IMPORTANT

Help OCHS win a $25,000 grant!

Enter Ogemaw County Humane Society in the search box!

Vote for us at www.theanimalrescuesite.com and we could win $25,000 to help pets in need.

The Animal Rescue Site is hosting a special challenge for eligible Petfinder.com member shelter and rescue groups. The grand prize is a $25,000 grant, and they will be awarding many other grants to rescue groups with the most votes — a total of $100,000 in grants for animal welfare organizations.

Think how many animals we could help for $25,000!

Help us win! All you have to do is click to help rescued animals, and then vote in The Animal Rescue Site $100,000 Shelter+ Challenge. Both of these actions are absolutely free! You can vote once a day, every day, from September 29 through December 14, 2008. Every time you vote, or tell a friend to vote, you are making a huge difference for us.

Vote today!
Visit: www.theanimalrescuesite.com

We are a non-profit organization that formed in April of 2000 focusing on domestic animals. We are not an anti-hunting group, nor are we associated with any anti-hunting organizations. We are dedicated to the promotion of animal welfare as opposed to the promotion of animal rights. Our ultimate goal is a shelter in Ogemaw County.

As we progress towards our goal, we are making strides in the education related to animal cruelty, the relief of animal suffering and the necessity of spay and neutering. In the Fall of 2003, we purchased a three acre site on M-33, just north of Finerty Road. We are very pleased with the great location and celebrated our groundbreaking in May of 2007. We are also fortunate to be building with the assistance of the Ogemaw Heights Building Trades Students. This project will provide them with their first commercial building experience and their involvement will provide us with tremendous labor savings.

Our meetings are held at G's in West Branch on the first Wednesday of each month. Meetings start at 7:00 pm. Stop in, you do not have to be a member to attend our meetings.

Be an ambassador---let others know about our cause!

Updates:

Now that the school year has begun, the building trades students are getting geared up to start work on the inside of the shelter. The building committee and some contractors met at the shelter on August 21st to plan the jobs to be done. Six skylights have been ordered and will be installed in the kennel area by the building trades. Seventeen interior doors are also on order. Eddie K Electric has mounted the main electric panel in the mechanical room, which was finished with FRP panels by Greg Zettle. Completing the rough plumbing and rough electrical will be the next major tasks.

Some minor grading and additional gravel is still required to complete the employee parking area and the driveway. When this is done, a landscaper will grade and hydro-seed the lawn area so grass can get started this fall.

The shelter name, “Dr. H.E. Rea & Dr. Robert C. Rea Animal Shelter”, has been mounted on the front of the building. The Ogemaw County Humane Society sign to be placed next to the driveway by the road has been designed and will feature stone work that is compatible with the accent stone on the shelter.

A lot of research has gone into the type of floor needed in the kennel area. This is not resolved, but many shelters that we visited or had conversations with, have not been satisfied with epoxy coatings. A concrete sealing treatment was found on the internet and it may be the best solution. The next newsletter should have lots of progress to report. As of now we are still on schedule to complete the shelter next June.

Shelter

Designs are finalized and we are now in the midst of a BUILDING FUND CAMPAIGN. Be a part of this project. If you want the shelter to happen, we need your financial assistance. No gift is TOO small. Pledges will allow you to make a larger gift by making payments rather than coming up with the money all at once.

REMEMBER...we need your support in order to build the shelter...have you personally made a donation to a cause that will benefit the animals in Ogemaw County? Our building fund needs your monetary support and your efforts to encourage other to join us in this endeavor. The shelter can not happen by hoping someone else will contribute. EVERY DONATION IS IMPORTANT, please make yours!

We rely strictly on volunteers, fund-raising events and charitable contributions. Funding, as with all non-profit organizations, is and always will be our greatest challenge. Donations are gratefully accepted and appreciated. At this time, we are very fortunate to have a benefactor willing to match up to $25,000 in building fund donations . Double the impact of your gift by earmarking it for the building fund.

Fundraising Activities

"PATHWAY FOR PETS" Update:

The “Pathway for Pets” is also slated to be started very soon. The first group of engraved bricks have been ordered and are due to arrive in a matter of days. The students will be working with Dan Winter to layout and pour the concrete borders. Weather permitting; the pathway will have bricks installed prior to snowfall. Bricks can be ordered anytime as it will be simple to remove a blank brick and replace it with an engraved one. There are lots of spaces left, so don’t hesitate to get your brick ordered.

Ongoing Fundraising Activities

• Keep those bottle and cans coming in to our West Branch (Northland Credit Union) and Rose City (Glen's) donation sites! Every empty counts and is appreciated
• DO NOT throw out your empty INKJET cartidges...get them to us and we can send them in and get CASH. Original manufacturers only, refilled and refurbished ones are not accepted.
• Don't forget about our PET FOOD BANK at the St. Francis Center in Skidway Lake...by St. Stephen's....drop off pet food donations there OR bring them to our meetings and we will get them there!
• Save Spartan UPC Codes from any of their products.
• I Give.com - Now you can shop online and automatically donate to the Ogemaw County Humane Society. A percentage of your purchase will be donated to Ogemaw County Humane Society. The percentages vary by store. Over 600 stores participate, including Ebay. Go to I Give to register.
• Home made crafts that are one of a kind and having a variety of items seems to be the specialty that draws customers to our table at any craft show we participate in. If you are one of the talented ones, please consider donating an item or two for any of our upcoming sales.
• Honor a fellow animal-lover by sending in a donation as a tribute to their birthday, their wedding, their graduation or any other milestone. Memorial donations for both people and pets are accepted. If you wish, send in a picture with it and it will be printed in our newsletter.
• You can honor a beloved pet, friend, relative, or to remember an occasion (birth, marriage, milestone etc). with our engraved bricks which will be part of Ogemaw Country Humane Society's "PATHWAY FOR PETS". These bricks are a lasting tribute and would make a great gift to the honoree and the Ogemaw Country Humane Society. Please, get your brick ordered soon and you will have your chance to choose its location on the "PATHWAY FOR PETS".

Donations may be dropped off at any meeting or contact Carol @ 989-473-2713 or Lotus @ 989-685-2525.

• ARENAC COUNTY SHELTER
• IOSCO COUNTY SHELTER

Ogemaw County pets at the ARENAC shelter and other adoptable friends visit the ARENAC link ABOVE for a complete listing.

If you are interested in one of the pets listed, please call the ARENAC SHELTER for further information at 989-846-4421

NEWS

Pet Food Recall - MenuFoods Website - http://www.menufoods.com/recall

Calendar of Events

Meetings are the first Wednesday of every month at 7:00pm at G's in West Branch

• October 1
• November 5
• December 3

Other dates to remember include:

• Now until December 3, 2008 - The OCHS is able to have a QUILT RAFFLE thanks to the generosity of Frieda Schluessler of Almont. She personally made a beautiful earth tone animal print twin-sized quilt just for us!  It could be yours if you are lucky enough to buy the winning ticket. Tickets are $1 each. Get them at any OCHS meeting. Can’t make the meetings and still want to buy tickets for you or to sell to others? Call Mary @ 989-345-1891 and we’ll be sure to get them to you. The drawing will be held at the December Craft Show at Ogemaw Heights.

• November 17 - 19, 2008 - The OCHS will be the “Benefit Charity” at the West Branch Poker Room on November 17th,18th & 19th. We will be in need of volunteers EACH night to sell “chips” and keep records. All else is handled by the staff of the WB Poker Room. If you can help, we can use you!

• December 3, 2008 - Stop by our tables that will be at the Ogemaw Heights Band Booster Craft Show on December 3. We always have the “good stuff”! Get a jump start on your Christmas shopping and help your shelter at the same time.
  

Home made crafts that are one of a kind and having a variety of items seems to be the specialty that draws customers to our table at any craft show we participate in. If you are one of the talented ones, please consider donating an item or two for any of our upcoming sales. Donations may be dropped off at any OCHS meeting.

Seasonal Hazard Warnings!

• Keep your cat inside. Outdoors, felines can freeze, become lost or be stolen, injured or killed. Cats who are allowed to stray are exposed to infectious diseases, including rabies, from other cats, dogs and wildlife.
• During the winter, outdoor cats sometimes sleep under the hoods of cars. When the motor is started, the cat can be injured or killed by the fan belt. If there are outdoor cats in your area, bang loudly on the car hood before starting the engine to give the cat a chance to escape.
• Never let your dog off the leash on snow or ice, especially during a snowstorm—dogs can lose their scent and easily become lost. More dogs are lost during the winter than during any other season, so make sure yours always wears ID tags.
• Thoroughly wipe off your dog's legs and stomach when he comes in out of the sleet, snow or ice. He can ingest salt, antifreeze or other potentially dangerous chemicals while licking his paws, and his paw pads may also bleed from snow or encrusted ice.
• Never shave your dog down to the skin in winter, as a longer coat will provide more warmth. When you bathe your dog in the colder months, be sure to completely dry him before taking him out for a walk. Own a short-haired breed? Consider getting him a coat or sweater with a high collar or turtleneck with coverage from the base of the tail to the belly. For many dogs, this is regulation winter wear.
• Puppies do not tolerate the cold as well as adult dogs, and may be difficult to housebreak during the winter. If your puppy appears to be sensitive to the weather, you may opt to paper-train him inside. If your dog is sensitive to the cold due to age, illness or breed type, take him outdoors only to relieve himself.
• Does your dog spend a lot of time engaged in outdoor activities? Increase his supply of food, particularly protein, to keep him—and his fur—in tip-top shape.
• Like coolant, antifreeze is a lethal poison for dogs and cats. Be sure to thoroughly clean up any spills from your vehicle, and consider using products that contain propylene glycol rather than ethylene glycol. Visit the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center more information.
• Fall is the most common time of year for male cats to "block" or forming small " stones "that block the flow of urine from the bladder through the urethra. Any cat that seems to be straining "to go to the bathroom" should be checked by a veterinarian at once. One of the most common complaints I heard was that the owner thought the cat was constipated. Why this time of year? May have to do with decreased water intake.
• *Halloween. Candy is not good for your pets, especially chocolate. Keep cats inside to avoid tricksters and possible encounters with cars, make sure that the dogs are kept safe ,with all the visitors and open doors to sneak out of, dogs can also get confused and frightened by the costumes .

ALWAYS have ID tags with names and numbers on your pets! Be sure to license your dog. No matter how good you think they are, it only takes one distraction and they could slip out of your yard and life.

Come Visit Us!

HELP MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Want to know more about us? Want to join our group? Our meetings are held at G's in West Branch on the first Wednesday of each month. Meetings start at 7:00 pm. Stop in, you do not have to be a member to attend our meetings.

Stop in, we like new faces and new ideas!

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