***EDIT!!*** I am SO sorry this is so long. I posted it and realized how long it is. Feel free to just skim!! I have a huge problem with having to explain everything in detail, so I really apologize for that!
I really like this positive thread and I want to thank everyone for what you do for all animals!
At first I wasn't going to post here, but after reading everyone's posts and seeing what they do, it gave me ideas on what
I could do! Mainly, places to donate to!! So my hope is people will read my post and also get ideas
I've been donating to the ASPCA, The Humane Society of US, and have been a member of Defenders of Wildlife for several years now. My favorite part about Defenders of Wildlife is every gift giving holiday, such as birthdays and Christmas, I purchase stuffed animals for the young children in my family (no kids of my own, but mainly my cousins). Not only is it a donation, but the kids LOVE the animals and love getting a certificate with their name on it. I feel that if they learn about these things while they're young, that it will shape them to be a responsible pet owner or activist in the future. ***I should note that I don't donate to get something...just with DOF, it's nice to give a gift and still help out!***
I'm a huge fan of adopting from shelters and 2 of my cats I got from the SPCA in Olean, NY. When I originally went to the shelter, it was to get a cat that my husband said I could have for my birthday. He wanted me to get a kitten, but, while kittens are cute, I am much more of an adult cat person. I saw Dora (3 yrs old at the time) surrounded by these incredibly sick cats and when I walked into the FIV area, she came up to me as if she was already mine. I left that day saying that I would take an orange kitten named Warren. Back home, my husband and I were at the grocery store and I just lost it. I was bawling and begging him to let me go back and get Dora...I didn't want the kitten. He finally agreed and the next day I went all the way back and got her and, even though she's sick and vet bills are pricey, I have never regretted getting her. She truly is my baby and the affection she and I give each other is readily picked on by my daddy-in-law
. The second cat, Lucy, we did get as a kitten. Jeremy picked her out. Long story short, the volunteer opened the cage door to pick up Lucy and she jumped out and it took us 30 minutes to catch her. She hasn't slowed down one bit.
Recently we took in a stray and named him Gabriel. SO skinny and covered in fleas. No longer though. He is an escape artist, so two weeks ago, we got him fixed so if he gets out again, he won't be making any babies (I am SO thrilled)!! I was desperate to get him fixed because there is a feral cat colony across the road from our apartment complex and I think he may have come from there (currently TWO cats are pregnant over there...TWO!!!). He does have issues with aggression, specifically toward Dora and myself, but we've been working with him a lot and he's gotten so much better.
Speaking of the feral colony, I take over food from time to time and I've been working on a way to get humane traps so these cats can be taken to a no kill shelter to be fixed. Honestly, I think they may be put down and I don't want that, so I'm pretty sure in order to avoid that, I would have to pay for neutering/spaying. If anyone has an ideas on this process, I would love to hear from you!!
Thanks to AngieKay, my pigs have a very beautiful cage! Only 1 floor, but there is a good amount of constant popcorning going on in there!
This may not be my place to do this, but I do go on craigslist Pets in my area every day and if I see someone ask a question, I'll answer them and if I see something that isn't right, I will post a remedy. If I see something that is very informative, I will repost it with the name of the OP if they gave one. The Charlotte area, as well as Raleigh and Erie, PA. Spreading good advice is a nice thing for people to do!
Along with that craigslist stuff, I believe I have "taught" a person selling prairie dogs on craigslist. I repeatedly sent very informative emails on the species based on what I knew about them and the harm this person was causing not only to the prairie dogs, but also to their entire ecosystem. I don't know if they were ever successful in their sales, but I really hope they weren't.
I suppose adopting Santino from that guy on craigslist was a good thing? There were several things very, very wrong, but I'll cover that another time. And on the same note, I guess "adopting" Angie's Barney was a good thing as well, since I was not only THRILLED that she trusted me enough to take him, but that I got a friend for Santino in the process! Everyone wins! YAY!
I have talked a person out of dog fighting. We became friends last year and he grew up in a very, very bad neighborhood, surrounded by drugs and everything, so I don't fully fault him for what he did. He mentioned that he had 7 dogs and wishes he still had them because they made him a lot of money. I asked him what he meant and he said that his dogs brought in thousands because they killed the other dogs that were being fought. He told me he sold them for a grand each a few years ago. We had a very long talk about it and I told him to put himself in that dog's place and asked him if he would like it if someone forced him to fight for his life. He tried to tell me the dogs weren't forced, but...whatever. Eventually he saw my point and seemed to realize that there is NO future in dog fighting. Not only is it cruel and, at this point, I believe it's a felony?? Either way, he now has a
real job and he's cleaned up so well. I'm very proud of him. I don't give myself a pat on the back for that one, though, because I think after enough time in jail (the last two times he was in jail for months, only to find out they got the wrong person) he realized that things can get better. He HATED cats, but he, too, is in love with Dora!
Not something I did, but something my husband did. My husband, Jeremy, the guy that's terrified of small animals (teeth, tails and nails freak him out) has become the greatest guinea pig daddy ever! This is where he deserves praise for a good animal deed: Since we now have two, Jeremy decided that I needed help with play time and lap time, everything. All by himself, he picked Barney up and since that moment, I'm barely allowed to call Barney "mine". Barney is HIS boy. He cuddles him, he plays with him during play time, he always wants him on his lap. Jeremy has even been making their salads for me! So even though he's not on here, I think he needs big props for overcoming his fear of small animals, and working with me to give them the best home possible.
Okay..I'm done now!