By Cyndi Lieske

Bill requiring licenses for breeders is abandoned

After more than 1,500 calls and emails objecting to the measure, a bill proposing new restrictions on dog and cat breeders is going back to the drawing board.

House Bill 6395, introduced by Rep. Bill Caul (R- Mt. Pleasant) on Sept. 3, has been set aside, according to Ryan Wenburg, chief of staff for Rep. Caul. Staff members fielded many calls regarding the bill, Wenburg says.
“We realized the bill took on more than what we were trying to solve,” he says. “This current bill will not move forward.”

The measure would have required pet seller licenses for anyone who sells or offers to sell more than two cats or dogs or more than one litter within any 12 month period. It also called for sellers to provide health certificates, undergo background checks, and would have banned licenses for those convicted of animal cruelty.

“We had some instances of people selling puppies in parking lots at big box stores in our area,” Wenburg says.  “They had no health certificates. They weren’t in the best of health. We had been contacted by a group in our area and we were trying to come up with a solution to that problem.”
Wenburg says Rep. Caul hopes to bring a reworked proposal back in the January 2009 legislative session.

“We are going back to the drawing board to redraft a specific piece of legislation to address the problem we have had in the district,” Wenburg says.

 

Bowl-4-Animal Rescue raises $12,000 for shelter and adoption network

More than 190 bowlers and friends raised $12,000 for the Friends for the Dearborn Animal Shelter (FFDAS) and the Michigan Animal Adoption Network (MAAN) during the 3rd Annual Bowl-4-Animal Rescue at Country Lanes in Farmington Hills recently.

The event took place at Aleta Sill’s Bowling World Pro Shop, located inside Country Lanes. More than 190 participants socialized, bowled, and met new friends, according to organizers.

“We were so pleased and honored to be part of such a wonderful community-wide effort. Collaboration between animal rescue groups is so essential, considering we’re all in the same business, and especially given these economic times,” says Kelle S. Sisung, FFDAS Development Director. “The turnout was phenomenal, which just goes to show that working together works! Plus, a giant thanks to Michelle Mullen and Aleta Sills for being such wonderful spokeswomen for all homeless animals!”  

Marie Skladd, President of MAAN adds, “The success of the event has allowed us to continue our rescue work on the streets on behalf of thousands of animals.” 

FFDAS provides loving care and sanctuary to animals, encouraging adoptions and reunions, promoting respect, responsibility and compassion for all animals. MAAN is a coalition of area rescue groups and foster homes working to place rescued and unwanted animals into new, permanent homes where they will receive the love and attention they so richly deserve. MAAN also sponsors volunteers who provide a shot clinic and a low cost spay and neuter clinic.

To adopt an animal or give a donation, visit Dearborn-Animals.com or MI-AAN.org.

 

Michigan Humane Society takes in Texas shelter dogs

Approximately 50 shelter dogs that evacuated when Hurricane Gustav hit Texas are now finding new homes in Michigan.
In early September, an emergency response team from the Michigan Humane Society (MHS) was dispatched to Missouri to pick up approximately 50 dogs from the SPCA of Texas.

“As with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, MHS is committed to being a part of the solution that helps ensure the health and well-being of the companion animals in the affected areas,” says Cal Morgan, MHS president and chief executive officer.      

The transfer of adoptable animals from the SPCA of Texas will greatly enhance the Dallas-based organization’s relief efforts, including the transfer of evacuated animals from the Louisiana SPCA in New Orleans. The dogs are available at the organization’s Berman Center for Animal Care in Westland.  

For more information, visit MichiganHumane.org.

 

Microchip reunites dog missing for three months with caretakers

Kalin Albertsen saw so many fliers for Joey, the missing Affenpinscher, that she squealed the minute she saw the skinny dog come in to the Allen Park Animal Shelter in September.

“I started saying ‘Oh my God! It’s Joey,’” she says about when the malnourished, dehydrated, small black dog came in to the shelter. “The others had no idea what I was talking about, but I don’t live far from his house and I had seen all of the fliers and posters. He looked just like the picture.”

Three months exactly from the day he disappeared from the front yard of his Garden City home, Joey was found wandering near the Silver Spoon restaurant in Allen Park.  A quick scan of his microchip confirmed that he was the dog reported missing in June.

Joey’s caretaker’s Tom and Patty Mullins sent fliers and emails to animal shelters throughout all of southern Michigan to as far away as Kalamazoo in hopes of finding their lost pet.

“She did an excellent job of saturating the area,” Albertsen says. “Most people lose their animals and stop looking for him at some point. It is not often that we have reunions like Joey’s.”

“As soon as Joey saw her he went from snarling and snapping to just being extremely loving and happy to see her,” Albertsen says. “It was the happiest reunion we have ever seen. The dog was screaming and she was screaming. It was just as cute as can be.”

Patty Mullins who has been Joey’s guardian since she adopted him from a California rescue group six years ago, says she never lost hope that he would return.

“He was obviously taken care of at some point,” she says, noting that Joey had a haircut and a new collar when he was found. “It is just a miracle that he is home. We searched daily for him. We sent fliers from here to Kalamazoo. My daughter is with the Animal Placement Bureau in Lansing. There were so many rescues we called. There wasn’t a rescue that didn’t know about Joey.”

While searching for Joey, Mullins helped several other lost dogs that resembled and were mistaken for Joey find their way home. She now wants to help others who have lost a pet.

“What I am doing is trying to help other people that have lost their dogs,” she says. “We have helped return so many dogs.”