Rea Cord
Executive Director
For those who are not on Facebook, thought we would share the incredible results from the Betty White Challenge on 17 Jan. Between online donations, mail and walk-in donations, Facebook fund-raisers, local business event contributions and such, the total has easily surpassed $10,000 for our Shelter!!! This is just…WOW! Thank you to the huge number of individuals who made financial donations, to those who brought pet food and supplies, and to local businesses: Wetumpka’s Wharf Casual Seafood whose employees donated a vehicle FULL of dry dog food, and Grumpy Dog and Coosa Cleaver who donated a percentage of their proceeds from food and drink sales. Betty’s legacy of love for animals, and a wonderful life bringing happiness and entertainment to us all, was honored in the most perfect way and to everyone who honored her life and legacy – THANK YOU FOR BEING A FRIEND!
We have not only had plenty of cold weather lately, all the rain we have had can also cause issues for pets and livestock. One result of all this rain is how soft the ground is, making it easier for our dogs to dig out of fences. It is amazing how big a hole an energetic dog can dig in a short period of time so make sure to check your fences to find and fix those holes BEFORE your dog escapes.
Soft, wet ground and a bit of wind also hastens the fall of old trees, often taking out fencing when they fall. Old wood fence posts can rot over time and long periods of wet weather can accelerate their demise. Horses or cattle leaning on or over fencing can push over old fence and fence posts when the ground is as soft as it is right now. Livestock and pet owners should walk/check fence lines to look for downed trees and failing fences. Loose livestock can endanger the public, as well as the livestock, so let’s keep them safely fenced at home.
Dogs that are kept in pens or small fenced areas (or tied) may be living in a nasty mix of water, urine and poop which is not only cruel but unhealthy. Of course, the best answer is for them to have a large, fenced yard so that, when not in the house with their family, they can seek out the driest areas as they choose. But, no matter, there is no excuse for leaving an animal in deplorable conditions – bring the pet inside the house, move the pen/fenced area to a dry area, and make sure your pet has appropriate and adequate shelter so they can get out of the inclement weather and stay dry. And make sure outside pets have DRY bedding in their houses as how would you like to sleep on wet bedding in 30-degree temps at night with the wind blowing!
And while we humans wear shoes & boots in nasty weather our pets and livestock certainly don’t. Any animal foot/hoof subjected to prolonged exposure to wet mud can develop bacterial infections that can cause pain and lameness. Just like us, animals like dry feet – think of spending days barefoot in wet, cold mud and how good your feet would feel. Make sure they have a way to get dry & stay out of the weather.
For all of our animals, shelter from wet, cold, windy weather will go a very long way to keeping them healthy. Bring your pets inside and, if you do not have a barn, give livestock well-situated run-in sheds they can access to get out of the weather as they choose – they will appreciate it.
