“Friends Rescue Friends”

Friends Rescue Friends is the name James Schnieder bestowed upon the stylized dog sculpture he created and donated to Nevada Humane Society.   

“Dogs make us laugh,” said Schnieder at the dedication ceremony. “When we laugh our bodies are telling us we are happy.”

Each day as I walk past the cheerful yellow likeness of Schnieder’s beloved dog, I cannot help but smile. Clearly he has captured the essence of dogs in this work of art.

The accompanying poem about Max starts off: “When Max’s paw tracks grace the pile and nose prints dot the tile, when wisps of fur float about, and you want to shout; all you can do is smile.”

Anyone who has loved a pet has experienced this triumph of their charm over any annoyance they may cause. They touch our hearts and remind us of the many wonders in any ordinary day that make pet hair, dirt and even more unsavory occurrences, seem insignificant.   

This week I had lunch at Sardina’s Italian Bistro where they were hosting a fundraiser for Nevada Humane Society. The owners shared their inspiration through a verse titled The Ballad of Bella, Linus and Valentino.  It starts out with the rescue of a tiny kitten, Bella, spotted under a car on a cold rainy night. “Brett scoops her up and she comes to stay until her owners are found. . . they turn out to be us.” Then it recounts acquiring two cat friends for Bella at the shelter. “We intended on only one, but it was love at first sight—twice.” The ballad concludes with; “Now Linus, Valentino and Bella race around the house and fetch plush mice, and dart after sticks, and drink from the tub, and make us smile every day.”

There’s that theme again – animals add joy to life.

While clearly dogs and cats are dependent upon us for their care and we rescue them when we take them into our hearts and homes, they unmistakably rescue us, too. They provide relief from the stress and worries of the day with their antics, their affection, their capacity to take great joy in the simplest things. It seems to me that they can also inspire us to be creative and generous. Truly, Schnieder could not have picked a more fitting title for his work of art: Friends Rescue Friends.

Events that Help Homeless Pets

SHINE white dress event at The Beach at Grand Sierra Resort on June 22 benefits the animals at Nevada Humane Society. Tickets available at NHS and at the door. For more details, visit nevadahumanesociety.org or call 775-856-2000.

CAT MOB at Nevada Humane Society. Pick Your Price for adult cat adoptions and get a free Cat Mob T-shirt. Special adoption fees for adult dogs, too. Open 11:00 am to 6:30 pm daily for adoptions (open at 10:00 am on Saturdays) at 2825 Longley Lane in Reno. Follow Nevada Humane Society on Facebook for more information.

Community Charity Events

Last Saturday, I attended the 2012 Paris Style Charity Fashion Show at the Peppermill, benefitting Nevada Humane Society and the March of Dimes. It was put on by Demetria Lionakis of Stage Life Designs—a local resident and fashion designer who wanted to use her passion to give back to the community. Models lined the runway in locally-designed fashions while two NHS dogs donned their own outfits.

Over the last five years, I have seen the residents and businesses of this community use their skills, talents, and creativity to raise funds for homeless pets. Children and adults alike have forgone birthday and holiday gifts to instead encourage their guests to buy food and supplies for the shelter animals. Service groups have hosted food drives and bake sales. Motorcycle groups have organized charity rides and companies have sent employees to volunteer during work hours. Many different retail stores have given a percentage of sales for select periods of time.

One hair salon in town organized a special day where proceeds from all services were donated to NHS. Howard’s Chevron donated $5 from every smog inspection. Several times a year, Macy’s department store offers Shop for a Cause shopping pass where the charity sells the pass, keeps the proceeds, and the shopper gets great discounts. The Peppermill regularly hosts charity poker tournaments and the El Dorado puts on an annual golf tournament to benefit the animals.

Two more charity events are coming up this next week. On June 19, if you stop and enjoy a meal at Sardina’s Italian Bistro on Longley Lane, you will also feel good because you will be helping homeless pets. Sardina’s is setting aside this day to raise funds for Nevada Humane Society and Community Cats, another animal group that provides low-cost spay/neuter services for feral cats. A portion of all lunch and dinner checks will be donated, so be sure to mention your support to your server.

The following Friday, June 22, 6:00 – 9:00 pm Southern Wine & Spirits and Charlie Palmer restaurant are hosting Shine: Cuisine, Sprits, Fashion with all proceeds benefiting NHS. This is a fabulous and fun event where white attire is required, but casual is fine. The event is at The Beach at Grand Sierra Resort. It’s a trendy food and cocktail party and admission includes a cutting-edge fashion show, heavy appetizers, special cocktails provided by National Champion Master Mixologist Armando Rosario, and adorable, adoptable pets. I attended this last year and it was a great time for all.

The homeless pets would thank this community if they could, but I am happy to do it for them. So thank you one and all for your amazing creativity and loving generosity towards the ever-deserving homeless pets.

Events that Help Homeless Pets. .

SHINE white dress event at The Beach at Grand Sierra Resort on June 22 benefits the animals at Nevada Humane Society. Tickets available at NHS, GSR ticket booth, and at the door. For more details, visit nevadahumanesociety.org or call 775-856-2000.

CAT MOB at Nevada Humane Society. Pick Your Price for adult cat adoptions and get a free Cat Mob T-shirt. Special adoption fees for adult dogs, too. Located at 2825 Longley Lane in Reno and open 11:00 am to 6:30 pm daily for adoptions (open at 10:00 am on Saturdays). Follow us on Facebook or visit nevadahumanesociety.org for more information.

Cash Mob Inspires Cat Mob

June is national Adopt-a -Cat Month. That’s because it’s the time of year when kittens are being born and arrive in animal shelters in large numbers. When it comes to pet adoption, kittens’ cuteness gives them a real edge over adult cats, who then tend to be overlooked.

At Nevada Humane Society, we are always looking for creative ways to involve the community in helping us find loving homes for homeless pets. While Adopt-a-Cat Month is an important idea, we wanted to find something more exciting, more current—something new.

Meanwhile, across the country a phenomenon called Cash Mobs is catching on. Cash Mob participants connect on Facebook to generate real-life support for local businesses. They pick a business and converge there on a predetermined day to spend money. This movement has had an impact here in the Reno/Sparks community with successful events at local music and book stores.

One of the local organizers, Steve Funk, explained it this way in a recent interview: “Cash mobs are just a way for local people coming together to help local businesses survive in a challenging economy.”

The American Independent Business Alliance says that money spent in locally-owned businesses helps the local economy more than money spent at a nationwide chain store because more of the money stays in the community. I often find myself telling people the same thing about charitable donations. While many national charities do good work, money donated to a locally-based charity stays right here helping in our community.

When our Operations Director Denise Stevens heard about the Cash Mob movement she laughingly said we needed a Cat Mob to come in and adopt the many cats in need of homes. The idea of a Cat Mob was born.

So here it is—your chance to be part of the nation’s first Cat Mob at Nevada Humane Society when you come in to adopt a local cat in need. While we have pick-your-price adoptions for adult cats all month at NHS, cat adoption at any price is always the deal of the century. As some clever animal lover posted online recently, “Whoever said money does not buy happiness never paid a pet adoption fee.”

EVENT INFO

CAT MOB at Nevada Humane Society. Pick Your Price for adult cat adoptions and get a free Cat Mob T-shirt. Special adoption fees for adult dogs, too. Located at 2825 Longley Lane in Reno and open 11 am to 6:30 pm daily for adoptions. On Saturdays we open an hour earlier at 10 am. Follow Nevada Humane Society on Facebook or visit nevadahumanesociety.org for more information.

SHINE white dress event at The Beach at Grand Sierra Resort on June 22 benefits the animals at Nevada Humane Society. Fine food, cocktails, a cutting-edge fashion show and adoptable pets.  Tickets  $45, $55 at the door. For more details visit nevadahumanesociety.org.

Orphaned Wildlife

I woke up this morning to my radio saying that it was going to be 92 degrees today. The warmer days (that I so love) mean that new wildlife is born every day. Baby geese are waddling after their mom at the local golf course, baby bunnies are peeking out of the bushes to brave the new world, and little quail are scampering in single file as fast as their little legs will go.

Being the animal lover that I am there is nothing cuter than baby animals and if I see one in distress or abandoned, my natural instinct is to help. At this time of year, Nevada Humane Society’s Animal Help Desk is flooded with calls regarding orphaned or injured baby birds and baby bunnies. But what appears to be distress or abandonment is not always the real case.

If you find an uninjured, young bird, first determine whether or not it is really an orphaned bird and if it is a nestling or a fledgling. Most are just young fledglings that can’t fly well but are still being monitored and fed by their parents. If a baby bird is able to grip your finger firmly, it is a fledgling. The best thing to do is to place it in a nearby tree or shrub and leave it alone and the parents will take care of the rest.

If it’s not able to cling to your finger, than it’s most likely a nestling. Try to locate the nest and place the bird back in the nest. If the nest cannot be found, line a margarine tub with tissue/leaves and tie it to a tree. Place the young bird in the new nest and leave it alone. The parents will take care of him from there.

Many people mean well after discovering an “abandoned” nest of wild rabbits. Often they want advice on how to rehabilitate them. Fewer than 10% of orphaned rabbits survive a week so the best thing you can do is put the bunny right back where you found him, as mom will only come back at dusk. A baby bunny that is four to five inches long, able to hop, with eyes open and ears up, is able to survive on his own and should also be left alone.

Please remember:  A baby bird’s or rabbit’s best chance for survival is its parents!

For more information, please contact the Nevada Humane Society’s Animal Help Desk at animalhelp@nevadahumanesociety.org or 775-856-2000 ext. 200.

Events that Help Homeless Pets.

Walk for Animals June 2 at Sparks Marina. Help raise $100,000 for homeless pets. You do not need to be pre-registered. Event registration is 8am – 12 noon. Walk and other activities are from 9am to 1pm. More info available at 775-856-2000 or www.NevadaHumaneSociety.org.

June is CAT MOB at Nevada Humane Society. You can Pick Your Price for adult cats and get a free Cat Mob T-shirt. Adult dogs are just $40, excluding specially priced dogs. NHS shelter located at 2825 Longley Lane in Reno.

2012 Paris Style Charity Fashion Show on June 9 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Peppermill Hotel Casino. Proceeds will benefit Nevada Humane Society.