com. Chat with us at: www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 4/27/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Donated food comes in

 This week, the Sierra County Humane Society wishes to acknowledge the generosity of SunValley Hardware and of Horsing ‘Round Feed and Tack store, located in TorC. Both businesses recently contributed several bags of pet food to our organization. We are indeed grateful to all the local businesses that help us out in some way or another throughout the year. Our acknowledgement includes the local media. Both local newspapers kindly publish our “Humane Happenings” articles every week. These articles give our organization the opportunity to share with our animal loving friends, local and from out-of-town, the good news about Sierra County’s animal welfare organization and its no-kill domestic animal sanctuary, Desert Haven Animal Refuge. We are a small but very active community-minded organization dedicated to the welfare of companion animals in our area. What we accomplish with our limited resources definitely makes a difference in the lives of companion animals in Sierra County.

 Are you a bird-lover? Then come on down some Tuesday and spend time among our domesticated ring-neck and white doves and also our peacocks. They love sunflower seeds, so bring some with you and you will certainly enjoy watching them all around you and fly right up to you to eat this delicacy, sometimes directly from your hands.

To all our thrifty shoppers: we are adding another business day to Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe. Our regular business days have been Wed through Saturday 11AM to 4 PM. The first and second Tuesday of each month, Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe will also open for business from 11AM to 4 PM. We continue to need volunteers at the store, to help keep the store attractive and our customers happy.

At Desert Haven, volunteers are also needed on Tuesdays, anytime between 8 AM and 4 PM. We need someone to greet our Tuesday visitors and handle routine paperwork and our phone line, walk some of our canines and groom our felines. On Tuesdays, we also need someone to sort through, tag and price sewing, knitting and craft items that are then displayed at Paws & Claws.

 Contact us at 575-894-2639 or at weR4pets@gmail.com.

Check us out at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com, www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 4/20/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Gummy Bear

Gummy Bear “Aka Gumbo” is a young female Chihuahua rescued by a member of the Sierra County Humane Society and active Desert Haven Animal Refuge volunteer. Tim discovered the starving and frightened puppy by accident this past winter. She had been abandoned inside a vehicle discarded in a salvage yard on the outskirts of Albuquerque. It took Tim much effort, determination and patience over several weeks to trap the little one, to save her from a slow and certain death and give her a new lease-on-life at Desert Haven. Several weeks later, Beth, a local winter resident, volunteered to foster little Gumbo until adoption or until Beth returned to her home state up-North. Beth is returning home for the summer in a few days. Gumbo desperately needs a new foster mom or a Forever Home. Contact us at 985-640-4116 or adoptapet4life@gmail.com.

This week’s wish list: someone to donate time and/or material to help us lay several 3 to 4 ft square cement slabs inside the fenced outdoor Cat Walk. Our resident felines would appreciate the luxury of new areas to snooze their days away. Our volunteer team would also very much appreciate the new & improved, easy-to-clean cement flooring in parts of the Cat Walk.

Interested in helping get this project off the ground? You can send your contribution earmarked for the “Cat Walk Cement Project” at Desert Haven Animal Refuge, POB 638, Williamsburg, NM 87942. Do you prefer to give us a hand by donating your services? Let us know at 575-894-2639 or weR4pets@gmail.com. We need your help to see this project through, one cement slab at a time.

Charlotte and Gerald will soon be moving on from Desert Haven where they work-camped since spring 2013. This wonderful, hard-working couple has made many, many friends in this little corner of the world. Both will be sorely missed. At this time of the year, Desert Haven and Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe are also losing the dependable help from several local winter residents. Until late summer and early fall, when our sanctuary winter work-campers and seasonal Sierra County residents return, we need several adult individuals to give us a helping hand for at least a couple of hours a week, either at the sanctuary or at Paws&Claws. Contact us at 575-894-2639.

Check us out at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com, www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 4/13/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin
 

This week, the Sierra County Humane Society wishes to remind friends and supporters that we collect aluminum cans in the Can Corral located adjacent to Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe in TorC. When the cans are redeemed, the funds generated are earmarked for the organization’s Spay-Neuter program. Tim Boswell, you are a gem! You take time out of your own very busy schedule to routinely load the bags of empty aluminum cans on your trailer and you redeem them locally for our organization.

Over time, too many local people have obviously failed to realize that the purpose of the SCHS Spay-Neuter program initiated in 1990 was always to give a helping hand to low-income companion animal owners, low-income only. It was never intended to hand-out free spay-neuter rebate certificates to anybody and everybody who wanted to take advantage of it.

All else aside, it’s an expensive program that we can only offer based on our limited resources. This is not a government program. The money to pay for it is generated by a very small group of hard-working volunteers. These selfless volunteers sacrifice their precious time - and much more - just to keep it alive. They strongly believe that sterilization is the way to go if we are going to decrease the tragedy of pet overpopulation in this area. They don’t just talk the talk. They do something about it.

For years, ever since 1990, we weren’t so careful about screening those who wanted to utilize the program. Consequently, it drained our resources, so we have had to ensure that only lower income people had access to it. For more information on how you can help keep it alive by supporting it in some way, contact our organization at 575-894-1694 or e-mail us at weR4pets@gmail.com.

At this time of the year and until they return next Fall, the Sierra County winter residents who have generously donated their time to our animal welfare cause by helping at Paws&Claws and at the sanctuary are moving back to their respective states. We need helpers to replace them at Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe and Desert Haven Animal Refuge. Do you genuinely love animals? Do you want to help us help them in this part of the Desert Southwest? Then contact our volunteer coordinator team at 575-894-2639.

Check us out at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com, www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 4/6/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Forest gets a bath and a hug from Charlotte

This week, we wish to thank a very special plant-lady who wants to remain anonymous. Every spring since Paws&Claws opened for business some years ago, this generous green-thumb brings to the store, every week, a variety of home-grown cactus, succulents and other interesting plants to help raise funds for the Sierra County Humane Society & Desert Haven Animal Refuge.

Paws&Claws is currently recruiting several volunteers to help out at the Shoppe during business hours, from 11 AM to 4PM Wed through Sat. Until they leave the area in a few weeks, Kendall and Charlotte are on hand at the shop to train dependable individuals who would like to get involved for at least a couple of hours each week. We also need help at the sanctuary from 8 to 11 am any morning of the week, when dogs are fed and walked and cats and birds are cared for.

Welcome to our volunteer team, Jodi, Steve & Joyce! These folks very recently relocated to our area. Their decision to answer our plea and to volunteer their time on some of the days the need is at its greatest is commendable. This is the time of the year when Desert Haven and Paws&Claws must rely even more on local helpers to help make a difference in this little corner of the world.

Interested in perhaps getting involved in a worthwhile cause? Visit Desert Haven on a Tuesday morning. Join our team for a while. Plan to take part in the Pot Luck lunch that our volunteers share every Tuesday at 1 PM. Then decide for yourself if this environment is for you!

This week’s wish list: Bottles of Clorox, Odorban, dishwashing liquid, short and long handle cleaning brushes – also the funds to cover the costs of several bags of cement or quickcrete – transparent plastic bags of various sizes for us to use as a temporary protection for the bedding, blankets, etc., that we sell at P&C. We recycle all of them over and over again - We can be reached at 575-894-2639 or weR4pets@gmail.com. Check us out at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com, www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

1st week of April; Humane Happenings

Vickie loves her Tuesday afternoons in the office

 by Eliana Aubin


What initiate a small non-profit organization in a small rural community, such as the Sierra County Humane Society, are the efforts of a few local citizens with a vision. That’s what gets it off the ground! That is also what makes it work on a daily basis. What sustains it in the long haul, however, are a few individuals who don’t participate in the day-to-day operation but who share the vision. And it’s through their contributions, be it material or financial, that the organization survives. Now having said this, anonymous people who make such great contributions that nobody knows about are to be recognized. We, the leadership of the Sierra County Humane Society & Desert Haven Animal Refuge, wish to recognize them, not by name because they request to remain anonymous, but by their actions, by their deeds. Contributions from such generous and selfless individuals help with feeding the animals and with veterinary care. They also help with essential physical structures, also with equipment and supplies that are all needed to run the operation and keep the property in good state of repair.

Afternoon siesta in the Cat Patio

These people honor us. We as an organization have a vision. That vision is to protect and care for neglected, abandoned, abused, unwanted dogs, cats, birds, guinea pigs, rabbits, and other helpless little creatures as if they were our own. Not everybody shares this vision. Not everybody feels this compassion. But the people who have greatly contributed to our organization over the years do share this vision, do share this compassion. They have visited with us, they have seen what we do and they believe enough in us to unequivocally give of themselves in the way they know will help most at the time. This is what makes it an honor for us. They honor us. And through this article, we want to honor them although they selflessly wish to remain anonymous.

This week’s wish list: volunteers at Desert Haven and Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe. We routinely need large bottles of Clorox and Odorban and long handle cleaning brushes for our sanctuary. We need large transparent plastic bags , also the funds to cover the costs of several bags of cement or quickcrete to build a handicap ramp at Paws&Claws. We can be reached at 575-894-2639 or weR4pets@gmail.com. For more information, check us out at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com, www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe.

Week of 3/22/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

A visit with Gumbo

What a busy week we had at Desert Haven Animal Refuge! And what an interesting day last Tuesday! Several out-of-town visitors and potential adopters were given the tour of the facility by Kendall, Charlotte and Beth. Gumbo, the Chihuahua recently rescued from an out-of-the-way salvage yard in Albuquerque and currently fostered by Beth, spend most of the day at the sanctuary Tuesday, while Beth was helping out in the office. The little fur-gal’s socialization skills continue to improve and we trust that when Beth returns to her home state up-North in a few short weeks, someone will be ready to adopt little Gumbo. Our little fur-gal deserves the very best home possible.

Peacock round-up

Several pairs of peacocks went to their new adoptive home within the last few weeks. They are now enjoying life all together on a dairy farm in Colorado. Thank-you, Charlotte and Kendall, for making this adoption possible! We are posting their odyssey on our Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven. Birdland now has one remaining pair of peacocks still available for adoption. The last adoption of some of our resident doves went well and we are now adopting-out white and domesticated ring-neck doves in groups of no less than 3 at a time. Interested? Contact us at Adoptapet4life@gmail.com or visit Desert Haven this Tuesday, between 9 AM and 4 PM. You can also call our office at 575-894-1694.

Desert Haven is owned and operated by the Sierra County Humane Society – a private non-profit 501-c-3 animal welfare organization dedicated to make a difference in the lives of companion animals in our area. Several winter residents who are currently volunteering at the sanctuary will soon be moving back to their respective home states, leaving Desert Haven and Paws&Claws Thrift Shoppe with a skeleton crew. Do you have at least a couple of hours a week to donate to a worthy cause? Let us hear from you!

This week’s wish list: large bottles of Clorox, large transparent plastic bags, several bags of cement to help build a much-needed handicap ramp at P&C Thrift Shoppe. We can be reached at 575-894-2639 or weR4pets@gmail.com. You can also check us out at www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe, www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven, and at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com.

Week of 3/16/14 Humane Happenings

by Eliana Aubin

Atty. John Wheeler meets with Eliana Aubin

Many local businesses support the Sierra County Humane Society, either with their business membership or through in-kind or financial contributions. We count on these contributions. They help pay for the labor of love that we provide for the companion animals of Sierra County.

For some years now, Attorney-at-Law John Wheeler, James Bagwell, CPA PA, Davis Fleck, Foxworth-Galbraith Lumber CO, Sun Valley Hardware, Walmart, Desert Winds Boat & RV Storage, Bullocks Grocery Store in TorC, also Hodges Restaurant and Bar-2 Sand & Gravel in Elephant Butte, Animas Creek Plant Nursery, both the Sierra County Sentinel and the Herald newspapers, have all been some of our strongest supporters. Recently, the current owners of Adobe Hacienda Real Estate gave us their vote of confidence by becoming business members of our animal welfare organization.

We also wish to thank Sierra Veterinary Services for being one of our business supporters. The modern facility is located on North Date Street in TorC. Formerly “Hot Springs Animal Clinic”, owned and operated by Dr Cardwell who retired not long ago, then moved back with Judy to his home state of Texas, the veterinary business is currently owned by Dr Dawkins, daughter of local resident Bobby Dawkins. We consider Bobby Dawkins a strong supporter of the SCHS as well. Sierra County residents are fortunate indeed to have community-minded businesses that care enough to support non-profit organizations like ours.

Without Dr Dawkins and Sierra Veterinary Services conveniently located in TorC, many local people who share their lives with companion animals and who want to provide for them the very best of routine and emergency care available would not be able to do so.

We need helpers at Paws & Claws Thrift Shoppe, also at Desert Haven Animal Refuge. Interested in giving us a hand this spring and summer? Even as little as two hours a week of your precious time would certainly make a difference.

Visit Desert Haven on a Tuesday, between 9AM and 4PM when the sanctuary is open to visitors, and find out for yourself where you would be most needed. You can also contact us at 575-894-2639 or at weR4pets@gmail.com . Visit us at www.DesertHavenAnimalRefuge.com. www.Facebook.com/pawsnclawsthriftshoppe. and www.Facebook.com/DesertHaven