Angel Tree

Stop on by and make a donation to our Angel Tree!  We are gathering donations for Young At Heart and Nina's Pet Food Pantry, along with Save-A-Pet.

Together we can make sure all of our four legged friends have a Happy Holiday Season!

Ike The Eisenhower Expressway Dog

Ike has a home!

http://www.facebook.com/IkeTheDog?ref=search&v=wall

Some of you might remember reading about Ike.  He was found wandering the Eisenhower Expressway about a month and a half ago.  Not only was he found once but twice!  Ike had been spotted 2 days in a row in the same area on the expressway before they were able to rescue him!  What a lucky dog.  You can read all about him and his new life on facebook.  We love you Ike, all the best!

Mugs For Mutts

Mark Your Calendar!

Come on out April 22nd, 2010 for our first Mugs for Mutts benefit! Located at the ever-fun Mickey Finn’s in Libertyville, this event is from 6-9pm. Swing by after work with your friends for live music by Brave Nu Soul, pizza, a 4-sampler of Mickey Finn’s brews, door prizes, raffles, and silent auction! Get a Mugs for Mutts souvenir mug, too! Tickets are $25 per person purchased online, or $30 at the door. This is a 21 and over event! For more information or to purchase tickets, check out our Upcoming Events!

Read more about Young at Heart’s recent fundraisers, TV appearances and special events.

Chicagoland Tails Top Ten Reasons To Adopt

I found this in a recent publication of Chicagoland Tails Magazine. I thought I would share.

TOP 10 REASONS TO ADOPT
1. Rescued Lives

Many people assume animals end up in shelters as the result of abuse or bad behavior, although most often people give up pets for personal reasons. No matter the cause, adopting an animal saves a life and gives new purpose to the guardian’s life too.

2. Healthy Guardians

Pets provide unconditional love and—as research shows—can be psychologically, emotionally, and physically beneficial to their guardians as well. They provide a sense of fulfillment and can lower blood pressure and cholesterol.

3. Community Camaraderie

Shelters provide a community of veterinarians, volunteers, and other adopters ready to share their experience and knowledge. Shelters often organize events for pets and their guardians that provide socialization and a sense of community.

4. Endless Options

Some people avoid shelters because they want a purebred pet and think that shelters can’t meet this need. But shelters host both purebreds and mixed breeds. There are also many breed rescues.

5. Perfect Match

Because shelters often screen animals for particular behavioral issues and temperaments, they can match potential guardians with the ideal pet for their lifestyle, especially among pets coming from foster homes.

6. Good Example

Rescuing a pet sets a solid moral example for everyone in the guardian’s life—from children to friends to neighbors—regarding the value of saving an animal’s life.

7. Healthy Pets

Shelters like to keep their animals happy and healthy (making them the best possible candidates for adoption), so shelter animals undergo extensive health screenings and often receive vaccinations and treatment for any medical issues.

8. Test Drive

Some shelters, like the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), offer fostering programs. This enables potential guardians to interact with the animal and decide if pet guardianship fits their lifestyle.

9. Save Money

Shelters charge far less for pets than pet stores and other resources. Typically, shelters also spay or neuter and vaccinate, which adds even more worth to an already valuable deal.

10. Shelter Support

Instead of putting profit above animal welfare, shelters dedicate themselves to finding the perfect homes and guardians for pets in need.

The Shelter Pet Project

The Shelter Pet Project is the coolest network I have seen in a long while. It is an interactive site for adults and kids. For the adults it is nice because you can go on the site and list your zip code then it will give you a list of animal shelters and pet rescues in your area. They also have direct links that allow you to go directly to that rescues website. For the kids they have a really neat video collection to explain the reasons that pets get put up for adoption, and what you can do to help. They also have a neat section called The Adopt A Gram. I and Toby personally thought this was rather cool! You can send someone a virtual pet with a message. The Shelter Pet Project is a joint venture between The Humane Society of The United States,
The Ad Council, and Maddies Fund. The next time you are looking to find another best friend I would recommend this site.

Help Homeless Pets Enjoy The Holidays

Pets are the latest victim of the recession. During the past year, as more families have lost jobs and struggled to make ends meet, animal shelters across the country have seen a huge upsurge in homeless animals. Shelters and rescue groups have been overwhelmed with dogs and cats being given up by families who just can't afford to care for them. For the shelters, already coping with donations due to the economy, the problem is enormous: how to feed and shelter all these newly homeless pets.

Enter the Best Friends Angel Tree collection for homeless pets. For the ninth consecutive year, Best Friends Pet Care locations across the country are partnering with local shelters to ensure that homeless pets have much more needed food and supplies.

The Angel Tree Program was created in 2000 to help local shelters and rescue groups provide for the homeless pets in their care. Last year more than $25,000 worth of food, toys, treats, and pet care products were donated to 80 shelters and rescue organizations across the country.

You can visit or call any of our locations to make a donation to the Angel Tree.

Happy Holidays to all!

Weekends on a Wednesday...

For more information contact http://www.yahpetrescue.com/about/

For those Chihuahua people out their The Chihuahua's Rock Meet Up group will have their meet up here on Sunday 10-25 http://www.meetup.com/Chihuahuas-Rock-Meetup-Group/calendar/11523544/

Make a Difference Day

Make A Difference Day is said to be the most encompassing day of helping others, a celebration of neighbors helping neighbors. USA WEEKEND Magazine created this day, and it has now grown to become an annual event that takes place on the 4Th Saturday of every month. In 2008 3 MILLION people volunteered to help someone! If you do not have anything or anyone in particular you can think of you can visit the Make A Difference Day website for ideas in you area. If you already have an idea make sure to go on the website to log your project in, so it will count with the millions of others that are volunteering their time on Saturday.

Remember there are always people out their and organizations that can use your help any day of the year! It is still pretty nice weather out there so perhaps you can find a animal shelter or rescue in your area, I am sure they have plenty of dogs that would love to go out on a walk and enjoy the day with you. If it is too cold for you than you can volunteer in their cat rooms. Many places have very spacious rooms for the cat community, they always love to sit in the sunshine and get some love! Not near a shelter or rescue, perhaps you have an elderly neighbor, or simply someone who lives by themselves, offer your time to help them clean up all those crazy leaves we know are flying around our yards this time of year! If you yourself have a dog take your neighbor and your dog for a walk. You can warm two hearts at once!

Enjoy your weekend, and hopefully it will be a fulfilling one for you. To those of you who do volunteer regularly no matter where it might be, thank you. For those of you who volunteer at a rescue or shelter please remember our Rescue Friends Program. For every pet they adopt out the family receives $20 off our services and the rescue/shelter receives a check for $20.

Weekends on a Wednesday

We have "Fun Stuff Fridays" and now you can watch for " Weekends on a Wednesday".

Every Wednesday Toby and I will post upcoming pet events that we have noticed for the surrounding areas. We might not get everyone's events posted, and we apologize, it is not because we do not think it is something fun to do, we simply missed it! Most any of the pet shelters and animal rescues in Illinois will post events directly on their sites.

As always if there is not something specific that interests you remember any day spent with your pet is a fun one. You can always go for a walk in the neighborhood, or simply curl up on the couch and read a good book together. They will be happy to spend any time with you. It is that unconditional love they provide us that gets us through the crazy work week.

Watch for our first installment of fun things to do with your pet next Wednesday

**Don't forget we now offer day passes to our dog park. A great way to let your furry friend run off some energy on the weekend!**