Baywater Animal Rescue: Orvis Dog Enrichment Grant Report
How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?
We used the grant money to purchase matching lupine collars and leashes to give away free with all dog adoptions for October and November. We also used the money to purchase adopter bags, magnets and informational pamphlets and vaccination record books to go with every dog adoption. We put together folders which contained informational pamphlets, vet coupons and vaccine record books, along with all medical paperwork for each dog. The adopter got this folder and information, along with a sample bag of food, in their adopter tote bag. The lupine collars and leashes are guaranteed for life, even if the dog chews it up. Lupine replaces all products. The adopter got to pick their collar pattern and we sized and placed the collar and leash on the animal before they left the shelter. When they agree, we also take a nice adoption picture to post on our Facebook page.
This grant allowed us the funds to purchase items for new adopters that we normally wouldn't have had the funds to purchase. Most adopters don't think to bring a collar and leash to them for the adoption, so we would either use slip leads or often give our own collars and leashes with the dogs. This takes a toll on our supply of collars and leashes (which are normally donated), so having these to give with the adoption saved us from giving our supply away too. All the adopters were very excited about picking out a collar and matching leash to complement the coloring of their new dog. They were also very impressed with the information and presentation of the folder, food and bag that they got to take home. It allows them to keep their pet's information all in one place. We had 12 dog adoptions in September, which has been about average for us. In October, the dog adoptions jumped to 22! We had a record-high 48 adoptions for October!
How many pets did this grant help?
This grant enabled us to help 25 dogs so far and we will continue to give the collars and leashes away until gone (estimate the end of November). The bags and other merchandise will last us the whole year.
Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.
Kaya (first two photos) is a 23-month-old red-nose pit bull who came under our care after her owner showed up one evening before closing looking to surrender her. He stated she had become food aggressive with the other dogs in their house. We could count vertebrae and ribs on Kaya’s small frame — it was very evident she was underweight. We were extremely full of dogs at the time, but juggled them around to make room for Kaya, as we felt she could not be turned away. Kaya was very friendly, but obviously hungry, and as we walked her to the kennel, she grabbed a mouthful of treats on the way. Kaya threw up part of a hairbrush the first night in the shelter and could not keep any food down. We took her to the vet on two different occasions to rule out any medical condition that would explain her weight and condition. Kaya was given a clean bill of health and the vet said she could not hold food down because she was not used to eating it anymore. We started with small, frequent meals of canned food, and after a week, Kaya was able to eat her food again. Kaya spent one month with us at the shelter and went from 27 lbs. to 37 lbs. at the time of her adoption. Kaya is now living in a loving home and doesn’t have to worry about when her next meal will be.
Dozer (third photo) is a 10-month-old beagle puppy whom we pulled from another [open-admission] shelter near us. This sweet boy broke one of his back legs at some time in his young life and did not receive veterinary care. His leg healed incorrectly and that leg is now shorter than the other, causing a permanent limp. This does not slow Dozer down, as he was often seen running and playing in our play yard with a friend. Dozer went to a local adoption event with us and his new forever family fell in love with him and adopted him that afternoon. Dozer is seen in one of the pictures sporting his matching collar and leash that this grant helped us purchase!
