The Pet Tree House - Where Pets Are Family Too : Best Friends Animal Society The Pet Tree House - Where Pets Are Family Too : Best Friends Animal Society
Showing posts with label Best Friends Animal Society. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Best Friends Animal Society. Show all posts

Friday, August 5, 2016

Christopher Walken Supports Best Friends Animal Society: Advocates Adopting Shelter Cats


Christopher Walken, one of the most noteworthy and versatile actors, supports Best Friends Animal Society’s efforts to bring awareness to the plight of millions of cats who die in our nation’s shelters every year.

Walken earned worldwide acclaim and the Academy Award for his role in the searing Vietnam war drama, The Deer Hunter. Through his career on screen, stage and television, Walken has shown a breathtaking range of skills portraying everything from violent villains to quirky characters in comedies. 

On August 5th, he can be seen starring in his latest role in the upcoming family comedy Nine Lives. Walken plays a mysterious shopkeeper with a fondness for felines and a few tricks up his sleeve. The film is directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and also stars Kevin Spacey and Jennifer Garner. It’s actually a role he’s somewhat familiar with. At home he and his wife share their life with a shy, stray cat who showed up on their doorstep pregnant. After finding homes for her kittens, “Girl” is now a member of the Walken household.

But not every stray cat is as lucky as “Girl.” It is estimated that as much as three-quarters of cats who enter shelters, most of which are community cats (stray and free-roaming), never make it out alive. Walken supports Best Friends’ efforts to increase adoption and save rates for cats.

According to national statistics, each day more than 9,000 dogs and cats die in the nation’s shelters. Best Friends has brought increased awareness to how people can get involved in the solution by adopting, and spaying/neutering their pets, donating, volunteering and sharing this message with their friends.

About Best Friends Animal Society® 
Best Friends Animal Society is the only national animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America's shelters. A leader in the no-kill movement, Best Friends runs the nation's largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals, adoption centers and spay and neuter facilities in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City as well as lifesaving programs in partnership with more than 1,500 rescue groups and shelters across the country. Since its founding in 1984, Best Friends has helped reduce the number of animals killed in American shelters from 17 million per year to an estimated 4 million. By continuing to build effective initiatives that reduce the number of animals entering shelters and increase the number who find homes, Best Friends and its nationwide network of members and partners are working to Save Them All®.

To become a fan of Best Friends Animal Society on Facebook click here: 





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Sunday, January 3, 2016

The Acceptance of Mini Pigs as Pets is the Result of Misleading Claims that Can Truly Hurt Innocent Pigs


The micro-mini pig craze has exploded over the past few years. There are YouTube pig celebrities. There are "trendsetters" like Victoria Beckham and Paris Hilton cooing over their tiny pigs. There was even a teacup pig appearance on How I Met Your Mother. But the acceptance of mini pigs as pets is the result of misleading claims (dating back to the 1980s) that can truly hurt innocent pigs.


Teacup pigs are really baby potbellied pigs

At first glance, it sounds purely adorable: a pig who will never weigh more than a human baby. But as the executive director of PIGS Animal Sanctuary Melissa Susko confirms, this isn't the case. "There really is no such thing as a teacup pig, micro-mini, Juliana, etc.," she tells The Dodo. "Miniature pigs are mini compared to a domestic farm pig that can reach 600-plus pounds. So-called teacups are actually potbellied pigs who are either underfed to stunt their growth or who are sold under false pretenses."

Potbellied pigs ( Sus scrofa domesticus) are wild boar cousins from Vietnam who are in fact miniature pigs when standing next to huge farm pigs (who can weigh more than 1,000 pounds) or even wild hogs (who can weight 450 to 700 pounds). However, potbellied pigs still grow to between 100 and 150 pounds on average — nowhere near small enough to fit into a teacup. In fact, the smallest size that is healthy for these little guys is around 60 pounds (though that could be underweight, depending on the pig).


They can breed when they are just 3 months old

To convince customers of their pig's minuscule size, breeders may invite them to look at the piggy parents. Don't be fooled, says Susko. Because these pigs "can breed when they are as young as 6 to 8 weeks old, the parents of a piglet may be piglets themselves." Therefore, she says, "their size is not an accurate measure of how large their offspring will be in adulthood. Potbellied pigs can grow until they are 5 years old and reach well over 100 pounds."


Keeping pigs that small is simply unhealthy

Some breeders inbreed their pigs to try to achieve a smaller size, but that produces a host of health issues resulting from reduced genetic diversity, such as squished snouts, which cause breathing problems later in life. And breeders often instruct buyers to feed their pig a diet that amounts to starvation.

Susko says her sanctuary takes in numerous pigs turned in by people who said they "were told by the breeder that the pig will only get big if you feed him too much. Many pigs come in malnourished and emaciated. Underfed pigs also suffer from weak immune systems, sensitive skin and hoof problems." Indeed, underfed pigs — like too-little Wilburt here — tend to come with a host of health problems caused by malnutrition. Wilburt was fed guinea pig food to keep him small, but after being surrendered to a shelter, this curious 2-year-old is on a more appropriate diet of fruits and vegetables.


And it makes them unhappy

Potbellied pigs need other piggy friends and lots of space to roam — otherwise they can become depressed or angry. Pigs love to root, dig, roll in mud and splash in water. Their intelligence makes them exceptionally curious animals who will probably get into some trouble when they're bored, just like a toddler, and they can get territorial and moody, too. Pigs simply being pigs is oftentimes enough of a reason for teacup pig owners to abandon their pigs or surrender them to sanctuaries like Best Friends Animal Society or Pig Placement Network.

The Dodo reached out to Janette Reever, the Humane Society's deputy manager of animal fighting response for the Animal Rescue Team, for comment on the pet pig craze. Between her former job as an animal control officer, her current position at the Humane Society and her active volunteer work at PIGS Sanctuary, Reever says she has "seen firsthand countless pigs that were surrendered to shelters, rescues, and dumped because the 'teacup' pig grew to 100-plus pounds." Reever shares her home with two such rescues from PIGS Sanctuary — Annabelle and Arnold (pictured below) — and she "can attest to how smart they are, how closely they bond to their families and the specialized care they require."


Keeping pigs is more expensive than you may think

Because customers expect these piglets to stay tiny, they can't possibly imagine the mountainous costs associated with keeping a fully grown potbellied pig. As Susko puts it, "Many people think they are buying a teacup Yorkie and end up with a Saint Bernard. Not many people can handle a 100-, 200- or even 300-pound pig in their house."

There's the initial price of the pig, which may be several thousand dollars, the proper food (no dog or cat kibble), the space needed, the vet bills (finding a good vet for these piggies can be almost impossible), sterilization costs and the expenses for a qualified pig-sitter if the humans go out of town and don't take their pal along.

They also may be illegal


No matter what teacup pig purchasers may think or how small their pig may be, in the eyes of the law, these little pigs are livestock — just like farm pigs or cows. Many local governments outside of farm country forbid the keeping of livestock, so it might be illegal to keep these pigs as pets, even if you do have the money and the ability to care for them.

Unfortunately, the prevalence of misinformation about the care of these complex creatures means that most teacup pigs live only about five years, even though "the average life expectancy for a potbellied pig is 12 to 18 years," according to Susko. "We've had some that barely made it past two years of life."

And their popularity doesn't seem to be waning anytime soon. "I have been at the sanctuary since 2002 (going on 13 years) and have worked with well over a thousand pigs during this time," Susko says. "We get an average of 30 requests a week to take in pigs that people have purchased under the assumption that they will be micro or teacup pigs. When the pigs start growing, they call us. We have 120 potbelly pigs here at PIGS and 85 percent of them have been pigs that people bought without doing their research and fell for the teacup pig myth."

Don't be "pignorant" — find more information about "teacup" pigs here. When you see photos or videos tagged "teacup" or "micro" pig, remember that many of these pigs have a hard time finding a forever home after they no longer fit into that teacup. "It is an unethical industry," cautions Reever, "and the victims are the pigs."

Instead of an actual pig, why not gift a pig sponsorship this holiday season? There are also plenty of opportunities to donate to shelters that provide the proper care for abandoned or surrendered pigs.





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Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Why Pit Bull Prejudice Is 'An Injustice' - In this Film, Documentary Maker, Jeff Theman, Looks at the People and the Animals Who Are Affected by that Cruelty, Including Himself



Documentary maker Jeff Theman thinks it's downright un-American to deem a dog dangerous due to nothing more than the way it looks -- which is what happens in jurisdictions across the country that ban pit bulls and dogs that merely look like them.

These "breed specific laws," as they're called, are "an injustice to the dogs who never did anything wrong and usually resulted in death, and the people suffered hardships as well when they are forced to turn over a family member or risk further penalties," Theman says. "They are disguised as a way to enhance community safety, but fail miserably at that task too. How cruel does one have to be to think these laws are actually helpful to any community?"

In his film "Guilty 'Til Proven Innocent," Theman looks at the people and the animals who are affected by that cruelty, including himself.

                                                                Jeff Theman with his dog Preston


Lakewood, the Ohio town where Theman used to live, enacted a pit bull ban in 2008. Faced with the choice between his pits and his home, Theman chose his three dogs. They, in turn, inspired his documentary.

The Huffington Post: What are you hoping viewers get out of "Guilty 'Til Proven Innocent"?

Jeff Theman: I mainly wanted to provide credible information to those unaware about the issue, and inspire them to be the change in their area. I just wanted to dissect the issue and seek the truth, no matter what the end result would be.

I believe we completed that task, and I am incredibly proud to say we represented the issue truthfully, which is probably the reason we have received the support from the national animal welfare organization Best Friends Animal Society. They use our film to send as a tool to legislators around the country who are proposing to implement or repeal breed discriminatory laws.

We have also been contacted by a few other [lawmakers] around the country when they were looking to repeal their laws, so we are indeed getting the response we hoped for. And the satisfaction of it feels pretty good.

The general response has exceeded all our expectations, and we hope this is just the beginning. We have had people email, message us, post on our Facebook page, all the different emotions they felt while we took them on this journey.

Your film features a whole bunch of people whose dogs were seized, or almost seized, in jurisdictions that ban pit bulls. The dogs were given genetic testing -- and were mostly found not to be pit bulls at all. What lessons can we learn from this?

Yes, I think the most blatantly obvious thing about Lakewood and this film is all the dogs shown that were deemed to be pit bulls all have come back with little to no American Staffordshire terrier, or any other breed under the umbrella term "pit bull."

So what does that tell us about the shoddy enforcement of the law? There were only a handful of dogs where the people were able to get their due process. All the others they basically scared enough, where the owner complied and either re-homed the dog outside the city or moved.

To me, the title means the dogs and their owners were automatically guilty, which is of course goes against what our country is supposed stand for -- so it's our job to inform and prove innocence. The effect of these laws is felt on both sides -- the dog and the owner. It became clear early on one of the primary motivating factors for breed specific legislation was to target social and racial classes of people legally. The dogs were used as a tool and excuse of sorts to harass individuals in mostly the urban settings.

One of the politicians in the film says that he'd support a pit bull ban even if it stopped just one child from being bitten. What did you think of that statement? And why not just ban all dogs, then?

I think that statement made by former Ohio senator Neal Zimmers was completely offensive to the men, women and children who were bitten by other breeds. It shows a lack of compassion for those individuals suffering what is a traumatic life altering experience.

Banning all dogs wouldn't even be an option simply because America loves dogs! But, I will add, there are some policies in place that make it extremely difficult to have a dog, especially housing and insurance restrictions. It's not breed specific legislation, but it is often the same outcome: tearing families apart.

You yourself are featured in the film, along with some of your family members both human and canine. The humans can speak for themselves. Tell me all about the canines!

I now live with three dogs, all who came from shelter environments. Preston is the inspiration to the film, and I adopted him on October 4, 2008, from a rescue, after I left Lakewood because of the ban. He was pulled from a shelter in the Akron, Ohio, area. Some of his past is unknown, but he was saved during a drug bust where the owners allegedly used him for fighting. I could go on and on about him, he is my soulmate, but I've written about him a lot and his story can be found on the website.

One thing I will say that will help everybody understand why I say he is my soulmate is because, he was going to be killed on July 28, 2006. My birthday is July 28. His new life started on my birthday.

I decided to foster my girl, Era, on June 30, 2011. I named her Era because it was going to be a new Era in her life, I just didn't know at the time that it was going to be with me. The plan was to foster her for a couple weeks and then she would go on a transport bus off to somewhere in New England. Preston and her were best buds from the moment they met each other, so I couldn't lose her and decided to officially adopt her after a few weeks. She's a pretty girl and she knows it, let me tell you. I nicknamed her Violent Love because she has a knack for hurting me all in the name of kisses.

Fergie was also a Cleveland city kennel dog. In August of 2012, I decided I could do more for rescue, as most of my work was in advocacy, and open my home to foster another dog.

Fergie was very ill, she was diagnosed heartworm positive, among other more treatable ailments. She was scared, and it showed. I had to seclude her from my other two dogs for two months while she was in treatment. Any stimulation could kill her, so she was only allowed out for bathroom breaks and short term couch cuddling.

When it came time to introduce her with my other dogs, it went extremely well. It helped that they all had time to adjust, and it was done slowly. I really wanted to find her a new home, but everybody was begging me to keep her, including my own mother, who was against the idea of me having a third dog in the house since I am single and it is a lot of work when you pile it on top of the other commitments I have.

Needless to say, I gave it one year, and said if she did not find a home by then, I will keep her. I am no longer allowed to foster dogs.


Late start to my morning, making breakfast for me and the kids. Meanwhile, this is happening right now on the couch... I'm definitely glad my dogs all get along, but this is ridiculous!

I understand that you've come up with a bucket list for your dogs. How is it going so far?

I came up with a bucket list for Preston mainly. One night a few weeks ago, it became painfully obvious that he is getting old. I was on the couch with the girls, and Preston attempted to jump up too. He missed and fell to the ground. When he got back up we just looked at each other and he let out a little sigh.

I helped him up and thought about some of the others who started bucket lists for their dogs. But the thing that is possibly different with mine is, he is not diagnosed with any terminal illnesses -- yet, at least -- and I didn't want to wait until that moments does happen. It was my way to keep myself in check, so I don't go days without appreciating all that he brings me.

The following day we went and spent some alone time together visiting some of the local famous landmarks within Cleveland that I always wanted to go to, but just never had time. I was able to share those moments with him, which was extremely important to me.

I had wanted to mark off the second item on my list, which was to bring him to a GTPI function, and we had our second screening in Cleveland coming up, but the building we had doesn't allow pets unless they [are] service animals, and I didn't want to take advantage of a law meant to help people out of my own selfishness. Maybe one day we will be able to cross that one off, but not now.

The next item I have is we are planning a road trip to Michigan for an animal conference I am going to. All the details haven't been worked out for that yet, but I am fairly confident we will be able to pull that one off.

I'm constantly adding to the list, and we hope to cross off more in the near future. I just want to make sure I never forget the importance of him -- and my girls, for that matter -- and it is easy to just go on with life and it not hit until something tragic happens.

Do you think things are getting better for pit bulls lately?

Oh, it is day and night better for pit bull dogs. They have definitely become the trendy dog to adopt. Celebrities are shown with them, they are featured in positive news articles nearly every day, are in print ads intended to sell household name products. The comparison isn't even close to what it once was. We still have a little ways to go, and that goes for all dogs, but we have come so far as a society to finally get it.

As far as around the county, we are noticing a progressive movement where cities are repealing these laws at a much faster pace than they are being adopted. This tells me we are turning the corner about how we view the dogs -- and their owners.

If there is one thing I wish people understood about dogs we call pit bulls it's that they are just dogs. Breed simply doesn't matter.




This interview has been slightly edited for length and clarity.


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Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Startling Birth Control Ads for Pets - What Do You Think About These Ads?



Parents of teens know that at that certain age they can't avoid having the dreaded "sex talk" with their kids, but what about with their pets?  What if pet owners started thinking of their pets as their teens when it comes to avoiding pregnancy?

That's the dramatic, but humorous, approach taken in a new series of public service announcements and advertisements produced by the Best Friends Animal Society, the nation's largest sanctuary for homeless animals.

In the spots, voiced by "NCIS: LA" actress Linda Hunt and "Modern Family" star Eric Stonestreet, parents appear to be reacting to their kids' promiscuity, only to have the kids replaced by their pets.  In other words, once you start thinking of your pets as your kids, it's a lot easier to think of what needs to be done to keep them from delivering offspring.

Called "Prevent more. Fix at month four," the campaign is the first national effort to educate pet owners on when, not just why, they should spay and neuter, according to the Society.

"We felt it was important to present the messaging in an attention getting way that didn't make people feel guilty or sad," Amber Ayers, the society's senior marketing and creative manager, told ABCNews.com. "When we looked at the research, most people planned on spaying or neutering their pets, but there was just a lot of confusion about when to do so and this leads to the 'oops' litter. "

The Utah-based non-profit says it hopes the ads will grow into a "cultural movement."
"We are hoping to maintain long-term traction by shifting the mindset of our country," said Ayers.  "It will become commonplace to fix your pet at four months, reducing the number of pets that enter, and ultimately never leave our shelters. "




What do you think about these ads?

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