Mountain Ink: An ally of pets

Posted: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 5:00 am | Updated: 3:20 pm, Tue Dec 21, 2010. by Terence Corrigan - The White Mountain Independent

Mountain Ink was created to highlight the good things people do for one another in our White Mountains communities. The intent is to make sure we tell the stories about people who dedicate themselves to selfless acts of love and charity with no political or economic agenda. The stories we seek for this column don't fit the usual definition of news: cops and courts and other mayhem, tragedies and tears, death and disaster. In the news business there's a saying: hundreds of planes land safely every day, it's only news when one crashes. This column though is about soft landings, when people act the way we want them to, better than we expect them to.

RJ Owens - defender of dogs and cats

The numbers are disturbing. In 1997, a survey of 1,000 animal shelters determined:

• That 4.3 million animals ended up in shelters,
• That 64 percent of the animals that were taken to shelters were euthanized - 2.7 million,
• Cats were the most likely to be euthanized (71 percent) and 56 percent of the dogs were put down.

For animal lovers these numbers are heartbreaking. Having just lost Pupper, our 10-year-old apricot colored teacup poodle, at my house the pain is fresh. People who work to shelter animals are not in it for a fat paycheck. I can only wonder how they can withstand the pain and loss they endure daily dealing with unwanted dogs and cats.

"The hardest thing we do for your animal is the last thing we do for them," says RJ Owens, Pet Allies director.

Pet Allies does not euthanize animals except when an owner requests it. In animal shelter-speak, Pet Allies is a "limited intake" shelter. They have limited space to care for animals. (Limited intake shelters are known by most people as "no-kill" shelters.) RJ says Pet Allies takes as many animals as they can. "We put animals anywhere we can stuff them," she says. Right before Christmas the group is providing foster homes for 18 animals.

RJ personally doesn't own too many pets." I have two dogs, no cats and no rabbits," she said. But, on her 40-acres near Snowflake, she does have a few animals that have been discarded or lost: seven dogs, a five cat, "cat colony" and a "rabbit sanctuary" with seven residents.

"I love all animals but I'm really a dog person. I want to save their lives - I don't want them to be euthanized at shelters because there's too many of them," she said.

Most everyone has a topic or two that they're passionate about. RJ's passion is evident when she starts talking about the Pet Allies' spay and neuter program. "We want to provide spay and neuter services that people can afford so that animals won't breed and (their offspring) end up in a shelter," she said. "We know that it's not possible to shelter all the animals out there, no matter how big our shelter is. But we can stop the overpopulation... We can make it happen here, that's our goal." When RJ discusses this, the tone of her voice changes. It's obvious she's said this same thing many times but she has not lost the intensity of her feelings about it.

RJ didn't grow up with lots of animals. Her family had one dog when she was growing up in Moorehead, Minn. Her passion for animals in need arose in her some 17 years ago. She was living in The Valley and she spotted a newspaper article seeking people willing to provide foster care for pets belonging to battered women. Often the women would be unwilling to leave abusive homes if it meant they had to abandon their pets, RJ said. And, just as often, the pets were scarred from abuse and from this experience RJ learned how to deal with troubled pets.

"That was good preparation for here," she said. "Problem dogs? Piece of cake."

RJ is committed to her unpaid job with Pet Allies. "I'm on the Norwegian retirement plan; when I die I get to stop working," she said, laughing. "I'm committed to staying here for the community. I want us not to euthanize pets in this community. I want to make it happen, and we can do it - we can do it. It has happened in other communities. I'm following the path of people who have been successful. Yes' we're going to make it happen."

Wanted Dog and Cat Foster Homes

Would you like to help the homeless animals in your neighborhood but can't adopt another pet?

Pet Allies needs foster homes.

What is a foster home? A safe place for homeless animals to live until adopted. Pet Allies will furnish food, medical needs, blankets, dog houses, etc., and you furnish the secure home and love. Puppy season is just around the corner and homes willing to take a litter of puppies for a month or two will save lives. Some people say the only good dog is an older dog? Interested in providing hospice care for an elderly pet? We need you too. Both for cats and dogs.

If you have any interest, or questions, please contact RJ Owens at the Barkin Basement 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, by email at fostering@petalliesaz.org or by leaving a message at 532-1602.

You can make a difference. Remember this is Pet Allies located at 4050 South White Mountain Road in Show Low. We're in the basement, not the dog house.