Meet Ms. Ellen, our first Featured Adoptable of 2009! Ellen is an mini-American Eskimo Dog, and is currently being fostered by Heart Bandits American Eskimo Dog Rescue in Overland Park, KS:

Ellen is a retired breeder about 5 years old. She is a small mini Eskie of 12 pounds. Ellen is quiet and likes to have lots of towels or blankies in her bed. She is initially fearful of humans but not a biter. Likes to run around, play and wrestle with the other Eskies. Walks on leash and will let you pick her up. Comes when called for breakfast or supper. She will also come up to you to be petted if you are patient. Knows basic commands like Sit and Go Potty.

We are currently offering a reduced adoption fee of $150 for Ellen.

Ellen is spayed, crate trained, house trained, up-to-date on shots, tests and preventatives. Ellen deserves a kind, loving and understanding home that will let her be a part of the family. We are recommending no small children because even though Ellen is good with children she is frightened by sudden or quick movements.

Find out more about Ellen - as well as the many other dogs available through Heart Bandits - here.

Help a middle-aged lady start off her “golden” retirement years right! Just looks at those gorgeous baby blues and try to resist her womanly charms…

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Each Wednesday, the Kansas City Freecycle blog will feature one adoptable animal from a local KC rescue group or animal shelter.

We do this for several reasons:

- To highlight the plight of companion animals in the Kansas City area.

- To remind members of our no-animal policy, and provide an alternative venue for members who wish to adopt an unwanted animal.

- To encourage members to adopt a furry friend.

- To help out out local animal rescue groups and animal shelters, many of which are overwhelmed by the sheer number of animals in need.

- To illustrate these animals’ unique personalities and characteristics, thus underscoring the fact that they are not objects and should not be “freecycled”.

Click here to view past Featured Adoptables.

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Tagged: kcfreecycle freecycle kansas ks missouri mo kcmo kcks featured adoptables animal adoption animal rescue petfinder pet companion animal dog canine ellen overland park American Eskimo Dog mini-American Eskimo Dog Heart Bandits American Eskimo Dog Rescue Heart Bandits

Meet our last Featured Adoptable of 2008, Seamore the kitty. I chose Seamore for no reason other than the cuteness quotient of his photo. Love that kitty stretch!

Seamore hails from Foxwood Rescue in Kansas City, MO. If you hop on over to their Petfinder listings, you’ll see that the group is currently overwhelmed with cats - in fact, they’re having a “cat overflow adoption sale”:

For a limited time adult cats are $65 and kittens are $75. They are fixed, current on shots, dewormed, felv/fiv tested, and microchipped! We have soooo many great cats looking for homes and they would really love to have a loving forever home!!

So if little Seamore doesn’t strike your fancy, there are oddles and oodles of cats to choose from.

But how can you resist cute Seamore, anyhow?

Name: Seamore
DOB: 3/31/08
Breed: Domestic Shorthair
Color: Gray/White
Sex: Male/Neutered

Contact: Call Dawn at 816-665-2339 (Please leave a message if no answer and I will call you back)

Very sweet and playful kitten.

REQUIREMENTS:

1) We only adopt kittens/cats out to INDOOR ONLY HOMES as they are much safer indoors.

2) Please have at least 2 references verifying that you have been and will be a good pet owner. 1 preferably being from a vet.

3) Your other pets must already be fixed and current on vaccinations.

4) If this cat/kitten doesn’t work out in your home you must agree to bring it back to us, no matter how long it has been, and we will find it another home.

The adoption fee is $75 and that includes a Felv Test for kittens under 3 months and a Felv/Fiv Test for kittens/cats over 4 months, spay/neuter, up to date shots, and all animals are now Microchipped.

You can also meet Seamore - or any of Foxwood’s other rescues - at their adoption events:

Some of our animals are brought to our adoption events on the weekends. If you’d like a certain animal to be there please let us know so we will be sure and bring him/her.

SATURDAYS & SUNDAYS (Noon to 5pm):
***WE ARE NOT THERE THE FIRST SUNDAY OF EVERY MONTH***

Petco (Cats can also be viewed daily at this location!)
4802 Noland Road
Kansas City, MO 64133

Saturdays we mainly just bring the cats and a few dogs, Sunday is when we bring most of the dogs. Please call if you’d like a certain animal brought there!

What better way to kick off the New Year than by welcoming 2009 with a furry new friend?

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When I started the “Featured Adoptable” series back in April of 2008, it was my hope to help the animal rescue community here in Kansas City by highlighting some of the many wonderful animals available for adoption. In the past seven months, I’ve featured 40 animals, 22 of which have either been adopted - or euthanized (not all area shelters are “no-kill,” and when an animal’s listing has been removed from Petfinder rather than updated, there’s no way of knowing what happened to the animal in question). Through the months, we’ve met dogs, cats, mice, rabbits, pigs, horses, sheep, birds, guinea pigs - even a ferret! But one animal in particular has stuck with me - Gramby the pit bull.

Gramby was the second animal I featured on the KC Freecycle blog, right after One-Eyed Jack. Back in May, Gramby was 18 months old and had been at Animal Haven for more than a year. Despite Animal Haven’s best efforts - he’s been their “featured pet” for quite some time, as also served as the model doggeh for the group’s Tire Marks logo - Gramby still has yet to be adopted. Poor Gramby has spent much of his puppy- and young adult-hood an orphan.

Animal Haven is the largest no-kill shelter in the Kansas City area. In fact, they’re only one of two such shelters in the area:

Animal Haven is a non-profit animal shelter operating with a progressive no-kill philosophy. For over 40 years, Animal Haven has served our community as both an adoption center and as an organization that manages stray animals for up to twelve local municipalities. Animal Haven is the only non-profit animal shelter in Johnson County, Kansas that manages stray animals. In 2007, Animal Haven accepted 3,167 stray, unwanted, orphaned, abandoned and rescued companion animals. Animal Haven is determined to help as many pets as possible find the loving homes they deserve, while working to ensure that animals in our care are both behaviorally and physically healthy. No animal is ever euthanized for space at Animal Haven.

Of the 3,167 animals received in 2007, 1,457 were adopted into great new homes and 1,073 were happily reunited with their original families. Sadly, 637 had to be humanely put to sleep due to illness or aggression. Statistics, such as these qualify Animal Haven as a no-kill shelter. Animal Haven is currently one of two no-kill shelters in the Greater Kansas City Area.

(Clearly, “no-kill” doesn’t really mean “no kill,” but that’s another discussion altogether.)

One consequence of following a “no-kill” philosophy is that some animals - those that, for whatever reason, cannot be adopted out in a timely fashion - are warehoused for indefinite periods of time. Such is the case with Gramby: at 25+ months of age, he’s spent roughly 18+ of those months at Animal Haven. Assuming he hasn’t been placed with a foster family - most of Animal Haven’s animals are housed at the shelter - that’s a long, lonely time to spend in a cage.

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Rather than feature an adoptable animal listed on Petfinder, today I’m mixing it up a bit. This week, I’d like to highlight the work of Dogs Deserve Better (DDB), a non-profit group which is “dedicated to freeing the chained dog, and bringing our ‘best friend’ into the home and family.”

DDB works with canine caretakers to educate them about animal behavior and health. Because chaining can prove both physically and psychologically torturous for dogs - who are, after all, pack animals - DDB’s primary goal is to free “outside” dogs from their chains and bring them inside, with the rest of their family.

Dogs Deserve Better, 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA/Chase Pet Protector Award, is a voice for chained and penned dogs, whose sadness speaks only through the eyes. As the days become years, many of these dogs sit, lay, eat, and defecate within the same 10-foot radius. Chained by the neck, they exist without respect, love, exercise, social interaction, and sometimes even basic nourishment. They live as prisoners, yet long to be pets.

Chaining is not only inhumane for dogs, but has taken a severe toll on this nation’s children as well. In the period from October 2003 through August 2008, there were at least 239 children killed or seriously injured by chained dogs across the country. Chained dogs, unsocialized with humans, can become very territorial of their tiny space, and any two year old who wanders into this space can be attacked and killed before adults can intervene. A recent attack in Texas in March, 2007 left 2 year old Carolina Sotello dead from head and neck wounds. She was attacked and killed by an unneutered male dog chained in the backyard, next to an unspayed female with puppies.

Would you for one second choose to live the life of these dogs? No matter what reason is given, the bottom line is that it is NOT ok to chain a dog for life. Dogs should not have to live chained or penned as prisoners, yearning for a place in a family, craving acknowledgment, respect, and love. They DESERVE BETTER, and we as caretakers have the obligation to provide it for them.

Through their outreach efforts, DDB helps dog “owners” do right by their charges, for example, by procuring and installing fencing so that tethering is unnecessary or working to solve behavioral issues that might otherwise prevent these dogs from staying inside the home, with the rest of their family. Sometimes, owners opt to surrender their dogs to DDB, who then rehomes the animals. Currently, DDB has three ex-chained dogs up for adoption in Missouri: Cody and Scooby are located in Columbia, while Miss Wendy (my mom’s name is Wendy!) is in Kansas City, MO.

Here’s Wendy’s listing:

Wendy is a Hound mix, 9-10 years old, female, spayed, UTD on shots, good with men, women, children and cats. Must go to a home without other dogs. Dog aggressive. Wendy would be perfect for an elderly person looking for a companion. Totally house-trained. Kennel trained. Location: Kansas City, MO Originally rescued from an Arkansas hoarder; lived chained for 2 years. Wendy is smart and affectionate and is content to sleep all day.

To find out more, visit DDB’s adoption page and scroll about halfway down - Wendy is sandwiched between Max from Georgia and Scooby from Missouri.

If you’d like to volunteer with DDB, or need their help with a chained dog, you can view a list of area representatives here. There are several in the KC area, including Overland Park, KS and Kansas City and Liberty, MO.

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This week’s featured adoptable kitteh is named McLovin’ - and that’s about all you need to know.

I kid, I kid. Here’s what McLovin’s foster family at Forever Friends Animal League has to say about her:

My name is McLovin’. And that really describes me. I’m very loving and affectionate. And I’m very handsome. Black with a little white on my tummy. Us black cats have a tougher time getting a home because people tend to overlook us because we’re dark. But I’m hoping you’re someone who will just want a great cat with a very long, luxurious tail. My sister and brothers were rescued as kittens along with my beautiful black mama. She just found a new home. She is super friendly and so am I. I like to do things most cats do — play, snuggle and explore. I used to escape from the cattery here at the foster home and climb the ducts up to the first floor and emerge from the uptake vent. My foster mom would freak.

[...]

We will begin having Friday night adoptions again! This time we will be at the Ward Parkway Mall Petsmart, Fridays 5:00 pm to 8:00pm. thru Christmas. Come adopt Friday and spend the whole weekend with your new best friend!

We will continue to be at he Ward Parkway Mall Petsmart Sundays 1:00 to 5:00.

Not every animal attends every adoption so as always, please call ahead to confirm a particular animal will be present.

Won’t you get your bad self to Petsmart and let McLovin’ charm her way into your life, hmmmm?

She’s Superbad, yo.

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Each Wednesday, the Kansas City Freecycle blog will feature one adoptable animal from a local KC rescue group or animal shelter.

We do this for several reasons:

- To highlight the plight of companion animals in the Kansas City area.

- To remind members of our no-animal policy, and provide an alternative venue for members who wish to adopt an unwanted animal.

- To encourage members to adopt a furry friend.

- To help out out local animal rescue groups and animal shelters, many of which are overwhelmed by the sheer number of animals in need.

- To illustrate these animals’ unique personalities and characteristics, thus underscoring the fact that they are not objects and should not be “freecycled”.

Click here to view past Featured Adoptables.

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Tagged: kcfreecycle freecycle kansas ks missouri mo kcmo kcks featured adoptables animal adoption animal rescue petfinder pet companion animal cat feline black cat mclovin’ Forever Friends Animal League mix Domestic Short Hair Siamese superbad

Update, 12/17/08: Vinny’s listing is no longer available on Petfinder.

Vinny the Vizsla mix wants to spend his second Christmas lounging at home, cuddling in his new master’s (or mistress’s!) lap, preferably in front of a nice warm fire. Look at those big baby browns - how can you say no?

Hey there! It’s Vinny here!

For those of you that don’t know me, I’m a 1 year-old visla/great dane (poss) mix. (I, however, still just think I’m a big clumsy V!) I still have a lot of puppy characteristics and just LOVE to play. I try really hard to get my foster family’s V’s to play with me. I want to have fun and fit in with them, but sometimes forget my size! At 69lbs, I’m hard to miss! I’m crate trained, but really don’t prefer to be in my crate (who would?), but I get how the whole thing works and I don’t complain too much. I’m VERY happy when I’m out and about with the family. I like to play outdoors and do well off leash in country settings. My favorite thing is to be loved on! I like to lay my head on my foster mom’s chest when she’s laying on the couch. Sometimes I sneak my way up to lay on her lap. She has a hard time telling my big brown eyes no! Mom says I have a big head, but I think she means that in a nice way. I’m totally house trained, UTD on shots, heartworm negative and neutered…what more could you ask for? I really just want to find my forever home. Don’t get me wrong, I love my foster family and they love me. Pssst…they actually think I’m pretty cool and like having me around! However, I really want to find a family of my own who’s going to love me and keep me forever. I know in my heart the perfect family is out there just WAITING for me!

If you think you might be them, contact my foster mom Ashley.

Hugs and Kisses, Vinny

Vinny’s foster mom is with Show Me Vizsla Club Rescue, in Kansas City, MO. To find out more about Vinny and the Vizsla Club Rescue, hop on over to his Petfinder listing, here.

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Each Wednesday, the Kansas City Freecycle blog will feature one adoptable animal from a local KC rescue group or animal shelter.

We do this for several reasons:

- To highlight the plight of companion animals in the Kansas City area.

- To remind members of our no-animal policy, and provide an alternative venue for members who wish to adopt an unwanted animal.

- To encourage members to adopt a furry friend.

- To help out out local animal rescue groups and animal shelters, many of which are overwhelmed by the sheer number of animals in need.

- To illustrate these animals’ unique personalities and characteristics, thus underscoring the fact that they are not objects and should not be “freecycled”.

Click here to view past Featured Adoptables.

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Tagged: kcfreecycle freecycle kansas ks missouri mo kcmo kcks featured adoptables animal adoption animal rescue petfinder pet companion animal dog canine Vinny mutt mix Vizsla Great Dane Vizsla/Great Dane mix Show Me Vizsla Club Rescue

Missouri German Shepherd Rescue (MOGS) has so many beautiful German Shepherd dogs available for adoption, it was hard to choose just one to feature today: there’s Cher, the puppy mill refugee, dumped by her breeder owner once she was spent; Kelsey, also a puppy mill rescue, who at one year young was considered “too old” to be sold for a profit and as such was dumped at the pound; and Tyson, who has developed degenerative arthritis in his hips and spine at only six years of age. Who to choose?

Meet Sinjun, a German Shepherd Dog/Border Collie mix, who’s looking for a foster or forever home:

LOCATION: Kansas City
AGE: 2 yrs

Temperament: SINJUN is a beautiful girl with a wonderful personality. SHE IS A REGISTERED THERAPY DOG, although she is NOT completely trained as a therapy dog. She learned only those things her owner needed - to “hear” the doorbell for her (hearing loss) and a few other things. She is registered with S.A.R.A.

SINJUN ’s owner lived in a small senior citizen facility, and developed severe medical problems. Her doctor ordered her to rehome SINJUN because she would no longer be able to care for her in a small apartment following double knee replacement surgery. Unfortunately, absolutely no one in the owner’s family was willing to step forward and help her. They professed to love her, and we’re grateful they found us so we could save SINJUN from being dumped at an awful pound. But it’s interesting that the owner and owner’s family who originally contacted us with such emotion, haven’t even inquired about how she is. Very disturbing.

SINJUN is currently in boarding and was extremely confused at first. But after she got her bearings she has come out of her shell, stopped being afraid, and is a delightful dog.

SINJUN is incredibly smart and would be perfect for anyone who chose to complete her service dog training. If that’s not needed, she’ll simply be one smart cookie who can help you with anything you chose to train her to. As a german shepherd / border collie mix, she has all the intelligence and love of the two breeds combined.

To learn more about Sinjun - or the many GSD dogs staying with Missouri German Shepherd Rescue - check out her Petfinder listing, here.

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Each Wednesday, the Kansas City Freecycle blog will feature one adoptable animal from a local KC rescue group or animal shelter.

We do this for several reasons:

- To highlight the plight of companion animals in the Kansas City area.

- To remind members of our no-animal policy, and provide an alternative venue for members who wish to adopt an unwanted animal.

- To encourage members to adopt a furry friend.

- To help out out local animal rescue groups and animal shelters, many of which are overwhelmed by the sheer number of animals in need.

- To illustrate these animals’ unique personalities and characteristics, thus underscoring the fact that they are not objects and should not be “freecycled”.

Click here to view past Featured Adoptables.

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Tagged: kcfreecycle freecycle kansas ks missouri mo kcmo kcks featured adoptables animal adoption animal rescue petfinder pet companion animal dog canine gsd German Shepherd Border Collie mix mutt Missouri German Shepherd Rescue mogs service dog sinjun

Maybe I’ve just got guinea pigs on the mind, but when I saw dear Mo listed on Petfinder, I knew I’d found this week’s featured adoptable!

Mo, an adult male guinea pig, is currently staying with LJ’s Briar Patch in Shawnee Mission, KS:

Mo is named for his white Mohawk stripe down his head. He loves to explore and will not hesitate to investigate any place he thinks would be fun to check out, so making sure Mo has a safe place to play is a must. He absolutely loves to eat, and is very vocal when dinner and snack time come around. Mo is a talker and will at times wheek and wheek for a long time if he is not given what he wants (food). He is shy but in the short time he has been in our care he has begun to come out of his shell. With love and attention Mo will be a wonderful addition to an adult only home. We only adopt our animals as indoor pets and we do not ship our pets.

Click through to Mo’s Petfinder page to learn more about adopting this cute and furry little critter.

As for why I’ve got guinea pigs on the brain…Wiki can riddle you that.

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Each Wednesday, the Kansas City Freecycle blog will feature one adoptable animal from a local KC rescue group or animal shelter.

We do this for several reasons:

- To highlight the plight of companion animals in the Kansas City area.

- To remind members of our no-animal policy, and provide an alternative venue for members who wish to adopt an unwanted animal.

- To encourage members to adopt a furry friend.

- To help out out local animal rescue groups and animal shelters, many of which are overwhelmed by the sheer number of animals in need.

- To illustrate these animals’ unique personalities and characteristics, thus underscoring the fact that they are not objects and should not be “freecycled”.

Click here to view past Featured Adoptables.

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Tagged: kcfreecycle freecycle kansas ks missouri mo kcmo kcks featured adoptables animal adoption animal rescue petfinder pet companion animal guinea pig mo mohawk LJ’s Briar Patch Shawnee Mission South Park Pandemic The Startling Cloverfield

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Spay & Neuter Kansas City - snkcnews [at] snkc.net
Date: Tue, Nov 11, 2008 at 10:54 AM
Subject: Low Cost Vaccination Clinic!

SAVE THE DATE!!! Another November Clinic! November 22nd, 2008

Please foward to your friends, family and co-workers!

Proceeds from vaccinations clinics help more animals in our community.

SNKC
PO Box 410303
KC, MO 64141
816-353-0940
www.snkc.net

Low Cost Pet Vaccination Clinic!

Spay and Neuter Kansas City is hosting a indoor low cost rabies/microchip clinic on

Saturday, November 22nd, 2008
608 Ash Ave
Independence, MO
10am to 12pm.

Rabies vaccinations are only $10 and Microchip Identification Chips are only $15. KCMO Pet Licensing will also be available at this clinic. Licenses are $12 for altered pets.

Volunteer Help Needed!

If you can help with the upcoming vaccination clinic or can help distribute flyers…. please email Jennifer Shive at jshive [at] sbcglobal.net

We need help with administration, traffic control, issuing tags and veterinary assistance.

Week Day Clinic Volunteer Help

SNKC is seeking volunteers to help with dog and cat recovery during the weekdays from 9am to 5pm on Tuesday, Thursday or Fridays.

Email Marketing by
Spay & Neuter Kansas City | 3710 Main Street | Kansas City | MO | 64111

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As a teen, my family had a rabbit, Pokey - so named because he resembled the Pokey Little Puppy of Golden Book fame (and also due to his penchant for, ahem, “poking” his stuffed animal companion). Pokey was sweetheart; he got on well with both our dog and cat, as well as the wild rabbits he’d encounter when we’d let him loose in a pen outside. I’d love to adopt another rabbit, but alas! - my five dogs are little monsters, with more than one wild rabbit kill under their furry belts.

If, however, you’re looking to bring a new bunny into your home, have I got the rabbit for you! Meet Petey the Dutch Rabbit, who’s currently staying with the good folks at the Kansas City chapter of the Missouri House Rabbit Society in Lake Winnebago, MO:

Petey is a Dutch male, neutered. He was turned loose and rescued by a good samaritan. He was quite emaciated when rescued, and had fleas, mites, coccidia and a tapeworm. He is now healthy and happy and is looking for a good home. He is very loving, has excellent litter habits, and really wants a bunny girlfriend. If you’d like to meet Petey, please contact the House Rabbit Society at hrsmissouri [at] aol.com.

Interested? You can find out more about Petey and the MO House Rabbit Society here.

———————–

Each Wednesday, the Kansas City Freecycle blog will feature one adoptable animal from a local KC rescue group or animal shelter.

We do this for several reasons:

- To highlight the plight of companion animals in the Kansas City area.

- To remind members of our no-animal policy, and provide an alternative venue for members who wish to adopt an unwanted animal.

- To encourage members to adopt a furry friend.

- To help out out local animal rescue groups and animal shelters, many of which are overwhelmed by the sheer number of animals in need.

- To illustrate these animals’ unique personalities and characteristics, thus underscoring the fact that they are not objects and should not be “freecycled”.

Click here to view past Featured Adoptables.

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Tagged: kcfreecycle freecycle kansas ks missouri mo kcmo kcks featured adoptables animal adoption animal rescue petfinder pet companion animal rabbit bunny bunny rabbit petey dutch rabbit house rabbit society missouri house rabbit society