June is Adopt a Shelter Cat Month! Looking to add a new cat or kitten to your family? It’s not too late to visit your local animal shelter or cat rescue organization and adopt a homeless cat or kitten. Scotties Facial Tissues (currently in their 4th year of donating funds to support shelter cat adoption) has posted a very cute video on YouTube, reminding us that there are so many wonderful reasons to adopt a shelter kitty!
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) sniffer dogs do important work to keep us all safe when we travel. Did you know that the TSA occasionally invites the public to adopt young dogs that failed TSA training or older dogs that have retired from active duty? Adoptions are free…you just need to make your way to San Antonio, Texas to pick your new friend up if you are one of the lucky adopters.
Purebred dog breeds used by the TSA include German Shorthaired Pointers, Labrador Retrievers, German Shepherds, and Belgian Malinois. You can watch a video about TSA dog adoption on the AOL news site HERE. Learn more about the TSA canine adoption program on the official TSA website.
FACE Foundation Board at the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.
The FACE Foundation Board recently returned from a strategic planning retreat, hosted by the Best Friends Animal Society at their Sanctuary, which is in beautiful Kanab, Utah. Best Friends operates the largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals in the U.S. Best Friends was founded thirty years ago by a small group of dedicated animal advocates who united together in the mission to save abused and abandoned companion animals, and end the euthanasia of these animals in our nation’s shelters. They serve as a testament to what can be accomplished when people work together for a greater cause, and are a great inspiration to the members of the FACE team.
FACE Board President Cini Gannon Robb getting kisses from a furry friend.
This strategic planning retreat was completely underwritten by the Board so no FACE funds were used. These sessions are generally held every 3-5 years, so there are always plenty of important topics to discuss. They revisited FACE’s mission and vision, and friends of FACE can expect to see a fine-tuning of our vision statement soon. The Board also discussed a revamping of our marketing and fundraising strategies.
FACE Board Member Dr. John Hart with a Best Friends pup.
Other exciting news to come out of the strategic planning retreat? We plan to revisit our granting process to put more trust in our valued veterinary partners when it comes to determining how FACE grants will be distributed to pet owners facing financial hardship due to emergency and critical care veterinary services.
FACE Executive Director Brooke Haggerty and a fuzzy little friend.
We also are very interested in finding ways to help cases that might not be “immediately life-threatening” but the animals’ quality of life would be drastically and negatively impacted without veterinary care. This would potentially broaden our criteria for determining what kinds of cases we can help…with the ultimate goal of saving more lives! At FACE, we remain united in the belief that no beloved family pet should be euthanized because of lack of funds to pay for critical veterinary care. Thanks to all of our friends and supporters, we are working hard to make this goal a reality.
FACE Board hard at work!
A German Shepherd named Molly vanished from her home in North Carolina 4 years ago. Her owners tried to find her but they were unsuccessful and assumed Molly was gone forever. Then a dog who looked an awful lot like Molly showed up at their doorstep 4 years later.
She put her head in her owner’s lap but he still couldn’t quite believe it was her. They took the dog to get scanned for a microchip they had placed in Molly 9 years ago. Sure enough, it really was Molly! It’s still a mystery where Molly has been for the past 4 years, but that doesn’t matter much to her grateful owners now that they have her back after assuming she was lost forever.
Watch the heartwarming news video about Molly HERE.
To celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Canon EOS Rebel SLR camera, the company held a “Rebel with a Cause” contest. The very deserving winner? Guinnevere Shuster, a talented animal lover and photographer who has been volunteering her time and talent to take professional quality photographs of shelter pets to help get them adopted.
Guinnevere created a beautiful video featuring a shelter dog named Willa using her Canon EOS Rebel T6i DSLR. The video—documenting Willa’s “Best Day Ever”—has been getting a lot of attention. And Willa’s temporary home, the Hudson Valley Animal Rescue and Sanctuary, has been fielding many calls from potential adopters seeking to take Willa home!
You can read all about the contest and Willa’s photo shoot with Guinnevere at people.com. Here’s the adorable video…congratulations Guinnevere and Willa!
