Come rain, shine, or frigid temperatures... pet lovers aren't discouraged to rally for Jacksonville Humane Society's Trail of Tails annual walk. 

The Trail of Tails walk provides many services to the public such as: adoptions, behavioral training, medical care, and humane education and without these types of fundraisers it wouldn't be possible!

Over 1,500 people attended the Trail of Tails walk on Saturday, February 27th to raise funds and awareness for the 4,000 homeless animals that are brought into Jacksonville Humane Society annually. 

Many attendees brought their beloved pets to walk with them for this special day.  As you can see from the photos everyone had a great time as well as the pets!!

To find out more about Jacksonville Humane Society go to: www.jaxhumane.org

- Mary Bart Houston, Regional Director Shelter Outreach & Host of PetPoint Community

On Saturday, February 20th, Atlanta Humane Society participated in hosting a microchip clinic to the public.  Anyone willing to have a microchip implanted into their pet was able to do so for a fee. 

Providing a microchip clinic is a great way to raise funds for your organization and educate the public on the importance of microchipping and why we do it. 

Just think if more pet owners microchipped their pets there would be less ending up in animal shelters waiting for their owner to show up. 

(It is a simple procedure to do as long as staff is trained)

(Even this little puppy got a chip!)

(Many thanks to the Atlanta Humane Society for educating the public on microchipping!)

- Mary Bart Houston, Regional Director Shelter Outreach & Host of PetPoint Community

ShelterCare Insurance

Shelters and Rescue Groups, as you all know pet insurance is an increasingly important aspect of keeping your pet healthy, longer. 

One of the amazing things about being a PetPoint client is that every adopter is entitled to a free gift of insurance for 30 days!  That's amazing!!

I remember when I was working in a shelter how many calls I would get about adopting a sick cat or dog out to the public.  Once we implemented the ShelterCare Insurance those calls/complaints reduced significantly!  Adopters knew they had choices and that was a huge benefit!

ShelterCare Insurance alleviates the financial stresses associated with your pet’s unexpected medical expenses and your shelter can generate funds at the same time! All you have to do is simply apply for a ShelterCare Pet Insurance Program banner by visiting the ShelterCare website: www.sheltercare.com 

Here’s how it works: The ShelterCare Insurance Program helps with costs if your pet needs essential veterinary care from an illness or injury. Also, every time a completed application for a ShelterCare program is generated through your shelter’s website, we automatically receive a $25 donation from ShelterCare to help cover common needs at our shelter like blankets, litter, and food. This donation is of no cost to you and provides us with essential funds.

It's a win-win for everyone!  If you haven't already gotten a ShelterCare banner on your site please contact us and we can assist you with this!

- Mary Bart Houston, Regional Director Shelter Outreach & Host of PetPoint Community

Pet videos have arrived on PetPoint!!

By now you've seen what we're doing with Petango and how much it will help the pets in your care find loving homes, faster. But we're still not done yet!

On the paws of the Happy Tails we've launched another winning way for you to showcase pets in your care to their potential adopters.

On December 23, 2009, PetPoint has the capability to add videos to a pet’s profile where then Petango will display the pet videos. That's right, pet videos. Now you can show off your pets like never before. You can let the world see how cute, how smart and how wonderful they are, all through Petango.

It's easy to do:

1. Shoot videos of your pets
2. Add videos via PetPoint during Intake or Edit Animal
3. Videos are automatically uploaded to the Petango website and to the YouTube Petango channel. (No manual uploads, no opening YouTube accounts, PetPoint has taken care of it all).  If you’ve already uploaded your pet videos to YouTube, you can link those existing videos as well!
4. For more details please visit our helpful online manual:sms.petpoint.com/help/edit_animal.htm#ad... 

When someone searches through Petango, they'll be able to see more; videos, photos, and information about the pets in your care! We know this will help get more pets into more homes, faster.

At PetPoint we continuously strive at improving, designing, and developing our products to make your organization the best it can be. We want to help you by building products that allow you to focus on what's important - the animals in your care. But to do that, we need your feedback on our new and exciting features. You're the best judge of what works for you and what doesn't, so please let us know what you think via Admin – Feedback in PetPoint.

We look forward to seeing all of your Pet Videos up on Petango.

You've heard the horror stories of pets being left out in the cold without proper shelter.  It's hard for many of us to imagine such a thing but it does happen and more often than we'd like to think. 

Some basic tips from the ASPCA for preparing your pets for winter.

Cold Weather Tips

Brrrr…it’s cold outside!  The following guidelines will help you protect your companion animals when the mercury dips.

1. 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.
   
   
2. 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.
   
   
3. 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.
   
   
4. 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.
   
   
5. 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.
   
   
6. Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death.
   
   
7. 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.
   
   
8. 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.
   
   
9. 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.
   
   
10. Make sure your companion animal has a warm place to sleep, off the floor and away from all drafts. A cozy dog or cat bed with a warm blanket or pillow is perfect.