One Week Only!

A Tail of Four Kitties

Steve and the fosters

Nearly a year ago, the Ark City Animal Control officer brought four tiny kittens to the shelter. There was no mother to be seen and the citizens who found them were concerned about their survival. They were taken in, determined to be about 10 days old, and sent to foster. I happened to be that foster. My husband, Steve, and I bottle-fed these babies and hand-raised them until they were old enough to eat on their own. We named them Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. The wee kittens grew, were quickly eating on their own, and using a litter box just like the big kids. Soon it was time to find their furever homes.

Gryffindor, a sweet orange tabby, was adopted by Julia and Christopher Webb for their son Donovan. She was renamed Ginny and she and Donovan soon became best buddies. Julia says, “She has a beautiful trilling voice when she wants something. She sleeps with Donovan in his bunk at night and happily greets all visitors.” Ginny does suffer occasional seizures from an injury she suffered as a young kitten but, luckily, she has a wonderful family who has gotten her the veterinary care she needs and her seizures are well- controlled with medication.

Ginny and her boy, Donovan

Ravenclaw, a striking cream-colored girl with gorgeous blue eyes, and Hufflepuff (Caffy), a darling orange tabby with white, were adopted by Tracie Alcorn. “They are doing wonderfully! They’re so big now and still growing! They are both quite attached to my youngest daughter”, Tracie reports. “I really don’t know what we would do without our fur babies.”

Caffy, Ravenclaw, and Tracie's daughter

Steve and I kept Slytherin, a pretty white kitty with brown and gray spots, whom we renamed Narcissa. We hadn’t meant to keep one of the fosters but, after eating, all the kids would find various places to curl up and take a nap … except for Cissa. She was crafty and would come to Steve or me and want to sleep in our laps. How could we not keep her? She’s a bit of a trouble-maker and we often joke that we should have kept Hufflepuff. A Hufflepuff would never be so naughty! But we adore her and wouldn’t trade her for anything.

Narcissa

The humane society is fortunate to have many wonderful fosters, but we can always use more! Summer is kitten season and we have many, many litters of kittens. Please consider fostering for us! Bottle-feeding very young kittens is time consuming and not everyone is able to do that. However, we have many kittens that are 5-6 weeks old, eating on their own, and using a litter box. They cannot be vetted until they are eight weeks old, so they have to hang out at the shelter for weeks until they are ready to find their furever homes. Fosters who can take these litters home for just two or three weeks are invaluable to us and, most importantly, to the kittens!

I have a litter of four such kittens at my house now. As I write this one is curled up on my lap sleeping, one is tap-dancing on my desk, and two are frolicking behind me. Fostering is tons of fun and so rewarding, knowing that you’re helping these tiny lives. Also, fostered babies tend to become very social helping increase their chances of a successful adoption. While animals are in foster care the humane society will be responsible for all their needs – food, bedding, litter, medical care. All you’re out is a little space, a little time, and you get lots of love, laughs, and kitten cuddles in return. Contact us at the shelter or via private message on Facebook if you’d like to become a foster!

Diana Russell

Truly Wonderful

One Monday morning in March, shelter staff arrived at work to find a note left by the Arkansas City Police Department stating that they had left us eleven dogs the previous night. Wait …. ELEVEN?? Yes, that was correct. The owner of the dogs had passed away leaving two adult, yellow labs and their nine puppies homeless. 

Two of Truly's puppies

Truly

The dogs were examined, vaccinated, and de-wormed as is customary when taking in new animals. They were placed on “stray hold” even though they weren’t technically strays. This hold is placed on all animals brought to us by anyone other than the owner to give owners time to reclaim them.

The following day we were contacted by Amanda Winkelman, the owner’s sister, who had now inherited the dogs. She had decided not to claim them and agreed to sign them over to us. The puppies were all of age to be vetted and made available for adoption. Amanda and her friends helped spread the word that they were at the CCHS and we soon had a great deal of interest in the beautiful pups. They were adopted out to their new furever families very quickly.

Truly, Ace, and Amanda

A short time later Amanda contacted us and said she had decided she just had to adopt Truly, the mother. Truly was very beloved by her brother and went everywhere with him. She felt adopting Truly and giving her a loving, furever home was a fitting memorial to him. But we had sad news to pass on to Amanda: Truly had tested positive for heartworms. Heartworm treatment is very costly and can run upward of $1,500. Many families just can’t take on that financial burden, but Amanda was not to be daunted! She spoke with her veterinarian and they made a treatment plan for Truly. On April 6, Amanda adopted Truly. Amanda says, “She has been doing amazing! I’m so glad she was able to join our family. She has been the best thing for Ace (the family’s other dog). They play all the time. She loves playing fetch, especially with my daughter, Jessalyn.”

Ace and Truly

Truly is a sweet-tempered, cheerful girl and we’re so happy that her story, which contained such tragedy, had a happy ending!

2016 Wine Tasting a Success!

Not only was the Alice In Wonderland--A Tea Pawty Annual Tasting and Auction Benefit a lot of fun, but it also made over $15,000 for the shelter! A huge thank you goes out to our donors, sponsors, volunteers, board members, staff, and guests who made this success possible! 

How Long 'Til Dallas?

 Dallas … a really big city or a really big cat? Both! Dallas, the cat, came to the humane society in late December of 2015 because his family could no longer care for him. He brought with him some medical challenges which we addressed. While waiting for his new home he developed an upper respiratory infection (URI). URIs are not unusual in shelter cats as the disease is highly contagious and it can be difficult to completely sequester sick cats from healthy ones when large numbers of animals must be housed in close proximity. This beautiful, snowy-white senior boy was friendly and loving but wasn’t responding well to medications to treat his URI. Meanwhile, Dallas had a new family awaiting his release. And waiting … and waiting.

Shelter veterinarian Dr. Lindsay Gehring took Dallas home with as a foster to see if his recovery would improve outside of the shelter environment. This is where Dallas blossomed. Most animals take their stay in a shelter in stride but a few find it distressing. It seemed Dallas was one of the latter. Finally free of his health concerns, Dallas was able to go to his new, furever home.

Jennifer and Mike Joseph adopted Dallas in February where, in typical cat fashion, he took over the house. When we called the Josephs to see how Dallas was doing, Jennifer responded, “He’s doing just great! He’s laying here beside me on ‘his’ couch, curled up in ‘his’ blanket – one that I was crocheting but he claimed for himself.” Clearly, Dallas has made himself a mini emperor in his new domain. But that’s just fine with the Josephs. They adore him and say he was worth the wait!

Can you help a sick cat? As summer approaches the humane society will receive more and more cats. Some of these will have upper respiratory infections. Sending these cats to a foster home with their medications dramatically speeds up their recovery time. While the disease is infectious, cats can be sequestered in a spare room to protect a family’s pets. Treatment for URIs generally lasts 10 days to two weeks. The humane society will provide for all of the cat’s needs during this time – medications, food, crate, litter.

 If you are willing and able to help please call the shelter at 620.221.1698 or message us on Facebook!

What About Bob?

Often, when surrendering an animal to us, people will ask, “How long do you keep them before they’re put down?” It’s an understandable question, as some shelters do have a time limit for the animals in their care. Fortunately, the Cowley County Humane Society is not one of them! The answer to that question is “There is no set time limit!”

Beautiful Bob is a perfect example of a pet that the CCHS just wouldn’t give up on. Bob and his buddy Trixie were surrendered to the humane society in June of 2015. Their guardian had inherited the two Australian shepherd mixes when his family member passed away. He had other pets and couldn't keep two extra dogs, but tried to make it work. Finally, he was forced to surrender them to us.

Bob has slight arthritis in his hips, but otherwise the two dogs were healthy and friendly. However, for some reason, they languished at the shelter. Adoption specials came and went, yet the pair remained. We made them Pets of the Week, offering to waive their adoption free--still, they stayed. CCHS was not prepared to give up on the two!

Finally, Karina Frazee, who had been looking for a companion and protection dog, came to the shelter to visit our pets. When she met Bob, it was love at first sight. After spending nearly eight months at the shelter, Bob had found a home! 

“He’s my best buddy,” Karina says. She had been going through a very difficult time in her personal life but Bob, she says “Gave me a whole new outlook on life.” Speaking with her on the phone, her love of this darling dog came shining through with every word she spoke about him. Karina is legally blind and says that Bob is unfailingly gentle with her as well as with her small dog and cats. “He goes everywhere with me and we’re never separated,” she reports.

We’re so happy for Bob and for Karina. It’s clear the pair were meant to be!

Trixie, Bob's buddy, is being cared for at a foster home and is still waiting for her forever family.

February 2016 Newsletter Adoption Story

Lieutenant Dan

by Diana Russell

On a cool day last fall a passerby spotted a limping cat. They couldn’t catch it as it acted wild but they knew it needed help. They set a trap and caught the cat so they could bring it to the CCHS to be cared for. Normally staff does a thorough examination of each animal upon intake. Dubbed Tiger Too, the big tabby was having none of that! Staff thought he was feral and so kenneled him in a quiet corner to settle. When his kennel door was opened, Tiger would try to dart out and escape.

Tiger Too had to be sedated so that our shelter vet, Dr. Lindsay Gehring, could examine him. It was discovered that one of his hind legs had several old breaks that were healing improperly. Dr. Gehring determined that the best course of action was to remove the leg. Tiger’s leg was amputated and he was kenneled in the clinic to begin the healing process. This was when shelter staff made a discovery – Tiger wasn’t feral after all! Perhaps he was just frightened and in pain when he was brought to us, but he turned out to be quite friendly. As he healed he was allowed to roam freely in the clinic area where he quickly stole the hearts of all he met. Because those of us who work at the shelter sometimes have an oddball sense of humor, Tiger Two was renamed Lieutenant Dan in honor of his missing limb.

Once Dan was fully healed he was sent to PetSmart in Wichita where CCHS has kennels in the store's adoption center. After only a few days the Karasek family saw him there and were charmed, but did not adopt Dan as they weren't looking for a new cat. However, he stayed on their minds. Diane says, “Jim and I would stop at PetSmart occasionally when we were in Wichita. When we were home after seeing Lieutenant Dan, Jim made the comment that he couldn’t stop thinking about him. We went back the next day and adopted him.” And they couldn’t love him more. The Karasek’s three grandchildren love Dan, too! Nolan, especially, loves Dan. So much so that he sleeps with a framed photo of Dan.

“Dan has become a very loving member of our family. We love him so much and appreciate the care he received from CCHS before we got him.” Thank YOU, Jim and Diane for giving this wonderful, three-legged boy such a loving home!

Update on Black Jack from last month's newsletter:

Sadly, Black Jack's foster dad passed away a few weeks ago. However, his foster mom decided to give Black Jack his forever home and adopted him!