Our goal at HSSC is to improve the lives of the people and the companion animals in our community. While our primary focus has been spay and neuter, education and helping out senior citizens, we have also helped rescue and place quite a few dogs and cats. Placing the cats and kittens has been pretty easy, since we use partner rescues to handle the adoptions. With their experience we can be sure that they meet HSSC standards.

Oliver is one of the puppies from the litter that was dumped on Highway 132. A very nice couple fell in love with him when I was at Petco with the puppies. They agreed to foster him and I took him over there last week. When Oliver is neutered we will complete the adoption. Here is one of the wonderful pictures they sent me:



Victor (no pictures yet) charmed his way into the home of a wonderful family. I happened to have him with me when I was visiting a client and her son had some friends for a sleepover. One of the boys told me his mom wanted a dog for her birthday and it happened to be the next day. He called his mom and told her to rush over and meet Victor. When Victor, now Dodger, is neutered we will complete the adoption.

Jack and Idgie found a very nice home in the Los Gatos Mountains. They have two acres of romping room and a stairway to wrestle their way up and down. Here is a rare quiet shot:



Here is a post romping photo sent by their new mom:



Jack and Idgie's brothers, Tanner, Cooper and Moose, still need homes. They will be at Petco Riverbank on Saturday, July 26 from 11am to 3pm. Come out and meet these wonderful pups!

Dolly (now Daisy) is being fostered by a wonderful young man named Tyler. I've known their family for years and I am happy they were willing to take on the task. I hope to have pictures soon. Annie's foster family went on a cruise so she is back at Maison de les Pei with her sister, Victoria. Victoria plays well with others and it is shown in the next picture:



Pippin is being fostered near my house and he gets dropped off for doggy daycare by his mom each morning. Here is Pippin trying to convince Annie to let go of the toy, without much success. She is a terrier after all...



That is all for now. We have a few adult dogs available and I will profile them next.

Even Lennox Lewis, my box turtle, is driving a carpool these days...

Yesterday Humane Society of Stanislaus County received a check for over $16,000. This generous donation was a bequest from the late Susana Warner. With this week's article in the Modesto Bee about SCAS raising SCATE voucher rates, it couldn’t have come at a better time. We will now have the money to begin offering low-cost spay and neuter vouchers for dogs. The rates will be set at: $40 for small/medium dogs and $60 for large dogs. The rates will include a microchip and rabies shot. All persons purchasing vouchers will have to show proof of income and residency (EBT card, Medicare card or utility bill.)

Dates and locations of voucher sales will be announced via the website.

In April, HSSC took a few dozen "unadoptable" dogs from Stanislaus County's pound to Butte County Humane Society in Chico. I am thrilled to announce that every dog and puppy has been adopted. Hope, a pitbull mix that had been shot in the eye, was adopted by a wonderful family along with another pitbull. Special thanks to Board Member Gail Ferrari-Martin for her contribution to get Hope's eye taken care of and her financial support of these rescue trips.

Butte County hopes to be able to take more dogs in the future but is currently dealing with the animals displaced by the wildfires in the area.

Please consider attending the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors Meeting, July 15 at 6:30 pm. The address is 1010 - 10th St., Basement, Modesto, CA.

The Board is considering a raise in fees charged by "Animal Services." I think we should ask them to justify why they need the money.

Yesterday, I attended the July Animal Advisory Board meeting. I'm not sure why I even bother, because all they do is sit around and talk about what a great job they are doing down at the county pound (which I am now refusing to call a "shelter.")

I've decided to start posting the emails that I get regarding the horrific treatment of animals in this county. They are a mere fraction of the stuff I read and hear every day, and I hope that maybe it will help prevent this from happening to another pet. I have deleted the names and email addresses to protect the people who wrote these.

This happened Monday, July 7, 2008:

''Hello,

I am hoping that someone will be able to point me in the right direction. I live in a residential neighborhood and have recently noticed what I think is severe neglect of a dog from my neighbor. The dog is alone 24/7 to the point of constant howling and crying day and night. He is kept on a cemented side yard, chained with little moving room, he struggles just to get into the shade in the afternoons (his chain only allows him to go a few feet) He does seem to have food and water, but by no means is it fresh. I can hear him panting lately due to the hot temperatures. I have heard a person out there with him one time, and all they did was raise their voice at him. It's absolutely heartbreaking. My husband and I have two dogs of our own and are huge dog lovers. What do we do? I know it's not physical abuse by means of hitting, but I believe it's just as bad, and I do fear for his health. This has been going on for at least 6 weeks. Please let me know if you have any advise as to how we can handle this and hopefully help this poor dog.

Thanks you for your time, "Stanislaus County Citizen"

Traci...thank you so much for the quick reply. I did get into contact with animal control and they did come out about two hours ago. I'm devastated to say the dog went into some kind of convulsions while the animal control was there. The poor dog quit breathing shortly before he could get him into the truck. Its a horrible thing that happened and I'm beside myself....I wish I had called sooner.

One other question for you...the animal control guy left the dead dog in the owners back yard. Is that ok?

Thank you for your help. Signed, "Stanislaus County Citizen"

Hello Traci,

My wife emailed you yesterday about our neighbors dog that passed away while animal control was there. Her name is "Stanislaus County Citizen" we live just outside of Modesto.

I called animal control this morning to follow up and they said they would be picking up the dog today...maybe if they could get to it. They told me that the responding officer's report did not warrant any investigation of neglect. I explained the dog had little moving room and only had shade in the afternoon hours. If the sun was not low enough to cast a shadow from the home he had no shade whatsoever. The report indicated the dog had food and water, but even the officer told my wife he wasn't sure the dog could reach the water. Even if he could the water had to have been near boiling after sitting in the sun. Furthermore, the dog did have some food, it was just thrown all over the area he was in...He would have had to eat one piece at a time.

They were extremely rude and told me that the discrepancy between what I saw and what the report stated could have been due to an emotional state (that was the director of animal control). I took pictures, I know what I saw. I am not as angry now about the owners as I am about the way animal control is handling the situation. The officer put a torn up piece of trash from the back yard over the dog and left after being told by another neighbor that the family was in "another country" and a family member was supposedly checking on the dog. I know that family had some unexpected family emergency to deal with in "another country" but someone I feel should be held accountable for what happened to that dog, even a ticket or something. I don't know if we are over reacting, but it's kind of bothersome that I pay a county office with my tax $ to take care of animals and deal with neglect issues only to have them not take any action. Any ideas, or should I just send the pics to the guy and try to forget about it?

Thanks,

"Stanislaus County Citizen"''

Join HSSC for a cool movie event! We will be screening the movie "Cats and Dogs" at the State Theater, Staurday at 3:30. Doors open at 2:00 for special activities. Enjoy the air-conditioned State Theater in all its glory while helping HSSC raise money. Children are encouraged to dress as their favorite pet and make signs for their "team." Tickets available at the box office: $5 for children, $10 for adults. Drawings will be held for prizes!

Join us at Walnut Grove (on Lou Ann cross street Rumble) at 5:30. We prepare meals for homebound seniors pets. We have loads of fun and a help our community too!

All of the terrier puppies are out of the hospital and had their first round of shots and worming. They are: Dolly, dox/aussie/terrier mix; Pippin, same mix as Dolly; Victor, terrier/aussie mix; Victoria, same as Victor; Annie same as Victor and Victoria; Oliver, terrier/aussie/chihuahua. When they sit still I will post more pictures.

Meanwhile, we are looking for foster homes. Call me at (209) 345-5967 if you are interested in fostering a puppy.

HSSC has some wonderful puppies that will be ready to go to adoptive homes next week! All puppies will be spayed or neutered, microchipped, vaccinated and crate trained. In addition, we will provide a free six-week obedience course at the Riverbank Petco with each puppy. The adoption fee is $200 per puppy (it's a bargain, trust me!)

The following puppies are available (more to come when I can get a still picture):

Tanner, Male, Aussie/St. Bernard/Viszla:



Moose, Male, Aussie/St. Bernard/German Shepherd