Winter Edition - Humane Society of Vero Beach & Indian River County

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HUMANE EDUCATION Cat won’t wear a collar and tag? He just might… Many in our community know that The Humane Society of Vero Beach and Indian River County offers free pet I.D. tags. While we often get requests to issue these tags for dogs, it’s hard to convince those who live with cats to get tags for them, too. Why do we face this obstacle? The most common reasons we hear include “my cat always stays indoors,” “I can’t keep a collar on him,” or the even more dire, “my cat’s collar might catch onto something and she’ll choke.” Happily, a new study by the University of Ohio puts these concerns to rest. Assistant Professor of Veterinary Medicine Dr. Linda Lord studied 538 cats for six months and found that close to 75% – three out of four - kept their collars and tags on for the entire study. Surprisingly, a person’s perception of how a cat may tolerate a collar and tag plays a major role in determining if someone will put a collar on their feline at all. “Part of the success of a cat wearing a collar is the expectation of the owner. For some owners, if a collar came off once, they were done. Some put the collar back on their cat five or six times,” Lord said. None of the cats in Lord’s study had any serious injuries resulting from wearing a collar; however a small number of cats (3.3 percent) had situations where the collar caught on the animal’s mouth, forelimb, or another object. “I would never say that something like this can’t happen,” Lord explained, but states that a simple buckle collar that’s properly fitted (two fingers should be able to pass under the collar), along with monitoring your cat for the first week a collar is introduced, should reduce the chance of any problems. Describing the 2 percent national return rate for lost cats as abysmal, Lord added that a cat has a greater chance of becoming lost and never recovered than becoming injured from wearing a collar and tag. Lord also theorizes that lost cats without collars are often fed by good Samaritans or taken in by strangers, thereby greatly reducing their chances of being reclaimed by their true families. Her findings also addressed the myth that indoor-only cats don’t need tags. Previous research published by Lord found that 40% of lost cats in one community were indoor-only cats. We hope this research study will change your mind about putting a collar and tag on your cat. If you would like to take advantage of our free pet I.D. tags for your cats, please contact us at (772) 388-3331 ext. 10. JW EDUCATIONAL SEMINARS February 2nd, 12 - 1:00 p.m. “Living with Urban Wildlife” Presenter: Ilka Daniel Admission: Free February 9th, 12 - 1:00 p.m. “Thinking Outside the Box" - Addressing Litter Box Problems Presenter: Dr. Suzanne Gambella Admission: Free February 16th, Noon - 1:00 p.m. “Help for Pets with Allergies” Dr. Jeffrey Slade Admission: Free February 19th, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. “Introduction to Nose Work* for Dogs” Presenter: Cissy Sumner Class Size: Limit 10 Registration Fee: $25 February 23rd,12 - 1:00 p.m. “Don’t Leave Me!" - Helping Dogs with Separation Anxiety Presenter: Cissy Sumner Admission: Free *Working with dogs' amazing sense of smell 10 PET PAGES Book Review Curl up with your pet, child, or grandchild & a good book Wiggins Learns His Manners at the Four Seasons Restaurant written/illustrated by local author, Leslie McGuirk; with Alex von Bidder This is a wonderful book! The characters are adorable. Wiggins, an unruly chocolate Lab pup, takes young readers through captivating adventures at the Four Seasons Restaurant where he learns ten key lessons in proper etiquette, kindness, and respect. Leslie and Alex have effectively made good manners cool again. (ages 4 - 8) Gypsy, The Christmas Cat by local author & HSVB&IRC Volunteer, Laura Guttridge In Gypsy The Christmas Cat, a simple act of kindness marks the beginning of Gypsy's journey, gently teaching children about compassion, patience, and trust along the way. Every child will adore the story of the homeless cat, Gypsy, and the young girl who teaches her how to love, and will be delighted to learn that it is based on a real-life cat named Gypsy! (ages 9 - 12) Fluffy Saves Christmas by Kate McMullen; illustrated by Mavis Smith Fluffy, a popular and loved classroom guinea pig, experiences Christmas through a series of exciting adventures leading up to Christmas Eve. Fluffy and his fellow guinea pigs will be delivering the gifts with Santa. Why? Because Santa needs help from the cleverest rodent around. It’s a heartwarming and fun story for children. (ages 4 - 8) CP
Who will Speaking for the Animals Who will speak speak forus? forus? The Young Professionals of the Humane Society of Vero Beach & Indian River County extend an invitation to any young professionals who have a passion for animals and a desire to network with other young professionals. Young Professionals Invited The Humane Society's Young professionals are a group of dedicated individuals who have a passion for the welfare of animals and a desire to help the Humane Society fulfill its mission by making Indian River County a better community for its people and animals, while networking with other young professionals in the community. The group's mission is networking and fundraising while having fun. Last year was the inaugural year for this group, and in May they held a fund-raiser scavenger hunt benefitting the Humane Society. The event was a huge success and raised over $7,000 to help with the Humane Society's Pet Food Bank and Spay and Neuter Program. The participants all had a great time and are looking forward to another exciting event this year. In addition, the group hosted two networking receptions to get to know one another and learn how they could enhance their businesses through the other members. The group meets on a monthly basis on the second Thursday of each month at the United Way office at 12:00 noon. If you are interested in becoming a member of this group of dedicated and passionate animal lovers who want to help make a difference for the homeless, abused, and neglected animals in Indian River County, please contact Connie Cotherman at the Humane Society at 388-3331, x 26. CC Annual Membership Meeting The Annual Meeting of the Humane Society was held on November 3, 2010. Executive Director, Chalmers Morse, welcomed everyone and discussed accomplishments from the past year. The audience then viewed a heartwarming presentation of the 2010 Shelter activities. Copies of the Humane Society’s Annual Report were distributed at the end of the meeting. New officers elected for the 2010-2011 year are: Fritz Spitzmiller, President – Debbi Vickers, 1st Vice President – Cheryl Gerstner, 2nd Vice President – Deb Freed, 3rd Vice President – Jo Ann Becker, Secretary – Andy Beindorf, Treasurer. Newly elected board members include Roger Haines, Kim Hardin, Mike Molloy, and Bill Hudson (Bill will also be serving on the Foundation Board). Joining the Advisory Council as new members are Michelle Servos, Debbie Kanehl, Susan Schuyler Smith, Jim Thompson, and Maria Whittle. The complete list of members of all boards can be found on page 2. The following people were recognized and honored with annual awards: Reynolds Achievement Award - Tony Barr & Ilka Daniel Animal Companion, "Midas Touch Award" - Laurie Iodice, Judy Koehler, and Sheila Marshall Special Recognition - Donna Starck Corporate Sponsor Award - Norris & Co. & Vero Insurance Nancy Benedict Leadership Award - Debbi Vickers Humanitarian Award - Dr. Gary & Deb Freed President's Award - Rene & Cornelia Perez Joan Carlson Animal Protection Award - Dr. Darrel Horn Lillian Becker Volunteer Award - Gus & Joanna Salina Media Award - Carolyn Schofield Of WPTV & Vero Beach Magazine Care Cadets Special Regognition – Jessica Freed, Felicia Gordian, and Caylin Rose Dr. Darrel Horn of Florida Veterinary League received the Joan Carlson Animal Protection Award from Board President Debbi Vickers Some of the members of the 2010 - 2011 Humane Society of Vero Beach and Indian River County Board and Advisory Council 2009 - 10 President, Debbi Vickers, congratulated incoming President, Fritz Spitzmiller, (r) shown with Executive Director, Chalmers Morse. Board member, Cornelia Perez, presented the Humanitarian Award to longtime Humane Society supporters Dr. Gary & Deb Freed 11
Page 1 and 2: Winter 2010 • Vol. 25 No. 4 Human
Page 3 and 4: ‘Tis the Season and Reason for Gi
Page 5 and 6: TO THEIR HEALTH... by Dr. Elizabeth
Page 7 and 8: You are cordially invited to attend
Page 9: d Happy Endings This kitty cat stor
Page 13 and 14: In memory of... Angel Honey Beard B
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Winter Edition - Humane Society of Vero Beach & Indian River County

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