Aug

19

2009

Available pets

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Available pets at the Lincoln County Shelter, video by Lee Arnot.

Jul

16

2009

Day of festivities at The Animal House

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The Animal House will be featuring two exciting events on Saturday, July 25th, including an adoption clinic with Maine Greyhound Placement Service and a demonstration by natural food and treat company Stella & Chewy’s.

Representatives from Maine Greyhound will be available for a meet-and-greet from 11am-2pm. Meet-and-greets are a great way to find out more about the breed, the adoption process, the dogs available for adoption, and the rescue group, located in Augusta. Plus, you can come in and visit with some wonderful greyhounds!

Also joining in the fun is Animal House favorite, Stella & Chewy’s. Stella & Chewy’s features all-natural, raw, frozen-fresh and freeze-dried pet food and treats, made exclusively from human grade free-range meats, ground bones and fresh organic vegetables. Stop in for some free treats and goodies, and enter to win a free Stella & Chewy’s prize pack. A Stella & Chewy’s representative will be available handing out goodies and answering questions from 10am-3pm.

Jun

25

2009

Dogs in need

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I received this e-mail this morning about four dogs in need of adoption in the midcoast area. If you know of anyone who might be interested please forward this along…

BENZ is a young male pit bull who was turned over to my family by his former guardians because they were unable to care for him. He is used to living inside and is well behaved. He has been living with another dog and gets along fine with her. Like all the dogs that we help, he has been neutered, and is up to date on all of his shots. Benz is currently still living with his original guardians, but we plan to move him to a foster home (needed), if not a forever home, asap.

COOKIE is a young female border collie/boston terrier/pit bull mix of some sort, who was rescued from a kill shelter through www.DogsinDanger.com., adopted locally, and then returned for having food-aggression issues. These issues seem to be very minimal. Besides, she was starving in the past, so a little work needed in that area is no great surprise;) We don’t think she had ever lived inside before her rescue, but she is taking to it quite well, as you can see from the attached picture. She has also been doing great with her house training. She has not had any accidents since her first few days. She loves other dogs and every person she meets. She has recently been spayed and is up to date on all of her shots. She does have heart worm, but she is already being treated, and we expect her to make a full recovery, since she is only in stage-one of the disease. She is being fostered by a very good friend, locally, where she is working on perfecting her manners. She has some puppy energy and habits, but, again, as you can see from this picture, she is getting used to chillin’ on couches too;)

LUCY – is a 2+/- year old pit bull. She was rescued locally from an neglectful/abusive situation and found me through my vet. She is being fostered at my house and we adore her. She is great in the house and with the other dogs. She has some trust issues with strangers, but they are rapidly disappearing as we continue to work with her and help her trust again. She is spayed and up to date on all shots. We will honestly be broken hearted to see her go, but we need to keep room open for future fosters.

MOSS is a young pit bull mix who was rescued from a New England shelter where he ran out of time. He seems to have been someone’s companion in the past because he is great in the house, even when left alone, great with other dogs, house trained and good off-lead. He is being fostered by my fabulous friend, Travis of Tidal Transit Kayaks in Boothbay Harbor and is neutered and up to date on shots. He did have an ear and skin infection when he came to us, but he is being treated for those and should make a speedy recovery. If there is anyone out there interested in adopting Moss, you can either contact me (see below), or just stop by Tidal Transit to meet him. Thanks very, very much

If there is anyone out there interested in fostering or adopting Benz, or in adopting any of the others (who are already in foster homes), or if you have questions, just want to chat about rescuing dogs, etc.. I would LOVE to hear from you. Please contact Hope through e-mail, or, call her anytime at 207-882-4000 or 207-504-0950. Thanks very, very much!

Jun

1

2009

Want a really sweet Cookie?

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The Animal House will be hosting an adoption clinic for Cookie, a young border collie/Boston Terrier mix, on Saturday, June 6th, from 10am-3pm. This petite little girl is wonderful with other dogs, and seems to be fine with cats. Cookie is a very sweet, affectionate girl and is looking for a forever home. Cookie is between one and two years old, is up-to-date on vaccinations and due to be spayed next week. Cookie currently weighs 31lbs., but could stand to put on some more weight. Please come by the store to say “hello” to Cookie.

The Animal House, located at 372 Main Street in Damariscotta, features healthy supplies and food for dogs and cats. For more information call: 207.563.5595

Update June 6, 2009 11:30: Cookie is patiently waiting to be adopted at The Animal House.
Update: June 6, 2009 12:15: Cookie has officially been adopted!

Dec

10

2008

Hollywood Dogs (Avoid Puppy Mills and Backyard Breeders)

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Every time a major movie is released with a dog as its star, it becomes inevitable that the star’s breed becomes overwhelmingly popular. After digging through our website files I have found many searches from search engines for Chihuahua breeders (“Beverly Hills Chihuahua“), and Yellow Labrador (“Marley & Me“).  And even though Disney decided to make “Bolt” a non specific breed, people are searching for White German Shepherd Breeders and West Highland Terriers here in Maine.

This always spawns “breed booms” from puppy mills, and as a result a virtual smorgasbord of genetic health problems in those breeds. The goal at these facilities is to push as much profit as possible with little or no regard to the actual pet you are looking for. When searching for a new dog, it is extremely important that you are not supporting these mass breeding warehouses. Buying a dog or a cat from a pet store IS buying from a puppy mill. Getting a dog through adoption centers at a pet supply store is acceptable, as those pets are actually are available through a rescue or shelter and there is an adoption process to go through to protect the pet and the potential adoptee.

Backyard breeders are a different story in many cases, but in the end, the same result. Generally this is from someone with good but uninformed intentions, believing that dog breeding is nothing more than putting two purebred dogs together. Most purebred dogs are not breeding quality. If they breed a pet quality dog just because it has papers, they are a backyard breeder, whether they breed the dog in the backyard, garage, living room or an expensive hotel room, the term is still backyard breeder.

I would hope that most people will try to exhaust all adoption possibilities before pursuing breeders keeping in mind that even puppies are available through rescues, and in some states, due to be put down because they are past their mandatory time of stay.

For those that are set on purchasing a dog from a breeder, we suggest you visit The American Kennel Club website: (akc.org) for a list of reputable breeders in your area.  If you are looking for a breeder I would suggest finding a breeder who asks a lot of questions of you and your family.  The more hoops a breeder makes you jump through the more legitimate they are. A responsible breeder and breed specific rescue should try to educate you about the breed, both the positives and negatives.  Ideally, they should give families every opportunity to research and ask questions to make sure it is a lifetime placement.  For example, if you live in an apartment and work 16 hours a day and are looking for a Border Collie, and the breeder asks for cash or check, you are not in the presence of a reputable breeder!

Remember that choosing the right dog for your family is just as important as where you get them from.

External Links:

http://network.bestfriends.org/News/29284.html
http://www.stoppuppymills.org/
http://www.petfinder.com/
http://www.akc.org