WELCOME!  This is a group of awesome people who have all expressed interest in helping Philadoptables and WMMR’s The Preston & Steve Show feed Philly’s homeless animals.

The 2014 Camp Out For Hunger (COFH) event dates are Monday, December  1 through Friday, December 5 at Xfinity Live in S. Philly. COFH is a free event with hundreds of people stopping by to see The Preston and Steve Show,  make food and monetary donations,  and have fun. Please try to attend- it is SO.MUCH.FUN!

Philadoptables has a Facebook Group for people who want to help and keep updated as to the event!!!!

For four weeks prior to this event pet food collection boxes will pepper Philadelphia and its surrounding counties collecting cat and dog food. As always we are looking for places- offices, schools, stores, etc to place collection boxes. Collection boxes, posters, etc. should be in place by about November 1. Donations will be collected and brought to Xfinity Live or to the shelter during the week-long event.

Photos of people or companies  and their donations can be taken and put on Philadoptables Facebook page and the Philadoptables website.  Donations will be distributed at the event to rescue groups and foster parents beginning Wednesday, December 3rd.  Families in need will be able to pick up food after Saturday, December 6th at the shelter.

Every person who donates is rooting for Philly’s homeless animals and it is a great venue to find adopters, foster parents, and new volunteers.

It is that time again!  Philadoptables is joining in the holiday fun by handling the CLIFFORD -The Big Red Dog balloon in the 6ABC Thanksgiving Day parade!

We have to be there super early and the parade steps off  at 8:30am on Thanksgiving morning -Clifford is expected to be  in the first 1/3 of the parade.  You will be done about noon.

Follow the link below, click where you see  EXECUTIVE, SPONSOR and GENERAL VOLUNTEERS and sign up as a  General Volunteers. Be sure to choose team PHILADOPTABLES

http://6abc.com/paradevolunteers

Password is: turkey

 

Are you an early bird?  Philadoptables will also be volunteering for the balloon inflation team and earning a donation for our furry friends! Please let me know if you sign up for this- they will meet about 4am to blow up all the balloons. Any questions?  Please contact michelle@philadoptables.org!

A Fall Treat for your Dog

Fall has arrived, cooler temperatures and the leaves have changed colors. This is a great time of year to take your dog for a long walk and admire the beauty of the fall season. One of the greatest pleasures of the Fall season is Pumpkin Pies. Lets do something special for our best fiends this Fall and make them their own pumpkin treats. Here is one of my favorites:

Ingredients: Makes about 25 Biscuits

• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 3 Heaping tablespoons peanut butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup rolled oats

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Mix together the flour, eggs, pumpkin, peanut butter, oats salt, and cinnamon in a bowl. Add water as needed to help make the dough workable, but the dough should be dry and stiff. Roll the dough into a 1/2-inch-thick roll. Cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
3. Bake in preheated oven until hard, about 40 minutes.

 

On July 4th Philadoptables took our annual stroll though Olde City in the Welcome America 4th of July parade! We had the honor of carrying the Betsy Ross flag. Volunteers were joined by 4 canine ambassadors and a wonderful time was had by all! Events like this are important because a whole new audience gets to see that Philly’s animal control shelter has some great dogs (and kitties) for adoption!

Foster A Shelter Animal

Fostering provides a second chance for many dogs and cats to find a loving home. Foster care volunteers provide temporary care for kittens, puppies, dogs and cats. Some animals may only need a home for days, while others may need several months of care. By offering your time, energy, and home to an animal in need, you prepare an animal for adoption into a permanent home as well as prevent overcrowding in the Philadelphia City Animal Shelter.

The staff at the Philadelphia Animal Care and Control Team will match potential foster parents with dogs and cats that are a fit with the foster’s schedule and the needs of the animal. If you work from home, maybe a kitten or puppy would be suitable. If you work long hours outside of the home, perhaps a senior dog or cat would find themselves temporarily happy under the safe shelter of your home. Whatever the lifestyle, there is sure to be a dog or cat that would be a good foster match for you.

Why are fosters needed?
1. Shelter overcrowding. Fosters free up kennel space to make room for incoming animals. Overcrowding, without a network of fosters providing additional shelter options, results in lower save rates.

2. Injury and illness. Many animals coming into the shelter may need special care to recover for injuries or illness before being able to go into an adoptable home or rescue. All medication and medical care is provided free of charge by animal control.

3. Extremely young kitten or puppies. These animals may not yet be weaned and require special care and feeding, which shelter staff may not be able to adequately provide.

Without fosters, Philadelphia’s animal control save rates drastically drop.

Why should I become a foster parent?
We believe that the abandoned and abused animals that enter our shelter deserve to have the best possible chance at finding a loving, permanent home. A foster parent has one of the most important jobs at the shelter. Foster parents allow our animals to receive the proper care and attention they deserve as they wait for adoption. As a foster parent you’ll not only save the lives of animals in your care, but you’ll give other animals coming into the shelter who may not need the same level of medical attention, a space on our adoption floor to find their own loving homes. If those aren’t enough reasons to become a foster parent, consider these:

• Foster animals are temporary companions offering their love freely.
• You’ll be helping to socialize a shelter animal so they become more adoptable and better companions.
• You can put that spare bedroom to good use.
• You’ll delight at the smiles on the faces of the family that adopts your foster animal and possibly make new friends along the way.
• Fostering helps you explore many different breeds of dogs and cats to help you decide which traits you’d like in your next companion animal.
• If for some reason you can’t keep a full-time companion animal, fostering for short time periods is an ideal solution.
• You’ll know that you’re making a huge difference in the lives of your fosters.

If you are interested in becoming an active foster, please contact Marta Skuza at marta@philadoptables.org. Check out some of the animals available for foster care on our Facebook page here – it is updated daily!