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"''

Foster puppy, Jack, spent some time at Board Member Cheryl's office last week. Lots of photos were taken and the photo below is now ranked #5 as a reader's pick on MSNBC.com. Way to go Jack! For a better picture and to vote click: Sleepy Jack!

Today HSSC took in a found Westie. She was found along the Virginia Corridor Trail in the College/Enslen Area. She's very sweet and I'm sure her family misses her. She was very matted and her coat was full of burrs, so she is at the groomer getting cleaned up. Once she looks pretty we will post photos. She was not microchipped but was wearing a distinctive collar. If you know whose dog she might be, or if she sounds like your dog, please call me direct at 209-345-5967.

I didn't take long for our latest litter of puppies to find great foster homes. Some of them are also spoken for adoption-wise. I have asked one of our tech savvy volunteers to put together a "puppy montage" on YouTube. It should be loads of fun! In the meantime, enjoy Jack:

I was recently contacted by the friend of a woman that passed away. The woman had several cats and they were now on the loose. In the process of removing the remains, officials spooked the cats and they escaped. Animal Control went out to the property, then refused to try and capture the cats. In order for HSSC to help the cats we would have to trap them. But there's a hitch: The cats were exposed over the course of many day/weeks to MRSA (aka "Super Staph.")

Entering the house and trapping the cats requires full protective gear, including respirator, gloves, clean suit and rubber boots. After only an hour I was drenched from the heat. Plus, the cats peed and pooped everywhere. Closets, drawers, counters, cabinets, you name it. The smell is pretty pungent. Today I am going back in to set the traps for the cats they may be in the house. I only managed to see one, but there are sure to be others. I will do the same for the ones outside. HSSC volunteers will help monitor the traps and make sure the cats are treated with care.

Planning for your pets in the event of a tragedy is very important. Its becoming more common for people to set up a trust for care of their pets. In the event a family member or friend doesn't want to keep your pets, you will need to make arrangements. If the pet was adopted from a rescue, they can be returned to that rescue. But many pets are not from a rescue and they usually end up at the "pound."

Dealing with the human aspects of the estate is hard enough as it is; I know the paperwork alone is a nightmare. I'm glad HSSC can help the deceased's loved ones cope in this time of sorrow.