dane county humane society needs your votes

update:  we did it!  in just one day DCHS moved up 18 spots from 51 to 33!  this means we move on to the qualifying round....and the life saving.

the ASPCA may be embracing some no kill strategies - shocking, right?  they are holding a contest to award $100,000 to the shelter that has the largest increase in lives saved and our own DCHS is in the running.

only the top 50 shelters with the most votes will get to go on to compete for the $ (and save lives!).  DCHS is currently sitting at 51.  so vote!  (hint:  you can use multiple email addresses if you've got 'em.)

maybe this is the kick in the pants our shelter needs to finally go no kill once and for all.

aspca counters oreo's law with new bill, continues to suck

just as oreo's law is re-introduced in the new york state assembly ed sayres and his ASPCA introduce their own bill, one they say is even better.  the reality?  not so much.

"While Oreo’s Law empowers non-profit animal rescue organizations to fulfill their missions, a right often denied to them by larger non-profit organizations and shelters, the ASPCA bill paradoxically assumes such organizations guilty of the very problem they were chartered to combat."

 click here to read nathan winograd's compare and contrast of the two bills and to learn why oreo's law will change the face of sheltering.

and if you are in the new york city area on sunday make sure to stop by ASPCA headquarters to join the protest.

a new hope

when oreo's law was introduced last year it gave a lot of us in the no kill community hope.  hope that new york would say no to unnecessary killing and other communities around the country would follow.  sadly, that bill was tabled.  the future looked bleak.

now we are happy to say that oreo's law has been reintroduced in the NY state legislature.  hope, once again, springs eternal.

will this be the dawning of a new day in animal rescue?  or will the ASPCA and best friends animal league continue to stand in the way of life-saving progress? 

the only solution is no kill.  and we need it now.

wheelie bin woman charged with animal cruelty

infamous cat dumper, mary bale, has finally been charged with causing unnecessary suffering to a cat and not providing the animal with a suitable environment, both violations of the 2006 Animal Welfare Act.

the RSPCA (the UK equivalent to the ASPCA) wanted to send a message to any other would-be mary bales that, despite their funny name, wheelie bins are not acceptable cat depositories.

new ok go! video features former shelter dogs

they are known for their inventive, well-choreographed, one-take videos (remember the treadmills?).  now they've one-upped themselves with a bunch of very well-trained dogs. the band is selling their video for "white knuckles" to raise money for the aspca with a focus on rural, volunteer-run animal shelters.  if only they had used cats, too.  imagine the chaos!

people for the execution and termination of animals

no jokes. no cute pics or funny stories. just another post on the horrible things peta has done under the guise of animal welfare.

the 2009 numbers are in. peta killed 97% of the 2,366 animals they "took in" last year, adopting out only 8. this is the same organization that called out president obama for killing a fly, and wants punxsutawney phil to replaced by a robot. if it wasn't so shockingly horrific it would almost be laughable. these people are sick. no wonder they want to stop no kill.

but where is the outrage by hsus and aspca? where are the news corps? why are celebrities still lending their names to a campaign of lies? why is peta still receiving millions in donations? when will it end?

no kill now!

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new amendments to oreo's law

we've been following oreo's law for awhile now - legislature aimed at preventing any animal in new york from being killed when other options are available.

now the law has been amended to appease some unexpected opponents of the law - namely ed sayres, head of the aspca.

we'll keep you posted. for now, check out the no kill advocacy center for ways you can get involved.

aspca vs. oreo

remember oreo's story, the dog in new york who was killed despite offers of rescue?

the state of new york responded and pushed to pass "oreo's law," prohibiting any animal from being killed in a new york shelter when other options are available.

now ed sayres, head of the aspca, is trying to shoot down the law. why? nathan winograd explains here.

fancy felines and dapper dogs

have a dog with a serious case of mustache-envy? need a little tom selleck in your life? well, fret no more, doggie mustaches are no longer just wishful thinking. the future is here, and it's mustachioed. morty's a little jealous.

it's poinsettia season, folks. make sure you keep those, the holly, and all poisonous plants out of reach of curious kitties.

take a look at what is possible the best, and scariest, picture of a tiger ever. we'll have to try the meat-dangling photo trick with our fearless beast, miss nikki madcat.

shelter showdowns

the humane society of the united states, the association for the prevention of cruelty to animals, and county shelters have been all over the news this weekend. there's some bad news, some new questions, and even some good news:

first, it was the firing of 5 employees charged with animal abuse at the toronto humane society. then, a mummified cat was found in the ceiling of the toronto building during the execution of a search warrant.

then it was the talk of unethical behavior by the aspca up in seattle as the hsus takes over the county shelter and opening the can of worms that is "where do donation dollars go?"

finally, remember oreo's story? a new bill has been presented in new york state that would make it "illegal for a shelter in New York State to kill an animal if a rescue group or No Kill shelter is willing to save that animal’s life."

dchs gets some dough

the dane county humane society has received a $50,000 grant from the aspca to help cover costs from last spring's seizure of animals from the thyme and sage ranch.

we're curious where the money is going and whether any of it will be used to help save the cats already there.

in other local news, one of the lead vets at dchs has had her home-insurance canceled. why? because she rescued a rottweiler. more breed-specific targeting that is hurting more than helping.

happy cat spotlight: squeekie! this laid-back guy (pictured above) is about three years old and front-paw declawed. he enjoys spending time with other kitties and lounging around enjoying the finer things in life. come down to the monroe st. store and give him some loving.

the story of oreo

a furor is spreading about the un-neccessary death of a dog named oreo. her killer? the very organization designed to protect her, the aspca.

what went wrong? how does one get to killing the very things they want to save? why did ed sayres, president of the aspca, choose death over an offered life-time of care in a sanctuary?

the story is just one example of what is happening in kill shelters across the country every single day.

visit nathan winograd's blog for the rest of the sad story. to learn what you can do to help make us into a no kill nation, check out the no kill advocay center.