News
Jul 08 2011
So Full…
We are so full in our sanctuary housing cats and kittens to capacity! We desperately need loving, inside, wonderful homes for kittens and adults. If you have been contemplating taking in a new pet to love and cherish and keep safe, please consider one of ours. We have 45 kittens ranging in age from 6 weeks to 3 months; we have 60 kittens ranging in age from 8 months to a year old; we have over 150 adults waiting for a forever home as well.
We are able to house them at this point due to the warm weather, but we need to find wonderful homes for many before the weather turns, so that everyone is safe and comfortable when fall and winter arrive at SART. So, please, consider a new pet. Taking in two kittens from the same litter is awesome! You barely know they are there since the two will sleep together, eat together, play together and interact with you together. They grow up as friends and when the family is busy and away, they are not lonely because they have each other.
Another great adoption idea – we have 2 boys that are 9 months old that were part of a litter of 4. The other two went together and we would so love for these two to go to the same home. They are gorgeous animals, have been neutered, have had their shots, are wormed and are both very loving and sweet. They would be a wonderful pair for someone who is considering adopting 2 – they dearly love each other and we so want them to go together to a wonderful home – could it be yours?
Again, please open your hearts and homes – but only if you are sure that this is what you want to do and are able to do it – forever homes are important – not ones that only last a while and then the kitty is returned to us again – they need a family to love them for their lifetime!
Please contact me through the contact page if you have questions, or want more information. We would love to connect you with the perfect pet for your home!
Jun 24 2011
Pets = Trash?
Kitten season is in full swing. It amazes the people of SART how many think dumping a young life into the streets is the acceptable behavior for today’s society. Like human babies, little kittens need a lot of care. They need to be fed, loved and medically cared for – how does that happen on the street? I know if you are reading this article, you are probably not a person who can dump a baby or litter of babies along a road, in a park, by the lake, or in someone’s trash, taped in a box, or in a bag. But you might know someone who has done this. Please educate them. The kittens either starve, resort to eating unhealthy things to fill their stomachs, or are killed. Yes, it takes the responsibility away from the person who threw away the young lives – but all it really does is puts the responsibility onto someone else, if they open their hearts to do so.
The answer is to be responsible before you take in a pet. Decide whether you can financially take care of this creature, cat or dog, before taking on the ownership. Spaying or neutering is essential. Are you able to follow through and do this? If so, welcome the pet into your home. If not, don’t take one – you will only find frustration along the road. Or, if you can’t take on the spaying or neutering, but could nurture and care for a pet, only adopt one that has already been done. Only having our society accept responsibility for what is theirs will help get the overpopulation of cats and dogs under control. If you need help finding a place to spay or neuter your pet, please contact us and we will help you schedule.
If you are feeding strays, please know that as you can, you should capture and get them fixed as well. They can be put back out and continue to be fed, but if you start feeding 2 or 3 strays, within a year you will be feeding 20. They will multiply so quickly and then you will be overwhelmed. But if you capture, get them cared for, and then put them back out and continue to feed, it will only remain the ones you initially started feeding and you will enjoy their mannered, healthy behavior since they will no longer fight, mate, mark or howl. Then, you can peacefully enjoy watching these beautiful animals as they come to feed and greet you.
So, if you are driving along a road, walking along the street, playing in the park, or picnicing at the lake, and you see a stray – do the right thing. Feed it, capture it, nurture it, care for it, and be sure to find a good home with someone who will care for it properly. Only this, coupled with shelters housing the unwanted, will finally get our over population in check. And what a wonderful thing it would be, to have shelters who have room for the occasional lost soul, streets not filled with starving, unwanted animals, and pet owners who truly love and enjoy their pets. It can happen, but it takes more than shelters to fix this situation. It takes all of us making the correct decisions with regard to the pets we have, the strays we encounter, and how we live together in our communities.
SART believes it is God’s intention for us to watch over the innocent and helpless. Open your hearts to the possibility of caring for the strays you see in your neighborhoods. Come together with others, get these animals fixed, and enjoy what they have to offer. You will be so glad you helped – and so will the ones you helped be glad you did!
Jun 13 2011
Concord Elementary helps SART
Linda Lamb, principal of Concord Elementary School in Troy, Ohio, happened to see SART on the news after the flood. She went to school and talked with her students and they decided to do a fundraiser for us called “Quarters for Kitties”. Amanzingly, they raised $500.00 for us! Sam and I took an afternoon and drove down to Troy to meet with these students and Mrs. Lamb, introduce them to one of our shelter kittens, answer questions and encourage them in their care and support of animals. It was so wonderful to see the caring attitudes of these children – they are the adults who will hopefully enjoy the benefits of all the hard work shelters do to get the over-population in check for cats and dogs so that every cat and dog will have a loving home. It will happen – education is key. If every person who owns a pet would spay/neuter their pet, and if every person would adopt one wonderful shelter animal, think what a dent it would make in correct our problem in this country!
Concord students, Mrs. Lamb, Sam and I
May 15 2011
The End of Operation Dry Paws
Laura Story – Blessings[audio:Blessings.mp3]
Seventy-six days have been lived since February 28th.
There have been tears, hard work, gifts, encouragement and prayers almost every day at SART. We believe it is time to close this chapter and thank all who helped in some way through this most difficult experience. How does one start? I think of all the blessings that have come to SART because of this tragedy, and how it has renewed each and every one of the volunteers and Ches in doing the right thing. We are so grateful to so many!
An enormous thank you goes to BJ, my son, for maintaining the SART website. His support of our mission is awesome. His creativity in starting Operation Dry Paws gave an avenue to reach out for help that could not have been achieved in any other way. Thank you to both BJ, and Kristie, for all the hours worked to gather information and inform site visitors about what we were going through.
An enormous thank you goes to Melissa Goodson, my sister, who spent unending hours doing research, contacts and pleas for help to many agencies, companies and organization on our behalf. She, too, believes in our mission and we so appreciate her willingness to help in such a way.
Words cannot come for the thank you to our dedicated volunteers. They came every chance they could, some daily, to roll up their sleeves, tramp through water and mud to help clean, sanitize, reorganize and prepare the rescue rooms for our kitties to return to. Extra hours went to giving reassurance to our animals, taking laundry home to do to try to get everything clean, and coming back and forth more often to help where they could. How do you thank them? Their passion for SART is so strong, and their pride in SART is never-ending. All because they care.
An amazing blessing that came to SART is grant money for recovery from PetSmart Charities and Petfinder Foundation. Both organizations saw our need, felt our pain, and stepped forward with financial help for us to restore our buildings and equipment for SART. Their kind words and encouragement lifted us up when we most needed it. Thank you.
To everyone who helped in some way; whether as a donor, an encourager, or as a faithful supporter of everyone at SART. Thank you for the financial assistance, the replacement of items we so desperately needed, the kind notes and emails and the voices that spread the word through friends and families. Because of your help, our network has become stronger and more faithful. It has been through the graciousness of individuals such as you that we have been able to get the many buildings back into shape for our residents.
The Operation Dry Paws program will close on May 31st and will be behind us. To date, SART has received $6,770 in donations, along with many supply and equipment contributions. We came close to our goals and will be forever grateful for all who support our efforts. We will never forget this experience. May God bless you as he has blessed us.
If you would like to contribute to help us get even closer to our goals, please visit the Operation Dry Paws page to find out how you can help!
Sue
Apr 25 2011
Easter at SART
On Saturday we had a fun day at SART. Of course, all the daily chores had to be done. But, we had more volunteers that day so it went more quickly and we were able to clean the run, spend time playing with everyone, and enjoying the sun! Samantha, our Recreation Director, brought Easter eggs filled with catnip and cat treats for everyone to enjoy! It was fun watching them play with their eggs, have them pop open, and the treats and catnip spill out! We have so much to grateful for, and wanted to share the joy with our kitties on this very special day!
