BY KAREN BOSSICK
Tom Tierney and Christine Brumback’s pets are about to become the most visible in the valley. Tierney and Brumback each parlayed up $15,000 for the opportunity to have their pets’ images wrapped on Mountain Humane’s Outreach Van.
All that’s left now is to see how their pooches react to seeing bigger-than-life-sized reflections of themselves driving down the road!
Tierney’s and Brumback’s bids were among an outpouring of support for the animal welfare campus at its annual puppy palooza fundraiser. About 130 people took part in the Paws Up fundraiser.
“It’s unfair when they bring the puppies out,” quipped Phil Usher, who is himself the proud parent of the Australia shepherd. “Most of the dogs in this valley fortunate to have been residents of this shelter.”
It was a night full of hugs and kisses from dogs who seemed only too happy to thank their benefactors. And attendees seemed only too happy to open their pocketbooks and wallets in return.
“Happily, we reached our goal for the evening and are humbled by our supporters’ generosity,” said Heidi Hayes, a spokesperson for the no-kill shelter.
Mountain Humane had an exceedingly busy year even when it had to be closed to the public due to COVID restrictions. And it continues to be busy.
The building is full with a hundred animals awaiting adoption on any given day. And the nonprofit organization’s capacity for care expanded this year with 214 foster families taking in nearly 300 animals.
“Our save rate is 98 percent; the national average is 88 percent,” said Kelly Mitchell, senior director of Shelter Operations. “And our reclaim rate for stray dogs is more than 75 percent, compared with a national average of 26 percent.”
Adoptions have been strong with the length of stay per animal very short. Dogs are averaging about 17 days on campus before finding their forever home; cats are averaging 19 days.
“And we’re seeing very few returns,” added Mitchell. “Only about 3 percent of the animals that are adopted—six in every 200 adoptions—are returned.”
In fact, Mountain Humane was able to help more than 200 dogs and cats in the community remain with their families by providing them pet food, behavioral therapy and other outreach services. The Mountain Humane clinic administered more than 1,200 medical procedures and vaccinations, including spay and neuters, dentals and microchips.
Jeff and Nancy Mihalic were among dozens of people who were only two happy to talk about their pets as they sipped wine. They recently adopted a dog named Ava who they thought would max out at 30 pounds and instead mushroomed to 76.
“She’s like one of our children,” said Jeff Mihalic. “Very smart, a great companion to our other dog who weighs just eight pounds. You should see them wrestle. We can watch them all day long.”
“Ava really wants to please,” added Nancy Mihalic. “I recommend adopting a dog from the shelter. They’re so grateful--it’s like they know you adopted them.”
Gary and Anne Borman described their golden retriever who is always up to something—that day he was caught eating cat food on the countertop. But they couldn’t live without him.
“Mountain Humane is an important cause,” said Gary Borman. “We have as many dogs as people in this valley, and we don’t discriminate.”