Rescue U Renovation Grant

A catio was constructed off our main cat adoption room.

We have anywhere from 10-15 cats living in the catio with access to the adoption room via cat door. These cats absolutely LOVE to be outside in the fresh air and sunshine. When people come to our shelter, it’s the first place they stop to see animals.

We take in approximately 1,000 cats per year.

Jax is a special cat at our shelter. He is a very loving and affectionate boy who longs to be outside. However, Jax lacks “street smarts” when it comes to dogs and moving vehicles. The catio is the perfect setup for him. He spends his days lounging in the sun and hanging out on the cat tree or in the rafters. But, most importantly, he is safe and secure.

To build to 42 x 20 slabs to provide space for additional dog kennels.

This grant will allow us to house additional animals for adoption, in addition to providing space to quarantine animals that are taken in from abuse cases until medical checks can be done. We will also use this area to allow our current animals space to be outside and enjoy the different surroundings.

We have 11 dogs that this grant will help, plus additional animals that will be presented to our adoption center.

We have a dog named Holly (pictured) who will be able to be outside and enjoy the different surroundings. She came from an abusive situation. She lived on a 10-foot-long chain for the first 10 months of her life. She is a very sweet dog, but very shy. We hope that allowing her to be outside and see different things will help her get over her shyness. Meet Holly: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/31357173

To make improvements to our adult cat room. Plumbing pipes were removed and dry-walled over, walls were repaired around the window, the door was repaired at the bottom on each side of the frame, everything got a fresh coat of paint, and a wall unit was built and installed for the cats to have resting perches up high and with views out the window.

Receiving this grant is truly wonderful for our cats. We house them in a community room and they’ve always had towers and chairs/couch to rest on, along with beds to sleep on. Some of the younger cats had gotten bored and found edges of drywall to play with. Very entertaining for them, not so pleasing for potential adopters to visit in a room needing repairs. Everything is now fixed, the room is appealing for people to visit in, and it’s very nice for our cats that may be with us for some months.

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Carolina (first photo) is a 5-year-old calico kitty; she came to us four years ago with a litter of three-day-old kittens. Carolina was independent and not inclined to socialize much with strangers. After staying with us for two years, she was adopted with her feline companion, Dorothy (second photo); after six months they were both returned to our shelter because the family was moving and couldn’t take them. After another few months’ stay, the pair was again adopted together; after only three months their new mom returned them because she had allergies. With so much of her life spent inside our shelter, improving her room makes her stay here that much easier; she now has many levels of perches to rest on and be above the action on the floor, if she chooses to.

Meet Carolina: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/23090011
Meet Dorothy: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/27198069/

The grant money was used to buy materials to build play yards for the dogs at the Cinderella Pet Rescue no-kill shelter. The actual cost for the play yards exceeded $5,000 in materials. Without the grant money it would have been impossible for us to build the play yards. Without the play yards, we would not have been able to have the training by Aimee Sadler and Ali Waszmer from the Dogs Playing for Life program. The grant money made it possible for us to buy the posts, fencing, cement and gates used to construct the yards.

The design of the play yards enables us to effectively coordinate large play groups for the dogs at our no-kill shelter. This offers improved socialization for the dogs and helps them expend some of their energy in positive ways. It also helps us evaluate the dogs’ personalities more effectively and determine their interaction styles, which improves their proper placement into adoptive homes. Because dogs learn better from each other, the play groups offer them opportunities to find out how to interact appropriately with others. This transfers to new dogs in new environments.

There were 59 dogs who were able to participate in the play groups during the training by the Dogs Playing for Life training. However, all dogs admitted to our shelter will benefit from the ongoing play groups now being conducted on a regular basis.

Phoenix is a dog who came to us emaciated, with severe demodectic mange and infected skin (first photo). He also had ehrlichiosis, one of the tick-borne diseases common in our area. After months of treatment, he was healthy enough to interact with other dogs. However, he was reactive when dogs were brought close to his kennel or if he was on a leash. For fear that his apparent aggression would be dangerous to the other dogs, Phoenix was maintained in a separate pen and was not allowed to have direct interaction with other dogs. However, during the training it was decided to give Phoenix the opportunity to participate in a small play group with specific dogs. What was discovered was that the seemingly aggressive behavior Phoenix had been exhibiting was actually a frustration with not being able to play. Once in the play groups, he blossomed, and ran and played with numerous dogs. Although he can be reactive with certain play styles, he is a star playing with most of the dogs at our shelter. We discovered that Phoenix wasn’t just a terrific pal to people but was also a great playmate for many of his canine companions. It was wonderful to see him so happy as he played with the other dogs. The Dogs Playing for Life training conducted in the play yards built with the grant money gave Phoenix the opportunity to rise from the ashes once again and become the awesome dog we have all grown to love. We hope that someday Phoenix will have a forever home where he can continue to develop and grow (Phoenix today: second and third photos). Meet Phoenix: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/29409788

Chardonnay (fourth photo) came to us as a puppy along with her four male siblings. All had been tortured and were terrified of people. However, only Chardonnay had been burned with cigarettes. She grew up at the shelter but remained shy and withdrawn. Although she learned to trust a few people, she never seemed to interact much with other dogs. However, by the third day in the play groups, she started to play. Soon she was running and jumping and having fun! The difference in her demeanor was amazing. Even after leaving the play yard, her confidence and enthusiasm for life was evident. She started welcoming attention from people, something she had never done before. The play yard experiences have cracked her protective shell and allowed her to hatch into a happy, loving dog who may now have a chance to be adopted. Meet Chardonnay: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/17355814

There are so many dogs who have blossomed during the play groups. And it has made them more contented. They bark less, sleep more (being tired from all the play time) and are much easier to handle. It is clear they are less stressed and frustrated because they have the chance to do what dogs do best: play! Having the play yards and implementing the play groups has changed the lives of so many dogs at our shelter and made them happier, healthier and more adoptable.

A catio that is adjacent to our cat-adoption room.

Provided free-roaming space for cats that allows them access to fresh air and sunshine. This reduces their stress, makes them more social and adoptable and helps maintain their health.

300+ over the course of a year

This renovation grant funded a catio adjacent to our cat-adoption room that provides free-roaming space for cats that allows them access to fresh air and sunshine. This reduces their stress, makes them more social and adoptable and helps maintain their health. We are still under construction (delayed due to other shelter renovations); however, we have several cats that will benefit from being able to free-roam and go outside as they desire. Thank you for making this possible for our shelter cats!

The money was mostly used to re-tile our puppy room, purchase kennels, and to build a quarantine kennel area for new incoming dogs, which also doubles as a sick bay for dogs recovering from heartworm treatment.

It helped tremendously by giving us the extra space to house dogs outside more safely, and with the sick bay being able to be built and modified for use in many different ways to ensure all dogs are healthy without the risk of spreading anything to the other dogs.

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Jack (first photo) was one of our heartworm-positive dogs who benefited from the sick bay. Since we didn’t have a foster to step up for him, he was housed there while he recuperated. Several dogs have been placed in it until they recovered from kennel cough and could be put in a foster home or with the general population. Thank you, Petfinder Foundation, for the grant to help us help the needy shelter dogs.

Copiah Animal Shelter gratefully thanks the Petfinder Foundation for the $1,500 Rescue U Renovation Grant for new kennels. We had designated the funds for five total new kennels. The four new small kennels, where none existed before, increase our small shelter capacity by 36%, to 15 inside kennels. These kennels give CAS flexibility to take in more small dogs, or puppies, that we would otherwise have to turn away. The one large kennel requested replaces a rusty, aging kennel.

Impact of the new kennels:
 Increases inside dog-kennel capacity by 36% to 15 kennels with addition of the four new small kennels: This gives CAS the capability of taking in small dogs or puppies that would otherwise have to be turned away.
 Improved functionality/safety for animals and caretakers: The new large kennel replaces an old, rusting, dilapidated kennel. The gaps by poles were so large we had to line the old kennel with a puppy pen for animal safety, making it difficult for caretakers to access.
 Improved shelter appearance: The new kennels definitely improve the shelter appearance to the public and volunteers.

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Dudley was lucky. The person who found him roaming kept him for more than a week because CAS did not have space. In the meantime, the new small kennels were installed, and we now had space for Dudley! A few days later, a family who came to pick up the dog they had adopted (whom they had seen on Petfinder), saw Dudley and adopted him too! Dudley never made it on our Petfinder listing, but he wouldn’t have been adopted then if he hadn’t been in that new kennel!

Artificial turf for kennel play yard

Receiving this grant provided a better play area for our dogs who are waiting to go into foster homes. Not only does the artificial turf create a cleaner environment, it also eliminates the risk of parasites such as fleas, ticks and intestinal parasites. The artificial turf is routinely sanitized to help prevent the potential of any infectious diseases. Now the play yards are much more inviting for volunteers and potential adopters to interact with the dogs as well.

Unlimited

This grant allowed us to specifically improve the long dog runs, which gave the larger dogs in our care, such as Luna, Tia and Zoey, and improved play area. Prior to the improvements, it was nearly impossible to keep grass growing in those areas. Due to the dogs’ activity, we were constantly combating dirt and weeds.

Meet Luna: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/33881791
Meet Tia: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/28926157
Meet Zoey: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/33544978

Purchase of Honeywell Heat Recovery Ventilator and two UV lights for air filtration for present duct work.

The unit exhausts stale air and pollutants from inside and brings fresh air from outside. The UV light kills bacteria, pet dander, dust mites and odor for healthier air in the building.

Putting a number is unmeasurable. This will make a huge impact on all of our new intakes and current residents.

Our purchase of a Honeywell Heat Recovery Ventilator and two UV lights for air filtration will help to improve air quality for all our animals. One example is Cashew (pictured). Cashew is a pretty baby that came into the shelter with an injured leg and required a cast. She is recovering nicely. She is available for adoption or rescue. Meet Cashew: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/33765869

The money was used to paint the exterior of our cattery.

Painting the cattery has given it a whole new personality. It is much more cheerful and welcoming now. The exterior now matches the interior, which we have worked to make as homey and comfortable as possible for both the cats and for visitors.

We have 40 cats on-site at any given time.

We recently held an open house to show off the shelter’s new look. A lovely family heard about the event and came to look for a kitten to adopt. Filmore (first photo) was taken off the streets of Atwater and nursed back to health by one of our dedicated volunteers. He now has a wonderful forever home.