The South St Paul Stockyards are shutting down forever.
Now the buildings are being sold, torn down and soon bulldozed. We are trying to livetrap what ever cats we can and get them into our vet to vaccinate them all, and spay/neuter those that are not.
This venture costs money, and these cats are not adoptable but will be placed on farms where they will be given shelter, food and water. We can really use your help with financial assistance to help pay the vet costs. Your donations are tax deductible!
Please indicate on your donation if it is for the "Stockyard Kitties".
Mail your check to Last Hope, Inc. PO Box 114, Farmington, MN 55024 or you can Donate online
Toy Breeds
Small dogs are adorable, fun, and, with the toy breed craze in Hollywood, becoming an increasingly popular pet. At first glance, it seems that small dogs would be easier to care for than larger dogs. A closer looks reveals that raising these tiny bundles of joy comes with its own challenges. Toy breed dogs and puppies are prone to hypoglycemia, hypothermia, traumatic injuries, and, of course, "spoiling".
DO I GO HOME TODAY?
by Sally Thompson
My family brought me home cradled in their arms.
They cuddled me and smiled at me and said I was full of charm.
They played with me and laughed with me and showered me with toys.
I sure do love my family, especially the girls and boys.
The children loved to feed me, they gave me special treats.
They even let me sleep with them - all snuggled in the sheets.
I used to go for walks, often several times a day.
They even fought to hold the leash, I'm very proud to say.
These are the things I'll not forget - cherished memory, because I now live in the shelter - without my family.
They used to laugh and praise me when I played with that old shoe.
But I didn't know the difference between the old ones and the new.
The kids and I would grab a rag, for hours we would tug.
So I thought I did the right thing when I chewed the bedroom rug.
They said that I was out of control, and would have to live outside.
This I did not understand, although I tried and tried.
The walks stopped, one by one; they said they hadn't time.
I wish that I could change things, I wish I knew my crime.
My life became so lonely, in the back yard, on a chain.
I barked and barked, all day long, just to keep from going insane.
So they brought me to the shelter, but were embarrassed to say why.
They said I caused an allergy, then they each kissed me goodbye.
If I'd only had some classes, when I was just a little pup, then I would have been a better dog when I was all grown up.
"You only have one day left." I heard the worker say.
Does that mean I have a second chance?
DO I GO HOME TODAY?
Want to have some fun with animals and help rescue dogs and cats too?
15 and up teens with parents permission are also welcome to foster!
To apply to be a foster, click here
WHY GET A BLACK DOG?
Dental Hygeine for your pet
Another Example of How Last Hope has Impacted a Life
Dear Last Hope,
About four years ago, I was really physically and mentally ill and going through a divorce. I knew there was no way I could take care of my 3 cats since I would be in and out of the hospital, although I loved them with all my heart. I called last hope, and they took them on the same day to the Eagan Petsmart, and they were adopted within a month to loving, caring, healthy homes. I cannot tell you how much just knowing they went to homes where they’d be loved and spoiled helped me recover during my toughest time. I still think of my kitties all the time, and I really feel Last Hope helped save my life. These days, I am healthy again, and are finally financially able to contribute a little to the organization that gave me peace of mind when there was none in my life, and will again in the future when I can afford more.
I cannot tell you how much I appreciate your organization. Please tell the lady who took my cats in Eagan (I dropped them off at a vet’s office, I think in West St. Paul) that I appreciate her sensitivity and understanding. She never made me feel like I was a bad pet parent (believe me, I already hated myself for it!), but made me feel as though I was going to be ok because my cats would be well taken care of.
Your organization really does help and change lives for the better, and it’s not only the animals you save!!!
I cannot thank you enough.
Recovering
(used with authors permission)
Did you know:
- Cats purr at about 26 cycles per second, the same frequency as an idling diesel engine.
- Cats scratch to shed the sheaths of their old claws.
- Cats use more than 500 muscles to leap, jump, and sprint. Cats with white fur and skin on their ears are very prone to sunburn.
- Cats, not dogs, are the most common pets in America. There are approximately 66 million cats to 58 million dogs, with Parakeets a distant third at 14 million.
- If your cat is in the habit of rolling over and exposing his stomach, you can be sure he feels perfectly safe with you. It's also a way of demonstrating his pleasure in your company.
- A cat can be right pawed or left pawed
- A cat cannot see directly under its nose. This is why the cat cannot seem to find tidbits on the floor.
- A cat has 230 bones in its body. A human only has 206 bones.
- A cat will never break a sweat because it has no sweat glands.
- A cat will spend nearly 30% of its life grooming itself.
- A cat's brain is more similar to a human's brain than that of a dog.
- A cat's ear pivots 180 degrees.
- A cat's hearing rates as one of the top in the animal kingdom. Cats can hear sounds as high-pitched as 65 kHz; a human's hearing stops at just 20 kHz.
- A cat's heart beats at 110 to 140 beats per minute, twice as fast as a human heart
- A cat's normal body temperature is 101.5 degrees F (38.6 C).
- A cat's sense of taste is keener than a dog's sense of taste.
- A large majority of white cats with blue eyes are deaf. White cats with only one blue eye are deaf only in the ear closest to the blue eye.
- 95% of cat owners admit they talk to their cats.
- Americans spend more on cat food than on baby food.
- Americans spend more than 5.4 billion dollars on their pets each year.
- Cats average 16 hours of sleep a day, more than any other mammal.
- Cats can donate blood to other cats.
- Cats can get "age spots". These are black spots on the skin that are often seen around the lips, eyes, and nose; and usually start when the cat is three to five years of age.
- Cats have a third eyelid, called a haw, that is rarely visible. If it can be seen, it could be an indication of ill health.
- Cats have AB blood groups just like people. Cats have true fur, meaning that they have both an undercoat and an outer coat.
- Cats love to hear the sound of their own name and your voice, so talk to them often.
- Cats must have fat in their diet, because they can't produce it on their own. Never feed your cat dog food, because cats need five times more protein than dogs do.
-
Cats only need a sixth the amount of light that humans do to see. However, their daytime vision is only fair compared to that of humans.
Events
. The end result.... kittens!!
We are looking for volunteer foster homes in the south metro area or neighboring communities that can take a pregnant cat, a mother and babies, or a litter of kittens.
As always, we need new foster homes to take adult cats too. Last Hope pays the vet bills and provides supplies when we have them available, and the training. You supply the love, the home, the care,
For more information call Bev or Charlie at 651-463-8747.
Want more info on fostering?
Click here
Will your dog bite?
Dangerous
Intense stare, Mouth closed, Forward posture, Tail straight up
Safe
Panting, Relaxed Posture, "Happy" expression
Protect Yourself, Your Pets, and Your Home!
As the outside temperature falls, people and pets tend to spend more time indoors. Some common dangers include:
* Certain plants are a menace to dogs and cats: Poinsettias irritate the stomach and eyes. Berries of the Jerusalem cherry are toxic, and cause pain, vomiting and diarrhea. Holly and mistletoe, amaryllis, chrysanthemum, rhododendron and winter broom as well as Christmas berry, cherry, pepper and rose can all cause problems to pets that ingest them. Note: Liquid potpourri can cause terrible burns in an animal's mouth should it be ingested.
* Candles are a great attraction for pets, but don't leave them alone in a room with a menorah or candelabra blazing. A careless swish of a tail can be disastrous.
* Have your furnace evaluated for potential carbon monoxide leakage. Pets are generally in your house for longer periods than people and have a higher potential for carbon monoxide poisoning.
* Also, in the winter, house fires are more apt to occur. People often use space heaters, electric blankets and other heating products. If not carefully monitored, these items can be causes of house fires. Pets caught in a fire have the potential to be badly burned and suffer from smoke inhalation.
Click here for a printable sign to alert rescuers to save your pets
Pets can help reduce fear, anxiety and stress!
Dog Adoption Guide
If you are thinking about adopting a first, second or third dog, there is much to consider. Being a pet parent can be one of life's greatest joys; however, adopting a dog is not a decision to be taken lightly. Owning a pet is very similar to having a child; there are many responsibilities and commitments involved.
Do you know all the questions you should ask before you make a final decision? Do know all of the things that should be considered about breeds and individual dogs? Before you adopt your canine companion, read our guide to help you ready yourself for your new pet and to help you make the right decisions along the way.
All dogs are vet checked for health issues and are de-wormed, current with rabies and distemper vaccinations, heartworm tested and are on preventatives. All dogs over 5 months of age are spayed or neutered. If you paid for this yourself, it would cost over $300!
All cats and kittens are feline leukemia/FIV negative. They are current with vaccinations and de-wormed, and vet checked. They come with a one week health guarantee too! If they are over 6 months they are spayed/neutered.
Why Spay or Neuter?
Spay or neutering surgery has health benefits. They will not get certain cancers and less medical issues later in life.
Problems with hernias inside the animal can occur and to fix it costs over $2000 with still health issues afterwards.
It eliminates the risk of complications from pregnancy. If a C- section is needed, that can cost $700-1000.
Altered dogs and cats are more relaxed pets because they are not driven to mate and less inclined to defend territory. They are less apt to fight with other animals. Statistics show that un-spayed females and un-neutered males dogs are the ones that bite humans the more often the dogs that are altered.
The animals are less likely to roam and less chance that they will get picked up by animal control. Most dogs picked up by the animal control are not fixed. They are less likely to get hurt, tortured injured or killed on the road.
Nuetered dogs less apt to urinate in the house. Their reason for marking is reduced.
Altered cats are less likely to spray.
Altered dogs have less behavior problems
Altering does not make your pet fat or lazy. It does not spoil the animals personality. Nuetered dogs do hunt and bring birds back. Fixed cats still kill mice and Spayed females still are loving!
It helps by preventing unwanted litters and homeless animals. If you can find homes for all of your puppies and kittens, then someone else will not.
Over 25,000 are killed in metro shelters alone because they were born!
If every home, apartments, manufactured home, townhouse had 7 cats and 4 dogs, we wouldn’t have to put any dogs or cats down!
Please Spay or Neuter YOUR Pet!
Top 10 Items Surgically Removed from Pets
If you thought your dryer was eating your socks, guess again! It seems the number one item swallowed by dogs that had to be surgically removed are socks.
The top 10 list is as follows:
1. Socks
2. Underwear
3. Panty Hose
4. Rocks
5. Balls
6. Chew Toys
7. Corn Cobs
8. Bones
9. Hair Ties/Ribbons
10. Sticks
Other items that animals have ingested are nails, sewing needles and nipples from baby bottles. But let's not forget remote controls, pagers, hearing aids, drywall, snail bait, batteries, rubber bands, toy cars, and sand with bacon grease poured on it.
Some of these items will pass through their digestive system naturally, but others can become lodged in their intestinal tracts resulting in pain, vomiting, or internal injury. In those cases, surgery may be a necessity.
The best thing to do is to make sure these items are unavailable to our pets. Make sure there are plenty of items available for your pet to chew on. And, you can always spray something on the items to make them taste bed such as "Bitter Yuck No Chew" spray.
Can Cats Feel Emotion?
Many cat enthusiasts have long believed that their pets feel emotions.
Six behaviorists share their opinions.
Based on feline physiology, it's probably realistic to assume cats feel emotions, John C. Wright, Ph.D., said. Cats are mammals, they have brain structures, and the way their brain works is similar to the way the human brain works, he continued.
Wayne Hunthausen, DVM, believes cats feel emotions. Although there is no way to tell for sure without talking to the cat, he says that in certain situations, their behaviors might be similar to how we would behave in that situation.
Cat therapist Carole Wilbourn said cats definitely have emotions. "They can express different moods happiness, sadness, rage that let me know. A cat acts the way it feels."
Cats feel every emotion humans feel, animal behaviorist Warren Eckstein said. "They may not react the same way, but they definitely feel the same emotions we feel."
On a less definitive note, Suzanne Hetts, Ph.D., said cats probably experience emotions, but we can only infer from their behavior.
Cats feel emotions "but not necessarily in the same way we think of them," Debra Horowitz, DVM, DACVB, said. "There are emotional aspects to their behavior."
"A lot of problems arise," Eckstein said, "when owners don't realize the cat has a range of emotions and don't know how to react to the cat when it might be feeling anxious or depressed." These are emotions that he feels are common in cats. "When you take a cat into a home, you have to treat it like part of the family."
One of the hardest things for cat owners to understand is their pets' behavior. Wilbourn said certain behaviors express a cat's happiness, such as purring and relaxing their bodies. Dr. Hunthausen said fear is expressed through opposite actions, such as withdrawal and avoidance.
Cat owners are prone to ascribing human emotion to their cat's behavior. Dr. Hetts urges owners to use caution when doing this, because the interpretation of the animal's behavior may lead to punishing animals because they are convinced the animal acted out of spite, which is most likely not the case. Wilbourn noted that a cat isn't a person, but people and cats share emotions.
Last Hope, Inc. PO Box 114, Farmington, MN 55024 651-463-8747
All rights reserved copyright 2006-2007