OLIVER (now called Flame) and TUCKER (now called Booty) were born under a house in a very dangerous part of Los Angeles. A woman noticed them and called our hotline, begging us frantically to come get them before it was too late. She explained that there were many gang members in the neighborhood and she feared for the lives of these two tiny kittens. Immediately one of our volunteers responded to her plea. Due to the fact that the neighborhood was indeed dangerous and unsafe, the volunteer had to be extremely careful. It took several attempts to crawl under the house and get the kittens, but she finally succeeded.
MARIEL was just a baby when someone dropped her and her siblings off at the local pound. The shelter was overcrowded and so it was decided that Mariel and her siblings were to be put to sleep. Thankfully one of our volunteers happened to there and rescued all of them. Mariel now lives with her new daddy who she is absolutely crazy about! She is a daddy’s girl. And her new best friend is a big gray and white tabby— they are inseparable.
ATHENA, a beautiful black lab mix, was given up by her original family because they didn’t have time for her. Athena is the kind of dog who needs lots of people time. When we took Athena under our care, we saw that she desperately needed training. She was playful and highly intelligent and always needed something to do and someone to be with. After working with her for a few months, Athena was adopted by sixty monks at the Self Realization Fellowship Center! Athena now has lots of land to run on, another dog to play with all day long and lots of people around her all the time to love and care for her.
Both Flame and Booty were starving, loaded with fleas, and severely dehydrated. After a few weeks of intensive vet care, both of them were adopted by two women who just simply adore them! Here is a photo of Booty, with her new mom.
Spay/Neuter Your Cats
Neuter Your Male Cats
This is the most proactive step. Neutering is a simple surgery with a very quick recovery period. Besides preventing unwanted pregnancies, neutering a male will help mitigate certain problem behavior found in whole males, and it will help prevent certain medical conditions, too.
- Neutered cats are less likely to spray strong urine
- Neutered cats will lose the urge to fight
- Neutered cats will be less likely to try to escape
- Neutered cats will not suffer the abscesses from fighting
- Neutered cats will be less likely to contract diseases such as FeLV and FIV
- Neutered cats will not be subject to testicular cancer
- Neutered cats will not likely develop "stud tail," caused by overactive glands in the tail
- Neutered cats have a decreased risk of mammary cancer
- Neutered cats are less allergenic
Basically, you have every reason to neuter your male cat. He will be a much more pleasant companion, and will ultimately be happier and healthier.
Spay Your Female Cats
Anyone who has lived through the misery of having a female cat in almost constant heat cycles will attest that it is not a pleasant experience. Their loud calling, often accompanied by spraying urine (to attract a mate) are evidence that they are, if not actually physically in pain, at least uncomfortable and unhappy.
Aside from the very real feline overpopulation problem, there are some valid health reasons for spaying female cats.
- Decreased Risk of Mammary Cancer -
Ideally, to give a female cat protection against mammary cancer, she should be spayed prior to her first heat. Each subsequent heat brings a greater chance of mammary cancer at a later time.
- Eliminates Risk of Ovarian or Uterine Cancer -
Spaying a cat involves the removal of the uterus and ovaries. No organs: no cancer; simple as that.
- Eliminates Chances of Pyometritis -
Pyometra is a virulent bacteria that attacks the uterus of cats, usually a week or so after estrus, and is a potentially fatal infection.
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Debbie Wood,
VFTA's Hotline Coordinator
Our 24-hour
Animal Assistance Hotline receives thousands of calls each
year. The Hotline Coordinator returns every call, providing
information on: low-cost vaccination clinics, low-cost
spay-neuter clinics, feral cats, dog trainers, animal
behaviorists, how to find a lost pet, wildlife assistance,
reporting animal abuse, and much more.
Call the
Hotline at
(310) 392-5153
Our deepest
appreciation goes to the Found Animals Foundation for their support to this vital
service to the community.
10 Steps to Finding
your Lost Animal
Lost your pet? Follow these 10 steps to increase your chances of finding your loved ones:
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Hang posters everywhere.
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Check with the animal shelters daily.
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Make a lost posting on Craigslist or Petfinder .
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Search your neighborhood.
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Leave food and water by your door.
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Borrow a trap from your local humane society or animal rescue.
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Visit your previous residence if you've recently moved.
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Contact all local rescue groups.
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Put an ad in your local paper.
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Don't give up!
Find Pet-friendly Apartments
www.ApartmentWIZ.com
www.fidofriendlyapartments.com
www.apartmentz.info
www.apartmentguide.com
www.homestore.com
www.rentwithpets.org
www.bestrents.com
www.apartmentworld.com
www.apartments.com
www.peoplewithpets.com
www.houston1apartments.com
www.move.com
www.forrent.com
www.pets911.com
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ANGELINA, a beautiful pure white kitty, was found huddled in a dark corner of the downtown Flower Mart. Some very uncaring person had obviously dumped her there. When we first saw Angelina, she was terrified. She refused to leave her corner. It was as if she was waiting for her person to return and take her home. We sat patiently, offering her food and telling her that we would take her to a place that was warm and safe. Slowly she moved toward us, and we picked her up and put her in a carrier. It took a few weeks for Angelina to trust us. Then one day we brought her to our adoptions and Rachel, one of our student volunteers, and her mother fell in love with her at first sight. Angelina now sleeps with Rachel and adores her new family.
OMLET was a nervous kitty when she was brought to the Voice For The Animal's Adoption Site. Her owner was moving out of the country and could not take 1-year old Omlet with him. She was all alone and she'd never been socialized with other animals. Voice For The Animals stepped in and placed her in a foster home, and her foster mother loved her so much that she decided to take her in for good. Happily, this happens often.
MADELEINE and her babies (RASCAL, MAX, ANNIE AND BELLA) were a feline family living outdoors in the yard of a house owned by gangsters. When the police raided the house and put the gangsters behind bars, Madeline and her kittens were left in the yard without food or water. Luckily, a neighbor called our hotline, so we immediately jumped over the fence and rescued all five of them.
We are so happy to report that they all have all been discovered by wonderful, loving families. Here is a photo of Bella with her new mom.
DONATE
TO HELP THE ANIMALS
Spay/Neuter Your Dogs
Even though an action may be good for the community, people have a natural tendency to ask what benefits they will receive. Here are some benefits you and your dog can expect when you have your dog spayed or neutered.
Better health. A dog that is spayed or neutered has no chance of developing uterine or testicular cancer; in females, the risk of breast cancer and urinary infections is drastically reduced. Reproductive cancers are common among older dogs that have been bred.
Better behavior. Male dogs that are neutered when young are much less likely to roam, mark their territory (and your belongings) with urine, and show aggression toward other male dogs. Intact (unneutered) male dogs will go to great lengths to get to a female dog in heat—they will dig their way out of yards, break fences and leashes, and cross streets in heavy traffic if a female in heat is in the area.
Easier care. An unspayed female bleeds for about 10 straight days twice a year. She bleeds on your carpet, your furniture, the interior of your car, and on the ground outside. As soon as she has marked your yard, you can anticipate a constant parade of male dogs who will pace your lawn, howl, and bark. You have a fenced yard? They will dig their way in.
No accidental pregnancies. If your dog accidentally becomes pregnant, you will have to provide additional medical care—for her and the puppies—and be responsible for finding good homes for half a dozen or more offspring.
Myths About Spaying/Neutering
’t want to spay or neuter their dog because they have heard about some bad “side effects” of the surgery, or because they have picked up some mistaken ideas along the way. There are a number of myths about spaying and neutering. Here are a few of the most common, and the truth about each.
Altering makes a dog fat. Spaying or neutering at the youngest possible age—before the dog has reached sexual maturity—generally has no effect whatsoever on weight. Dogs who undergo the surgery after reaching sexual maturity may show an increased appetite because altering affects hormone balance. However, dogs who are fat are usually fat because they are fed too much and/or do not get enough exercise.
Altering makes a dog lazy. Neutering reduces a male dog’s desire to roam (often over long distances) to find female dogs in heat, and altering can somewhat reduce a dog’s energy level. Altering does not make dogs lazy. Altered dogs are as playful and energetic as intact dogs.
Altering changes a dog’s personality. The only personality changes that result from spaying or neutering are the positive changes described above—no roaming, less tendency to mark territory, and less aggression. Aside from these changes, your dog will be no less like himself than humans are after undergoing vasectomy or oophorectomy (removal of the ovaries).
My dog has a right to experience sex. Sex, for a dog, is nothing more than the result of a powerful instinctive drive to reproduce. People who worry about this issue are usually over-identifying with their dog. This is an excuse often presented by men, who cringe at the very idea of castration—even though it is a painless surgical procedure being performed on their dog, not on them.
It’s a good thing for our children to see the miracle of birth. Bringing more puppies into a world already overburdened with thousands of homeless dogs is not the best way to show your children the birth process. You can show them videos or even let them witness live human births on the internet. You might also want to consider that if you allow your dog to have puppies so that your children can observe the miracle of birth, you should also take your children to an animal shelter, so they can observe the sad results—the thousands of dogs who are killed every day because no one will give them a home.
What about the Expense?
While it is true that surgery for your dog costs money, you should be aware that the cost of altering your dog will save you money in medical care in the long run, because your dog is less likely to develop common diseases that afflict unaltered animals as they age. Also, providing basic veterinary care for the life of your dog—annual exams, required vaccinations, heartworm prevention, and so on—will cost a considerable amount of money, and altering is just another of those expenses.
But because of the seriousness of the pet overpopulation problem, there are countless programs that provide low-cost spaying and neutering for pets. Animal shelters often provide this service, and if your local shelter does not, they can probably tell you about a shelter nearby that does.
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