Wednesday, December 23, 2009

A lesson in problem solving…

A bitch caught the tail end of NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams and this segment (hope this link works!) about a young man who is making a difference in his community.

The young man is a regular volunteer at a local shelter for abandoned pets. He noticed the increase in the number of pets being given up at the shelter and asked why it was happening. The answer was clear – folks are having trouble making ends meet and they are giving up their pets because they can’t afford to feed them.

Now, some folks may have responded to that news and the increased need for resources at the shelter by organizing donations to the shelter…and a bitch fully supports donating goods and money to local animal shelters because Betsey the sorta-beagle and her cousin Sweetie the three-legged chow are both former shelter dawgs.

But I also adore the solution this young man came up with…he started a food bank at the animal shelter.

I love this lesson in problem solving because it demonstrated a true understanding of the problem and it also helps the shelter out.

People who are struggling get to keep their pet companions…and feed them through donations until they are back on their feet financially.

The shelter, which was struggling to provide services to the increased numbers of abandoned pets, get relief and also gets to connect with and educate folks from the community who obviously love their pets and are concerned about animal welfare.

And the pet companions get to stay with their loved ones and provide their special pet-based support during these hard times.

Pause…consider…continue.

I love this shit!

A fluff of the Afro to Zach and to everyone volunteering at, donating to or withdrawing from pet food banks across the country!

12 comments:

Miss Trudy said...

I love the solution because I know that the elderly, for example, who often live alone with their pets, really rely on them for companionship and love. However, the elderly are among the most at risk in times of economic downturn and I can imagine many cannot feed their pets, as well as children with unemployed parents, etc. We share the world with other living beings and we need to start feeling responsible for all, human and non-human, as a community.

IseultTheIdle said...

Aw, that is sweet! I'm going to suggest this idea to my local cat shelter (if they don't already have one).

LisaMJ said...

That is an AWESOME story. What a great idea. It is so sad thinking about people who are already down b/c they are struggling and then they have to give up their beloved pets who are like family.

Anonymous said...

Miss ABB: I also think a big problem is that many landlords don't allow pets. Pets shouldn't just be for people who own houses. :/

Unknown said...

1800 lbs in one city in one week.

I rescue cats and kittens. Since I live in a downtrodden part of town, cats are rarely spayed or neutered. They are abandoned easily as well. We find homes for the kittens, but the adults never seem to get one. ;(

We do catch and release. The local non-profit feline organization pays for fixing the cats.

We also spend more $ feeding the cats than we do to feed ourselves. I ain't bitching, just stating a fact. ;)I have a wonderful blogger bud that donates dry and canned food to us three times a year.

That young boy made my day, thanks Shark Fu. ;)

Grafton said...

I used to work for a vet.

When a pet dies, very often the people will leave all of the animal's 'possessions' at the vet clinic. I collected these things and moved them around -- food for the pet-food bank, crates, collars, leads, toys, beds, etc for rescue organizations.

Before I started doing that, they just threw that stuff away or gave it to other clients. They didn't have the space to store it and didn't want to take the time to deliver it to where it'd be useful.

Anyway, if you want to help out a pet-food bank and feel like driving around, you might call a bunch of vet clinics and ask them if you can come by often and pick up the 'donations' of that sort. I got a tonne of stuff from just the one clinic, and they were grateful to me for taking it away.

Shark-Fu said...

Fantastic idea, Grafton! Thanks for sharing!

dinthebeast said...

Great story. And it sounds as if you are feeling better, which is also a great thing. That's all.

-Doug in Oakland

rachael said...

Here's another great idea. I found this aside on one geek-blogger website I visit:

" Nothing delights me more than great books.
If you like my blog, I'd be thankful for a gift from my Amazon book wishlist. :) "


Just a thought...

Assrot said...

I hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Joe

Mocha said...

I needed to hear this right now. i needed some semblance of hope in the world and problem-solving that is EASY. This is so simple and that's what makes it fantastic.

IseultTheIdle said...

Here's another idea that I found amazingly simple: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/12/24/DDCJ1B7LNR.DTL

I especially liked the wedding cake that was donated for a little girl's birthday. ;-D

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