The Animalistic Urge to Love

It is late at night on the streets of Camden. Feral cats and wild dogs are roaming the abandoned buildings and searching through garbage dumpsters for something to eat. Some lie in doorways like derelicts - injured, sick, abandoned, unwanted.

Out-of-control youth wander the streets when the light falls to dark. Sometimes, the animals pay for the youth’s rage. One such dog featured on the Compassion for Camden website had his front leg hacked off with an ax by such a gang of night crawlers. Another puppy, purchased at a Camden bar, got sick with mange, and was ignored by its owner until it fell weak and ill in an abandoned house, sleeping on discarded clothing and starving.

On the other side of the world it would seem, a family of pet owners stood in the dark calling helplessly to their lost pet cat who had escaped from his cat carrier when he arrived at the veterinarian’s office to receive his rabies shot. The family had returned to the vet four times and, now that night had fallen, they were shining their flashlights into the broad open field behind the vet’s office in the hope that they could find him. The beam caught the light of an animal’s eyes. Hemingway had been found and would be going home.

There are a million stories in South Jersey about pets. One has only to read the signs on the cages at PetSmart in Moorestown: My owner moved and left me behind; I was abandoned near an office building; My family didn’t want me any more. The pets are old and young and in-between and desperate. To solve the circle of abuse and rescue animals from harm’s way, local residents have started their own rescue operations. One such person is Pamela Ott. In May 2003, Ott, 32, started Saved Whiskers Rescue Organization. A Certified Veterinarian Technician, Ott’s heartstrings were pulled pretty hard when a friend’s boyfriend beat a young cat so bad he broke some of its bones. The cat was paralyzed so the owner kept it in the bathtub because it couldn’t make it to the litter box. Ott persuaded her friend to let her take the brown tabby and nurse it back to health. The two bonded and Ott persuaded her friend to let her keep Whiskers. Because of Whiskers, Ott started her rescue organization, which has just recently received non-profit 501(c)(3) status from the State of New Jersey. In the past year, Ott has helped approximately 100 animals. She does not do it alone. She has seven volunteers who help foster the strays. She joined volunteermatch.com so volunteers could find her. She says she will take the old, the sick … any cat or kitten, “it doesn’t bother me.” For example, she says, there is the story of Whitey, a pure white cat who was left on the street when his owner moved and didn’t take him. Whitey was getting desperate. A neighbor lady fed Whitey but she died so another neighbor took over. The neighborhood kids tormented the cat and when Ott saw it and was putting some food down, the neighbor ran out and demanded to know what she was doing. When the neighbor realized what Ott was trying to do, she allowed her to take the eight-year-old cat and to find it a home. Unfortunately, Whitey’s new owner died. All Ott’s cats are vetted. When Ott had taken Whitey to the vet, it was discovered that he had hyperthyroidism. She felt she would never find another home for him. Providence stepped in. Someone whose cat, Goodi, had just died from the same ailment, already knew how to care for Whitey. Whitey found another new home. While this ending is happy, the downside to the story is that because Whitey was not used to being outside all the time in the sunshine, he developed skin cancer on his ears and his ears might have to be removed.

For information on Ott’s organization (Saved Whiskers Rescue Organization), go to www.savedwhiskersrescue.com.

Another organization that puts people together with pets is PetPALS. The PALS stands for Pets are Loving Support. Eileen and four associates formed PetPALS, a non-profit organization, in 1995. “We realized how the human/animal bond is especially important for people with terminal illnesses, Eileen said. PetPALS currently has approximately 50 human clients and 110 pets. They help people who are not well keep their pets. And if they die, they find homes for the pets. The organization helps with food and veterinary care, and some clients are assigned a PAL who assists the pet owner. Eileen said they rent space from the AIDS Coalition in Bellmawr, and they get many clients from them. The organization has expanded to helping seniors with their pets as well as working with hospice. Reverend Shellie Pinner is the Client Services Director for PetPALS. She has many stories of pets making a difference in people’s lives. “Margaret was one such person,” says Pinner. “Margaret had been housebound with an illness since she was nineteen and became a client of PetPALS when she was in her 80s. When her pet dog died, she received another through her home health aide and named him Buddy. One of Margaret’s worries was when she died, what would happen to her faithful friend. “Denise King was her PAL. When Margaret went into the hospital and eventually into a nursing home, Denise took care of Buddy. On Margaret’s 85th birthday, Buddy was dressed in a Halloween costume, which included a cape with an S on it for Super Buddy, and was brought to the nursing home where he visited all the residents as well as his beloved Margaret. When Margaret died, Denise adopted Buddy who lived to be 14 years old.” “I know from having been involved, how important animals are to clients. In some cases, the animals are their only support and without us, the clients would have to relinquish their pet,” she says. Eileen said that PetPALS has over 100 volunteers but they always need more. A donation bin is available at the PetSmart in Deptford for PetPALS. More information about the organization can be found at www.geocities.com/snjpetpals. Animal Sanctuary Society Inc. has 27 members plus volunteers, according to Charlotte, President/Chairperson. The organization was started in 2001, and is involved in many programs, one of which is animal rescue. They take the rescued animals and find foster homes for them until a permanent home can be obtained. Another program they are involved in is Pet Therapy, where they take a therapy animal to a location so people can enjoy it. Some of the places they take their therapy animals to are Arden Courts Alzheimer’s Assisted Living in Cherry Hill, Evergreens in Moorestown, Haddonfield Home in Haddonfield, and Laurel Lakes Estates in Voorhees. Charlotte tells the story of a man who hadn’t played his harmonica in many years. When the therapy dog, Oliver (a golden lab mix), was brought in, the man heard him and asked for his harmonica. He entertained the people present and of course, the dog. Charlotte tells of a 105-year old woman in an assisted living home who hadn’t spoken in six months. When Oliver came in, she spoke to the dog. Charlotte notes that when Oliver enters a facility, the look on his face changes. He knows what he has to do. The organization advertises their animals and uses word of mouth to find homes. Currently available is Jack, the Dalmatian, who has served as a therapy dog and is eight years old. Lucy, a main coon-type cat is also available immediately for adoption. For information go to www.canineworld.com/animalsanctuarysociety. All of the above organizations are nonprofit and in need of not only monetary donations but also volunteer help, food, foster care, and veterinarian services. To get an idea of the volume of need, The Little Egg Harbor Animal Rescue helped 798 dogs and cats last year at a cost of $37 per animal. Their website notes that in 2003, 3,800 dogs and cats were euthanized in two Ocean County Animal Shelters. While some of the stories are shockingly sad, the other side of the coin is quite positive. For example, Jennie, a cat from the Garden State Animal Shelter had her tail blown off one fourth of July. She was only about eight weeks old, just old enough to be weaned from her mother. Even though she was a beautiful black and white kitten with long fluffy hair, no one wanted her.

Gangrene had set in to her tail bone, which was broken at the tip with the bone dangling and barely connected. Jennie had less than 24 hours to live. She was caged and alone; the ones who had blown off her tail had given her a death sentence. A young mother and her son came looking for a special friend and, after handling several healthy kittens, asked about the “little thing” in the back of the cage. Jennie lay in their palms, purring as if her life depended on it. If she purred loud enough, “Save me,” would the mother and son understand? But they left and put Jennie back in the cage. The story does not end here. The woman and son came back, took Jennie straight to the vet (where her tail was amputated to save her life), and then to her new home.

There are a million stories about little pets in South Jersey. What is the one you are going to write?

The following is a list of e-mail addresses, websites, and phone numbers in the South Jersey area where you can find help: E-Mail Addresses

savedwhiskers@aol.com (rescues strays)
PetPALSVolunteer@aol.com (helps people keep their pets)
AnimalSanctuarys@aol.com AnimalSanctuarys@aol.com (multiple programs, including pet therapy, education programs, and shelter to homeless animals)

Websites
www.NJPets.org
www.animaladoption.com
www.petfinder.com
www.compassionforCamden.org

Phone Numbers
Burlington County Animal Shelter (Westhampton), (609) 265-5073
Animal Orphanage (Voorhees), (856) 627-9111
Animal Welfare Association (Voorhees), (856) 424-2288
Animal Adoption Center (Lindenwold), (856) 435-9116
Gloucester County Animal Shelter (Clayton), (856) 881-2228
Camden County Animal Shelter (Blackwood), (856) 401-1300
NJ Department of Health and Senior Services Pet Over Population Fund (Trenton), (609) 929-7837. Check your county phone books and the web for additional organizations and shelters.

Published in South Jersey Magazine, June 2004.
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Author: Lyn Anderson