Rounding Out 2011 with a Big Gift to NYC Shelters

By Nicole Mak, Rational Animal intern

On December 4th, 2011 Rational Animal Founder Susan Brandt and members Salem Krieger, Christine Hahn, Maggie Hurley, David Glicksman, Thira Goldfinger, and Courtney Kistler delivered handmade beds and cat toys to the Brooklyn Animal Care and Control (AC&C), a municipal kill shelter housing 200 orphaned cats and dogs. All of the professionally shot pictures from this day can be seen here.

Through its Mother’s Comfort Project, Rational Animal once again recruited volunteers to make handmade beds for these lonely animals, in an effort to make them feel more at home. Often the shelter only provides towels for the animals to sleep on, nothing compared to a comfy bed sewn by loving hands! This delivery is just one of many that Rational Animal has been responsible for. Since the project's start in 2008, over 3,500 beds and 2,000 toys have been made and delivered to the AC&C shelters.

One of three throughout the city, the Brooklyn AC&C is home to animals who, if not adopted or placed in a foster home by one of the city's small animal rescue groups, will be euthanized. Because of the short adoption window, the shelter only provides its animal residents with very basic amenities. Housed in small metal cages, without toys or a human touch, it can be easy for AC&C’s orphaned animals to become overly stressed and sick.

The Mother’s Comfort Project was created as a tribute to the late Fannie Shapiro, an animal lover and grandmother of Rational Animal founder Susan Brandt. Having grown up seeing her take in strays, Susan keeps her grandmother’s love for animals alive through Rational Animal’s mission and this project. A picture of Fannie Shapiro with a Baltimore Oriole serves as the Mother’s Comfort Project’s logo, which Rational Animal made into a patch which is sewn onto every shelter bed.

The Mother’s Comfort Project seeks to bring attention to the AC&C shelters as well as educate those on the plight of animal homelessness in New York City. Student clubs are welcome to volunteer. It’s never too early or too late to help an animal in need! Sewing beds allow first time volunteers and veterans to help fight animal homelessness without the emotionally draining effect a shelter visit can bring about.

If you or a loved one would like to donate to this project please visit www.rational-animal.org/get-involved/donate. If you would like to get involved and sew some beds, pleasecheck back here for the next up coming date. Beds are usually sewn every month, at Flirt, Brooklyn, in Park Slope.

If you don't feel you can commit to sewing beds, here are other ways how you can help make 2012 a little warmer for New York’s orphaned animals:
• Provide transportation – we need a van for each sewing event: from Chelsea to Park Slope and back, for bed delivery to an AC&C shelter, and from Chelsea to one of the three shelters (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island)
• Donate fabric/batting (bed stuffing) – contact maggie@rational-animal.org to donate!
• Be a sponsor – your company or brand can sponsor this project, giving you added exposure through our press releases and both web and social media pages. Plus you'll be helping immensely to make unlucky animals in our shelters feel warm and loved.
• Become a project manager – help organize and recruit volunteers for sewing and delivery events. We need help getting funding, transportation and volunteers. Help us get the word out!

For more information and pictures please click on the following links:
• Video of our August 14th Sewing Session and BELOW
• Pictures of our delivery by Salem Kreiger, on Facebook

• Learn more about AC&C and adopt an animal today! www.nycacc.org

June 18th Fundraiser for NYC AC&C / Rational Animal donating advocacy merch for event

Rational Animal will provide Trails to Tails maps and Orange Ribbon for Animals merchandise at AC&C Fundraiser, June 18th

Contact sbrandt@rational-animal.org if you want to help us give out our Trails to Tails and Orange Ribbon for Animals merchandise.

Full details at TastingNYC - click here.

Date: Friday, June 18, 2010

Time: 6:00pm - 11:00pm

Location: BLVD, 199 Bowery (btwn Spring St. and Rivington)

Drink Special: $5 Bud/Bud Lights and $5 wine!

Admission: FREE!

BLVD is dog-friendly!

If you're on Facebook, click here:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=128556493826163

The event is co-hosted by one of the top names in New York radio, Maria Milito of Q104.3. C

heck out Maria's blog.

Please join us to deliver and sew beds for shelter animals

Saturday March 27th - we need your help delivering beds to the Staten Island AC&C. We will leave from West Chelsea late morning and return late afternoon.

Contact sbrandt@rational-animal.org to get involved!

Then NEXT weekend we are making more beds!

Saturday, April 3rd from 12-4pm

...at Flirt, Brooklyn (www.flirt-brooklyn.com) Home Ec Studio in Park Slope

303 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11215

Where is this? Click here!

Contact sbrandt@rational-animal.org or call (917) 239-9229

More about Mother's Comfort Project at http://www.rational-animal.org/campaigns-projects/mother-s-comfort-project

Exec Director of NYC Animal Care and Control to depart

The Executive Director of NYC Animal Care and Control, Charlene Pedrolie, will not be renewed in October, according to a New York Tails breaking news story.
Some rescuers and volunteers signed a petition, which was started by Laurie Bleier, Director of Brooklyn Animal Foster Network, which called for her firing or resignation. Bleier used to be heavily involved with Animal Care and Control, taking on the "Animals Didn't Do Anything" advertising campaign which used mug shots of dogs and cats at shelters to advocate for adoptions from AC&C. Though it remains unclear why, Bleier and BAFN no longer are a part of the community of rescuers that may pull animals from AC&C. Bleier has been outspoken, but it seems media have had a hard time getting rebuttal from AC&C, by the way this Brooklyn Paper article reads. On the other hand, Bleier has been accused of having a less-than-perfect track record according to other media.
The deal on Charlene is mixed, though, in my experience with rescuers and advocates in the city, she was not liked by many, but she did have a couple fans within AC&C, who I know. At this point, energies should be directed at the odd pairing of government entity and non-profit within one body that is NYC AC&C. Like changing the GM of the Mets, until the house is sorted out inside, doesn't matter who's at the healm.

The problem really lies in the job itself and the way AC&C functions -- which is as both a city-run entity AND a 501(c)(3) non-profit. That means that, although it is a high-kill shelter, the city, the top management, and staff are under pressure to paint a picture of functionality and improvement in order to get the desperately needed donations from the public. One group, Dogs in Danger, tried to post animals at AC&C that were on the euth list, and they succeeded until, the blog says, Pedrolie came aboard and said no, because it was bad for the AC&C image. Luckily the New Hope Program sends alerts out to hundreds of rescuers every day with animal pictures and their bios, in hopes that they can be saved. In addition, people on this email list cross post to outsiders, on social networks such as Facebook, and on Craigslist. It seems that the image issue concerning going public with the pleas for saving soon-to-be-euthanized animals has dissipated. I believe this is a good thing. If more of the public really understood what a crisis level we are at in terms of animal homelessness and euthanasia, they may opt to walk past the pet store and straight up to 110th Street to the Manhattan Animal Care shelter.

The key problem for AC&C is that the system is grotesquely underfunded, and I believe that this government/private non-profit contruct is at the crux. I have met at least one person who will not give money to a kill shelter. I think that is ludicrous. Any municipal shelter that must take in animals brought to it must euthanize -- it is a necessary evil. By neglecting the operations there by either not volunteering or not giving donations, hurts only the animals.

The ASPCA dumped the AC&C on the City in 1993, and the Department of Sanitation was the part of City government that took control. Power was transferred over to the Department of Health, however, as the City deemed it in better taste. DOH has had full control of the Board for AC&C as well as the appointment of Executive Director and other top management. The DOH oversees all, and many activists for shelter animals here in the city have taken issue with that, calling for a specific department for domestic animal and wildlife, apart from the DOH. Given that the animal shelters used to be controlled by Sanitation and moved to Health, this perhaps is a natural progression as the country learns just how critical the fight against overpopulation and neglect and cruelty is today.

At one point, a crew of proactive New Yorkers operated a reform committee called the Shelter Action Reform Committee, whose mission statement is "To improve conditions and accountability in the New York City animal shelter system through education, lobbying, legislative initiatives and legal action." It is uncertain whether or not the SARC is still active in its mission, but those who started it, including former President of United Action for Animals, Gary Kaskel, have moved on.

Stay tuned to New York Tails for more...never a dull moment!

Mother's Comfort Project testimonial: sewing cage comforters

Please see below another testimonial for the Mother's Comfort Project.

We still need a sponsor for 2009-10, so help us out so that we can continue this great project and bring more awareness to animals in need, especially those at the Brooklyn AC&C.

From Jeri, after the April 2009 sewing session:

“Do you think there really is a rescue gene?” I ask Susan. She has just told me that the woman’s face on the Mother’s Comfort patch is that of her grandmother, the woman who passed down her love of animals.

This is the kind of banter that goes on while we sew. We learn about one another: our names, our hobbies, our diets, our schools, our families. We discuss our different experiences with service dogs, pets, and rescue organizations.

You see, we did not know each other before we united on this stunning April day. We are women as young as 14 and as old as 51. Some of us are blonde, some auburn, some grey-haired. Some of us wear dresses, others wear Abercrombie tees or shorts. Some look like supermodels and actresses, others more like grandmas. One of us is even canine: Susan’s pet and our mascot, Sadie. However, there is one thing we have in common: the desire to make life a bit softer and a tad brighter for the homeless animals of New York City.

We are here in Flirt Home Ec, a chic boutique cum craft class cum sewing shop in Park Slope Brooklyn, helping to make animal toys and beds. Today, we are cutting various donated fabrics, snipping and stuffing batting, adding pinches of catnip, or operating sewing machines (some of us for the very first time).

Next month, other volunteers will repeat our work. And then in June, Susan and some of her supporters will visit the [Animal Care & Control] shelter in another part of Brooklyn, to deliver the beds and toys, each one adorned with an orange awareness ribbon.

This is the second year of the Mother’s Comfort project. It is one of many innovative ways Susan Brandt and her Rational Animal organization publicize homelessness and enhance animal welfare around the City. After taking part in this event and being lavished with Sadie kisses, I have to say my own life was enhanced too.

-JERI DAYLE

[Jeri Dayle is a freelance writer, a keystone volunteer of Loving Touch Rescue in Queens, and an ardent supporter of Rational Animal. This is the 9th Rational Animal event--including two Gimme Shelter concerts, a Gingerbread Homes display and a Barking Arts gallery—that she has attended.]

SPOTLIGHT ON: Emma (A816658). Blind pittie that is a lovely joyful gal!

At Manhattan AC&C is a very special lady...

Emma (A815558), 4 yr old female pit – one of the sweetest and fearless pits I’ve ever met. She just wants to meet everyone. She’s constantly wagging her tail and making friends. She is quiet in her crate and when she comes out she is actually fairly good at getting around...this leads us to believe her vision is limited to shadows…or she has been blind all her life and has developed a strong enough sense of surrounding to be able to feel her way through things. I can’t say enough great things about her personality, cheerfulness and beautiful temperament. She is always eager to please and is a true joy to be around. It’s impossible to be around this dog and not feel happy!

AC&C VOLUNTEER WROTE: Sweet as sugar, confident in her blindness. Emma, who is blind, was found wandering the streets on 6/23/09. This volunteer has had two blind dogs of her own, but neither was as confident and trusting as Emma. She's willing to find her own way around, but is grateful if you lead her, too. She loves people and wants to kiss you -- all the time -- to show you her love. We figure she's around 4 years old. We don't know what caused her blindness, but nothing has dimmed the lightness of her soul. She's a joy.

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Contact me (Courtney) if you're interested in Emma or any animal for adoption.
We REALLY need more foster homes.
Find ALL adoptable dogs and cats here: http://www.nycacc.org/adoptionsearch.htm
A-number is for AC&C to better help you meet the dog you are interested in. Please use it if you contact AC&C directly or visit the shelters.

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ATTENTION ANIMAL LOVERS! BROOKLYN NEEDS YOU!
AC&C in Brooklyn really needs more volunteers!! Contact ckistler@rational-animal.org if you can help. Every little description, personal testimonial for an animal drastically increases their chance for adoption.
AC&C Brooklyn
2336 Linden Blvd (East New York)
3 train to New Lots; walk up New Lots four blocks to Essex, make a right, walk two avenue blocks to Linden Blvd, and see shelter between Essex and Shepherd Ave.

Mother's Comfort Project...a volunteer's viewpoint

From a volunteer of Rational Animal's Mother's Comfort Project...

Jen B., a volunteer for the Mother's Comfort Project, participated in our April sewing session. She had a great time and then came along with us for the delivery on June 6th, just this past Saturday.

Having experienced this great Rational Animal project from the inside out, she had these kind words to say about it:

"Thanks so much for letting me come with you to the shelter this past weekend. I really felt good about the experience and would like to continue being involved in the Mother's Comfort Project.

I have always been an animal lover, so when I saw an article in Time Out New York about the Mother's Comfort Project, I thought that would be a good way to help. I had never volunteered before. Making the beds was a great experience, and it made me want to help distribute them as well. I had never been to a city shelter before, and I think my perception was that the animals would be sick or aggressive, it would be depressing, etc. When I got there, I was amazed to see how many GREAT, affectionate animals there were. The dogs came to the front of their cages and wagged their tails when we walked by, and the cats started meowing as soon as we walked in. They also weren't all strays as I assumed, there were animals whose owners had passed away, or whose owners simply decided they no longer wanted to have or pay for an animal.

Whether they were strays or owner surrenders, they just seemed to be looking for some love and attention. Unfortunately there were a lot of them, and the shelter had its hands full, so it made our job even more worthwhile. The animals are held in cold steel cages, and something as small as a bed, toy, or pat on the head really does make a difference in their quality of lives. I can vouch for this first-hand.

I think we can all find excuses and reasons NOT to get involved, but I can truly say that I am so happy that I chose to follow through and do it, because the feeling you get back outweighs the excuses tenfold. Mother's Comfort is making a direct impact, and these animals really do deserve it."

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Thanks, Jen!! We appreciate our volunteers' work for our projects. As we all strive to help animals and empower more people to be aware, educated, and make informed decisions. We know this contributes to prevention -- which is key. We seek to prevent some of the problems we deal with in the animal rescue and awareness realm, such as the high incidents of owner surrender and breed/puppy shop buys, as well as cruelty in dog fighting and general neglect.

It's so great to hear one of our volunteers express that she feels she is making a difference.
We feel we are -- and we will not give up!

Alleged Dog Fighters Go Back To Court, Bronx, NY, June 11th and June 16th

Alleged Dog Fighters Go Back To Court, Bronx, NY, June 11th and June 16th

PLEASE HELP YOUR FELLOW ANIMAL LOVERS AND PIT BULL ADVOCATES SUPPORT THE PROSECUTION OF THE BRONX MEN WHO RAN AN ORGANIZED DOG FIGHTING RING

Bronx, New York, June 9, 2009

Join United Action for Animals in court this Thursday, 6/11/09 and next Tuesday 6/16/09 for the 16 victims with no voice.
Please be there at 9:00 am @ Bronx Court, Hall of Justice, 265 East 161st Street (4 train to Yankee Stadium), Bronx, NY. Be prompt so you don't miss the hearing, as there is a long security line at the entrance.
More info and location details here.
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This is a heinous crime -- Estephane's basement was used as a training facility for fighting dogs, not unlike Vick's property was. These were not amateurs, and they'd been running the fighting ring for some time, as was Vick, before his place was finally discovered. So, essentially, my goal is to help make an example out of this case for bringing attention to NYC dog fighting crime, as the large orgs and media did for the Vick case for bringing attention nationwide to the crime of dog fighting in general.

Please show you will NOT tolerate dog fighting in your city! This type of animal cruelty needs more exposure so that children will learn that this is a crime and not take after those who may tempt them into participating, even watching, animals tear each other to shreds in order for humans to make money.

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BACKGROUND:
Five alleged dog fighters and spectators will go back to court in New York City at Bronx Court, Hall of Justice, 265 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY, on charges related to a Bronx dog fighting bust last summer.

The cases were last heard on May 13, 2009 before Judge Steven Barrett (Docket #02688-2008) who set the following hearing dates:
(1) Thursday, June 11: Judge will make a decision in regard to requests by both Cuevas and Mason to plead out. If the judge rules against them, they will be included in the trial with the other three men.
(2) Tuesday, June 16, a trial date will be set for Alexander Estephane, Lauritz Acoy and Juan Toldo on felony dogfighting charges.
-Isreal Cuevas and Alterik Mason will face misdemeanor charges because they were spectators, not dog fighters, unless they are allowed by the judge to plead out.

Almost exactly one year ago, on June 14, 2008, NYPD, acting on a tip from the New Jersey state police, rescued 16 pit bulls and two roosters from the back yard of a house at 108 East 179th Street in the Tremont section of the Bronx that doubled as a dog fighting ring. One of the dogs, that appeared to be badly hurt, died on the way to a shelter. Officers recovered $2,000 in cash and syringes used to inject the dogs with stimulants.Police arrested seven men from the Bronx and New Jersey. The suspected ring leader, Alexander Estephane, 44, lives in the Bronx building that neighbors have long believed housed the inhumane and illegal blood sport. The other men were identified as Lauritz A. Acoy, 41, and Eric A. Boyce, 33, both of the Bronx, and Israel Cuevas, 34, Juan Toldo, 38, Alterik Mason, 29 and Darnell Walker, 34, all of New Jersey.

The next day, in a separate matter of animal cruelty, Israel Cuevas was charged by the New Jersey SPCA with failure to provide food and water to animals residing at his home, 5 adult pit bulls and 12 pit bull puppies, in North Brusnwick, New Jersey. Cuevas, a senior correction officer at the New Jersey Training School for Boys, in Jamesburg, New Jersey, pled guilty to the charges and was fired from his job. Charges against Boyce and Walker were dismissed.

United Action for Animals (UAA), a New York City non-profit humane organization, has created an Anti-Animal Fighting campaign to assist with court advocacy, awareness, animal foster care and pro bono legal assistance for the Animal Care and Control of New York City, the shelter that cares for the victims.

For more information see:
www.ua4a.org/AntiDogFighting.html
http://stopdogfightingnownyc.wetpaint.com
http://www.petabuse.com/cases/13875/NY/US
http://www.nycacc.org

Contact:
Jennifer Panton, President
United Action for Animals
P.O. Box 635
New York, NY 10021212-249-9178

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Many of the pit bulls that cruel people try to use for dog fighting end up at Animal Care and Control.

Brooklyn AC&C, bed delivery for Rational Animal's Mother's Comfort Project (Jan 11, 2009)

This little guy was so sweet. You can see his ears have been cropped -- he was probably used for dog fighting (had scars on his face and legs), and often the ears are cropped (as in literally the top half is cut off when the dog's a puppy) to make the head look bigger or to not get in the way when another dog is attacking its head.
Dog fighting is plain, abominable animal cruelty, and it's illegal.

And many of the dogs -- the lucky ones -- like this guy are still sweet, loving, adoptable companion animals that don't have a fighting bone in their body...which is often why they are dumped out on the streets.

New Hopes this Week! (July 28, 2008)

Please cross post this information to anyone interested in fostering, rescuing, or adopting. More background for each animal will be available upon request.
Contact ckistler@rational-animal.org

Coda (A767691) - 4 yr old Beagle, 38 pounds; Owner surrender, owned 4 years

VOLUNTEER NOTE: Coda walks nicely on the leash and is housebroken. We passed other dogs and he did not display aggression. Coda is handshy. He is not hyper or scattered and showed friendlyness although he seemed very much lost and depressed.

Shashia (A772070) – 12 yr. female Cocker Spaniel, 30 pounds; owner surrendered (landlord).
No behavior concern. Great with adults, kids.BRIGHT, ALERT, RESPONSIVE, HYDRATED

—ABOUT NEW HOPE at NYC AC&C—
New Hope is a network of over 100 pet rescue, support and adoption agencies in the eastern US who are now associated with AC&C in the process of locating homes for the animals we rescue. As the largest animal rescue organization east of the Rocky Mountains, AC&C has begun to function as the source of adoptable pets for numerous animal rescue organizations including breed-specific groups (for both cats & dogs). In recognition of these organization’s work and collaboration with our successes, AC&C assists New Hope partnered rescue groups by offering low cost microchips, free spay and neuter, vaccinations, behavioral tests and transport for animals that are rescued from our shelters.You can contact us at (212)788-4000 or email us at info@nycacc.org
If you are a rescue group and would like to apply to become one of our New Hope partners, please see application link below. Please email application to info@nycacc.org.