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Available for Adoption
Success Stories
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HOW TO BECOME ACTIVELY INVOLVED FOR ANIMALS IN YOUR COMMUNITY
1.
Inform
yourself about animal welfare problems. API
will help keep you abreast of important national and international issues
through our quarterly magazine Mainstream and
other special mailings. You may, in
turn, help API by notifying us of local issues which may warrant action by our
alert forces. 2.
Become
acquainted with your state's wildlife code and animal regulations and report any violations promptly.
Your local librarian or the humane officer at your local animal shelter
can help you obtain information about or copies of state and federal animal
protection laws. 3.
Join
a local humane society or animal shelter and/or volunteer your services for routine work or special fundraising
events. 4.
If
you have children, encourage them to research animal topics for reports or
classroom discussions. API
will be happy to help by supplying reference materials on pet care, endangered
species, or other topics. 5.
Scan
newspapers and magazines for articles pertaining to animals and/or animal
abuses. When
appropriate, write letters to organizations or companies involved with a story
to either complain or praise them. or direct complaints to the group involved
are not effective, write to local government officials.
Also, send a copy of the clipping
to API for our information and possible action. 6.
Write
letters to local and state officials, elected members of Congress and heads of
state and federal
agencies concerning animal welfare legislation.
Each letter you write is taken to mean that anywhere from 50 to 500 other
people in your area hold the same opinion; do not discount the value of a single
letter. Remember, too, letters of
praise can be just as effective as letters of complaint. (Note: Ask for API's
article "Writing Effective Letters" that gives helpful hints on how to
get the most impact from your letters.) 7.
Inform
others about the plight of animals. Letters
written to the editor of a local newspaper, calls to a radio talk show, or
material passed out at a dog show, club meeting, or other event, are all
excellent ways to spread the word. In
addition, if you like to write, submit informational pieces to the paper for
publication-book reviews or even a Mainstream
article submitted for reprinting, if appropriate, are two ideas. (API can
supply you with materials to distribute.) 8.
Encourage
clubs to undertake animal or ecology related projects. Possibilities
include: showing animal videos and films (API has several available); sponsoring
trips to wildlife preserves; arranging for talks by veterinarians, wildlife
agency officials, or humane society officers; setting up displays on wildlife or
pets; obtaining permission to plant special food and cover plants for wildlife
in a local park. When planting
cover, be sure to use native species, not imported plants. Research what types of food sources are needed by indigenous
wildlife. You might want to check
with the Department of Agriculture Extension Service for such information. 9.
Individuals or groups might wish to donate
books on animal protection, wildlife, pet care, or conservation to a local
library or school and ask that it hold an animal week, featuring a display or
promotion of these books. API will
be happy to supply you with a list of suitable books for this purpose. 10.
Give
schools or libraries gift memberships in API, which include a
subscription to Mainstream, as well as
special project mailings. Subscription
only to Mainstream magazine is
$12/year. Full membership in the
Animal Protection Institute is $18/year. 11.
Encourage
responsible pet ownership by setting a good example.
Make
sure your pet is spayed or neutered, wears a collar with proper identification
attached to it, is routinely vaccinated, regularly exercised, fed a balanced
diet, and adequately sheltered. Never
let your pet run loose unsupervised. If, for some reason, you are unable to keep an animal, either find him/her a good home or take him/her to a no-kill animal rescue association or league through which he/she can be made available to a loving home. If you are unable to find a new home or an organization able to help, take him/her to your veterinarian to be humanely put to sleep. NEVER abandon an animal, for it will probably not survive and
will only add to the already monumental problem of pet overpopulation. (API has
a pamphlet on "Finding Pets A Good Home," which may be helpful.) 12.
If
your community does not have a spay/neuter program, try to establish one. You
might first contact your own veterinarian to see if he/she will perform a
certain number of operations at a reduced rate. If you would like to go one step further, send for API's
package on establishing a low-cost spay/neuter clinic.
This project, however, is a tedious and painstaking process, requiring
extensive time and effort. 13.
Attempt
to set up a lost and found pet referral program.
By
placing ads in the newspaper inquiring if anyone has lost or found a particular
pet, people will soon learn that you are the one to call when they have lost or
found an animal. Radio stations
will often announce that a pet has been lost and request that people call a
particular number if they find an animal matching the description read.
One caution-you may find yourself plagued with people wanting you to
place their unwanted pets, and, if your address is known, you may end up with
animals on your doorstep. 14.
Circulate
petitions on important issues such as API's "CLEAR SEAS" petition to rid the oceans of
plastic fishing nets and other plastic debris so deadly to marine animals.
API often has petition campaigns in progress. 15.
Set
up a humane education program in
the local school system.
Discuss the possibilities with your local school or district
administrator. Perhaps you could
initiate a simple, one-hour program on pet care and animal problems for one or
two grade levels. Teachers
generally welcome volunteers from the community.
You would eventually reach great numbers of children, and the experience
can be rewarding and of immeasurable help to animals.
API can supply you with humane education materials to distribute and use
(such as API's Educators Newsletter, A. P.
E Vine) as teaching aids. 16.
When requesting materials from API, please enclose a self-addressed,
stamped envelope to expedite a reply.
Animal
Protection Institute of America |
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