Archive: Around Town

The SPCA of Tompkins County is heading to JFK Airport once again this Saturday to pick up about a dozen little dogs being flown in from Los Angeles by Best Friends Animal Society LA.

Best Friends takes as many animals as possible out of Los Angeles municipal shelters where they may be euthanized and works to transport them all over the country. The SPCA will be collecting several Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes, all of whom will be available for adoption on about July 17th.

“We are thrilled that we are once again in a position to work with Best Friends Animal Society Los Angeles.” says Jim Bouderau, executive director. “We can only do this when space allows; in the last two years, we’ve been able to take in just over 150 animals from other animal welfare agencies. Every animal we take makes room for one more in agencies striving to create No Kill communities. It is very exciting to know that saving 150 lives really means that we’ve helped save 300!”

Bouderau leaves Ithaca Friday afternoon, and will pick up the little dogs when they fly in on a red-eye from LA on Saturday morning. He hopes to return to Ithaca by about 3:00 PM Saturday. Each little dog will be medically and behaviorally evaluated prior to being placed in the Dorothy and Roy Park Pet Adoption Center for adoption a few days later.

“This is the 10th Anniversary of the Dorothy and Roy Park Pet Adoption Center. The building gives us the space to occasionally have the room available to transport in the little dogs. After the amazing Maddie’s Pet Adoption Weekend at the end of May, I hope there are still folks out there ready to adopt little dogs,” Bouderau jokes. “Seriously, we know that our community is a haven for little dogs, so I expect we will find them all homes very quickly.”

Bouderau reiterates something he has stated many times: “It is easy to forget about the many communities that still have traditional shelters where about 70% of the animals who enter don’t make it out.  The stories we have heard, pictures we have seen, and the scope of the problem is unsettling. We could not be more thrilled to help these animals have chances for new lives.”

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