Counting
Up: Counting Down
The
South Loop Dog P.A.C. (Park Action Co-op) is counting up total funds raised and
counting down the days until groundbreaking begins for
Grant
Bark
Park. The group is currently working to
convert a one and a half-acre plot of land between Columbus and Michigan
Avenues (near the
11th Street
Bridge) into an official Chicago Park DIstrict approved dog-friendly area. The
new park will be fully fenced, double gated, and feature brand new landscaping
and lighting. Construction is scheduled to begin any day. To help reach their
fundraising goal of $75,000, items such as “Lose the Leash” T-shirts and
personalized, commemorative bricks for the dog park’s walkway are for sale.
To
make a donation or join the co-op, visit:
www.SouthLoopDogPac.org or email: sldogpac@yahoo.com.
Best
in Show to Area Shelters
Over
1800 adoption organizations in all 50 states, plus 13 other counties, joined
paws for the 6thannual Iams “Home 4 the Holidays” campaign to
encourage the adoption of shelter pets over the holiday season. It was the most
successful adoption drive to date, placing over 300,000 pets. Iams and the
Helen
Woodward
Animal
Center
recognized the efforts of these organizations this spring by distributing
$100,000 worth of grants to 20 shelters who met certain criteria including, community
involvement, media coverage, number of adoptions versus prior year, and overall
implementation of the program. Three
Illinois
shelters were among the winners, including: CatNap from the Heart (
La Grange
Park),
Metro East Humane Society (Edwardsville), and The Moline Animal Shelter (
Moline). Congratulations!
The 7th annual campaign will kick off November 7 of this year. Interested organizations
can register online at www.HomeForTheHolidays.org or by calling the
Iams
Consumer
Care
Center
at (800) 566-5038.
A
Breath of Fresh Air
Chicagoland
pets are getting a new chance at surviving deadly fires, thanks in part to a
special type of oxygen mask that fits snugly over the noses of cats and dogs.
The contraption, which has been used by vets for years, recently caught on in
Florida as a life saving
device used by firefighters. The masks come in three sizes to accommodate
different sized pets and contain a rubber ring that fits snugly around the
animals face, allowing rescuers to pump oxygen into the nose of the animal. “It
doesn’t sound like much when you talk about a dog or cat, but it does mean a
lot to that family,” said Antioch Fire Chief Dennis Volling in a statement to the
Chicago Tribune. “You can imagine how these
people feel. They’re already losing their house, and then they’re losing part
of their family.” According to the fire department, smoke inhalation is among
the leading causes of death for humans and pets trapped in a fire. So far, the
city of
Chicago has not adopted the use of the
animal oxygen masks, which are in
use in
Antioch, Lincolnshire-Riverwoods, Buffalo
Grove, Wauconda, and soon
Palatine.
