HWAC’s Winter Carnival will be held on Saturday December 19th from 10 am to 2 pm.  The event will feature:

• Animal Presentations
• a Snow Zone
• Photos with Santa
• Carnival Games and Prizes
• an Animal Learning Center
• Winter Crafts
• and much much more!

For more information, please contact Helen Woodward Animal Center’s Education Department at 858-756-4117 ext 318

In just the first 11 days of this years Home 4 the Holidays, a total of 72,791 orphaned animals have found their forever homes! 

To find a participating shelter in your area click here.

Speaking of animals looking for their forever homes, we here at Helen Woodward Animal Center have a very special dog named Holly who is looking to find her forever home!

Holly is an active 3 1/2 year old.  She loves to go for long walks and would love to become your jogging partner.  She is loveable and enjoys belly rubs, playing fetch, and working for treats.

Do you have room in your heart and home for Holly this holiday season as well as all the holidays to come?

Help us fill the bowls of our orphans while you shop for groceries!

Every time you shop at Ralphs and scan your linked Ralphs Rewards Card, Helen Woodward Animal Center will receive up to 4% of your shopping dollars!

If you have not registered your card, log onto www.ralphs.com and sign-in as a new member.  Complete the required information and then select Helen Woodward Animal Center as your preferred organization.  If you have already registered your card, but have not selected the Center, log into www.ralphs.com, sign into your account, and edit the Community Contribution Program information.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  Ralphs is requiring that everyone re-enroll HWAC as your prefered organization after September 1, 2009.  If you previously registered your card prior to September 1, 2009 and do not re-enroll, Helen Woodward Animal Center will no longer received a percentage of your shopping dollars.

To re-enroll Helen Woodward Animal Center as your Community Rewards organization:

• Log onto www.ralphs.com and sign-in
• Click on ‘Edit Community Contribution Program Information’
• Choose Helen Woodward Animal Center as your organization

Please pass this on to your friends, relatives, and neighbors so they can link their cards and help support Helen Woodward Animal Center!

Michael Schraeger captures the images of Surf Dog 2009 held on Sunday September 13, 2009 at Dog Beach in Del Mar. 

To see all of the Surf Dog photos visit Michael’s website:

http://www.photogallerybymichael.com/HWAC_Surf_2009.html

To learn more about upcoming Helen Woodward Animal Center Events including our People Pet Walk and HOPE Telethon, visit animalcenter.org

All photos copywright Michael Schraeger. 

ACADEMY AWARD®-WINNING ACTRESS HILARY SWANK NAMED 2009 AMBASSADOR FOR IAMS HOME 4 THE HOLIDAYS PET ADOPTION CAMPAIGN

Swank and 3,500 Adoption Organizations on a Mission to Help 1.5 Million Pets Find Homes

DAYTON, OHIO (Sept. 2, 2009) – After 10 years of successfully helping millions of orphaned pets find homes, Iams Home 4 the Holidays (IH4TH) today announced that two-time Academy Award-winning actress Hilary Swank will serve as the drive’s 2009 ambassador.

Swank will share her personal experience with adoption and rescue in an effort to help educate others about how they can make a positive impact on the lives of homeless pets. Along with founding partner Helen Woodward Animal Center and nearly 3,500 participating animal organizations from around the world, the program has set a goal to help 1.5 million pets find homes Oct. 1, 2009 through Jan. 4, 2010.

“I’m so proud to be working with Iams Home 4 the Holidays to help raise awareness about the importance of pet adoption,” said Hilary Swank, pet parent and 2009 Iams Home 4 the Holidays Ambassador. “Last year, the program’s adoption goal was to get 1 million pets adopted in just three months, but this year the goal is even bigger – we’re on a mission to find loving homes for 1.5 million orphaned pets between Oct. 1 and Jan. 4.”

Swank has adopted many pets throughout her life, including her two dogs Karoo and Rumi. She rescued Karoo from the side of a road while filming in South Africa a few years ago and adopted Rumi last fall from a participating IH4TH shelter in Los Angeles. “Now more than ever orphaned animals need our help and who better to give them a voice than Hilary?” said Mike Arms, founder of Iams Home 4 the Holidays and president of Helen Woodward Animal Center. “Along with Hilary and her inspiration, our 3,500 animal organizations are working to shine a big spotlight on the need to help the nearly 8 million homeless pets in our country, and are committed to helping raise awareness about the importance of pet adoption.” -more- “Hilary’s genuine passion and love for animals combined with her pet adoption experience makes her a tremendous ambassador for Iams Home 4 the Holidays,” said Dan Rajczak, vice president and general manager, P&G Pet Care in North America. “We’re confident that with the support of an advocate like Hilary, we’ll be able to achieve or even exceed our pet adoption goal again this year and help 1.5 million pets find loving homes.”

Iams Home 4 the Holidays is dedicated to helping homeless pets. The program has placed more than 3 million animals in homes since 1999, and in 2008, the adoption drive found homes for 1,202,718 pets. The 2009 program officially kicks-off on Oct.1, but in the meantime, there are still millions of homeless animals that need help.

To learn more about how to make a difference in the life of an orphaned pet, including finding participating shelters, volunteering and making a donation to support animal organizations and pets awaiting new homes, visit www.iamshome4theholidays.com.

Huddled together for warmth and comfort, the four tiny puppies waited in vain for rescue.   The thin walls of the cardboard box they were in did not provide much protection from the elements.  

Box the puppies were found in

Every now and then a car rushed by and every time a small hope rose that it would be their mom coming back for them.  But the cars did not stop and the help did not come.

Desert road where puppies were found

At only 6 weeks old, these puppies had been abandoned at the side of the road in a deserted area east of Los Angeles.  This road did not have steady traffic, and it was going towards 100 degrees in that area.  The situation could easily have proved fatal if one of the puppies had squirmed out of the box and wandered onto the road or been spotted by a hungry coyote or tangled with a rattlesnake.  It was so hot outside and they were thirsty.  They may not have survived through the day.

But these little ones were lucky.  Someone connected with one of the rescues we work with happened to see the box and investigate.  She was horrified at what she found and immediately put the puppies, box and all, into her car.  She was on her way to bring some animals to a rescuer and so she just added these four puppies to the mix.  That rescuer was on her way to the Center that afternoon.  She had no more cages in her car, so she just brought us the puppies right in that box.

We were surprised to get the four new additions but happily made room for them right away.  They checked out fine, although they were quite hungry.  Within a few days they were fostered out, two and two.  These two foster families were new to the program and were delighted to get their first puppies.  All went very smoothly, the foster families reported no problems and the puppies doubled in size while being cared for in a safe and loving home.

Puppy #1

We will always remember these puppies and the lucky circumstances that sent them to us.  We are grateful that they were found before the heat took their lives.  We are grateful they had no ill effects from their abandonment.  They will soon be adopted and go to their forever homes.  How lucky we are to be a part of this every day!

Puppy #2

Calypso

Hi, my name is Calypso.  I am 2 1/2 Years old.  I am a real people  kitty!  The people at Helen Woodward love to take me to education classes and to teach kids about cats.  I also like to sit in in my favorite window and when you say my name, I will talk to you.  I am up-to-date on all my shots and micro-chipped.  I am just waiting for my new forever family to take me home.

To see all of my friends at Helen Woodward Animal Center, go to animalcenter.org.  

Bailey

Bailey’s luck began when her house was raided. As the rescuers stepped into the hoarder’s house they were appalled. All the bedrooms were stuffed with bedraggled little Poodles living in filthy conditions. Some of these little ones had lived all their sad lives in those rooms. Dogs were everywhere, crying and barking, scared and excited too. As the rescuers stepped over the grimy floors covered with layers of feces they found Bailey lying among many other dogs. The rescuer told us that while Bailey appeared to be in poor condition, her tail never stopped wagging as her rescuer carried her out of the house.

This was the first time that Bailey along with many other dogs had ever stepped outside. It was like a whole new world. The rescue agency saved so many dogs that day that they needed some help. We were contacted about Bailey and immediately set up a time for them to bring her to the Center.

When Bailey came to us all you could see was matted fur and a fiercely wagging tail. As our medical team examined her, they found that besides her severely matted fur, she was missing teeth and had giardia. Because of the condition of her coat, there was no other option but to shave her. As the veterinarian examined Bailey after she was shaved, she discovered a pleasant surprise. Not only had Bailey’s life been saved, but the lives of her unborn puppies had been saved too. She was pregnant and nobody had even known.

Beau

Bailey and her three pups have all been adopted to forever families. Bailey is one of the lucky ones that get to live out her happily ever after in the real world, with air and sunshine and happy smells and activity. She will now be loved as an individual, unique soul.

Bain

Blake

 They say that not all those that wander are lost.

Cookie

     But Cookie was really lost.  The young blonde Corgi blend dog had been out on the road awhile.  She was hungry and just wanted something to eat.  Unfortunately the grocery store manager did not appreciate her running into the store every time the automatic doors opened.  When she did this, a staff member would put her back outside, but she kept darting back in.  Finally, in exasperation, he called over the loudspeaker that it was the fourth time she had made it back inside and he wanted someone to call Animal Services.

            A volunteer at a rescue group we partner with in northern California happened to be in the store at the time.  She knew the shelter where the puppy would go was overcrowded so she quickly said she would be responsible for the puppy.  Little Cookie was found in the bakery aisle greedily eyeing the treats there, hence her name.

            She was taken to the rescue group and they contacted Animal Services and did the paperwork in order to be able to keep her.  They altered her and put her in a foster home.  She learned some manners and how to play with other dogs.

            When she was ready to be made available, they arranged for her to be one of the dogs they sent to us.  We liked her immediately.  She was very sweet and liked to have her tummy rubbed. 

            Her winning personality made her very popular and she was adopted two days after she was made available!  She will no longer have to be hungry and search for food, turned away in her time of need.  We are so glad that we were able to help this little girl find her forever home.