A Tail to Tell: SPCA Blog

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Volunteer Spotlight
"The Dude"

“Helping others is an amazing way to start the day.”

If you’ve been on campus early on a weekday morning, you may have seen a guy with a cool beard wearing green clogs and a big smile working his way down the line of kennels, giving potty breaks to all the dogs on the Adoption Floor. A few of us lovingly refer to him as The Dude and he has become known for his dedication and great attitude.

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Paw it Forward
Helping Shelter Animals in a New Way!

In the animal rescue world, we often hear the phrase “I wish I could take them ALL home!” And while that feeling is true, we know that it’s not feasible for most of us!

But if you’ve formed a special connection with an animal at the Sacramento SPCA, how can you help him or her directly if you can’t adopt?

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Henry's Intake Photo

Henry Wrinkler
One Dog's Story from Bald to Beautiful!

In late March, the Sacramento SPCA received several dogs with severe skin conditions – NINE of them, to be exact. Dubbed the ‘Nifty Nine,’ the pups were found to have serious cases of Demodectic Mange, also known as Demodex. This parasite lives in the hair follicles of dogs, and for most dogs with healthy immune systems, does not cause an issue.

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Amy
Playing the Long Game

If you’re at all connected to the Sacramento SPCA, then you’ve heard of Amy. This stocky pup spent over five months at the shelter waiting to find her new family.

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Shannon and Ajay with seven kittens

Volunteer Spotlight
Shannon & Ajay: The Banana Family

Chances are, you’ve seen these wonderful humans around campus a lot lately, and if not: meet Shannon and Ajay. You will often see them volunteering as a couple (couples who volunteer together stay together) and Shannon tells their story below.

Tell us about your role (or roles) as a volunteer?

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Alex with Theo & Charlie

Volunteer Spotlight
Alex

If you’ve had the pleasure of meeting Alex, you’re not likely to forget her! Her contagious smile, spunky demeanor, and incredible devotion to animals make her an invaluable part of the Sacramento SPCA community.

Alex has been a volunteer for the SacSPCA for over 21 years and she has a number of specialties. She does Behavior Testing, assists with transfers from other shelters, and she is a long-time foster mom. Her foster specialty is moms and new puppies or dogs that are very shy and in need of some extra TLC.

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Nancy holding a Dachshund

Volunteer Spotlight
Nancy

Nancy’s Nomination, “Nancy’s face is one I see around the shelter on a daily basis. She seems to be everywhere: smiling, offering support, whipping out a dog treat, having deep conversations with dachshunds, you name it!! She has so many roles as a volunteer, I can’t even keep them all straight, but she seems to help out with everything! She brightens the day and lightens the load and we are so lucky to have her!”
 

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A Page in the Life
Book Barn Volunteers

Two of our largest fundraisers for the Sacramento SPCA are the Fall and Spring Book Sales. If you’ve never been, it’s quite a show and well worth checking out: thousands of books at very low prices, with stock constantly refreshed. Between the two sales, $65K – $75K is raised every year!! All of the proceeds go right back into our animals, programs, and services: giving more than shelter.

From left to right:  Sandy Malos, Carol Green, Gina Sullivan, Elaine Cannon and Kathy Murray. Not pictured very much appreciated:  Susan Baggot, Kim Borgmeyer, Sheila Compton, Putt Curtis, Linda Dail, Mary and Claude Duval, Barbara Evans, Gail Keeter, Nancy King, Beverly Myers, Alice and Art Nauman, Elaine Peterson, Julia Price, Kris Raatz, Sharon Scoggins, Marie Self, Jeff Shelton, Tom Tolley, Liezel Vermeulen, Gerri and Ken Wigglesworth and Lisa Wuriu.

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A Little Help from Your Friends

A Little Help from Your Friends
How playgroups help keep dogs happy in a shelter environment

Meet Pancho!

He’s been at the Sacramento SPCA for a few months. Pancho is having a hard time in the shelter, and often gets stressed out with seeing other dogs walk by his kennel all day. Unfortunately, his barking has been a bit of a turn off to potential adopters, which means he’s staying with us longer than he’d like.

How can we help a dog like Pancho get some stress relief?

DOGGY PLAYGROUPS!

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Love (Actually) Is All Around
Compassion for animals...and humans!

In September 2016, the Sacramento SPCA started a new partnership with Wellspace Health, a treatment center in North Sacramento. How could these two very different organizations help each other? By pairing up those in need. The SPCA’s foster program is designed to help animals that are in need of a little something extra — whether it be underaged kittens or puppies, animals recovering from illness or injury, or those in need of a little extra socialization like Jax.

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Frances & Taffy
You've Got a Friend in Me

In September 2012, Frances – a retired Sacramento State Physics teacher — lost her beloved Smooth Fox Terrier Molly to lung cancer. At 96 years old, Frances still lived in her family home and always had a dog. Molly was her constant companion, and kept her active with daily walks and gardening.

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Ginger
The Long and Short of It

A sweet, longhaired Dachshund found herself at the Sacramento SPCA in late October after her family brought her to us for end-of-life services. At 10 years old, veterinarians determined that Ginger had a large mass in her abdomen. Her owners, soon to be married and moving out of state, were not equipped to handle her medical issues and thought euthanasia was her only option.

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Harry’s Big Adventures

When you see Harry, you can’t help but smile. Within seconds of meeting someone new, he will hop into your lap and smother you with kisses.

Harry came to the Sacramento SPCA as a transfer from an overburdened shelter and immediately made an impression on all of the staff members. This happy-go-lucky pup with a silly hairdo was full of personality! We never imagined that such a joyful, bouncy dog was also in the late stages of renal failure.