The Fayetteville Animal Shelter hosted it's Grand Re-opening Party Saturday, from 11 AM to 3 PM at it's facilities on Armstrong Rd. Dog Party USA, Angel Pet Sitters, The Humane Society of the Ozarks, as well as Bigwag were there in support of their efforts. It started to rain about 2 PM, so we bugged out a little early, but the event was winding down anyway. There was also a demonstration by Dogs Deserve Better, a group dedicated to raising awareness about dogs who spend their whole lives chained to a dog house (See the second photo above). The HSO also presented Jill Hatfield, the shelter director, with a check for $20,000, to help defray the deficit of funds that were cut from the city budget this year. Funds from the HSO 2008 planner were used to help make up the difference.
Showing posts with label society. Show all posts
Showing posts with label society. Show all posts
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Fayetteville Animal Shelters Grand Reopening
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Blog Review
I read two blogs this week - Blog #1 is from a friend of mine that struck a cord with me. I embrace this mentality about going local. Over 90% of the economy (my numbers might not be exact - my memory isn't what it used to be) is supported by small business. You stop and think, wow, what about all of those big employers, those big companies. They employ a lot of people, and that they do. But it's a numbers game here. There are simply thousands of small businesses for every super large business out there, all quietly toiling away keeping their business running, not getting much PR for the good or hard job they do, or the local charities they work with, or all of the good they bring to the community.
So, I do support local, small businesses as much as possible. I think it's important, and I like to root for the underdog. I know how hard it is to start, build, and grow a small businesses first hand, and feel a kinship with all of the other small guys (and gals) out there. If we all supported each other, we would all be stronger! Local is more sustainable, it's greener, it's better for the local economy - it also feels right. It's community, not a big corporation. Small businesses operate with a conscience (most of the time), while big corporations exist without one.
I'm not sure Brenda's is the best cheeseburger in NWA tho. The Station Cafe on the Bentonville Square flips a pretty darn good cheeseburger. I would pit it against Brenda's any time. Not to knock Brenda's tho. They are good, and without it, Erin would never have found the Sysco office to pick up flour in Fayetteville on occasion.
Blog #2 is related more to BigWag. While I appreciate the economic slowdown, and what that means for everyone, including me, it makes it hard to refute every single point the author makes. It is tough. I have seen first hand what the housing crunch has done to the area shelters. I've rescued and fostered one myself.
But, here is where the rub is for me. We as a race took responsibility for the canine species when we domesticated them. A lot of the problems they have now, are a result from poor breeding practices, nutrition, and a lack of responsibility. Now, when I say poor breeding practices, I am referring to over breeding from a genetic pool that was too small to filter out problems that are now inherit to the breed, like joint and hip problems or other diseases that are common to specific breeds.
If you have never seen a dog with food allergies, then good for you. They are completely miserable, constantly itching, irritable bowels, vomiting, chewing on their feet. Lela states, "I’m going on record here to say - I really don’t love my dog that much. Kids, yes. Dog, no."
Most of the reason dogs have food allergies is because for decades we fed them crap - and you can quote me on that one. Parts they would not eat out in the wild. Parts we sure as heck wouldn't eat. Ingredients that were going to be landfill, so we found a creative way of disposing of the waste. We ground it all up, added rancid restaurant oil to make it "go down easier", and priced it to sell - by the millions of it. As long as it was cheaper than throwing it away, they were making a profit. Poor protein sources, little to no nutrient value. Most of the amino acids and vitamins are destroyed during the baking process. Dogs spent their whole lives eating "filler" we didn't want to pay to throw away, and turned it into a billion dollar industry. This is what has created the food allergies in dogs.
Our responsibility doesn't end with just better food. The Humane Society in Benton County destroyed some 2500 dogs in 2007. They had an above average placement rate, but that is still how many were destroyed. What kind of existence is it to spend your "happy, puppy months" in a cage, and then be destroyed when you reached an age that you are "unadoptable". Counties in California have reached "no kill status" with aggressive spay-neuter programs. People adopt or buy dogs (from puppy millers), and then decide they don't want it anymore. I have heard stories of surrenders because the dog didn't match the new furniture, or they got too big, or it was too much responsibility. They chewed things up, or pooped in the house and couldn't be house broken. In the end the stories are all the same - too much work or too inconvenient. This isn't responsible dog ownership. You can't just give your children back when they turn out to be too much work or are too inconvenient.
So as an argument to Lela's "Spa Products" comments - maybe this is just karma for the rest of the dog population that suffers or are destroyed because the dog ended up being too inconvenient. In the end there will always be a ton of people who will try and tell you what you should or shouldn't feed your dog. Most of what you will see or hear will come from billion dollar mega corporations whose conscience is single mindedness to turn a buck - so just keep that in mind the next time you stroll down the pet food isle.
Knowing what I know about the pet food industry, if my financial situation would prevent me from buying a better than average dog food, my dog would be eating ramen noodles and hot dogs and mac-n-cheese right along side me - and they would go apes over it. It's one way of guaranteeing humane grade ingredients! Dogs ate table scraps for centuries before we were sold on the notion of dry dog food.
So, I do support local, small businesses as much as possible. I think it's important, and I like to root for the underdog. I know how hard it is to start, build, and grow a small businesses first hand, and feel a kinship with all of the other small guys (and gals) out there. If we all supported each other, we would all be stronger! Local is more sustainable, it's greener, it's better for the local economy - it also feels right. It's community, not a big corporation. Small businesses operate with a conscience (most of the time), while big corporations exist without one.
I'm not sure Brenda's is the best cheeseburger in NWA tho. The Station Cafe on the Bentonville Square flips a pretty darn good cheeseburger. I would pit it against Brenda's any time. Not to knock Brenda's tho. They are good, and without it, Erin would never have found the Sysco office to pick up flour in Fayetteville on occasion.
Blog #2 is related more to BigWag. While I appreciate the economic slowdown, and what that means for everyone, including me, it makes it hard to refute every single point the author makes. It is tough. I have seen first hand what the housing crunch has done to the area shelters. I've rescued and fostered one myself.
But, here is where the rub is for me. We as a race took responsibility for the canine species when we domesticated them. A lot of the problems they have now, are a result from poor breeding practices, nutrition, and a lack of responsibility. Now, when I say poor breeding practices, I am referring to over breeding from a genetic pool that was too small to filter out problems that are now inherit to the breed, like joint and hip problems or other diseases that are common to specific breeds.
If you have never seen a dog with food allergies, then good for you. They are completely miserable, constantly itching, irritable bowels, vomiting, chewing on their feet. Lela states, "I’m going on record here to say - I really don’t love my dog that much. Kids, yes. Dog, no."
Most of the reason dogs have food allergies is because for decades we fed them crap - and you can quote me on that one. Parts they would not eat out in the wild. Parts we sure as heck wouldn't eat. Ingredients that were going to be landfill, so we found a creative way of disposing of the waste. We ground it all up, added rancid restaurant oil to make it "go down easier", and priced it to sell - by the millions of it. As long as it was cheaper than throwing it away, they were making a profit. Poor protein sources, little to no nutrient value. Most of the amino acids and vitamins are destroyed during the baking process. Dogs spent their whole lives eating "filler" we didn't want to pay to throw away, and turned it into a billion dollar industry. This is what has created the food allergies in dogs.
Our responsibility doesn't end with just better food. The Humane Society in Benton County destroyed some 2500 dogs in 2007. They had an above average placement rate, but that is still how many were destroyed. What kind of existence is it to spend your "happy, puppy months" in a cage, and then be destroyed when you reached an age that you are "unadoptable". Counties in California have reached "no kill status" with aggressive spay-neuter programs. People adopt or buy dogs (from puppy millers), and then decide they don't want it anymore. I have heard stories of surrenders because the dog didn't match the new furniture, or they got too big, or it was too much responsibility. They chewed things up, or pooped in the house and couldn't be house broken. In the end the stories are all the same - too much work or too inconvenient. This isn't responsible dog ownership. You can't just give your children back when they turn out to be too much work or are too inconvenient.
So as an argument to Lela's "Spa Products" comments - maybe this is just karma for the rest of the dog population that suffers or are destroyed because the dog ended up being too inconvenient. In the end there will always be a ton of people who will try and tell you what you should or shouldn't feed your dog. Most of what you will see or hear will come from billion dollar mega corporations whose conscience is single mindedness to turn a buck - so just keep that in mind the next time you stroll down the pet food isle.
Knowing what I know about the pet food industry, if my financial situation would prevent me from buying a better than average dog food, my dog would be eating ramen noodles and hot dogs and mac-n-cheese right along side me - and they would go apes over it. It's one way of guaranteeing humane grade ingredients! Dogs ate table scraps for centuries before we were sold on the notion of dry dog food.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Fayetteville Dogwood Walk at Gulley Park
Despite a cold start to the morning, dog walkers were out in full force Saturday at Fayetteville's Gulley Park. A great turnout, and a great finish to the day makes it all worth while. Our free sample treats were such a hit this year we had to call in reinforcements, despite bringing twice as many from last year.
Fayetteville dog walkers snapped up the goodie bags quickly, and were very excited to learn that we were offering free shipping to anywhere in Arkansas - greatly helping with the current gas crunch. We know it's hard to get up to Rogers on a weekly basis for our yummy, all-natural treats. Those fortunate enough to get a goodie bag were also treated to more free samples as well as a coupon for 10 free treats from us at our store in Rogers.
Demonstrations highlighted with agility training by Canine Connection, and Arkansas Search and Rescue, as well as the myriad of vendor booths from folks like us, and the shelters and rescues made for a great amount of information for participants.
This video is just a panoramic shot of Gulley Park during the Dogwood walk. The walk itself is very impressive to see, with the line of people stretching from the gazebo all the way to new north parking lot. I was so busy this year chatting with people I didn't get a chance to photo or video the actual walk - maybe better luck next year!
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