Pet Dish - May 17th, 2011

An inspirational Walk for Animals
Kindest Cut provides spay/neuter on the go!
AHS commercial receives worldwide attention
Summer school for pee-wee pets
Pet tips with Paula Zukoff
More treats
Scratching posts

Tales and Tails

An inspirational Walk for Animals

Five thousand people and their pets donned their best rain gear and celebrated at the 37^th annual Walk for Animals in Golden Valley. The music played, the children danced, and a drum corps set the tempo as the folks from Cities 97 and FOX 9 kicked off the morning walk that began on Meadow Lane and rolled along Theodore Wirth Parkway.

The Walk culminated the effort of thousands of supporters who collected pledges resulting in nearly one million dollars in community donations! Funds raised from the Walk for Animals allow Animal Humane Society to care for the thousands of animals in need in our community, providing housing, sterilizations, medical care, rescue and so much more.

The Walk for Animals is a community effort and we want to give a big thank you to each and every person who raised pledges and donated to this very important cause. We also want to recognize the 150 staff members, 400 volunteers, and dozens of vendors whose hard work and dedication made this event possible, and whose smiles never faded despite the pouring rain. Visit our Walk for Animals website for a list of top fundraisers and teams. See below for a behind the scenes look at how this amazing event came together.

Kindest Cut provides spay/neuter on the go!

For more than a decade Animal Humane Society has sterilized all cats, dogs, rabbits and ferrets prior to adoption to help reduce the number of homeless animals in our community. While this was helpful, we knew we needed to do more to make a bigger impact on the problem. We made it a goal to offer spay/neuter services for those who could not otherwise afford to sterilize their pets — a goal that we are proud to say has now become a reality. In partnership with private veterinarian Dr. Meghann Kruck, Animal Humane Society is excited to announce the launch of Kindest Cut, a high quality, low cost spay/neuter service for pets of people in need.

Kindest Cut will provide these much needed surgeries for cats, dogs and rabbits through a mobile surgical unit. Services are geared to pet owners with limited incomes in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area who do not have the resources to sterilize their animals. Surgeries are performed by licensed veterinarians who are skilled at small animal care, with fees ranging from $40-100 depending on the gender and species.

According to Dr. Kruck, spaying and neutering is one of the kindest things an individual can do for their pet — and all animals. When pets are sterilized it helps to reduce unwanted litters and ends the cycle of animal homelessness and neglect. “It’s a relatively simple surgery that reduces animal homelessness and saves countless animal lives,” she says.

Kindest Cut expects to provide 10,000 spay/neuter surgeries through the mobile service each year. Additional funds are still being raised through Animal Humane Society’s Bound for Home initiative to create a community clinic as well, where Kindest Cut will provide an additional 15,000 on-site spay/neuter surgeries at the Animal Humane Society’s Golden Valley location.

Kindest Cut would not have been possible without the incredible support of the community. Contributors to Animal Humane Society found the issue of animal homelessness so important that they opened their hearts and wallets to fund these efforts. To find out how you can help, click here.

To learn more about Kindest Cut and the importance of spay/neuter, visit www.kindestcutmn.com

AHS commercial receives worldwide attention

Back in November, a local visual effects company approached Animal Humane Society. Four guys who work at the company had adopted cats from AHS and were inspired to help after reading a story in Animal Tracks about the cat crisis in our community. The company, MAKE, has produced commercials for large corporations like Target, Home Depot, Best Buy, Showtime, and more.

"Over the last year, we have been making public service announcements that support causes we are passionate about. There are many ways people can make a difference in the world, and here at MAKE, we do that through moving image. It's our way of giving back," said Mike P. Nelson, head of film production at MAKE.

They had an idea to let the cats do the talking — to let them tell the world what they wanted in life. The crew spent a full day at Animal Humane Society filming an abundance of cute cat and kitten video. They wrote a script and had a group of preschool age kids provide the voices for the kittens. A few months of editing and the finished product was complete.

When we received the video from MAKE, we were thrilled at how wonderful it turned out. We wanted to show it off and, once we did, were elated to watch the number of times it was viewed on YouTube increase every day. We hope this video inspires people all over the world to make room in their hearts and homes for an adopted animal.

Help us reach one million views by sharing this video with your friends and family through email, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Special thanks to MAKE for their pro-bono work filming and producing this PSA and to Hulu for adding it to their PSA rotation, helping cats across the country find their new forever homes.

Summer school for pee-wee pets

The thought of kittens going to kindergarten and guinea pigs going to camp may sound odd, but that’s exactly what the Animal Humane Society Training School has in store for your four-legged furry friends this summer.

Your new kitten can be the star of the vet clinic and the envy of all your friends when they pass Kitty Kindergarten. This innovative class covers play socialization, crate training, handling skills, grooming tips, litter box know-how and even basic training!

Kitty Kindergarten is held on May 20 and 27 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at our Golden Valley location. The class is open to kittens from 7-12 weeks of age and costs $30 per kitten. Registration is required, so reserve your spot today.

Kittens aren’t the only ones receiving a little extra attention from our trainers this summer. In June, children ages 8-12 are invited to a special three-day camp for kids and their guinea pigs!

In the Guinea Pigs are Great class, your child will learn about guinea pigs and how to train and care for them, design toys and activities for their guinea pig, and learn how to “speak cavy” and clicker train their pet to do tricks. (In case you were wondering, “cavy” is the family name of species to which guinea pigs belong.)

This three-day class meets from 10 a.m. to noon on June 13, 14 and 15 at our Golden Valley location. The cost is $30 per child and registration is required.

For more information or to register for Kitty Kindergarten or Guinea Pigs are Great, contact the Animal Humane Society Training School at (763) 489-2217.

Pet tips with Paula Zukoff

Does your curious pet love to counter surf? AHS Behavior and Training Manager Paula Zukoff offers tips to manage this bad habit.