Be the change

I know some of you may actually fall out of your chair when you find out that I am blogging TWICE in one week. Heck, even my once weekly blog has been tough to come by lately. But sometimes you come across other individuals who motivate you to take action. There is a colleague of mine, a woman veterinarian from California, that has a very very well-written blog Pawcurious. If you are a fan of veterinary/animal blogs, you should really check this out. You may want to read them in a place where, if you spontaneously start laughing out loud, you won't be given dirty looks (i.e. do not read on the library computer!). Anyway, she is very passionate about helping animals (ok I think that applies to all veterinarians), but has a great way of getting people to listen. So a few days ago, I was reading her blog and she had a great idea for this Friday, today! Calling all bloggers to band together to inspire change. Her cause is to support a Columbus, OH shelter "Pets without Parents" (I LOVE that name!). So if you go over to her blog, feel free to donate to the cause.

I'm going to tell you what is going on locally in little ol' Ashtabula County because let me say, we have some GREAT people that do GREAT things for animals here and probably don't get enough pats on the back. These people work hard in a very hard environment. They get to see animal abuse up front and personal. There is a lot of burnout and emotional toll, but God bless them all because it is a job that needs done and they do it well. But there is always room for more help so if you love animals, here's your chance to BE THE CHANGE.

And as my Pawcurious colleague Dr. V. has said so eloquently in her blog, you don't have to drop everything you are doing in your life. If everyone gives just a little chunk of their time or their money, it will all turn into something great. Don't shy away from a big problem because it seems to big. We just need to all take a small little chunk. (For some reason I feel like bursting into song ala Mary Poppins "In every job that must be done there is an element of fun. You find the fun, and snap! The job's a game") OK, sorry back on track. The point is that Nike was right when they said "Just do it".

So do you need some suggestions. Well the Ashtabula County Animal Protective League has a bunch of great events coming up. This coming Monday April 19th, they are having one of my FAVORITE events (because it involves food!) the Spayghetti dinner at the Wagon Wheel restaurant in Madison. Tickets are only $8! And you won't have to cook dinner that night! Next week you can also recycle all that old scrap metal you have laying around to benefit the APL. Clean up your yard, celebrate Earth Day AND help the APL all at the same time. Now really, it can't get much better than that! Go and visit the APL web site for all the details and see what else is in the works for fundraisers. The Ashtabula County Humane Society is holding a Rabies Clinic on Saturday May 1st. Cost is $10 per pet. Hey, and I'll be there too! Visit the AC Humane Society web site for location, time and other details.

So you can't show up at a specific event. No worries. Think of getting a new furry family member. Adopt from a shelter. Both organizations are always in need of donations. Money of course, but dog and cat food, paper towels, blankets, towels are always appreciated. If you visit each organization's web site, you can find out more.


No money? How about going out to the APL and walking/exercising dogs. Do you know how much it helps those dogs to get out for a walk once in awhile? Such a small gesture that means so much. Or volunteer to help at one of the many events that are coming up.

Kudos to Dr. V. over at Pawcurious for coming up with this fantastic idea. Now time to think of how you can help. And remember every little bit helps. And I mean every LITTLE bit helps.

Note: Only shelter adopted animals were used in the making of this blog.