For Pets’ Sake The Greatest: Dogs rank No. 1 in U.S. households, followed by cats, birds, fish, horses, rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, and turtles.
When it comes to finding lost pets, fliers are used less and less Social media, websites, and new technology have become the electronic lost-and-found for missing pets and those needing new homes. “We rely almost entirely on our Facebook page,” says Susan Gainey Odoyo, board president of It Takes a Village, an Evansville foster-based dog rescue and no-kill shelter. “It increases the willingness of people to rescue a dog.” ITV assists Evansville-Vanderburgh Animal Care & Control and three other area shelters in placing homeless dogs. The group has 23 kennels at its 1417 N. Stockwell Road facility, but most animals are placed in 30 to 40 foster homes. Odoyo estimates ITV had around 2,000 Facebook followers in the first six to eight months of 2010, when the organization was founded. That number has increased to nearly 7,000. In 2012, ITV helped 463 dogs find new homes and rescued more than 600 dogs. “We’re on track to place almost 700 dogs this year,” says Odoyo. “Social media has allowed us to dramatically increase our ability to place dogs in forever homes.” Jackie Rohner, president and founder of Another Chance for Animals, says social 42 september | october 2013 Evansville Living
media is a primary source of how her organization gets people to adopt its animals. “Anymore, that’s how you communicate with the world,” says Rohner. “We had our Facebook page up and running before we had anything.” Rohner says her organization places about 900 animals a year and is certain the uptick in its social media followers is related to its success. “When we started, we had a few hundred followers,” says Rohner. “Now, we have almost 8,000.”
Photo by will steward
Facebook to the Rescue
Dog vs. cat. When it comes to the most popular household pet, canines knock felines out of the ring. Yet as in every battle between the species, humans have to weigh in. In this issue of Evansville Living, plenty have. We explore how the Internet has impacted pet rescues, how animals help people, and why some people choose pets other than cats and dogs.
another chance for animals: Back row, left to right: Gwen Umphress, Vicky Smith, Jackie Rohner, Audrey Julian (holding Rufus, a domestic short hair cat), and Brenda Huffine. Front row, left to right: Katie Wells, Tyler Wells, A.J. Rohner, Kenny Rohner, Katlyne Johnson, and Starla, a 1-year-old pit mix. Both animals were up for adoption at the time of publication.