No Kill Lehigh Valley saves rabbit from becoming dinner!

Recently, someone posted a horrific story on our Facebook page about this cute rabbit. This person lived next door to someone who was keeping the rabbit in a birdcage on their balcony with no shelter from the elements. She watched the rabbit go through a cold winter out there and called animal control numerous times to no avail. The rabbit's owners told her they only got the rabbit so they could eventually eat it!!!!! Thanks to her persistence, the owners finally relented and told her she could find a home for the rabbit. She posted the plight of the rabbit on our Facebook page and was inundated with calls and emails! Within a day, the rabbit was in a wonderful new home. I recently contacted the new owner and she says the rabbit is very sweet despite what she endured and she is working to integrate her with the rest of her animal family! And for the first time in her life, this lovely rabbit finally has a name: Tilley.

Jackson finds a permanent home!

This cute guy is Jackson. He was dumped in the woods outside the home of one of our Facebook followers. She was trying to find a home for him because she couldn't afford the veterinary treatment he needed. No Kill Lehigh Valley was able to help her with that and now this lovely cat has a permanent home with her. We love happy endings!

Home is where Paddington is!

As you can see, Paddington is a pleasantly plump 22-pound guy who loves to hang out on his leash no matter what the weather. He loves his home and now he gets to stay in it because we were able to help his owners with the cost of the insulin he needs twice daily. They contacted No Kill Lehigh Valley about finding Paddington a new home and instead we paid for two months worth of insulin. His owners have had this 10 year old since he was eight weeks old and were heartbroken at the thought of giving him up. They had already contacted shelters and vets but no one would take Paddington due to his medical condition. We're so glad he can stay home! Please check out our new raffle, the Board O' Bargains so we can have more happy endings like this.

The Cute Side of Trap Neuter Return

This adorable litter of kittens came from a colony we trapped in Bath. They were old enough to be spayed and neutered so we paid for the surgeries for the six adult cats and five kittens at this location. Thank you to our trapper, Judy McHugh Rauh, for her hard work!

Valley Central Vet and NKLV able to help Snoopy!

Snoopy got out of the house by accident. He was missing for four days. When his owner finally found him, she discovered that he had been hit by a car and had a broken leg. She called us in desperation. We sent her to Walbert Animal Hospital to have the condition confirmed. It was a severely broken leg and he was referred to Dr. Hodges at Valley Central. We told the doctor that we would not be able to pay right away as we are still waiting for our state grant to come in. Dr. Hodges graciously agreed to wait for payment and we are so grateful to him for his patience, generosity and trust. Here is Snoopy recuperating from his successful surgery.

Trap Neuter Return

After winning the Pepsi Refresh Project, one of NKLV's first purchases was additional havahart traps in order to jump start our trap, neuter, return (T/N/R) initiative. This farm in bath was home to 12 cats that needed to be spayed or neutered. Not only did one of our trappers, Judy McHugh, take care of the T/N/R at this farm, but she convinced the farmer to clean up the area of the barn where the cats live and ensure they are receive clean water and nutritious food.

No Kill Lehigh Valley has subsidized the surgery costs for many feral colonies in the Lehigh Valley since receiving our grant money. T/N/R is an ongoing program to help us reach our goal to reduce the cat population and thus the number of animals surrendered to shelters and euthanized.

Shea the Beagle Needs a Happy Ending to His Sad Story

About two weeks ago we received a call from a veterinarian with a very sad case. A man had recently been brutally murdered. He left behind 3 dogs who were being cared for by an unemployed friend. One of the dogs, a beagle named Shea, suddenly had lost the use of his hind legs. He needed spinal sugery and there was no money. We talked to the surgeon who gave the dog a guardedly good prognosis. We agreed to finance the $2600.00 surgery. The surgery was performed and Shea did beautifully. He is now recovering in the care of Scott's friend. He is devoted to helping Shea recover completely. Then he would like to find this very special dog a special home. If you would like to be that home or can help, please email nokill.lehighvalley@yahoo.com.

Another example of how we - you - are making a difference.



A moving picture of Shea with her owner.

Cali was saved during a Trap Neuter Return effort!

One of our volunteers discovered a dairy farm teeming with cats. Part of the farm was where the cows marked for slaughter were held. The cats that lived in this section were not being fed properly and were living in dreadful conditions. We began to T/N/R (trap/neuter/return) this group so that at least more kittens would not be born in such a place. One cat tugged at the heart of our trapper, Judy McHugh. She was an older female with a crunkly ear, very sweet. We had her spayed and Judy decided that she could not go back there. We sent out pictures of her and some of the others through email and Cali, as she is called, finally got lucky. Just look at her in her new home.

Operation Catsnip - Thank you to the veterinarians!

On Sunday, March 27, No Kill Lehigh Valley held our 6th Operation Catsnip at three area veterinary hospitals: Dr. Karen's Critter Care, Lehigh Valley Animal Hospital and Walbert Animal Hospital. The veterinarians at these clinics donated over 8 hours of their time on Sunday to spay and neuter 112 cats! These pictures from Dr. Karen's Critter Care show Dr. Christine Bongiorno cuddling one of the cutest cats of the day and operating on a male cat.

Dr. Karen, Pam and Wendy get ready for the long day ahead while 12 cats that Diane Davison, our president, picked up early that morning wait in their carriers. These low-cost spay neuter clinics are instrumental to achieving a no-kill community and without these veterinarians and their technicians, would not take place.

Operation Catsnip - a low-cost spay/neuter clinic organized by No Kill Lehigh Valley

Operation Catsnip at Dr. Karen's Critter Care began with volunteers and customers at the door at 8:00 am sharp! Cat owners lined up in the waiting room, eventually bringing 58 cats to this location. It was a whirlwind day with the last cat leaving at 3:30 in the afternoon. At the two other Catsnip locations, Lehigh Valley Animal Hospital spayed and neutered 37 cats while Walbert Animal Hospital handled 14 cats!






Pam and Wendy helped Diane with registration!

































Cats line the hallways at Dr. Karen's Critter Care waiting for their turn with Dr. Christine Bongiornio or Dr. Karen! These vets and their technicians are truly heroic, volunteering their entire Sunday to make Catsnip a possibility. We cannot thank them enough!

We also thank 69 News for coming to Dr. Karen's Critter Care to educate the public about this community service!

This is Poppy! She was recently adopted from a shelter and after settling into her new home, her owner discovered she had a broken pelvis. No Kill Lehigh Valley was able to pay for the surgery and as you can see by the pictures, Poppy is part of a loving family!

End Live Pidgeon Shoots!

For a long time, Pennsylvania has been host to horrific live pidgeon shoots. Live birds are launched in front of shooters to be killed or wounded and the wounded ones are left to die slow and painful deaths. Wayne Pacelle, President of the Humane Society, writes about them in his blog: http://hsus.typepad.com/wayne/2011/02/pigeon-shoots.html

Senator Browne has introduced SB 626 which prohibits live bird shoots. Please click on the link below to find your Senator and call them and/or email them asking them to support SB 626. These awful events must be stopped!

https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=4903

Lucky is a Parvo Survivor!

This adorable 4 month-old pup was recently purchased from a breeder. She was happy-go-lucky at first but then became lethargic and began vomiting. Her owner rushed her to Valley Central where the diagnosis was grim --- Parvo! Often a death sentence for a puppy.

Unfortunately, his owner could not afford to hospitalize him and without aggressive treatment and hospitalization, this puppy would undoubtedly die. No Kill Lehigh Valley authorized one night of hospitalization to see how he responded to treatment. Luckily, the next morning this pup's white blood cell count increased, which is a good sign, and he was much more lively. We authorized another night of hospitalization and then had him transferred to Dr. Karen's Critter Care where he was discharged after a third day of care!

Lucky has a very appropriate name!

State Representatives Examining Dog Law!

I would like to thank Tamara Harding for bringing to our attention that recently, Representative Denlinger of, where else?.... Lancaster, got a proposal passed in the house agricultural committee that enables them to do a study of the economic impact of the Dog Law. He claims it is not a lead up to changing or weakening the law but a way to introduce tax credits to help those who have made substantial capital investments in their kennel business and are in trouble due to the dog law. The question is, do these kennels deserve to be helped? And why are they using tax payer dollars to do a study in order to help the poor puppy mills. I called Rep Reichley's office to get the actual proposal document so I will know more(hopefully) after reading it. The woman I spoke with was very helpful.

The ASPCA is definitely alarmed and concerned about this proposal and is urging everyone to contact their Representative about it. Here's a way to do it! Please be polite! It works!

I personally think a phone call is worth 1000 emails. I would also call your Rep and politely voice your concern about this proposal. Click here to find your state Rep.

Mojo - a heartwarming story

On Sunday, while on our way to a Trap Neuter Return workshop at Tabby's Place, we received a call from a woman who is a caregiver for a feral colony in Allentown. She noticed one of her cats, Mojo, was having trouble urinating and was staggering while walking. We told her to get him over to Valley Central Emergency Veterinary Hospital.

The news from Valley Central was not good. Mojo had a blocked urinary tract with very high potassium levels and a an extremely low heart rate -- in short, he had a 50/50 chance of surviving the treatment. No Kill Lehigh Valley authorized treatment.

Miraculously, Mojo pulled through and is back with his caregiver. Another happy ending! As you can see in the picture, Mojo is recovering nicely!

Max Dixon - The Saga

It started when Tina Dixon got a panicked call from her son saying he had put Max out in the yard and when he let him in, Max couldn't put weight on one leg. Tina flew home and they brought Max to a Petsmart clinic. They gave Max some pain medication, telling Tina to bring Max back if he still couldn't walk. Five days later, Max was still in a lot of pain so Tina brought him to her vet.

The news was devastating. Max had torn ligaments in his knee and complex surgery was needed to put a fake ligament in place of the damaged one --$2,400.00. Tina was able to borrow $1000 as a down payment so the surgery could be done, but she had no idea where the balance would come from. Happily, she was told about No Kill Lehigh Valley and after 3 1/2 hours of surgery, Max's operation was deemed a success! He just had his stitches out today and is able to put weight on the leg for the first time! We were able to pay the balance owed to the vet.

It was Max Dixon's lucky day when he met Tina. She adopted him from the North Shore Animal League's shelter. He had come in as a puppy with a tail broken due to abuse. Tina just wanted to give him the love he had yet to experience. Due to her love and persistence in finding help for him, Max will turn 4 in July romping like a puppy!

Lacy

This is Lacy in a post-op picture with her cone collar. This poor puppy fell on the ice and broke her leg. No Kill Lehigh Valley paid for her surgery and now she is on the mend! Another happy ending!

Meet Titan - A dog we were able to help.

Titan, an 11 month old Pit Bull, recently had the misfortune to be hit by a car. Her leg was in a cast but was not healing properly. No Kill Lehigh Valley was able to pay for a new operation and now she is on the mend.

Operation Catsnip 2011

As part of our effort to make the Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley a no-kill community, No Kill Lehigh Valley routinely holds low cost spay/neuter clinics know as Operation Catsnip.

Our next Catsnip will be held on Sunday, March 27th 2011

Female cats cost $35.00
Male cats cost $25.00

Rabies/Distemper vaccinations are $10.00 each available to cats having surgery.

To register: nokill.lehighvalley@yahoo.com or 484-554-5048

Surgery locations and drop-off time given at registration.

We won the Pepsi Refresh Project!

Do you believe in miracles? One occurred on January 31st at midnight when No Kill Lehigh Valley Won $50,000 in the Pepsi Refresh Project! If this were an acceptance speech at the Academy Awards, the music would drown us out long before we could thank everyone that helped us win. Our small group became the sentimental favorite in the contest as we entered the final voting day in 11th place (top ten get the grant). We marshaled every member of the media, every Facebook friend, every animal group and animal lover we knew to vote us to an eleventh hour win that we didn't even know about until the next morning!

Boy are we going to make good use of the money trapping neutering and returning feral cats, providing funds for catastrophic veterinary surgeries, and holding spay/neuter clinics. Stay tuned for stories of animals we have helped already!