November 12, 2009

November 3, 2009

The Saga Humane Society would love to thank all those who attended and supported the latest Pet Costume Contest this past Halloween at BC's Beach Bar. The kids had a great time with the balloon toss and sack races on the beach and were given ghost party favors filled with candy and a prize.

The pet costume contest actually had five winners as the lone cat entry was given a prize for being so brave among all the great canine contestants.

Scariest winner was our duo pirates dogs, most creative was our mariachi player, cutest was our bride (we saw you checking out the tuxedo clad dog at the bar!), and Jocelyn and her zoo won best owner/pet duo.

We would like to thank Gecko Graphics, Rosa laRosa, Casa Pan Dulce, Reef Radio, Pampered Paws, San Pedro Sun, Sylvia Eiley, Mary Hawthorne, El Fog-on, Kathy Marin, Ambergris Today, Sharon Boyd, FOTHS, Conch Creations, Colette Kase, Heidi Sowards, Mary Pugh, Dandee's Ice Cream, Quality Poultry, Suzie Quist, Ruth Silvera, Coleen Creeden, Rashell Newton, Cheri Fletcher, Lori Purdy, and Valley Ruddick for their donation of a prize, raffle, time or food. Our apologies to anyone we missed (I saw a few of you slip sweets onto the sale table!) but want to give a big tail wag of appreciation to Charlene and the staff at BC's for hosting our event. Also a special thanks to Valerie Vanhouten-Gilbert and Tom Gilbert for their contribution to our affair, you guys rock!!!

October 12, 2009

Large breed dogs such as Great Danes are wonderful to have as pets but cost a lot more to take care of than a chihuahua! The cost of food alone can be difficult for many people to afford. Thanks to a very generous Great Dane lover on the island, Saga was able to perform the surgery this dog needed. He was what is called "cryptorchid", meaning only one of the testicles had descended. The remaining one was located in the abdomen, which requires an extensive abdominal exploratory to locate and remove during the castration surgery. Luckily for Ruffo, the owner has been receiving financial assistance from an anonymous donor who buys him food, pays for his medication and heartworm prevention every month, and anything else he needs. Of course not everyone will be as lucky as this owner, so please consider the cost of maintaining a large dog when adopting a pet!

If you have a dog who is cryptorchid, it is very important that he is castrated because statistics have shown a tendency for the retained testes to develop into a cancerous tumor as the dog ages. Cryptorchid animals should also not be bred, because the condition is inherited. There are a multitude of reasons why pets should be spayed and neutered, but it is even more important for our pets with this condition.

October 12, 2009

Saga would like to thank Vivian Yu from the Rojo Lounge for rescuing six of our long-term Saga residents - Guerro, Tita, Nick, Raphie, Tile, and Hanna - all adult cats who have been at Saga for a year without being adopted. The shelter suffered a severe ringworm outbreak one year ago, which placed most of our kittens in isolation. For months they were not able to be handled and could not be adopted. They grew out of their tiny kitten stage when they are most adoptable, and although they became very cute "teenagers" no one adopted them. Vivian will be taking them to live on a farm where they will be in the company of other cats, dogs, chickens, and pigs and will finally be able to run and play in freedom. Thank you Vivian!

Saga Humane Society still has many adorable kittens available for adoption. Our kitties are much more difficult to place than our dogs. Cats and kittens in San Pedro are very friendly and affectionate companions, as well as being fantastic mousers. Cats require much less time and work than dogs, making them great pets for people with busy schedules. If you have been thinking about adopting a pet one of our kitties may be for you! Please come by Saga and meet them between 1-4 Tuesday through Fridays or 9-12 on Saturdays.

October 5, 2009