PAWS Connections
Tessa's
Twice in her five years, Tessa needed help. PAWS was Tessa’s safety net in 2016 and again in 2018.
Long Journey Home
H
omeless dogs all over the U.S. need help; many find a better life after getting assistance from caring staff and volunteers at PAWS. One of these dogs is Tessa, an adorable five-year-old Pit Bull Terrier mix. Tessa’s journey began in 2016 when Mission: Miracle K9 Rescue transported her from an overcrowded Texas shelter to PAWS. Tessa was adopted one month later. Two years later, Miracle K9 received a call that Tessa was now in a Neveda shelter and homeless once again. As luck would have it, Miracle K9 had a scheduled trip to Lynnwood and quickly arranged to make a pitstop in Las Vegas to bring Tessa back to PAWS for one more chance.
While it was apparent that Tessa had endured a rough couple of years, she was becoming a better dog with the help of a volunteer group called the Pittie Committee. “The Pittie Committee is designed to help higher energy dogs cope with the stress of kennel life,” says Rachel Bird, Animal Behavior Lead at PAWS. “While we focus on Bully breeds, we include any dog who needs this extra attention. The volunteers get the dogs out of the shelter for an outing, whether a run on the beach or a hike in the woods.” While the dogs de-stress and engage in activities they can’t get at the shelter, Bird and other staff are able to gather valuable behavior information including comfort with car rides and — CONTINUED INSIDE
Please deliver to a friend of animals at this address. 15305 44th Ave W PO Box 1037 Lynnwood, WA 98046 paws.org
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Scouts
Earn Badges at PAWS
"W
e start with activities that help kids think about the many animals they share spaces with in their everyday lives,” says Nikko Shaw, PAWS Education Coordinator, when describing the popular PAWS Scout Programs held at the PAWS Lynnwood campus. “Then we go on to talk about problems those animals face and how we can help them.”
Under the theory that it’s never too early to nurture compassion for animals, PAWS educators teach programs for Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts using research-based practices in empathy development. In these programs, Scouts learn about how PAWS rehabilitates wild animals and adopts cats and dogs, ways they can contribute to the PAWS’ mission as individuals and troops, and what they can do in their own lives to live in harmony with animals. Each program utilizes inquirybased learning, and the activities are structured around the specific requirements for earning a certain badge or belt loop. After starting with a discussion about the role animals play in their lives, the kids move on to engaging activities that allow them to better understand and connect to animals. Some of the most popular are practicing wildlife rehabilitation on stuffed animals, comparing their sense of smell to a dog’s by guessing
PAWS educators teach programs for Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts using research-based practices in empathy development.
scents with a wet nose, and making advertisements to help the homeless cats and dogs get adopted. For many kids, seeing PAWS in action is their favorite part. This includes a tour of PAWS Companion Animal Shelter to see staff helping animals in care, and an opportunity to meet the PAWS Wildlife Center staff and view patients on the live streaming videos in the lobby. Scout leaders appreciate the variety of topics covered and the hands-on aspect of the program. “My Scouts were thoroughly engaged the whole time,” says one local scout leader. So far this year, the PAWS Education Team has held 69 Scout programs attended by 555 Scouts and more than 300 parents. Since the program began in 2016, more than 300 programs have been attended by nearly 3,500 children and adults. For more information on PAWS Scout Programs, visit paws.org or contact education@paws.org.
A Scout studies a dog treat package as part of an exercise to identify harmful ingredients.
Cover Story - continued meeting new people. Many of the outings are recorded on the Pittie Committee Facebook page, such as this entry from volunteer Toni Goldsmith who took Tessa to Picnic Point Park. “She LOVED the car ride there - started out in the back and then she snuck up to the front to ride shotgun. She enjoyed all the smells and just stared at me with those big brown eyes on the whole ride back.” These improvements were noted in her adoption file. All this attention by volunteers brought out the true Tessa: a friendly dog with a sweet disposition who enjoys walks, playing with balls, and other canine companions. One final opportunity for Tessa—a feature on Q13 TV’s #WhyNotMePets campaign—was the key to her finding a loving home in March of this year. To learn more about the Pittie Committee and other volunteer opportunities, visit paws.org to complete a volunteer application.
After months of recuperating and learning new skills, Tessa was adopted on March 13, 2019.
To see additional content related to this story, visit paws.org/Fall19.
UW OWL Returns Home to Campus
"Fortunately, the UW Owl's injuries were manageable," says PAWS Veterinarian Nicki Rosenhagen.
I
t’s not every day that staff and students at University of Washington come face to face with a grounded Barred Owl outside the bustling Allen Library. One of the first on the scene early in the morning of September 13 was Marie Eaton, who was stopped in her tracks while scurrying to a conference on campus. “You could see his eyes blink so we knew he was alive, but he was not moving his head or attempting to fly away when we approached him.” Eaton and other employees surrounded the owl with caution tape while they figured out what to do. They called campus security and kept curious onlookers from getting too close. A photo was taken and tweeted out on the popular UW News channel, resulting in 288 retweets. From there, local news organizations
picked up the story and dubbed him the “UW Owl”. While the story went viral, a biologist on campus secured the owl and transported him to PAWS Wildlife Center. “Fortunately, the UW Owl’s injuries were manageable,” says PAWS Veterinarian Nicki Rosenhagen, who surmises that the young Barred Owl crashed into a library window. “After we got him over the initial shock, we evaluated him further and found he had fractures to his pelvis and left scapula, as well as a lesion in his retina.” UW News kept concerned followers up to date with tweets such as this: “The owl is now holding both eyes open and is stronger than it was upon arrival. It's appropriately defensive. The owl will be cage rested for two weeks to allow the fractures to heal and then moved to a flight cage for testing.” The experienced staff at PAWS, who care for up to 60 owls of nine different species per year, remained optimistic that the UW Owl would heal and once again fly on the 700-acre campus. On a cold and clear October evening, PAWS staff was joined by UW President Ana Mari Cauce (who had the honor of lifting the carrier door), and released the Barred Owl among the tall trees adjacent to Sylvan Grove Theater.
After two weeks of cage rest, the UW Owl was moved to this flight pen for evaluation.
If you have found an injured wild animal, please call PAWS Wildlife Center at 425.412.4040 as soon as possible.
Photo by Sarah McQuate/University of Washington
Stunned after crashing into a window, this owl was given a safe zone while UW staff called PAWS. He was affectionately dubbed the UW Owl by media.
To see additional content related to this story, visit paws.org/Fall19.
Thank you for making these success stories possible with your support of PAWS!
From the heart Dear Friends, I’d like to share important news with you, our most cherished members of the PAWS family.
Interim CEO Leslie Chandler joins retired CEO Annette Laico in greeting newly arrived kittens to PAWS.
PAWS’ Mission
It has been said that hiring a CEO is the biggest job a Board will have in their service to the organization. Our Board understands this responsibility and is committed to finding the very best candidate for PAWS. Expect an exciting announcement in one to two months.
PAWS helps cats, dogs and wild animals go home and thrive— whether home is the family room or the forest. We do this by rehabilitating orphaned and injured wildlife, sheltering and adopting homeless cats and dogs, and educating the community to inspire compassionate action for animals.
PAWS
mini magazine Issue 4, Fall 2019 Editor in Chief: Laura Follis Writers: Laura Follis, Bret Jensen Graphic Designer: Lynn Jefferson, Jay Tolbert Photographers: Brooke Mallory, Jeff Brown, Merina Burda, Sarah McQuate, Anya Pomplona Contributors Brooke Mallory, Eve Firestone PAWS is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and relies on community support to carry out our work to help animals. PAWS, PAWS Cat City, PAWSwalk, and Bark in the Park are service marks owned by the Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS). © 2019 Progressive Animal Welfare Society. Privacy Policy: PAWS respects our donors’ and friends’ confidentiality. Although on rare occasion we may send you materials from another organization, we never release our mailing list. PAWS is a member magazine. Membership is available with a donation of $35 or more. For change of address notification, call 425.787.2500, x261.
Follow us
At the September meeting, the PAWS Board of Directors appointed me Interim CEO to assist organization leaders in tackling essential priorities. A board member since June of 2014, including three years as Board President, I have a deep understanding of PAWS. I’m drawing on this experience as Interim CEO, and in leading the search to fill the vacancy of recently retired CEO Annette Laico.
Christy Cheever, Jill Jones, Damian King, Leila Kirske, Dora Leung, Jaime Puracal, Karen Trujillo, Jennie Warmouth
Interim Chief Executive Officer Leslie Chandler
PAWS
15305 44th Ave W PO Box 1037 Lynnwood, WA 98046 paws.org Contact PAWS: 425.787.2500 Adoption Information x435 Animal Cruelty x861 Donations x652 Foster Care Program x822 Hours and Address x410 Lost and Found Pets x565 Volunteer Information x230 Wildlife Center x817 PAWS Cat City: 206.782.1700 5200 Roosevelt Way NE, Suite B Seattle, WA 98105
While we are more than 70 percent of the way to our fundraising goal, it is still a very big goal. In the coming months, we will share ways you can join us in bringing the new PAWS campus to life so we can continue fulfilling our promise to help cats, dogs and wild animals go home and thrive for the next 50+ years.
Leslie Chandler Interim Chief Executive Officer
#GivingTuesday
Board of Directors
Batur Oktay, President Leslie Chandler, VP ex-officio Strom Peterson, Secretary Jen Evans, Treasurer
As many of you know, a future PAWS campus is under development off Highway 9 in Snohomish and I’d like to give a brief update. We’ve selected Trico, a General Contractor headquartered in Burlington, Washington, to begin pre-construction with expected groundbreaking in spring of 2020.
D
ecember 3 is #GivingTuesday but why wait? You can give early to help animals like Bree who was stuck in a crowded Los Angeles shelter for six years before coming to PAWS. Your gift today will transport forgotten cats and dogs like Bree to PAWS so they can receive medical attention, compassionate care, and adoption into loving homes for the holidays and beyond.
DEC
#GivingTuesday A Global Day of Giving
3 Holiday Fundraising
Make your gift today at paws.org/givingtuesday.
This holiday season host a fundraiser for animals in need. You can be the reason more homeless cats and dogs find loving families, and more wild animals are rehabilitated and released back to their homes. Visit give.paws.org/celebrate or email events@paws.org to start planning.
Save the Date
for PAWS Wild Night
APR
18
Fremont Studios Seattle
Don't miss this exciting evening dedicated to people helping animals. Visit PAWS.org beginning December 1 to purchase early bird tickets.