Howl-o-ween

On Saturday I volunteered at the Howl-o-ween event at Navy Pier. The Anti-Cruelty Society, in conjunction with Chicagoland Tails, hosted this massive adoption where more than 25 shelters show off cats and dogs available for adoption. As a "shelter helper" ACS assigned me to Puppy Love / Love Cats. Linda, the owner, put me on puppy duty! All day I answered these questions:

Q: "What are they?"
A: "They're mutts. They're mom is a shepherd, collie, beagle mix and they don't know what the dad is."

Q: "How old are they?"
A: "Seven weeks."

Q: "How big will they get?"
A: "We're thinking about 30 pounds."

Q: "Do you know their story?"
A: "These five are part of two litters that were rescued from Kentucky. The moms are sisters and they had 8 puppies each."

Q: "Kentucky?"
A: "Yeah, a lot of these smaller communities don't have the demand for pets that larger cities like Chicago do. So shelters like this one try to rescue these pets to ensure they don't end up at a kill shelter."

Other volunteers held the leashes of the older dogs that were also available.

Piper, an 11 month old Pit-Terrier mix, who had recently birthed a litter of puppies, was found roaming the streets in Chicago when she was rescued.









Trixie, a 5 year old Shepard mix, was rescued from an abandoned house after the family had moved out. The foster mom told us that every time she leaves, Trixie runs to each window and door, whining.









Nigel, an 8 year old Corgie mix with bowed front legs was pulled from a kill shelter before he was scheduled to be put down despite his lovable personality.









Dr. Pepper, a 7 month old Pit-Terrier mix, came from a neglectful situation on the Chicago's south side.










Niko, a 1 year old Corgie-Lab mix, was neglected by his family when they discovered he had a low-grade skin infection. This has since been treated with simple antibiotics.









Hannah, a 1.5 year old Beagle-Hound mix, was rescued from a Kentucky kill shelter before her time was up. She was thin and had birthed puppies recently.









If Immanual Kant is right and "We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals," there are far too many heartless people in the world. If you are interested in fostering an animal from Puppy Love / Love Cats, feel free to learn more here.

While my volunteer work centers around dogs, I will always come home to my boys, Finn and Briggs. May they always be safe, happy, and healthy. Thank you, Jon & Lesley, for supporting me in this.