Turning a Pet Rescue Holiday Greeting Card into a Political Statement

It never ceases to amaze me how someone can look at something so simple and innocent and turn it into a political message.

I am originally from Austell, GA, but I always claim Tybee Island as my home. It's where I spent most of my childhood, learned the greater lessons of life, and became part of an amazing community. I was active as a volunteer for the Tybee Beautification and volunteered my time with the Tybee Island Lighthouse as well as Tybee Island Marine Science Center in high school. When I started Coastal Pet Rescue, it was no surprise that the first supporters were from Tybee. It's just the kind of community we have on the island.

Fast forward a few years. A local artist contacts me with a great fundraising idea for the holidays. We have been struggling hard because of the economy this year, and her idea helps us fill an need brought to us by a couple of other supporters as well. So Debbie Brady Robinson of Atlantic Beacon Gallery set out to create a holiday gift card that could be sold in sets of 10 with 50% of the profits going to Coastal Pet Rescue. The artwork features a sleeping kitty and puppy on the beach. Kitty is wearing sunglasses, puppy has a beach ball. It's a warm and fuzzy card, and something similar to what I buy each year myself.



So we sent out an email blast with the photo and link to the website for people to purchase the cards (only $10). An hour later, here's an email I get from a friend on Tybee Island:

Lisa, I’m simply forwarding this message to you as an FYI…..

From: email protected by my friend
Sent: Thursday, November 12, 2009 2:31 PM
To: email removed to protect the messenger
Subject: Coastal Pet Rescue

"Did you notice Lisa's new slogan? I think she's making a major mistake to take on this political issue and could lose the support of many people. As you know I have dogs and am a dog advocate but am more concerned about health and safety of my children and other animals, our bird population, clean water quality & beach preservation than having my dogs be able to walk on a leash at the beach. I hate to see the new council having to deal with the issue of dogs on the beach issue once again, when they will already have huge hurdles to address as they take office."

I have three issues here:

1. This is a greeting card, not a slogan. Our slogan is "Changing Lives... One at a Time."

2. Why is kitty in the image allowed to be on the beach, but not the dog. Isn't that discrimination?

3. Where in the world would I find time to create a subliminal political message, especially when there are fewer than 30 members on our email list from Tybee Island?

While I am often proud to say I'm from Tybee, here is one of the times that it hurts me to say so. Our little island gets so consumed by politics. Right now, there's a movement to try and get city council to allow dogs on the beach as other beaches in Georgia do. I have not spoken publicly, on my blog or anywhere about my feelings for or against this movement. I personally do not take my dogs to the beach; it's just my personal preference. But I am all for anything that helps strengthen the animal-human bond, which this group of supporters seems to be trying to accomplish. (And kudos to the Dogs on the Beach organizer who has done a lot of research on regional beaches that do allow pets to have some facts backing up his movement rather than just personal preferences.) Since I no longer live on the island, I really have no vote, and will have to abide by whatever is decided, whether it be by council or by city vote. Hopefully, some sort of compromise can be reached to satisfy both sides.

I would be lying if I didn't say that losing support from Tybee Island residents for our great organization dedicated to helping homeless pets because we allowed a greeting card to be made featuring a kitten and puppy on the beach didn't leave me heartbroken. But if that is really their deciding factor, then that is a shame.

So, to the original writer of the email, I'm sorry you were so offended by the holiday cards, but I am not going to ask the artist to change them. We are so thrilled someone wants to help us provide food and veterinary care to the animals in our program and be part of the solution.

So to all the rest of you, go buy these cards! We need your support now more than ever!

Coastal Pet Rescue Announces CoastalPetRescue.org 6.0

Getting in front of potential volunteers, donors and adopters just got a little easier for Coastal Pet Rescue.

For six years, the driving force of Coastal Pet Rescue’s adoptions and volunteer management has been their website, CoastalPetRescue.org.

“We don’t have a brick and mortar shelter, so we have to have a good way for people to find our adoptable pets,” says Lisa Scarbrough, Coastal Pet Rescue president and founder. “Our website is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is what yields 90% of our adoptions each year.”

After six years, Scarbrough, who also works full time as a web developer and webmaster for Paula Deen Enterprises, decided it was time for a change. Development began back in April, and the new site was fully released today.

“Our website may look the same, but we’ve updated the software and made it more social media friendly,” says Scarbrough.

The site is now running on Expression Engine software, which Coastal Pet Rescue adoption managers have found easier to use for adding and updating new pets and information.

User feedback over the last year led Scarbrough to create separate pages listing canines and felines for adoption.

“Potential adopters now have a choice directly on the homepage to link to a full list of cats or a full list of dogs,” says Scarbrough. “The listings page now shows more information about each pet much like a roster to help families narrow down their choices.”

CoastalPetRescue.org now also features two RSS feeds, one for their latest news and one for newly added pets. Both feeds also automatically send out tweets so anyone following the organization on Twitter will see the updates.

Volunteers now have a more dynamic message board to help them plan and execute the organization’s events, and the site’s Frequently Asked Questions has had a complete overhaul with categories and more answers to help visitors more immediately.

“It’s been six months of hard work, both from the development side of the site as well as reorganizing and adding content,” says Scarbrough. “But ultimately, it was a change we needed, and I think visitors will be impressed.”

For more information, visit coastalpetrescue.org.

Founded in February 2003, Coastal Pet Rescue is an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) non-profit animal rescue organization based in Savannah, Georgia dedicated to saving the lives of homeless, abused and neglected dogs and cats in the Creative Coast Savannah and Lowcountry South Carolina areas.

Announcing the Launch of PetFriendlyTybee.com

Have you ever wondered where you can take your pet and have some fun? Two weeks ago, I got together with Southern Images Photography to launch an online directory of pet-friendly establishments around the Savannah area. The first site launched features Tybee information, particularly reviews of the dog parks, two restaurants, and the RV park. The site is in its infancy and suggestions are welcome. Each establishment has been evaluated by a CPR rescued pet. Take a look around to see how you and your pup can enjoy a day on the island.

http://www.petfriendlytybee.com

WalMart: Low Prices, Low Compassion During Hurricane Preparations

I spent my Labor Day making arrangements for our rescued pets, ensuring their safety and few hassles for foster parents needing to take care of their own families. So, I braved a trip to WalMart to stock up on dog food, chewies, water, and an 8-pack of paper towels. It was only as I was putting everything away that I realized I left the paper towels.

On the way home from work today, I stopped and took my receipt in to the customer non-service desk and explained the situation. After looking in "the book," the rep said there wasn't anything she could do because it wasn't listed in the book. I asked to speak with a manager. After hollering "Kathy" multiple times with no one answering her call, the rep finally walked off and got "Kathy." I was not greeted with a smile or "how can I help you?" as you see on the TV commercials (maybe she gets paid much less than those actors, who knows?). Instead, I got a "you need somethin'," said with great impatience. I explained the situation to her again. She looked again in "the book," and said there was nothing she could do. I explained that these were storm supplies for our animal rescue. Her response? "It's not our liability." Nice. What great compassion to show during the first tropical storm threat to our area since Hurricane Floyd.

I know my boycott of them (I even passed up the $3.49 gas) won't do much of anything, but it makes me feel a little better. At least Kroger is just up the road. I guess I'll be seeing them a little later tonight.

We Are Not a Shelter, and I Do Not Get Paid

I don't know how many times I have to reiterate this. Animal rescue is a very tough business to be in, but even tougher when you have limited space and no income.

I wear a lot of different hats and have lots of people to communicate with on a daily basis. I also work full time as a web programmer, work part time as an animal care worker at Animal Control, and am enrolled full-time through Duquesne University. Basically, I don't sleep. So it is a little frustrating when people are pushy with me. Just today I had an email from someone that had sent us some hand-made bedding for kittens. I had already written her that we didn't have any at the time, but appreciated the gift and hoped to use them later. Instead, I went to using them for our very young puppies (I did try it with Sia, but she much preferred her litter box). So imagine how disheartened I was today to get an email demanding me to return the items to her because they were not being used as specified. Our supplies are always limited and we use evertyhing that we can. It is probably my fault because I didn't overwhelm her with gratitude. I had assumed that my simple thank you and acknowledgement was enough. But it wasn't. So I took the one away that Dixie had been using, placed it in a plastic bag, and put it in a box to be returned. We were blessed last month to have Peggy donate a bag of baby blankets, so although it is larger than I wanted for Dixie (didn't want to smother her), it did provide a comfy alternative.

Why is it so hard for people to do nice things without great expectations in return? We always send a hand-written thank you to our donors, and I like to think we are very approachable. But geez, can't we get some consideration for our time? Everyone who works with us does so for their love of animals; none of us receive any montetary compensation. We answer emails on our own free time, which is already limited by work, school, and family life. Sometimes, we have to prioritize how/when people are contacted. We have a secretary that returns all voicemail, an adoption coordinator who handles all correspondence for adoption, a foster coordinator to handle some of the intake and veterinary requests, and a TNR coordinator that handles all correspondence relating to our feral cat program. That leaves all other correspondence to me, which can be anywhere from 80 to 200 emails a day. So yes, it may take a day or so or longer to get a response from me, but I really do the best I can.

And as for us being a shelter, I really don't know how best to explain this. We are not a shelter. We do not have a physical facility that you can drop in anytime you want. We're a foster home organization. The animals live with us in our homes. Again, this means our free time is given up to provide veterinary care, socialization, training, and rehabilitation. So yes, you have to have an appointment to meet one of our pets. And when you do arrive at my house, do not expect Martha Stewart to live here. It is me and the dogs. If it is a long week like this one, there may be laundry in a basket waiting to be folded that has been sitting for four days, dog fur that hasn't been vacuumed in a week, Cutters Point frappe cups stacked on the coffee table, and maybe even a Pizza Hut box on the end table. Or even a hair dryer and wet towels in the corner from the last round of baths.

So please, cut me a little break, will you? I am only one person, and I am really doing the best I can. If you disagree, come spend one day with me and see just how much one person can accomplish in 24 hours, or take a proactive approach and become a volunteer.

Extreme Make-over: Home Edition - Puppy Style

I just love watching the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition every Sunday. A few years ago, I drew up the plans of what I hoped to build for the rescue after watching several episodes. Tonight, I decided to bathe Mickey before I went to bed, so he'd be clean for his stay at the vet the next few days for his heartworm treatment.

Let me start off by saying that Mickey is a wonderful dog. He's very good, usually, for me. He loves to be near me, have my attention. For this reason, I thought I could take on an under 40 pound husky on my own in the shower... I was wrong. He's lean, and determined. His fur really should probably be shaved down so new, healthier fur can grow, but instead, I went for a full shampoo. I used almost an entire bottle, as Husky fur is very thick. I underestimated that, despite him being lean, anything I put on him he could turn into bathroom decor... and he did. And the hallway. And the kitchen. The floors are now cleaner, too, since I had to wipe up all the shampoo paw prints and water he traced throughout the house.

The good news is that we finally came to an understanding and after thirty minutes of negotiating, got all the shampoo out of the fur. The bad news is his part of the negotiations did not allow for a blow drying, so instead, I had to put more towels down on the floor in the kitchen for him to dry himself. Ugh. But at least I'll feel less like the vet will want to call doggy DFACS on me tomorrow since he at least smells a little better. It's a darn good thing he can't talk though...

Question from the Sidelines

A question was posted about a week ago by a new CPR volunteer:

Is it difficult when the pet you fostered actually gets adopted out?

As the president of this organization, I'm charged to balance emotion with logic in our operations. However, there are times that I do get emotionally invested in our pets, and have been known to shed a tear or two when they go to their new homes. Since I take in so many special needs pets (heartworms, parvo, abuse, neglect, etc), I go through a rollercoaster with some of them, trying to get them healthy, get them socialized, overcome obstacles. It's not easy to go from holding a pet on an IV, wondering if they will make it through the night, to sending it to its new home, knowing it may be a very long time before you see it again.

I try to keep the mentality that for each one that is adopted, the space is opened to bring another into rescue. Which is probably why my house is always so full. But it makes it easier when the adoptive families send us photos and updates. It's reaffirming that we are doing good and indeed changing lives, one at a time.