The Humane Society of Utah is dedicated to the elimination of fear, pain, and suffering in all animals.

Speaking of

AnimalsAutumn 2009

4242 South 300 WestMurray, UT 84107

Phone: (801) 261-2919www.utahhumane.org

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Craig S. Cook, PresidentDr. Eric Belnap, Vice PresidentDr. JoAnn B. Seghini, Secretary

Randy John, Treasurer

Directors:Michelle Christensen, Janet E. Haskell

Steve Starley, Tim J. Williams

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

Gene Baierschmidt, Executive DirectorPaul Chapin, DVM, Veterinarian

Shama Chapin, DVM, VeterinarianJohn Paul Fox, Chief Investigator

Pauline Edwards, Director of ClinicCarlene Wall, Director of

Operations and EducationKatharine Brant, Director of

Publications and MembershipOliver Schmidt, Director of Electronic Media

Loraine Delgadillo, Business ManagerHuman Resources

Carrie Glavin, Volunteer CoordinatorKris Smith, Community Outreach Director

Jessica Almeida, Animal Transfer CoordinatorBarbara Conrad, Foster Animal Coordinator

SERVICES PROVIDED

v Adoption of animals to qualified homesv Low-cost sterilization surgeriesv Receiving of unwanted animalsv Preventive immunizationsv Investigation of animal abuse and neglectv Animal rescuesv Humane education and pet-facilitated therapy

For further information on services provided by HSU, call 261-2919 during business hours.

Remember, HSU is your shelter.We are here to help the animals of Utah.

Please help maintain and support our programswith your contributions.

The Humane Society of Utah is an independent 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization

that is not affiliated with any other group, nationally or locally. We receive no funding from taxes or any

source other than your contributions.

Incorporated 1960

4242 South 300 WestSalt Lake City, UT 84107-1415

Telephone: (801) 261-2919 Fax: (801) 261-9577

www.utahhumane.org© 2009 Humane Society of Utah. All rights reserved.

The hair-raising and heartbreaking scenes below are actual photographs takenfrom the 1960s to the 1980s of various animal-control “shelters” throughout Utah,some of them in minuscule towns like Fillmore and Ivins, some of them in placesthat would astound the onlooker, like Cedar City and Orem.

Most of those pictured in that section have either(a) ceased to exist,(b) been absorbed by larger, moreacceptable facilitiesin the area, or (c) started fromscratch to buildmore spacious,well-designedaccommodationsof their own. Theones in the lattercategory deservepraise and recog-nition for their efforts to change the horrible images formerly (and justifiably)raised in the public’s mind by the word “pound” and instead show how far localcommunities and municipal governments have come in just a few short decades.

Here, in alphabetical order, are some of the most recent new facilities erected to provide true shelter and care for homeless and unwanted animals.

DraperDraper Animal Control

moved out of their old shelter facility just west of I-15 in 2004, even beforethey began construction on a new building. In the meantime, strays were keptat the police sub-station and,if not claimed, were transported to the South Jordan animal shelter. A groundbreaking ceremony was finally held in June 2006 and the new facility opened March 5th, 2007. continued...

The Times, They are a-Changing

Thank Heaven!Text and photos by John Paul Fox, HSU Chief Investigator

3

LoganHistorically, both Logan City and Cache County merely held

stray animals at several area veterinary hospitals. In 1991, HSUwas contacted by the Cache Animal Protection League (later

the Cache HumaneSociety) regarding theirplans to eventually build a shelter, and we suppliedinformation and literatureon shelter construction;then in 1993 and 1994

Logan City contacted us for the same purpose. In January of 2009we learned that both the city and county were using the newCache Humane Society shelter recently built on west 400 North.

NephiIn 1972, Nephi

City housed straydogs in a makeshift cinder-block building that waspart of an oldsewer plant; outside facilities consisted of a couple of wire runson a concrete surface. HSU officials held a two-hour meetingwith the mayor and other city leaders in 1974, where somechanges were suggested and implemented.

Over the next 29 years HSU repeatedly provided the city withliterature, plans, and specifications on shelter construction andanimal control programs, but political and financial problemscontinually prevented anything from actually being done.Finally, in 2004, the city began building the new shelter and it was completed by February of 2005.

Pleasant ViewFor most of its existence, this town utilized the Weber County

animal shelter to house itsstrays; change occurred inmid-2008, when the cityconstructed a small shelteradjacent to its own offices.In May of the same yearHSU supplied the Chief of

Police with our planning recommendation guide, and the facilitynow has three inside and two outside kennels, the latter withigloo-type retreats.

RooseveltIn 1974, the city

kept strays in a small15' x 15' facility withtwelve wooden cages,each measuring about 2' x 2' x 3'. By 1976, officials had constructed a cinder-block shelter with four dog runs, which was located by the city dump. In early 1983, they began using a local veterinary hospital to house their strays and the same

veterinarian later built a 15' x 30' cinder-block kennel behind his hospital. Finally, Roosevelt constructed a new shelter nearthe veterinary hospital in July of 2008.

Sevier CountyUntil the end of the

20th century, SevierCounty’s animal control officer/sheriff ’sdeputy held stray animals at the localveterinary office; thenin 1999, HSU was asked to supply shelter recommendations, as plans were being considered for the construction of a county-wide animal facility. The new half-million-dollar shelter, located near I-15 between Aurora and Sigurd, openedto accept animals on January 13, 2003.

South JordanIn 1984, the city’s police department contacted HSU for

recommendations regarding a new four-run animal control shelter, since they had prior to that been holding strays at thesmall Bluffdale facility located in a field by the waste water

treatment plant. Over thenext decade various repairsand additions were made,and in late 1998 the cityplanned to move to a larger,temporary shelter in agarage on Redwood

Road. It wasn’t until 2005 that the city actually began talkingabout a new permanent shelter, and a ribbon-cutting ceremonywas held March 11, 2008.

West ValleyWest Valley City was incorporated in 1980, when several

small, loosely-connected areas were joined together under anumbrella administrativesystem. In 1982 the newcity, in order to providesome sort of animal-control function, tookover a facility on 7200West which had onceserved as a private dog kennel, and over the years simply made numerous additions to that structure as the communitygrew. By 1993, officials realized that the existing facility wascompletely inadequate for a rapidly-expanding population;however, nothing was actually done until 2006, when HSU’sBoard of Directors sent a detailed letter to WVC reportingdeficiencies we had observed, as well as complaints we hadreceived from the public concerning the facility. In early 2008,HSU sat in on a floor-plan meeting for a proposed new shelterwith architects, the city attorney, and animal-control officials.Construction at last began in late 2008 at about 4500 Westand 3500 South, and should be completed in the fall of 2009. v

Tabiona is a tiny hamlet in northeastern Utah, verymuch isolated from the rest of the state. The town’s 149inhabitants can be relatively isolated from each other, andoccasionally some of them manage to isolate themselvesfrom the rest of civilization altogether. It was from theremote cabin of one such absolute loner that a storyemerged which left people throughout the state stunned.

When deputies from the Duchesne County Sheriff ’sOffice reported to that cabin on a sunny morning in mid-June the sight that met their eyes was an appalling one, tosay the very least. In the small, one-room structure about80 dogs, most of them poodles, were huddled together inheaps of filth that were more than a foot deep in places.The dogs’ coats, which had evidently never been groomed,had grown into long, matted, muck-encrusted ropes ofdreadlocks. The animals had not been given food or waterfor at least five days. All were malnourished, most werenear death, and nine of them were in fact already deadwhen officers entered the stifling, stench-filled place. How could such a horrible scenario ever materialize?

The “Hoarding” SyndromeOne of the worst causes of extreme animal suffering is,

ironically, people who “love”pets so much that they literally love them to death. They’re called hoarders, andthey indiscriminately breed or collect far more animals —usually cats or dogs — than they can possibly care for properly. Usually they’re first identified when neighbors

complain about thefoul odors andsqualid conditionsof the propertywhere these unfortunate creatures are existing. In thecase of the Tabionapoodles, they hadbeen allowed tobreed withabsolutely norestraint or care bya reclusive man,supposedly forshow purposes,who had little or

no contact with the outside world. It wasn’t until the man fell ill and was taken to a local hospital, where he subsequently died, that relatives notified the Sheriff that

there were animals in the cabin. The officials who respondedto that call discovered, to their shock, the nightmarishresults of one hoarder’s unreasoning obsession.

To the RescueEarly rescue efforts were hampered to some extent by

the sheer chaos of the situation. Some of the terrified,unsocialized dogs fled into holes in the walls and had to be retrieved the next day. A dozen of the animals were sodesperately and incurably ill that Animal Control officershad no choice but to euthanize them on the spot. Thenearest municipal shelter, located in Roosevelt City, didn’thave the space or resources to take care of so many dogs;all they could do was accept as many as possible, and therest — the majority of the dogs — were dispersed to otherfacilities to be cleaned up, fed, vaccinated, spayed orneutered, and made ready for adoption to the first realhomes of their lives.

On June 18th, cameramen and reporters from all themajor media outlets gathered at the Humane Society ofUtah to record the arrival here of 28 of the remaining“Roosevelt Refugees” — still covered with tangled, knotted, dirty hair, still painfully skinny, still frightened,but now also with something they hadn’t ever had before: a faint hope that better times might be just around the corner.4

HSU workers begin unloading the first of the kennels thattransported the filthy, neglected poodles from

a one-room cabin where they had been left without care for at least a week. Representatives from all the major

media outlets were on hand to record the dramatic event.

(right) This object is a dog. All of the Tabiona Refugees

looked like this when they first arrived at HSU.

(below) What a difference some love makes! The same

dog, bathed and groomed andfed, relaxes on a clean, soft

towel and contemplates abrighter tomorrow.

ExodusPoodles Find Promised Land

Staff and Volunteers Work MiraclesHSU workers immediately set to work

justifying that hope. Each poodle wasshaved, bathed, medicated, given a complete physical examination, and setup in a clean, spacious kennel with his orher own blanket and dishes filled withfresh water and food. At that point several specific rescue groups took abouthalf of the dogs, with each group assuming responsibility for only one ortwo animals. In this way, the poodleswould be available in several differentwidespread locations, and each rescuegroup would dedicate itself to findinggood homes for the small number of dogs in its care.

Our veterinarians dedicated one full day to the exclusive care of the fourteen poodles remaining at HSU, and by late afternoon all of them had been surgi-cally sterilized and had their teeth professionally cleaned. Because we weren’t sure how long itwould take the poodles to recover from their surgeries, aswell as to become accustomed to being handled by and closely associated with people, weinitially estimated that they wouldn’t be ready to be put up for adoption until at least the following week. But they astonished us all with theirmiraculous response to care and affection! After only twodays at the HSU shelter, they were obviously not only for-getting their incredibly horrible earlier situation, but were positively thriving onthe love and one-on-one attention that was suddenly beinglavished on them. We decided that the very best way tocontinue their progress was to find a good, responsible, permanent home for each one of them as soon as possible.

Peace and Happiness at LastFrom the moment the Refugees arrived at our shelter,

we were overwhelmed with calls, inquiries, and requests toadopt them, so it came as no surprise that the switchboardwent wild when we announced on our website that thesedogs would be available to the public that very Saturday.

“Those poodles have been through unimaginable traumasalready,” said HSU Executive Director Gene Baierschmidtin announcing the release of the poodles for adoption.“We’re going to make sure that nothing like what they’veendured ever happens to them again. This time, they’re starting

off their new lives on the right paw.” So, as we do with all persons wanting to adopt any animal from our shelter,we carefully screened every applicant to ensure that therewas a total commitment to guaranteeing the dog’s health, happiness, security, and well-being for the rest of his or her life.

And by closing time that same day, all 14 of the poodleswho had originally been found in a truly hellish situationwere taken by adoring, caring people to become thebeloved new members of real families of their very own,and we learned later that all the other dogs who went todifferent rescue groups were also successfully adopted. Theyhave at last arrived at the promised land that they deserve. v

5

(above) “Peaches” timidly emergesfrom her transportation kennel into the light upon arriving at HSU.

(left) HSU Animal TransferCoordinator Jessica Almeida, who is a trained animal groomer in additionto her many other skills, eases Peachesonto the grooming table in preparationfor a complete makeover.

(right) Life startsto look better forPeaches — and

with the worst ofthe matted hairtrimmed awayfrom her eyes,

she can actuallybegin to see some

of it for herself.

The happy ending: Like the otherpoodles, all of whom were

adopted on the first day theybecame available to the public,Peaches goes home cuddled in

the arms of a loving new mom.As well as being bathed and

groomed, the dogs were spayedor neutered, had their teeth

cleaned, and were given complete physical exams

and vaccinations before theywere put up for adoption.

6

Unconditional love on a two-way street: Honey, an HSU dog, was donated

to this caring lady, a resident of Canyon Creek Assisted Living, in April, and

since then the two have loved happily ever after.

Love is a CircleHumane Society Dog is Donated to Lady in Assisted Living,

Both Now in Seventh Heaven

Canadian Seal Hunt Closer to Ending

Dear Humane Society,I am the administrator for Canyon Creek Assisted Living, and I would like

to take a moment of your time to share the experience I had with one ofyour employees named Susan.

A few months ago, a 94-year-old lady moved into our facility along withher 18-year-old poodle; unfortunately, this elderly pet was suffering fromcancer and had to be put to sleep shortly after arriving here. My staff andI engaged in many heart-to-heart conversations with the lady, who sorelymissed her pet, trying to determine the best way to help her. Finally, shedecided that she would like another dog.My staff did some research on the Internet and found a Lhasa-Apso/

poodle mix on the HSU website who had just recently been admitted toyour shelter. My Activity Assistant, Julie, called to inquire about the dogand, after a very pleasant exchange with Susan, it was agreed that yourfacility would donate this dog — whose name was Fozzi — to ourResident. Julie and I came down to the shelter to meet Fozzi in personand at once saw that this small, gentle, affectionate animal would makea perfect new companion for our Resident.Susan was so caring, compassionate, and genuinely interested in

making a difference in someone’s life. We couldn’t wait to get back toCanyon Creek and present Fozzi to our Resident. The meeting of thetwo was truly a tender moment — I think the enclosed photo showsbetter than any words of mine can ever express how quickly and deeplythese hearts bonded to each other.Thank you for making this wonderful experience happen. We know

that our Resident and Fozzi — whose name is now “Honey” — haveformed a powerful and lifelong companionship. We’re endlessly gratefulto Susan and the Humane Society for coordinating this miracle.

One of the Humane Society of Utah’s most dedicated and hard-working staff members is Adoptions ManagerSusan Maxon, who continually oversees the care of theapproximately 700 animals we have available for adoptionevery day. We were recently delighted to receive the following message from Sandi Johnson, the ExecutiveDirector of Canyon Creek Assisted Living Center, who told us the heartwarming story of how Susan had acted as a “matchmaker” for one of HSU’s residents and one ofCanyon Creek’s residents. Here’s Sandi’s gracious letter:

In a world filled with bad news, we like to pass on to our members anything good that comes along. So, as most of youknow, even though there are of course no seals in Utah, we atHSU have long condemned on mere principle the horribleannual Canadian fur-seal kill, in which hundreds of thousands of baby seals are clubbed to death, often right in front of theircrying mothers. But last May the EuropeanUnion banned its trade in seal products —an act which deals a devastating financialblow to the sealers. And since money seemsto be the only factor that influences somepeople’s actions, this means the beginning of the end of the Canadian seal hunt.

For example, just this year, out of theannual quota of 280,000 harp seals, fewerthan 60,000 have been killed to date. We’dlike to see the quota stopped dead in its

tracks, and make the number of seals killed for their fur ZERO in the not-too-distant future.

Canadian Senator Mac Herb has introduced his country’s first bill to end the hunt permanently, which is in itself anincredible step forward. You can help by writing to the CanadianParliament and urging other members to support Senator Herb’sbill (go to www.canada.gc.ca for directions). You can boycott allCanadian seafood products until the seal hunt is ended forever.

You can look on the Internet and become better informed about the hideous realities

of seal hunting.

And thank you for caring —even if the animals who needyour help aren’t right here inUtah. v

7

Just about everybody on earth who owns a television setrecognizes the name of Oprah Winfrey, the queen of daytimetalk shows whose program appears every afternoon on networks worldwide. And those who are familiar with some of the details about the many good causes personally championed by the popular superstar know that one of thesubjects dearest to her heart is companion animals. Lastspring she once again demonstrated her devotion to thesespecial beings by focusing an entire broadcast on the topic of the rich emotional relationships that can exist betweenanimals and the people who love them.

From the Exotic to the HumbleMuch of the May 15 show, which was co-hosted by actress

Glenn Close, featured out-of-the-ordinary episodes like theamazing transformations that occurred when convicted felonswere given the responsibility of training dogs to become companions for individuals with special needs. The prisonersthemselves learned priceless lessons about caring, compassion,and developing respect for both others and themselves. Andthe persons who became the lifelong guardians of these dogsonce their training was completed — the visually impaired orthose confined to wheelchairs, for example — were uniformlyoverwhelmed by the positive impact made on their lives bythe dogs, who provided them with newfound independenceand unconditional love.

The program also offered revealinginsights into the powerful bonds that canbe forged between humans and other animals not generally considered to be“pets,” including a hippopotamus wholives, eats, and sleeps in her family’s home(they reside in Africa, and the hippo hasfree access to a nearby river where shesocializes with undomesticated friends ofher own species). The audience was alsointroduced to Brutus, a handsome full-grown grizzly bear who affectionatelyshares the Idaho home of the couple whoraised him from birth. (Brutus had beengiven the honor of serving as the bestman at the pair’s wedding.)

Best of all, though, was the constant reminder throughoutthe program of the most wonderful animal friends for everybody — the ones waiting in shelters all across the country to find loving, permanent homes of their own. The backdrop for the entire broadcast was an enormous map of the United States, with the portraits of one animal from each of only twelve shelters across the nation that had beenchosen for this special spotlighting — and the HumaneSociety of Utah was one of the select twelve.

Angel’s Shining HourThe HSU dog whose gentle face appeared over the Salt

Lake City area of the map was “Angel,” a seven-year-oldAmerican Eskimo who had been cared for in our FosterProgram after having been through a great deal of trauma.“Angel was originally found in very bad shape in an abandonedhouse,” explained Foster Coordinator Barbara Conrad. “She had been briefly taken in by a neighboring family, but theycouldn’t keep her because of the economic recession, so theybrought her to the Humane Society of Utah. She had been throughso much, and yet still had such a sweet disposition, but she wasalso understandably frightened, sad, and confused. That’s why wewaited until she had been given lots of one-on-one foster parentingbefore we even considered putting her up for adoption.”

When we were contacted by Harpo Productions, Ms.Winfrey’s company, and asked if we would like to have one of our animals featured on the Oprah show, the only problemwe faced was deciding which one to choose. But after Barbarahad shared Angel’s story with the rest of the staff, it wasunanimously concluded that she should be the one.Accordingly, we sent a photo and a brief biographical sketchof Angel to Harpo Productions, and viewers who were interested in her were referred to a special address on thewebsite. This is what we said:

1) Angel’s adoption will NOT be processedon a “first come, first served” basis! Allprospective adopters will be carefully screenedand evaluated, and her new family will benotified by the Humane Society as soon as adecision has been made.

2) Angel is a 20-lb. female who has beenspayed, has all her shots, and has just hadher teeth cleaned.

3) Angel has been through a lot of difficult changes, but still has a gentle, loving nature. WHAT THIS DOG NEEDSNOW IS A PERMANENT HOME WITHSOMEONE WHO IS WILLING TO LOVEAND CARE FOR HER FOR THE REST OFHER LIFE. Rest assured that we will see to itthat Angel goes ONLY to an excellent home.

The Right StuffThe Oprah show was aired locally at 4:00 PM, and by 4:30

calls about Angel were already coming in, some from placesas far away as Wisconsin and British Columbia! We kepttrack of all inquiries and thoroughly interviewed everyonewho expressed interest. After going through all the data, wedecided that a Boise couple with grown children, whom they

Look Homeward, Angel –HSU Dog Featured on National “Oprah ” Broadcast

This beautiful American Eskimo had seen a great dealof trouble in the seven years of her life before she

finally came to the Humane Society of Utah, wentthrough our foster care program, and was adopted

to a wonderful, permanent home after being featured on the Oprah Winfrey show.

continued on page 8 (Angel)

8

were visiting in Salt Lake, showed the real emotional attachmentto Angel that we were looking for. “We had been searching for a dogfor a long time,” says Angel’s new mom, “but this was the first one wejust ‘connected’ with. It’s hard to put into words — we looked into hereyes and she looked into ours, and we knewwe were meant for each other.”

Follow-up conversations have indicatedthat those instincts were right on themark. “Angel is a perfect new member of ourfamily, and she knows it,” say her people.“At first she was a little ‘clingy’ — probablyafraid that she would be dumped again — butwe were very reassuring and responsive to herfeelings of insecurity. When she stuck close toone or the other of us as we walked aroundthe house, we always made her feel that bydoing so she was paying us a compliment,which I guess, in a way, she actually was!We would talk to her the whole time in a loving way and frequently bend down toscratch her ears or hug her. After only

a few days she was able to stay in her doggie bed in the kitchen if one of us went into another room, instead of frantically running after us.When we took her out into our fenced yard we stayed with her until shegradually became brave enough to explore it on her own. She has now

become a confident, serene companion whosleeps on our bed at night and rules the roost by day. She has truly been an angel to us —we’re so grateful and happy to have her. Peopleprobably think that we did something wonderfulfor her — and I’m sure that’s true — but wewant everyone to know what a wonderful difference she has made in our lives, too.”

If you have been inspired by Angel’s story,please remember that we have lots of otherwonderful animals waiting for a miracle, too.Please visit the Humane Society’s shelter at 4242 South 300 West in Salt Lake City to view the widest selection of adoptabledogs and cats in the state. v

Angel... continued from page 7

The summer of ‘09 will long be fondly remembered as one ofthe gr-r-r-reatest seasons ever for the Salt Lake Bees baseballteam. No bones about it, fans could really dig these matches

even if they weren’tactually in the dugout,because every homegame featured a lineupof adoptable dogs fromthe Humane Society ofUtah right there on the

concourse! And every time the camera zoomed in for a close-up of one of these gorgeous southpaws (or any kind of paws, forthat matter) to display on the giant screen, the bleachers wentas wild as if a triple-play homer had just been hit.

The dogs were escorted by HSU staff members who were prepared to evaluate and process all potential new families atthe ballpark itself, and we enjoyed a large number of successful adoptions not only at the site but also back at the shelter,

where many baseball fans who were impressed by what they’dseen on the field showed up to take a look at the many otherclassy canines available at the “home base.”

“Dog Day Afternoon”The highlight of the season was the “Dog Day Afternoon”

special held on May 31st, when Bees aficionados who alreadyhad dogs could bring their own four-footed friends with them to enjoy the fun. Between innings the guest dogscould participate in a “Most Beautiful Pooch” contest, and, as usual, HSU dogs were on the scene as well and, again as usual, they wowed the crowd.

Our participation with the Bees was one of the most enjoyable, heart-warming events we’ve ever experienced.Many thanks to the team, managers, sponsors, and fans whojoined together with HSU to help find happy homes for somany of our dogs and make so many Utah families aware ofthe wonderful friends available at the Humane Society. v

Bees and Bowsers – HSU Dogs Team up with Ballplayers, It’s a Hit!

In each issue of Speaking of Animals, youwill see the logo of Community Shares Utah.This is a workplace giving federation thatallows employees to donate any specifiedamount through payroll options to a range of

non-profit agencies, including the Humane Society of Utah,that work to benefit the environment, deliver critical services,improve the community, protect human rights and promoteanimal welfare.

The Humane Society of Utah has been a member ofCommunity Shares for several years. Look over the list ofother member organizations at ww.communitysharesutah.orgto see what good company we keep. HSU would love to benefit from your workplace giving program — if you don’thave the opportunity to contribute at work and would like to,please contact Carlene Wall at the Humane Society of Utah (801) 261-2919, ext. 209 or Lynne Bradley at CommunityShares (801) 486-9224.

A Workplace Giving Opportunity

Angel poses on the HSU lawn in her loving new mom’s arms (right) immediately following her adoption.

Angel’s mom, a native of Boise, Idaho, was in Salt Lake City visiting her daughter (left, holding her

own new baby) when she saw Angel on television. She and her husband were chosen from among manypeople who called in to inquire about Angel, and theyhave proved to be the perfect family for this sweet dog.