Archives for Updates category
Ring Out The Old, Ring In The New
After one year as Executive Director of Pets Alive Westchester, I am leaving to take on the role of Executive Director of Pets Alive Puerto Rico. It’s a bittersweet transition for me.
While I look forward to the new challenge in Puerto Rico, I look around and see so much still to be done in Westchester.
Mostly I see the faces of the animals. I have come to love each and every one of them, and leaving them is very difficult. But I know I am leaving them in capable hands. Jenessa Taylor, the new Executive Director, is able to step into this role without missing a beat. She comes to PAW from Pets Alive Middletown, where she was the Executive Administrator working right alongside the President of the Board and Executive Director at Middletown. Jen has extensive knowledge and experience in handling the day to day operation as well as in keeping the long term goals on track. She knows that the top priority is to get these animals into loving homes and to ensure that their lives are enriched while they are still here. The staff at Pets Alive Westchester is a strong group of committed, capable, caring, compassionate people. Led by Jenessa, they will not only accomplish the goals already set forth, but with your support, they will take Pets Alive Westchester to places not yet imagined!
So go ahead – RING OUT THE OLD!
It has been such an honor working with you to lead this organization over the past year, and to be able to play a small part in helping to improve the lives of the animals at Pets Alive Westchester. Thank you all for being a part of PAW, and for all your support and encouragement.
Always remember that none of this can happen without you, so please give generously in 2012 of your time, your money and most of all your love. Thank you for loving the animals. Your love worked miracles in 2011. There are more miracles to come in 2012.
RING IN THE NEW!
Love,
Joy XOXOXO Read the rest of this entry »
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Updates by kerry on Jan 03, 2012. There are comments.
It all started 2 years ago. A rescue organization called Manos Por Patas asked us to help by taking the dogs they saved from Dead Dog Beach in Puerto Rico. Dead Dog Beach was known to be a dumping ground for unwanted dogs, and considered a place to go for “sport” by some of the locals to abuse and torment the animals. It was definitely a horror show and many organizations were trying to make a difference there and help the dogs. We were tentative at first, not knowing what to expect in these dogs, but could not have been more pleasantly surprised.
The dogs that arrived were some of the nicest dogs we have ever taken in. Happy, excited, friendly and grateful to be here. It was interesting to us because these dogs that had never lived in a home, had some of the best home “manners” of any we had seen. Almost all of them seemed to be house trained when we adopted them to families. We assume it is because they have always gone outside, so eliminating there was natural to them, having lived outside their whole lives. They also didn’t “take off” when the door or gate was opened. Most of them stayed right there at the house or in the yard. They had found a home, and no longer did they seem to want to wander or run. They were happy, and fed, and loved.
They were all also good with other dogs! Having lived their lives on the beach with a pack of dogs, they had adapted well to communal living and sharing space and food. Wonderfully social dogs. They were also almost all small to medium size which is highly adoptable.
We were pulling in dogs that had miserable lives, no vetting, no care, no affection or love – and they turned out to be some of the best and most highly adoptable dogs we had ever encountered. We not only felt we NEEDED to save more – we WANTED to! We worked more and more closely with this organization but ultimately they closed down and asked us to take over their mission. We met about it, and it was 100% unanimous. We had to help. We had to continue saving the dogs that were in such desperate need.
And so we continued to save dogs remotely, but this wasn’t an ideal arrangement. The expense for vetting and boarding was astronomical. Marisol and Rob Thomas are members of our board, and Marisol is a proud Puerto Rican. She has a fire in her heart for the dogs of the island. She and Rob wanted us to do everything possible to help. So Rob and Marisol, through their Sidewalk Angels Foundation, have donated $250,000 to set the wheels in motion, and we embarked on a mission to build a sanctuary in Puerto Rico. Read the rest of this entry »
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Updates by kerry on Dec 01, 2011. There are comments.
Updates -
I really can’t believe I have been so negligent in sending out the updates. My apologies to all! In the future I will try to make SURE I do one every month. I have been writing blogs though, and I hope you will read those as they do provide an update as to what has been going on. My favorite was “In the interests of Tyson”. Hope you will read it. There are also updates in the blogs regarding Pets Alive Puerto Rico and Pets Alive Westchester.
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Updates by Admnistrator on Nov 01, 2011. There are comments.
It’s been a very hard month for Pets Alive. All of us have been affected by it. We’re a family so if one of us is hurting we all are. Kerry writes about it in more detail in her blog and I would really encourage you to read it: http://petsalive.com/blog/2011/06/09/questions-doubts-and-recrimination/
This month has made me question my own rescue efforts and whether change can really be made. Really it has….
The Pets Alive annual ‘Furball’ was held last Saturday. The theme was ‘Can you feel the love tonight?’ and without sounding horribly cliché you really could. Hundreds of people joined together in their love of animals. It was humbling and incredible to witness. It gave me renewed determination to continue our work in PR.
A small glimmer of hope appeared on the horizon this week. For those who follow PAPR you know that we have a number of dogs in foster care. They had spent far too long in Dr Aguirre’s office and when I was in PR we built ¼ acre runs for these dogs at Iris’s house. I would like to take a moment to tell you all about Iris. Iris is an angel who appeared to me last year. I was transporting dogs back to NY and only had 5 crates to take. That left a spare place on my flight so I sent out a note to all the rescuers I know on the island. One of our biggest struggles as rescuers in Puerto Rico is getting dogs out of PR. They must have an escort on the plane and that can prove difficult to find. Somehow my email ended up in Iris’s hands and I received a call from her about a boxer she had rescued named Dio. Iris has been rescuing dogs her whole life with her own money. She finds wonderful homes for them in Puerto Rico. She had been struggling to find a great home for Dio.
Could I take him to Pets Alive she asked? With a heavy heart I explained that I could only transport dogs and I could not take any further rescues in. I could hear the heartbreak in her voice as she thanked me for what I was doing for the dogs of PR and that she would try and continue to find a home for Dio on the island. I felt terrible. So I called Kerry and asked if we had room at the inn for one more – a beautiful boxer who was neutered, healthy and up to date on shots. ‘Of course!’ said Kerry and I could hardly contain my excitement as I called Iris to tell her the good news. Dio and 5 others traveled with me on the night before Thanksgiving. It was a hideous journey. One flight got cancelled, and then the next one that American could put us all on got horribly delayed. We finally walked in the doors of Pets Alive at 6am on Thanksgiving morning. A wonderful family adopted Dio – he even has his own kids! That Thanksgiving Eve Iris and I became sisters and she has been helping PAPR ever since.
We have 18 dogs in foster care. Dogs that I have been promising their very own family…And this week I was told that they could finally come to Pets Alive! It is not something that I was expecting but that makes it all the more exciting! And scary. PAPR had certainly not planned for a large transport but we will make it happen – the dogs are coming in the next 2 weeks. It now costs us $175 PER DOG to send the dogs with American Airlines. And they are the cheapest. That’s in excess of $3000. So I again appeal to you, our loyal followers and supporters to help us bring these beautiful Angels to heaven on earth. They are so deserving and have waited patiently for so long. I am going to put up a chip-in on our website and I would encourage you to give whatever you can. If you would like to sponsor an individual dog and cover their airfare then even better! If you cannot donate $$$ then please consider air miles. We can fly ANY airline to GET to PR. We need to fly AA back as they transport dogs for us. Jet Blue is great because they don’t charge for baggage. And believe me I take a lot of baggage. I have a full rescue kit that I travel with and my wonderful vet, Dr Thomas LoBasso of Cobble Hill Animal Clinic in Brooklyn always send me with huge donations of heartworm and flea and tick medication. Plus I usually go a little crazy in the dog isles of Target before I leave to spoil our fur kids. They so deserve it.
I don’t know who said it but a picture definitely speaks a thousand words so I put this together for you all. You know who is coming and you can pick your favorite to sponsor : ) These dogs have been waiting for their ‘Someday’……… http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=1AcuG7Rs2YtHWQ
On a very frustrating note, 5 dogs have been dumped at the beach : (
The first one looks in really bad shape.
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Updates by kerry on Jun 18, 2011. There are comments.
Foster program
With more than 140 senior dogs and more than 100 senior cats up for adoption at PAW, creativity is the key to getting those furries into the loving homes they deserve at this time of their life. Unlike other foster programs in which the foster parent commits to taking in an animal temporarily while a suitable adopter is found, the Senior Foster program at PAW asks foster parents to commit to the animal for the rest of the animal’s life. We understand that the potential cost of medical care is one of the main reasons many people reject the idea of adopting a senior pet. So Pets Alive Westchester provides the medical care for seniors in our program.
With your help, we can get these animals home. Committing to a senior is one of the most rewarding ways you will ever find to help an animal in need. It has been heartbreaking to come here, go through the records and see animals that came in as puppies, still here 14 years later. Absolutely gut wrenching. Seniors, especially those who have spent most of their life in the shelter, are extremely grateful for any amount of love and attention that is paid to them. They have outgrown most bad habits, and appreciate simple things such as great smells coming from the kitchen, leisurely walks in the evening, and a soft, cozy place to rest their old bones at the end of a long day. In return they will be a faithful companion to you and give you uncompromising love and devotion. Won’t you please consider providing a loving home for one of these deserving animals?
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Updates by kerry on May 17, 2011. There are comments.
One month turned to two and a dream became a reality………
I arrived in PR mid-March to search for land for Pets Alive Puerto Rico and received an exciting phone call from my good friend, fellow rescuer and all around angel, Iris. The First Lady of Puerto Rico had heard about my rescue work over here from Iris’s husband, who works directly with the Governor of Puerto Rico. I was invited for an audience at her office to discuss plans for Pets Alive Puerto Rico. After running out and buying a frock (I didn’t pack anything apart from shorts and t-shirts – good dog rescuing gear!) I went to La Fortaleza, The Governor of Puerto Rico’s Mansion.
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Updates by kerry on May 15, 2011. There are comments.
The annual 2011 Fur Ball Gala Event Is On! BUY YOUR TICKETS NOW!
The Fur Ball is a fabulous formal evening celebrating the animals that have been saved by Pets Alive.
There are cocktails, dinner, music, dancing, silent auctions, and our annual Awards presentation. Please join us in making our largest annual fundraisers for the animals, a huge success! This is the event that helps fund us for the entire year. PLEASE support this event!
The 2011 Pets Alive Hudson Valley Fur Ball Gala
Friday, June 17th,
From 7pm – 11pm,
Falkirk Estate & Country Club, Central Valley, NY
Everyone can be a part of supporting the Fur Ball, even if you can’t attend!
- Show your support as a Fur Ball sponsor and gain recognition at the event and beyond.
- Include your special personal message, or place an advertisement in the event program
- Come to the party! Guest list reservations $125 p.p.
- Volunteer to work on the committee that puts this event on each year! Please help by emailing community@petsalive.com
Together we will make the Hudson Valley Fur Ball a success for the animals!
You can also attend the Westchester Fur Ball!
Pets Alive Westchester Fur Ball, Saturday, June 11th, Mount Kisco, NY.
For additional information, or questions, contact community@petsalive.com
Sanctuary animal updates:
Since my last update on February 23rd, the following dogs were adopted: Rufus, Sassy, Celine, Princess, Buffy, Spot, Elmo, Roxy, Scooby, Jake, Selma, Sandy, Ted, Yogi, Sam, Rookie, Grizz, Tonka, Yukon, Polly Anna, Chauncey, Dara, Charlie Girl, Larry, Mallory, Betty Jo, Brenda, Shelly, Belinda, Sage, Jess, Buddy, Butch, Bethany, Bishop, Bear Cub, Shania, Max, Bambi, Mallory, Javier, Theodore, Dublin, Bunny, Jonah, Glacier, Duncan, Elle, Reese, Jelly Bean, Buddy & Cadbury, Sophie & Lavender, Pogo & Razzy, Lucky & Sammy, Bobey, Bear, Jenny, Enzo, Moose, Rocky (Larry), Sweetie, Peep, Josh, Taffy, Timber, Griffin, Snoopy, Stephen, King, Homer, Gentry, Gentle Ben, Buster, and Elvis.
This month we had an awesome adoption day. On April 2 EVERY adoption was a double! There were four adoption appointments for dogs and one for cats and every family took home TWO animals! Five appointments resulted in ten animals going home. What a great day. If you have a SINGLE pet, please consider a playmate for him or her. Long days without you can really result in behavior or aggression issues. A playmate and companion often alleviate those issues. There are so many animals in need. Hope you consider a friend for yours!
The following cats were also adopted: Ramos, Black Gold, Tootles, Miss Priss, Frankie, Archie, Sharon, Leslie, Roberta, Buddy, Angie, Molly, Sasha, Sasha2, Mitzy, Panda, Rabbit, Steve, Tommy Kitty and Nina!
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Updates by kerry on Apr 26, 2011. There are comments.
ELMSFORD, N.Y. – Pets Alive Westchester is proud to announce the appointment of Joy Sarnelli-Carson, Executive Director, and John Sibley, Director of Operations. With hundreds of animals waiting for homes, Sarnelli-Carson and Sibley are facing significant financial hurdles in the effort to keep the doors open on this 81 year old organization. Sarnelli-Carson and Sibley are up to the challenge, and are expected to bring monumental changes that will breathe new life into to the struggling shelter.
With their focus squarely on the needs of the animals in their care, Sarnelli-Carson and Sibley will implement solid plans for fundraising to secure the future of the organization. Their plans also include programs to broaden the reach of adoption promotions for their highly adoptable pets, plus a senior pet foster Program to help some of their aging residents find loving, forever homes.
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Updates by kerry on Mar 04, 2011. There are comments.
Sanctuary animal updates:
Since my last update in November, the following dogs were adopted: Patriot, Daphne, Goldie, Princess, Nikita, Kiana, Dixie, Adam, Zip, Bear, Kelsey, Einstein, Eddie, Indiana, Waylon, Chowder, Zamba, Murphy, Georgia, Roscoe, Harley, Cherokee, Princess, Kimmie, Tyler, Buster, Sheree, Blossom, Bozo, Tyler, Twinkie, Kelsey, Chelsea, Gardenia, Rosanna, Elf, Mistletoe, Lilly, Sugarplum, Silverbell, Klondike, Romeo, Butters, Blizzard, Maximillion, Zeus, Dio, Lillie, Frosty, Daniel, Luna, Woody, Jupiter, Willie, Mona Lisa, Rose, Otis, Posh, Buddy, Jade, Joshua, Scruffy, Winston, Clarence, Holly, Charlie Chaplin, Ivy, Maggie, Coco, Chuck, Dusty, Blake, Luna, Gracie, Petunia, Tyson, Roxy, Goldie, Samantha, Duke, Boston, Daisy, Shadow, Dixie, Bartey, Foster, Harper, Charlie Brown, Shorty, Lulu, Sonny, Fluffy, Littleman & Princess (together!), Katie, Sunny, Wilford, Walter, Wilbert, Marley, Abel, Holly, Jada, Olive, Pea, Suzy, Chico, Willow, Honey, Stuart Noble, Parsley, Isis, Annie, Jack, Kitsche, Moonie and Red (together), Honey, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pickles, Onyx, Noble, Duncan, Jenna, and Rufus.
The following cats were adopted: Vivian, Ventura, Gigi, Tootles, Angie, Momma, Spunky, Splish, Chloe, Blizzard, Cuddles, Garcia, Beauford, Victoria, Sammy, Indigo, Spazzy, Buffy, Abby, Spanky, Cici, Splash, Ness, BeBe, Spooky, Mimi, Rami, Boots, Sheba, Lucy, Pinwheel, Tiger, Sharon, Chloe2, Boychek, Ramos, Miss Priss, Angie, Tootles, Black Gold, Sasha, Leslie, Buddy, Roberta and Frankie.
Noteworthy adoptions:
The stand out adoptions of the past few months would be Stuart Noble, Moonie & Red, and Sheba.
Stuart Noble had lived on the end of a chain for 15 years. His name was originally “Stupid”. Imagine being tied to a dog house and left outside for 15 years of your life and being called Stupid. It broke our heart. We brought him here, he was adopted, and now he will spend his twilight years living inside where he is warm, has had a name change and is well loved. It has touched our hearts a great deal that his new family appear to love him so much. We are really grateful to them for welcoming him home.
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Updates by kerry on Feb 23, 2011. There are comments.
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It’s the holiday season at Pets Alive. A wonderful time. People send us cards, letters, pictures, treats. Boxes and gifts for the humans and animals here, appear each time the mail is delivered. Truly it is a magical time of year. Magical. Just like Pets Alive is. A magical place and a special place.
 This is the time where we look back and reminisce about the year that has passed. The animals that have passed through our doors. They always arrive the same way. Pulled from euthanasia lists all over the country – in our backyard, or from somewhere else – they arrive the same. Huddled in the back of their crates. Eyes wide. Sometimes shaking. Confused. Scared. Unsure. And to each one we tell the same thing “You are safe now. You will never know hunger again. You will never be the victim of abuse again. You will never have to live in fear again. Come into our arms, through our doors, and now, maybe for the first time, know love and warmth, plenty of food, and soon – a forever home.”
We watch as they transform.
With every animal that comes to us, we watch this change take place. That skinny, huddled, terrified animal, blossoms under the care of our staff and volunteers. Soon they lose that anxiety and are filled with joy, tails wagging, faces grinning. They are happy, greet us each day, go for walks, for outings and find a friend to live with while they wait for their people. We live for the moment that they are in a car, going up our driveway, head out of the window as they look back. I imagine at that moment they are saying “Thank you. I wouldn’t have made it without you.”
That “you” is not us. It is YOU, our friends, our partners in rescue.
 YOU, our volunteers, sponsors, adoptive families. YOU who give your hearts to help the animals find freedom and know love.
Together WE saved over 2,000 animals this year. Together, we stepped in to save the troubled Elmsford Shelter and welcomed them into the Pets Alive family. Because of your support, we have saved the dogs of Dead Dog Beach in Puerto Rico. Together, we helped more shelters become no-kill, training and supporting them, taking in their overflow. We have made a tremendous difference. With your help, and the help of our network we saved hundreds of animals that we couldn’t take here. We helped draft Oreo’s Law and together we will work to see it passed this year, so that no animal that has another option will be killed in shelters in NY. At Pets Alive in Middletown, we saved 120 beagles from a testing laboratory. All have been adopted! With your help we rescued over 90 animals from hoarding situations and found them all homes. We have worked to get animals, that other rescues would not take, off the euthanasia lists of the CACC in NYC. We will break ground on a medical facility to help our animals and the local community animals. We acquired the “Magic Bus” to help us get our volunteers and animals to adoption events. We redid every outdoor kennel, doubling our capacity while making the runs twice the size.
When we first came to Elmsford, there were 600 cats there, 400 of which lived in cages. All are now free to roam in rooms with friends. And 300 have been placed. There were over 350 dogs there, over 150 were seniors. Many of the seniors have been placed and we are down to a total of 220 dogs. We are in the process of getting a vet on staff full time, and building a surgical suite on site. Since becoming Pets Alive Westchester, the adoptions have increased from a few a month to between 50-70 a month. Volunteers are starting to come regularly and help us with fund raising and off site events. Elmsford is also becoming a magical place. All of these changes have helped us to cut operational expenses there by over 60%, and we are steadily rebuilding relationships in Westchester. To be successful though, we still need your help in Westchester.
 We appreciate your support and ask that you continue to support us in the coming year. We have some funding challenges and as usual it is one of our biggest worries. Your help is what keeps us going.
Thank you for the cards, emails, notes, telephone calls, pictures and other expressions of your support and affection. We read them all and they have made a tremendous impact on us.
From our families to yours, and from our Pets Alive family to yours, we wish you a joyful holiday season and look forward to a 2011 where we can save more animals and make more of an impact on the community and the country.
From Kerry Clair, Executive Director, and the entire Pets Alive staff
 P.S. You can make your impact last all year.
Please consider sponsoring the life on an animal at Pets Alive.
These monthly sponsorships truly help keep us alive.
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