Chew On This!

The Maddie's Institute blog is moving!

We've enjoyed having a home on Typepad for the last few years, but it's time to go back to the Mothership!

You'll find all the same Chew on This goodness and more at chewonthis.maddiesfund.org.

See you there!

Master list of Facebook pages for lost and found pets

Pet adoption isn't the only thing that's been revolutionized by social media. Hundreds of Facebook pages devoted to finding lost pets, or locating the owners of found pets, have also sprung up in recent years, often with remarkable track records of success.

In addition to providing a place to list lost and found pets, these communities usually offer tips on looking for your lost pets, catching loose or stray pets, and other invaluable tips.

See something missing from our list? Please leave a comment!

Alabama *

Alaska (Anchorage area only)

Arizona

Arkansas

California *

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia (Washington DC)

Florida

Georgia

Hawaii (Oahu area only)

Idaho *

Illinois

Indiana *

Iowa

Kansas *

Kentucky *

Louisiana *

Maine 

Maryland *

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri *

Montana

Nebraska *

Nevada *

New Hampshire *

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York *

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma *

Oregon *

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina *

South Dakota *

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Vermont *

Virginia (Dogs)

Virginia (Cats)

Washington (State)

Wisconsin

Wyoming *

  * These states may have local or greater regional lost pet pages, but no central state page with a large following has emerged. Click on the links to generate a Google search for the local, regional, or smaller national groups; you should probably consider posting to as many of them as possible.

Please take our blog and social media survey now!

Maddie's Institute^® wants to hear from you about the information we share with you on our blog and social media, so we can do a better job of meeting your needs. 

How can you help? Please take our short survey! Because we value your time, it should only take between 5-10 minutes to complete. We assure you that your responses will remain confidential.

 

Take the survey here!

From all of us at Maddie's Institute, thank you for all you do for the animals, and for sharing your thoughts with us today!

Shelter medicine changes everything

Find out more at sheltermedicinechangeseverything.org.

Happy New Year!

All of us at Maddie's Institute^SM wish each and every one of you a wonderful New Year!

It's beginning to feline a lot like Christmas

A sleeping Santa Snicks and friend wish you a warm and wonderful Christmas!

North American shelters take the Million Cat Challenge

The Million Cat Challenge is coming to your town!

A joint project of Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Florida and the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program, with significant funding from Maddie's Fund^®, the Challenge is bringing together animal shelters across North America to save the lives of one million more cats in the next five years.

From the launch release:

Participating animal shelters include municipal animal control facilities and private organizations of all sizes, and all will benefit from the experiences of their peers at other organizations as well as from the shelter medicine programs behind the campaign.

The core strategy of the campaign is comprised of five key initiatives that offer every shelter, in every community, practical choices to reduce euthanasia and increase live outcomes for shelter cats.

"Participating shelters can focus on one, some, or all of the initiatives, depending on what's right for their organization and community," said Dr. Kate Hurley, Director of the UC Davis program. "We welcome everyone who wants to find new approaches to saving cats' lives."

Resources available to Challenge participants include a private online forum where they can get support from their peers as well as from shelter veterinarians and a website with articles, forms, case studies, webinars and more.

"We expect some of the most valuable information each shelter will get will come from the other participating shelters," said Dr. Julie Levy, Director of the University of Florida program. "This effort is based on collaboration and the sharing of resources."

For more information, register for a free webinar with Drs. Hurley and Levy on Jan. 15, 2014 here. To learn even more and sign up your shelter, visit www.millioncatchallenge.org!

Thankful for... YOU!

All of us are so very thankful for you, the adopters, TNR-ers, shelter and rescue staff and volunteers, fosterers, kitten bottle-feeders,  dog rehabbers, veterinarians, rain-or-shine dog walkers, and everyone else out there saving lives, without whom the progress toward a no-kill nation would never be possible.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and know you're in our hearts!

Searchable database to compare shelters nationwide now updated

Ever wonder how your community's shelter lifesaving stacks up? We've just updated our comparative database with 2012 data, with 2013 on its way early next year!

Maddie's Fund^® is collecting shelter data (dogs and cats only) based on the Asilomar Accords from more than 500 animal welfare organizations. We've compiled this data along with demographic information into a searchable database that is available to non-profit agencies, government programs, private citizens and the media to compare different communities' lifesaving efforts.

Search categories include:

• Geographic Region
• Median income
• Size of human population
• Total intake
• Total adoptions
• Total deaths
• Live release rate
• Deaths per 1,000 human population

Click here for more information and to access the Database

 

Shelter medicine documentary: The past, present and future of saving animals' lives

What was the past like for veterinary medicine in animal shelters? What changed to bring us to where we are today, and what will the future hold? That's the subject of a new Maddie's Institute^SM documentary.

In the 1970s, there was no such thing as shelter medicine. Most animals entering shelters didn't leave them alive. And the idea of veterinarians dedicated to shelter practice was unheard of.

Today, shelter medicine is a recognized specialty of veterinary practice, and many animal shelters are working with shelter medicine programs and veterinarians to save upwards of 90 percent of the animals they take in.

In this short documentary film, Maddie's Fund^® interviews veterinarians, veterinary students and animal welfare leaders who have been present during this era of remarkable transition. They tell the story of how shelter medicine arrived at this moment in time, the role Maddie's Fund played in that journey, and what the future holds for shelters, shelter veterinarians and the animals whose lives are in their care.

The film recently premiered at the annual Association of Shelter Veterinarians meeting in Nashville, TN. We hope you’ll agree it’s pretty inspirational!

Click here to watch it on our website.

Please share this with your staff, volunteers, colleagues, friends and family -– anyone who would enjoy watching this moving documentary!

As part of our campaign promoting shelter medicine, we are gathering baseline data examining veterinary practice in animal shelters. If you are a veterinarian working with a shelter or rescue, please take a few minutes to take our survey.

We are also collecting data from shelter and rescue directors about shelter medicine within your organization. If you are a shelter or rescue director, please take the survey here.