Washington Humane Society Blog

Have a little room for us?

As the only open access shelter in Washington, DC, WHS takes in an average of 30 animals every day. The WHS team works around the clock to provide comfort to all of the animals in our care, but our space and resources are limited. Thanks to the hard work and determination of the WHS team, the New York Avenue shelter facility is undergoing major renovations in the coming months to help us provide a better environment for all of our animal residents while they are in our care. 

A construction project is currently taking place in the main holding kennel. The maintenance team is working on improving a few kennels at a time, but due to the noise and fumes of construction, the rear section of the kennel, home to about about 10 animal spaces, had to be cleared completely. WHS continues to experience a steady stream of dogs daily, so the loss of 10 kennels impacts us tremendously. 

WHS is seeking the support of its community to help DC’s animals; we are seeking short-term emergency foster homes for some of our dogs. Foster volunteers are vital members of the WHS community, and they fulfill a critical component of our life-saving work. By opening their hearts and homes to animals in need on a temporary basis, fosters expand the number of animals who are receiving care on any given day. Each time an animal is taken out of the shelter and placed into a foster home, it provides space for another animal who needs our special care and attention. Thanks to our dedicated foster families, WHS was able to help hundreds more animals find loving homes in 2011, and the WHS foster program is set for expansion in 2012. We hope you will be a part of it starting with this most urgent opportunity. 

More information on fostering can be found on our website; click here for an application. If you are interested in fostering a dog, please contact Lauren Hagerty at 202-723-5730 ext. 136 or LHagerty@washhumane.org or Claudia Roll at 202-723-5730 ext. 154 or croll@washhumane.org. For more information on becoming a cat foster parent for WHS, please contact Alyson Burgess at 202-608-1356 or ABurgess@washhumane.org.

WHS Encourages Adoption through “Flurry of Furries” this Winter

As the weather grows colder this winter, the Washington Humane Society (WHS) is calling on our community to open their hearts and homes to the many deserving animals who are seeking adoption. From January 1 through February 29, we are celebrating Flurry of Furries to promote the adoption of shelter pets during the cold winter season. The advantages are myriad:

• Shelters are temporary homes to hundreds of healthy, family-friendly animals. Most pets end up homeless through no fault of their own —"moving" and "landlord issues" are among the top reasons people offer for relinquishing their pets. WHS has a variety of animals of different breeds, sizes and exercise preferences to fit the needs of individual families.  
• Shelter pets are a bargain—often even more than pets who are “free”; once you add the cost of everything WHS provides to pet families, the savings adds up. All WHS pets go home spayed/neutered; are current on vaccines, de-wormer, flea/tick treatment, heartworm preventative for dogs; and microchipped—a value of several hundred dollars.
• WHS conducts thorough behavioral assessments of each pet to help match them with the best suited adopter. Plus, WHS behavior and training experts can provide advice on how to make solid, lifelong human-animal relationships.
• Every adoption saves a life. When you adopt from a shelter, you give a pet a second chance at happiness, without adding to the significant homeless pet population in the DC area.

In addition to these benefits, all WHS cat and dog adopters receive a free starter bag of Hill’s Science Diet Food; a goodie bag from Home Buddies DC; a free post-adoption exam at a participating veterinarian; and 30 free days of health insurance from Shelter Care. For those who already own a pet, many animals enjoy the companionship, exercise, social interaction and mental stimulation another pet can provide. Now is the perfect time to grow your four-legged family.

The community plays a crucial role in helping to support animals; when we come together, we can help to end pet homelessness in DC. We hope our neighbors will show how much dc loves dc animals by adopting, encouraging others to adopt, fostering or joining a WHS volunteer team this year. To learn more, visit www.washhumane.org.

Enrichment Equals Fun!

By Lexi Lepiarz, Adoption Center Manager, Georgia Avenue

You may have heard about the importance of “enrichment” activities when it comes to caring for animals. Ever wonder what that really means?

A technical definition of enrichment is: a process for improving animal environments and care in the context of an animal’s natural history, with the goal of increasing behavioral choices to encourage species-appropriate behaviors, ultimately enhancing the animal’s physical and mental well-being.  In other words, the term “enrichment” includes anything that stimulates an animal’s mind or body and encourages them to do what they do best: climb, play, socialize, shred, hunt, explore, dig, roll, groom, run, chew, swim, forage, track, herd, etc.

At WHS, animal caregivers are going beyond catnip and Kong toys to enrich the lives of our animals. Jordana Todd’s latest burst of creativity led her to hand-make origami toy boxes, stuffed with feathers, balls and other toys, their edges finished with curly pipe-cleaners. Add these to the cat living quarters already containing the dangling cardboard swirls Jordana created earlier in the week, and you’ve got a cattery full of busy happy cats! Each cat chose how he wanted to approach the origami box depending on his own personality—whether slowly investigating, gingerly removing one toy at a time with a cautious paw or pushing the whole box around as one huge toy. Some cats decided to shred the box and bat around the pipe-cleaner curls, while others held mock-hunts with the toys hiding inside.

Meanwhile, animal caregiver Natalie Ruhl is thinking outside of the toy box to enrich the lives of our dogs. After rabbits and cats were groomed (also a form of enrichment), the hair shed from these smaller animals was presented to dogs to investigate, successfully firing up their senses naturally and safely. Natalie also likes to take large pieces of packing paper, spritz on some diluted extracts and hide treats within a large packing-paper crumple, allowing animals to tear the paper apart to reveal hidden goodies. Other forms of enrichment happening around the adoption center are play groups, quiet-time, group training classes and aromatherapy in kennel and cattery areas. No animal is too big or too small for enrichment!

Here at the adoption center, enrichment is another word for fun—while it also helps mentally and physically stimulate our animals, which can help them find homes even faster. At home, you too can give your pet an opportunity to express natural behaviors with store-bought or homemade enrichment… I mean, fun! And remember, next time your cat shreds a new roll of paper towels, or your dog makes a “nest” with the contents of your linens closet, you can think of it as an enrichment experience—and then find some creative new outlets for them to continue!

WHS Protects and Serves Animals in 2011

2011 has been another busy year for our field services team, comprised of our Humane Law Enforcement (HLE) and Animal Care and Control officers. To date, our field services division has responded to nearly 15,000 new calls, including over 1,300 cases of animal cruelty and neglect investigated by HLE officers. 

Just this fall, Nico Dauphine, a former Smithsonian National Zoo researcher, was found guilty of attempted animal cruelty for attempting to poison cats in her neighborhood, thanks in part to the efforts of our Humane Law Enforcement Department. In March, Dauphine was caught on tape feeding rat poison to stray cats outside her Columbia Heights apartment building. A local feral cat colony manager noticed a substance in the cats’ food that was later found to be poison. She notified the WHS Humane Law Enforcement Department immediately. The HLE team sought and secured security footage from the apartment building that showed Dauphine taking something out of her purse and placing it in the food.

Dauphine was found guilty on October 31. She resigned her post with the Smithsonian Zoo the next day. This month, she was sentenced to 180 days, suspended; 120 hours of community service; a 12-month probationary period during which she is prohibited from working or volunteering with cats; and she is required to contribute $100 to the Crime Victims Compensation Program. 

Earlier this year, two other local residents were found guilty for their crimes against animals. Dervaughn Turner of Washington, DC, pled guilty to two counts of animal cruelty. Metropolitan Police Department officers recovering a gun reported at a DC residence called WHS Humane Law Enforcement officers to investigate a report of dogs used for fighting residing at the home. In January, three dogs were found at the address, along with dogfighting paraphernalia. Two of the dogs received thousands of dollars’ worth of treatment by veterinarians for injuries and wounds from dog fighting. In August, Turner was arrested for knowingly housing dogs used for fighting, and in December, he pled guilty to his crime. Each count of animal cruelty carries a one-year supervised probation and a 30-day suspended sentence. In addition, he is required to pay $1,000 in restitution and commit 40 hours of community service.

Mario Romero Barillas was arrested in a separate animal fighting case. WHS Humane Law Enforcement officers had been investigating a case involving a rooster who was found at a Washington, DC home by WHS Animal Control officers because it is illegal to own livestock in the District of Columbia. The officers found that the rooster’s spurs had been sharpened to a point, a trait often found in roosters involved in cockfighting, which prompted an investigation. Barillas admitted to using the animal for cockfighting. Barillas, who had returned to the country illegally, plead guilty to attempted engaging in animal fighting in September, and will serve five years in a federal detention center before being deported again to Guatemala.

Our Animal Care and Control officers rescued a deer from the Tidal Basin, a young fox trapped in a net and an injured monitor lizard from a Metropolitan Police raid, all in one October day. And two field officers proved that no obstacle is too big or too foul when they rescued two geese from a Blue Plains waste treatment facility this summer. Despite being so busy here in DC, our Humane Law Enforcement officers made time to help animals across the country. Disaster Response Specialist Ann Russell responded to aid animal victims of this spring’s horrible flooding in Conway, Arkansas, and shared with us her notes from the field.

These are just a few of a myriad of cases our team has seen this year. We believe that every animal, regardless of breed, age, condition or any other factor, deserves protection from cruelty and harm. We look forward to continuing our work fulfilling our mission to protect and serve all the animals of the District in 2012 and beyond.

To report animal cruelty or neglect and animal emergencies 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, please call 202-BE-HUMANE (202-234-8626). If you are interested in reading more stories of animals who were helped and rehabilitated with the aid of our officers, we hope you will consider purchasing our 2012 Humane Law Enforcement calendar. E-mail ZMacinanti@washhumane.org for more information.

Wishing you and your Pet a Safe & Happy Holiday

The holidays are a wonderful time to show extra appreciation for our four-legged family members. What better way to say thanks to these special friends than to make sure they are happy, healthy and safe throughout the season?

While you celebrate with delicious and festive meals and treats, we hope you will join WHS in our efforts to keep animals safe by keeping chocolate and other potentially harmful foods inaccessible to all pets in your home. Make sure that dangerous foods are out of reach and be careful not to leave tempting food items unattended.

The American Veterinary Medical Association recommends preventing your pets from eating the following:

* Chocolate
* Onions
* Products containing Xylitol
* Fried and fatty foods
* Grapes and raisins
* Macadamia nuts
* Avocados

In the unfortunate event your pet does ingest an item from this list or you believe he may have eaten any unsafe food or item, contact your veterinarian immediately.

There are many other ways you can keep your pet safe all winter long. Click here for some helpful suggestions.

Wishing you and all of your family a joyous and healthy holiday!

Support DC Animals This Season

The holidays are here and we want to share with our community a few suggestions for last-minute gift ideas for your animal-loving friends and family.

Get your loved ones tickets to this year's Sugar & Champagne Affair! Treat your two- and four-legged friends to an evening of cocktails & confections to benefit the Washington Humane Society. Join us February 1 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center for the 11th Annual Sugar & Champagne Affair. Hosts Chef Todd and Ellen Gray of Equinox & Watershed Restaurants and Muse at the Corcoran Gallery of Art will once again welcome guests in honor of our local crusaders against animal cruelty. Come and enjoy delectable confections by the metropolitan area’s most talented pastry chefs complemented by fine sparkling wines. A VIP reception presents an exclusive savory gathering by top chefs. For more information and to buy tickets, visit www.sugarandchampagne.org.
 

Help your loved ones ring in the New Year with a WHS calendar. This year, we are offering our Humane Law Enforcement edition featuring stories of animals rescued by our heroic team of officers. Get your copy by emailing ZMacinanti@washhumane.org. ($25 including S&H.)

 

In addition, our Fashion for Paws calendar has just been released. Check out last year's runway show supermodels in this 2012 edition. Get your copy here. ($25 including S&H.)

Share your DC animal pride by shopping our dc loves dc animals store. Browse shirts, bags, hats, mugs and much more online.
 
Finally, we continue to celebrate Hope for the Holidays through December 31. All adoption fees on all of our animals are half off! We also deeply appreciate your consideration of donating or purchasing items for our homeless shelter animals in need or sponsoring an animal this season.

We thank you for your support and wish you a very merry holiday! 

WHS Celebrates Hope for the Holidays

As the weather grows colder and the holidays near, we are thankful for the warmth that our families and communities can provide. We are especially thankful to hear from our generous community of supporters at this time of year. WHS alumni families often update us on their pets’ successes, challenges and everything in between.

We recently heard from one such alumna, Denise Albanese, who made a contribution to WHS in honor of her sweet dog, Jazzy, a Shepherd/Border Collie/Husky mix whom she adopted from WHS in 1995:

She put her paws on my shoulder, covered me with kisses and dog hair, and I was a goner. Despite having severe allergies all her life, she lived for 16-plus years thanks in large part to a wonderful vet…She was the best best best dog, just like all dogs: crazy-smart, stubborn, loving and possessed of a durable sense of fun. Soon I'll be ready for another and I'll rescue another dear girl. No matter where she is from, WHS will always have my gratitude for bringing me and my sweet Jazzy together.

We hope the holiday season inspires more DC area families to open their hearts and homes to deserving animals looking for their second chance at happiness so that they may experience what Denise shared with Jazzy and what so many in our WHS community enjoy each and every day.

To make this month a little merrier, we are celebrating Hope for the Holidays through the end of the year. WHS is inviting the public to participate in numerous events and activities to support DC’s homeless animals over the season. Adoption fees on all WHS animals are discounted by 50 percent, and in addition, we hope our community will join us to:
* Visit WHS shelters for a special Hope for the Holidays event this Saturday, December 17; bring a donation, meet adoptable animals and enjoy holiday décor, music and treats;
* Enjoy Holiday Photos with your Pet at venues across the region, and make a donation to the WHS Toy & Treat Drive at each event to help shelter pets in need. (A Wish List is available on the WHS website);
* Shop WHS for stocking stuffers and gifts;
* Bring a donated item to any WHS facility; or
* Sponsor a homeless animal at the Washington Humane Society.

The holidays present a special opportunity for our community to support the countless animals who go without the comforts of family and home each year. We thank you for caring about DC’s animals and we hope you will join us – along with your own families and communities – in celebrating Hope for the Holidays this year. To learn more, please visit www.washhumane.org/hope.

Washington Humane Society Rescues Fish in Meridian Hill Park Pond with the Help of a Caring Community

Over several days in November, the Washington Humane Society (WHS) Humane Law Enforcement team, headed by Officer Michael Triebwasser, responded to the first case of its kind. The officers sought to rescue close to 1,000 fish – originally thought to be koi, but later determined to be primarily goldfish – who were dropped into a “pond” at Meridian Hill Park in Northwest Washington by a local resident this summer.

These fish were brought to the pond by a man who wanted to beautify his neighborhood; however, over the months, the fish multiplied tremendously and eventually, the pond needed to be drained for the winter season. There was no plan in place for the fish who were living there. The community was concerned, and when our officers learned that these fish might not survive, they immediately sprang into action. WHS contacted groups across the region to help ensure these fish could be safely removed from the pond and given a new home.

The rescue began on a chilly and wet Thursday morning in mid-November. Two officers geared up in waterproof attire and dove right into the pond with nets of all shapes and sizes. With so many fish covering two very large separate fountain areas, they quickly realized they had their work cut out for them. After a long day’s efforts, they were able to rescue a small portion of the population by very slowly and carefully gathering the fish and placing them into large buckets filled with water. The following day, they came back to the park prepared with a larger team, including WHS Animal Care & Control Officers, dressed in dry suits kindly supplied by DC Fire/EMS. However, even with the aid of additional officers, hundreds of fish still remained.

The pond was to be drained without exception on November 30. With that in mind, WHS put out a plea to our friends and neighbors; and almost immediately, the community who had expressed concern for these fish came to the rescue – quite literally. After reading our calls for support on our Facebook and Twitter pages, and on local blogs like Prince of Petworth, volunteers quickly began contacting our officers to see how they could help save the remaining fish. On Wednesday morning, the WHS team led a group of over 20 volunteers of all ages to collect the remaining fish. Sifting through cold, wet algae piece by piece, the final fish were recovered. Shouts of joy came from the youngest of volunteers with each fish found.

The fish have found homes in the ponds of caring neighbors and organizations throughout the community. A special thanks goes out to the National Aquarium for loaning us multiple nets, which helped us complete a successful rescue, and for connecting us with G and G Aquatics, a trusted group that is helping to find homes for these fish. We would also like to thank Raymond Yee Jr. with Aquamarine Systems LLC, who aided with the rescue and personally helped to place these fish in new home environments, and DC Fire for allowing us to use the dry suits they supplied for much longer than anticipated.

The Washington Humane Society provides comfort and care to nearly 30,000 animals each year. Our doors are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week without exception. While serving an urban area means we see a lot of dogs, cats and companion animals, we believe that every animal matters, regardless of species, breed or any other factor; we never say “no” to an animal. This assignment – though different from our usual duties – proves once again that when we partner with a caring community, together we can develop real solutions to all types of animal-related issues.

Watch the team in action on FOX 5: http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/local/local-group-rescues-fish-from-dc-park-12111

Trick or Treat!

How about both? Washington Humane Society (WHS) dogs are celebrating Halloween with special homemade treats created by a WHS team of volunteer trainers. The treats on which they’ll be feasting are crunchy apples and carrots, meaty marrow bones and sweet, gooey marshmallows. The trick is that in order to get to these delicious delicacies, the dogs have to first lick their way through a block of frozen chicken broth in order to access the yummy treats hidden inside. 

This is just one of the many activities of STEPs, WHS’s Shelter Training and Enrichment Programs. Volunteer trainers work with our shelter dogs to teach them basic manners and provide activities that enrich their lives during their shelter stay. If you’re interested in becoming a STEPs volunteer, contact us at volunteer@washhumane.org.

Happy Halloween!

 

Not Your Typical Day

By Scott Giacoppo Vice President, External Affairs & Chief Programs Officer

We often receive calls about deer in need of rescue, to assist the Metropolitan Police Department with high-risk search warrants and other wild animals injured on our city streets, but rarely do they all come in at once. On Friday, before most people had poured their first cup of morning coffee the WHS Animal Control team was scrambling faster than ever to answer the calls for help.

It started with a call from MPD, who was going to a home in DC to arrest dangerous criminals and they knew that there were dogs on the property. So they did what they always do, and called us for assistance. In these cases, for the safety of the officers, two highly trained Animal Control Officers are always dispatched. Off went Officers Covington and Owens! No sooner did they arrive, our dispatch team received a call about a deer who had fallen into the Tidal Basin near the Jefferson Memorial. Knowing that there is no chance that the animal could get out on his own, two officers who were off-duty, Sgt. Deppner and Officer Daniels, volunteered to answer the call and rushed to meet up with DC Fire Department who provides us with the resources we need to conduct water rescues.

Well, while they were gearing up for that rescue another call came in about a young fox who was seen wandering around a neighborhood near a playground, and he appeared to have a net of some sort wrapped tightly around his neck. With no officers available other than those who were off-duty, I called on our Humane Law Enforcement Department to assist me in catching the fox. HLE Officer  Triebwasser raced to the scene to help his fellow officers in need. While en route, we received yet another call about a deer who had attempted to jump a fence but had caught himself on the top. He had seriously injured himself in the process and was now trapped in a courtyard on the other side of Northwest DC!

At this point I began calling each team of officers for an update and found that Sgt. Deppner and Officer Daniels were still out on the water rescuing the deer. Officers Covington and Owens had just about finished up with the police warrant, but they had found that the person being arrested also owned what appeared to be a monitor lizard who seemed injured. They said that they could quickly move the lizard, the two dogs and the cat who had been left behind to safety and would rush to the second deer call.

When we arrived at the location where the fox was spotted, Officer Triebwasser and I began searching the area and quickly found the fox hiding in a thicket behind a home near where he was originally sighted. Sure enough his neck was wrapped in a thick netting material and it seemed he could not free himself of it. The overgrowth was too thick for us to walk in and after about a half hour of trying to capture the fox, he made a run for it through the neighborhood with the two officers right behind him. After a brief chase he cornered himself between two fences and we were able to capture him safely.

On the way back to the shelter I learned that the deer who had fallen into the Tidal Basin was safe and sound and would be released back into the wild. But sadly, the second deer had sustained injuries severe enough that the responding officers were forced to euthanize him.

When we arrived at the shelter we were met by our new Medical Director, Dr. McAndrew. This was her first week on the job, and we were happy to know that she came to us with an extensive background in wildlife veterinary medicine. She quickly anesthetized our young fox and began removing the netting that would have eventually cost him is life. The doctor found no serious injuries and she cleaned up the small wounds he had on his paws from trying to free himself and gave us the news we were hoping to hear: “he can be released”. A couple of hours later, we released him safely and happily into a wooded area near the rescue site.

As I said earlier these rescues are not out of the ordinary but having all this happen before 10:00am certainly is! I’m so proud to be part of a team that can rise to challenges like this. With limited resources and staffing in the face of a crisis (or four to be exact) no call went unanswered and no animal was turned away.

 

Photos of the animals rescued today:

Fox trapped in netting

 

Fox being treated by Dr. McAndrew

 

Fox being released by Officer Triebwasser

 

Deer being released after falling into Tidal Basin by Sgt Deppner and Officer Daniels

 

Lizard rescued by Officers Covington and Owens during police raid

 

To see some of the media clips from today's deer rescue:

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Deer-Rescued-From-Tidal-Basin-132790808.htm

http://www.wjla.com/articles/2011/10/deer-rescued-from-tidal-basin-68477.html

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=109&sid=2611384