Voices From the ARC Newsletter
“While We Have Time, Let Us Do Good.” –St. Francis of Assisi
Finding Forever Homes for Pets in Hardin County, Kentucky Since July 29, 1989.
By Penny Edwards, on August 29th, 2016 11:47 am
2016 is turning out to be a landmark year for change. We’ve always concentrated most of our efforts toward caring for and finding forever homes for as many animals at ARC as possible. While this is still our primary focus, we’re branching out with other efforts, helping even more animals in need than ever before.
Last year, after the Best Friends National Conference, we decided that in order to make the most impact on our community, we would have to diversify our services.
Best Friends is the largest no-kill sanctuary in the world, and it’s easy to sum up their philosophy in just three simple words: “Save Them All.” In order for the USA to become a no-kill nation, Best Friends advises and empowers other shelters and rescue organizations to work together. With that in mind, the Animal Refuge Center has reached out to our local Hardin County Animal Shelter to pull cats and dogs in high risk of euthanasia. Since April 2016, we have pulled 24 cats and kittens, and 4 dogs that were in danger of being euthanized.
Our ultimate objective, along with other organizations like the Hardin County Animal Shelter, Friends of Hardin County Animal Shelter and Forever Homes For Paws, is to make this entire community no-kill. We have to work together in order to achieve this enormous goal.
In the last issue of our newsletter, we told you “Cookie’s Story”, and how deeply it affected us. Since that time, we have trapped and neutered two members of Cookie’s family (Nestle and Sylvester), and we hope to trap, neuter and release the rest very soon.
Along with Cookie’s family, we helped two cats behind a business in Radcliff, and a couple of kitties in Vine Grove were trapped, neutered and released to become barn cats at a local farm. This program is up and running, but we are just beginning, and we have a long way to go. It takes donations to Cookie’s Legacy in order to fully implement this program. Some of you have given extra donations to Cookie’s Fund, but we’re still behind in our fundraising goals for this important program.
The Glendale Crossing Festival is on October 15th, which is also usually successful.
According to Best Friends, there are three major things that keep us from becoming a No-Kill nation:
1. The Community Cat (feral cat) problem
2. Breed-specific legislation
3. Puppy mills: people shopping, not adopting
ARC is working on the first item on the list. Trapping, Neutering and Releasing (TNR) cats is the only answer for saving lives. We’re working toward a better world for them.
Thankfully, the second on the list—Breed-specific legislation—is not really a problem in our community. There are cities like Cincinnati that don’t allow Pit Bulls or Pit mixes within city limits. Fortunately our area doesn’t have such laws and our shelters work diligently to find Pit Bulls homes. Their breed doesn’t mark them for an automatic death sentence like in other parts of the country.
The third item on the list, Puppy mills, is being fought in different parts of the US, and is becoming a growing problem in Hardin County. Something that all of us can do is adopt instead of shopping for your pet, and report neglect and abuse of animals, especially with the growing numbers of backyard breeders out there.
We are widening our scope of services, and from what I can tell, it couldn’t have come at a better time. The amount of animals needing help this year is at an all-time high.
Here’s to saving lives…one little life at a time.
–Penny Edwards