Humane Society in Laconia

[sa meredith]

I write this as I believe many forum members are huge animal lovers (as am I).
Each week for the past several years I use Meredith Center road to cut across from Meredith to the marina in Paugus Bay, and therefore, always pass by the animal shelter in Laconia. And every week I would read something on the sign, like: Needed: Paper Towels or We Need Bleach or Dog Food Needed...
and I always thought to myself, "you know, it really would not be that hard to stop in and donate something from time to time."
Well, upon arriving at my camp last Thursday night, I settled into the current edition of The Weirs Times, and read the whole story about the Laconia Humane Society and how they are overrun with cats/ kittens. Completely full, at 170 plus...and in dire need of kitty litter and food.
So I decided, this was the time to finally stop in and donate.
So Friday morning, after breakfast at George's, I hit Jackson Star for 100lbs of kitty litter and 20 lbs of food, thinking I would drive it over to the shelter, and have a real nice "feel good" experience. I was very wrong!
To say they are over run with cats is an understatement.
There are cats everywhere...the lobby, in offices, the front display windows...everywhere. Don't get me wrong...all looked healthy and well cared for, but are just stacked on top of each other in every corner (no, not literally on top of each other). Saying 170 cats and kittens, and seeing 170 cats and kittens are two very different things.
It's heart breaking...especially when a dozen or so sit in the window looking out at you with that "head cocked side ways" look that asks, "can I come with you?" Not easy. If taking home a dozen was possible, it's what I would have done. But I seem to have my hands full with a single seven month old cat as it is.
And, just to make it a bit worse, I visited with the dogs out in the front cages before leaving. Again, probably a mistake. As I was visiting with one, there are 8 others in different kennels, yelping..."what about me, what about me??!!" Tough to walk away, leaving them there, hoping to one day find a home.
Anyway...if anyone reading this is so inclined, stop by with a bag of litter or maybe some food, as I believe they certainly could use it.
Just be prepared for for a small amount of depression as you leave.

[kthy66]

WOW.. thanks SAM for sharing your story.. I didnt realize they were so over crowded. I will be making a donation ASAP!! I have such a hard time visiting the shelters.. I wish I could take all of them home! :o

[ILoveWinnipesaukee]

I have been a member of the ASPCA for many years, for exactl the reasons you stopped by the Humane Society. Unfortunately this is the time of year for kittens, kittens and more kittens. You deserve a great pat on the back for taking the time to stop and help. Our local animal control officer has been desparately looking for volunteers to help with the animals at our local shelter, I am sure the shelter in Laconia would warmly accept all the help and assistance anyone can give. You say you were depressed when you left, but remember, at least these kitties have a warm place out of the eliments and with the help of people like you have litter and food.

[SAMIAM]

Nice story SA....guess I'll get off my duff and donate something.Lots of people abandon pets when times are tough.Thanks for reminding us.

[Ropetow]

Great post, SA. This is a bad time of year for the shelters, made worse this year by the economic concerns most people have, thus making folks less likely to adopt another-mouth-to-feed into their home. Beyond the usual 'pet-type' products, shelters can usually use household items including towels, blankets, cleaning supplies, office supplies, tennis balls, stuffed animals, and of course financial contributions.

[SteveA]

Thanks for the post. The Humane Society preforms a vital service, and performs it very well.

As noted it is "kitty" season. Kittens and Puppys move fairly quickly to a "forever home". But please don't overlook the older cats and dogs. Many are there for a very, very long time. They had a "forever home" that was lost to them by relocation, foreclouse, death of the owner or tranistion of the owner to a nursing home. :( They make a wonderful addition to your home, and you save all the "training" ;)

http://www.nhhumane.org/adopt-category.php?cat_id=2

[dpg]

It's heart breaking...especially when a dozen or so sit in the window looking out at you with that "head cocked side ways" look that asks, "can I come with you?" Not easy.

O.K. now you did it, where's my kleenex? :(

[Ropetow]

All of the local humane societies need our help. The Cocheco Valley Humane Society in Dover, the NHSPCA in Stratham, and I'm sure all the other area societies rely on the generosity and kindness of average folks like us. We all can't adopt all the animals we might like to (my wife would kill me...) but there are so many other ways we can help. I know that CVHS and NHSPCA need foster homes willing to take pets on a short-to-medium-term basis (often pets recovering from surgeries/injuries, kittens too young to be adopted, etc.) and, of course, our donations of goods or services (our time). Were it not for my work and volunteer commitments (school board member) I'd love to do a lot more. Remember those great pics of Yuki last winter measuring the snowfall? The next Yuki could be waiting there, needing our help.

PS---How is Yuki? Is he getting ready for his seasonal job? :confused:

[SteveA]

PS---How is Yuki? Is he getting ready for his seasonal job? :confused:

Thanks for asking. It's been a tough year for Mr. Yuki. All of the attention, celebrity, pressure for interviews..etc.

His behaviour started to slip, a downward spiral, too many parties. here he is at a low point:

2107

We are happy to report that he is doing much better now and will be ready for his winter job! :laugh::laugh:

[SteveA]

SAMeredith did a great job starting this thread. This is a "blantant bump".

The boss, AKA "She who must be obeyed" was at the shelter today. They are 70 cats over the limit of what the shelter can handle. They have 180 cats and kittens. :eek: They need folks to adopt, badly.

If you can't adopt and want to help they need cat litter (non clumping type only please), Bleach, used blankets and towels. They have cats stored all over the shelter and could also use "kennels' (not car carriers )

Cash donations are always welcome. We animal lovers in the Lakes Region are blessed to have a very rare, "No Kill Shelter" like the NH Humane Society.

Visit their site for more information as to what you can do to help.

http://www.nhhumane.org/help-wishlist.php

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Quilt Lady mentioned she does a quilt for the animals, which is raffled sometime in June. Hopefully she will alert us when the time comes, so we may have another go at such a treasure.

[sa meredith]

SAMeredith did a great job starting this thread. This is a "blantant bump".

The boss, AKA "She who must be obeyed" was at the shelter today. They are 70 cats over the limit of what the shelter can handle. They have 180 cats and kittens. :eek: They need folks to adopt, badly.

If you can't adopt and want to help they need cat litter (non clumping type only please), Bleach, used blankets and towels. They have cats stored all over the shelter and could also use "kennels' (not car carriers )

Cash donations are always welcome. We animal lovers in the Lakes Region are blessed to have a very rare, "No Kill Shelter" like the NH Humane Society.

Visit their site for more information as to what you can do to help.

http://www.nhhumane.org/help-wishlist.php

SteveA...thanks for keeping the thread "fresh". And for the reminder...
They can count on me for another delivery of Litter on Friday morning.
I, too, saw the "cats stored everywhere" and found it disturbing.
Now, when Finnegan gets fussy, I try to explain to him how good he has it.

[Nadia]

I write this as I believe many forum members are huge animal lovers (as am I)

Definately! I wanted to be a vet for a long, long time but my family opened an Italian Resteraunt instead :rolleye1: Where is the humane society located? I have the worst sense of direction and memory. A while back when I had a very successful e-Bay store I was donating 10% of my profits to the A.S.P.C.A. I would be happy to help with food and kitty litter. More so we are going to be getting a dog soon and are considering adoption. The only reason we considered not adopting is because of our young daughter. I know from experience older dogs can be very loving and trust-worthy with kids, but we both somewhat feel the dog should grow up with her. Especially because we are looking into the somewhat more "aggressive" breeds (German Shepards, Doberman's, Rottweiler's). Thank you for posting this info!

[gravy boat]

I am a huge fan of the NHHS. I adopted two cats back in 1997 and 1999 -- a kitten and a 1-year old, respectively. Both are wonderful kitties! Our Sheepdog was through private rescue and is estimated at 8-10 years old. Point being that we are huge fans of rescuing older animals as they are often overlooked -- yet they are almost always well trained and acclimated to other household pets. I cannot recommend enough adopting an adult feline or canine.

We donate online when budget allows, and try to drop off items when we can. Thank you, SA, for letting us know about the situation -- we will make a trip over there with some supplies for our feline friends, and bring some goods for the pups as well.

GB

[sa meredith]

While this is certainly a thread well worth "re-visiting", I would like to point out my original story about the 170 cats was written in September of 2008. It is entirely possible their (the shelter) needs have changed. Maybe, if you are planning to make a drive over there, a phone call to ask what their most pressing needs are, would be a good idea.
As for last September....I'll never forgot what 170 cats in one place looked like. Not very pleasant.

[Nadia]

While this is certainly a thread well worth "re-visiting", I would like to point out my original story about the 170 cats was written in September of 2008. It is entirely possible their (the shelter) needs have changed. Maybe, if you are planning to make a drive over there, a phone call to ask what their most pressing needs are, would be a good idea.
As for last September....I'll never forgot what 170 cats in one place looked like. Not very pleasant.

Wow I didn't even notice! I suppose it's a worth while thread no matter how old it is, and since it is a non-profit organization they are always happy to accept donations. But you do propose a great idea to call first and see if their needs have changed. Sadly I'll bet they have probably doubled. I agree that adoption is a very sensible choice for many reasons when we get ready to choose our pooch. Although as I mentioned above we really want the dog to grow up around our young daughter right from the start. We could be wrong but we have both theorized and agreed that there is a still a chance the dog may become aggressive with her, it is a lot less then an older dog who has not grown up with her since day one, and whose behavior and temper we have not been able to observe since day one as well. Like I said we could be wrong. Although there is a definate chance that we will have more then one dog and I would adopt, as long as we're comfortable and convinced the animal will not harm our daughter.

It is depressing to see the state of such places. Yet we don't have to adopt or donate to help out what is a growing problem around the country. We should all have our animals fixed unless we are equipped and wanting/willing to properly breed them. Your male hottie might not come home pregnant, but on his ventures out and about he may run into someone else's girl while sniffing the grass, and then......

Are breeders of cats and dogs required to be licenced in NH? If not they should be. Not only in NH but everywhere. Although breeders practice breeding to make money they should also be restricted on who they are permitted to see to. Sounds ludicrous at first and would be difficult to regulate, but when I lived in Massachusetts I saw an overabundance of dog breeders in the paper and basically everywhere. My parents had property in Chelsea a long time ago and we evicted many tenants for secretly breeding and selling puppies from our apartments. We did have a firm no pet policy which they agreed to when they signed their lease. Then to make matters worse many of these evicted tenants would leave the animals behind if they were scrawny or sick and my parents ended up taking them to the local humane society. There was a time another family who were tenants in our building had a younger son who some tenants in our building that were breeders sold a puppy to for a discounted price. He brought the puppy home to have his Mother tell him absolutely not to bring it back to the sellers. The sellers refused to refund, and they ended up just leaving the dog outside to fed for itself. Obviously both sides were calling my parents whining during the entire argument, so again we ended up taking responsibility and taking the animal to the humane society. I believe the boy they sold the puppy to was no older then 13. The over-abundance of people breeding dogs in that area was mind blowing. And not even caring about who they were selling to. I understand it's a for-profit practice, we all want to make money, but for the love of God...have some morals. Animals are living things. This is an ever growing problem and the moral of the story is there are many ways we can try and help relieve the pressure on humane societies and other organizations like it, not only by adopting and donating money. Not all people can have pets or have disposable income to donate. Just my .02. Your thread might be old but it brings many important issues to the attention of a lot of people who love animals! Gees I like animals more then I like people, and I know I'm not alone on that! Come to think about it I think the only reason my parents stayed married as long as they did was because of the dog! As soon as he died they got divorced!

[Rose]

Wow I didn't even notice! I suppose it's a worth while thread no matter how old it is, and since it is a non-profit organization they are always happy to accept donations. But you do propose a great idea to call first and see if their needs have changed.

Here's a link to their wishlist:

http://www.nhhumane.org/help-wishlist.php

I understand it's a for-profit practice, we all want to make money, but for the love of God...have some morals.

I like Best Friends phrase for this - "Puppies Aren't Products (http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehomelesspets/puppies_arent_products.cfm)"

Not all people can have pets or have disposable income to donate.

For anyone who loves animals but can't have one or can't afford to donate, volunteering is a great way to give.

[SteveA]

Too many animals, not enough homes.

I'm going to give the heart strings a little tug.

http://www.nhhumane.org/adopt-detail.php?cat_id=1&pet_id=579

All but one of our cats are rescue. And we go for the older ones, kittens and puppies go fast.

[Quilt Lady]

All of our animal companions are from shelters and they seem grateful for their chance at a happy life. Charlie is mostly German Shepherd, rescued from a kill shelter in Virginia and transported north for a better chance at finding a home. Magic is a huge (20 pounds of muscle) black cat and one of the sweetest cats you will ever find. If you are in the market for purebred animals, look no further than the local shelters. We have all seen Steve A's Yuki . . . such a beauty! My Nikki is a purebred Ragdoll cat, also from a shelter. She landed there because she had the major show fault of crossed eyes. It gives her the cutest expression but doesn't slow her down a bit.

And then there is our pride and joy, Marty . . . as in Mardi Gras. His mother lost her home during Katrina and her kittens were born on the street. The Humane Society in New Orleans processed many lost animals. Shelters from the north sent vans down to New Orleans and brought back animals who would otherwise have to live out their (shortened) lives on the street. They neutered and spayed the animals first but life on the street is hard. Marty got a ride north and we adopted him into our family. He is the best cat we have ever had. Marty is a flame point Siamese.

http://echoshores.com/Photos/LittleMartyInBox.jpg

[SteveA]

No, not Don! ;)

Marty is beautiful. Thanks for the picture. :)

[BGB2]

A mall pet store near me in Connecticut gets kittens from mall patrons that the store then sells. The kittens get shots and a check up from a vet. While I find the process odd, it could be a way to find homes for some of the kittens at the Laconia humane society. A low-budget kitten from a shelter doesn't have "class" but the same animal at a higher price with a fashion label from a pet store could be the cats meow. It doesn't have to make sense. Whatever works.

[dpg]

Quilt Lady - Phew, what a beauty! Nice picture.

[ILoveWinnipesaukee]

Quilt Lady, you have one beautiful boy!! Does he have the Siamese voice? I had a lilac point that talked all the time. I love the Siamese breeds, they talk just like people!!