| Mansfield Record - Animal Control Article written by ACO Diane Gaudreau The door-to-door canvas has started for this year. We are in search of unlicensed dogs and unvaccinated pets. All dogs over the age of six months MUST be licensed. All dog licenses expire in June no matter what time of year you licensed last year. To avoid any inconvience to you and/or the Animal Control department and also to avoid any further penalties and/or fines please visit the Town Clerks office as soon as possible to register your dog. Bring along a current rabies certificate and a spay/neuter certificate if the dog is altered. "Pound Pets for Adoption" - don't miss this on cable station Channel 14 on Wednesdays at 7:30 pm and Fridays at 4:30 pm. "Pound Pets for Adoption" showcases our animals as well as animals from other shelters. We are also on the web at www.petshelter.net The dog pound is always looking for volunteers to do a wide variety of things ranging from cleaning the office or cages to office work to spending time with the animals. We had approximately 23 volunteers this past year. Some examples of work done were: food drives, holiday/seasonal decorating, office cleaning, organizing and filing. We had someone transport a dog to a rescue league in Massachusetts for placement. Last but not least we had a lot walkers and petters. Thank you to all our volunteers! Several Humane Education classes were given this year at local schools. Two classes were given to teach children how to avoid getting bitten by animals. Another class was given to teach children the responsibility of pet ownership. A number of our phone calls coming in are generated by problems with cats. Most of these calls are a direct result of feline overpopulation resulting from owners failing to spay or neutuer their pets. Cats can become pregnant at five months of age. Contrary to popular belief an animal does not have to have a first litter before being spayed. It's equally important to neuter male cats as they contribute to the spread of Feline AIDS and leukemia. .(visit this site for more info: http://web.vet.cornell.edu/Public/FHC/FelineHealth.html) Unfortunately our facility does not deal with stray cats problems, cats in trees or unwanted pet cats and cats hit by a car who are deceased because there are no laws that protect the town from liability. The only time we can legally get involved with a cat problem is if a human was bitten or scratched by a cat, if a cat has been struck by a vehicle and is still alive, if it is showing signs of rabies: falling over, unable to move, walking as if drunk or aggressive-type behavior. Unfortunately there aren't a lot of organizations that can help cats due to liability issues and not having any laws to protect organizations that could deal with the cats. Some numbers that may be helpful for cats needing help or homes - NECTAR (860)423-0849, for lost or found cats -WILI does an announcement called Pet Petrol -(860)456-1111, for cats needing homes or strays - CT Humane Society -(860)666-3337 and (860)442-8583, Kitty Angels -(860)871-6122, Protectors of Animals- (860)569-0722, or Helping Paws-(860)537-9712 or (860)228-8676, for cats in trees - "From the Roots Up" tree service - (860)455-0600. If you are willing to adopt a stray cat you have found and would like help with vet care or need help trapping the cat to have them spayed or neutered call (860)429-7899. Please note: this in NOT a Shelter. |