LOVE. PROTECT. ADOPT.

T H E V O I C E O F B U R B A N K ’ S A N I M A L SCITY

WINTER 2017 | VOLUME 12 | ISSUE 1

By Tiff any Brain

Paws

Stay updated on the Love. Protect. Adopt. Campaign at thevbas.org/love-protect-adopt

Support the LPA campaign by purchasing VBAS merchandise at cafepress.com/thevbas

The VBAS cherishes all of the volunteers who use their talents and free time to provide a good quality of life to the residents at the Burbank Shelter. This time around we want to shine the Love. Protect. Adopt. spotlight on a volunteer who has worked behind the scenes for over eight years to support volunteer departments and events, and acts as our liaison to the Burbank Animal Shelter staff.

Eleanor O’Brien serves as an integral part of the VBAS as the Director of Volunteer Services. If you’ve inquired about volunteering, attended orientation, received a badge, or are currently a volunteer, you’ve heard from her. Eleanor has guided many prospective volunteers through the lengthy process to become official volunteers. She has personally men-tored eager volunteers into a leadership position or to become cat adoption counselors.

The weekly Blasts that are procured and sent from the Volunteer Services Department keeps the volunteer base tuned into what each committee and department is doing, whether they are local or remotely supporting the organization. However, I know we are most appreciative when Eleanor sends the special email blast announcements when long-term residents are adopted! Eleanor’s efforts keep the Board, and the base engaged so we as one can better represent the adoptable animals to the community at large.

Finally, Eleanor spends a great deal of time at the shelter on the weekends cleaning the various cat rooms with new volunteers and then talking with potential adopters in the main cat room. If there is a special off-site adoption, fundraising or advertising event, you can bet Eleanor will probably be there as well.

From the VBAS: Thank you, Eleanor. You’re an example that one volunteer can make a deep impact and inspire others.Photos by Eleanor O’Brien

UPCOMING EVENTSKITTEN ADOPTION FAIRSBurbank Animal Shelter1st & 3rd Saturdays of Every Month Times VaryVisit thevbas.org/events for details

HAPPY TAILS HIKESStough Canyon Nature Center 1st & 3rd Sundays of Every Month8:30AM Email Erik at erik@thevbas.org for details

BUNNY ADOPTION FAIRSBurbank Animal Shelter2nd & 4th Sundays of Every Month 11:00AM–3:00PM

February 20, 2017National Love Your Pet DayBring your pet a special treat, take an extra long walk...it’s a day to spoil yourprecious pets!

March 25, 2017VBAS New Volunteer OrientationBurbank Animal Shelter9:00AM To sign up, visit thevbas.org/volunteer

For fi ve nights in October, local haunted house Rotten Apple 907 scared up donations for the VBAS. The “Not So Enchanted Forest” was constructed in a front yard on North California Street featuring such monsters as the Big Bad Wolf, Little Red Riding Hood (with an ax!), and a Dragon! Over the course of the fi ve nights through darkness, wind, and rain VBAS volunteers listened to guests scream and laugh over their experience. Although admission was free, donations to the VBAS were suggested. 2016 was the fi rst year the VBAS was chosen as the charity. Shattering previous attendance records, the house entertained more than 4,000 visitors scaring up $6,000 for VBAS.

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VBAS volunteers and Burbank Animal Shelter staff gathered in September for our semi-annual appreciation event. These events provide the VBAS and Burbank Animal Shelter staff a chance to mingle outside of the setting of the animal shelter. We bonded over dart board games, opening day football and U.S. Open Finals tennis. We celebrated the work we are able to accomplish for the Burbank community together. Local establishment and VBAS supporter Story Tavern provided the backdrop for our festivities. “Story Tavern is a tribute to the Burbank community, and when we expanded our establishment to include a dog patio, we reached out to the volunteers. They’ve helped us as much as we’ve helped them. We love supporting our four-legged friends,” said Co-owner Diane Slaught.

VOLUNTEERSMix, Mingle & Be Merry

No Tricks in this Treat!By Megan Craig

By Megan Craig

Photo by Renee White Eyes

STRUT YOUR MUTT SUCCESS

Thank you to all of our strutters, supporters, donors and sponsors. We were proud to represent the VBAS at the 2016 Strut Your Mutt event produced by Best Friends Animal Society.

Photo by Jill Gardner

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VBAS volunteers run for the hills! 18 volunteers ran the streets of Burbank, including at least one hill, on Thanksgiving morning in our 4th annual Turkey Trot event. We were the third largest team at the event. One-year volunteer Kara Ludke felt compelled to par cipate, “I had just joined last year. This year, I wanted to do something big.” Not only did these volunteers get up early on a holiday to run a 5 or 10k, but they also spent their me leading up to that holiday fundraising to sup-

port the animals in our local shelter. Each year the fundraising goal has increased, and each year the volunteers have risen to the challenge. In 2016 we surpassed our goal and raised a total of $17,686!

in the COMMUNITYTURKEY TROTTING TO VICTORY

By Megan Craig

There is one thing the friends of Ann Cruz can agree on: she loved and cared about animals. Not just her pit lab mix Chandler, but all animals, from the neigh-borhood birds that visited her feeder to the many homeless animals in Burbank. “She gave something of herself to those who knew her and worked with her, and what she gave was very precious. It was made of the good stuff: kindness, fairness and generosity, humor and tolerance,” says friend and neighbor Scott O’Grady. “Whether swinging from the trapeze, or riding her Vespa scooter, Ann loved life, and the people in her life.”

Ann Cruz grew up in the San Fernando Valley and graduated from Woodbury University with a master’s degree in Business Administration in 2001. She was the owner and proprietor of local business Ann Made Candle and Scarves. In 2015 Ann lost her life from complications due to a long-term illness.

In honor of Ann’s passion for Burbank’s homeless animals, Ann’s friends and family created a Crowdrise fundraising page to raise money and awareness for the VBAS. An inscribed plaque was also created and mounted at the Burbank Animal Shelter to celebrate Ann’s love of animals and inspire others to take up the cause and support the Burbank Animal Shelter’s future homeless residents.

By Cecelia Martinez Wood

Photo by Cecelia Martinez Wood

DONOR SPOTLIGHT

Photo by Megan CraigS T O S

To learn more about memorial and celebration gifts, please visit thevbas.org.

Animals regularly arrive at the Burbank Animal Shelter with a variety of health problems. Some issues are easily treatable by the veterinary staff before adoption, but others are so serious that the regular adoption process is not possible.

For three happy-go-lucky feline siblings named Penny, Charlie, and Sammy, this was the case. They arrived at the shelter last July and tested positive for FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus), a slow-act-ing virus that weakens the immune system, leads to secondary infections, and is transmittable between cats.

For this reason, Penny, Charlie, and Sammy were not candidates for adoption. That is when volunteers and staff stepped into action and reached out to Milos Rescue and Sanctuary in Burbank. With a healthy diet, regular vet care, and a stress-free environment, cats with FIV can lead relatively comfortable lives for months or even years before the disease reaches its chronic stages. Thanks to Milos Rescue and Sanctuary, Penny, Charlie, and Sammy will be able to flourish in a safe and loving home.

Facts about FIV:

• FIV is diagnosed through blood testing.• Cats may not show symptoms until years after infection occurred. • FIV is mainly transmitted cat to cat through deep bite wounds. FIV cannot be transmitted to humans.• Cats who live indoors are less likely to become infected.• There is no cure for FIV.

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To help our Medical Team continue their dental dream and maintain our Dental X-Ray machine,please consider making a donation at http://www.theVBAS.org/general-donate

A Dental Dream Come TrueBy Jenna Tucker

THE FACTS ABOUT FIV

Photo by Cecelia Martinez Wood

By Cecelia Martinez Wood

Get ready for happier pets and cleaner kisses! Thanks to a grant from the Chrisman Foundation, the Burbank Animal Shelter now has its very own dental X-ray machine. While in the medical room, Kitten Foster volunteer, Carolyn Chrisman, overheard a conversation stressing the need for an X-ray machine. She spoke with her family, who runs the Chrisman Foundation, and they generously agreed to fund the project.

This new tool will benefit the shelter in multiple ways, one of which is keeping shelter pets onsite rather than sending them elsewhere for dental X-rays. Additionally, having an X-ray machine in the building keeps costs low and increas-es the number of pets that can receive imaging services.

As we all know, there is always plenty to do at the shelter. Because of this, X-rays will not be included as part of rou-tine cleaning procedures. However, they will be performed when needed and will serve to provide insight as to what

potentially lie under gums where teeth are missing. The machine will also be extremely helpful for pets who have had previous dental work or whose gums have grown over, giving the appearance of a clean mouth although a broken root could still be present. Jeannette Dease, RVT explains some of additional ben-efits the shelter will see due to the new machine. “It is a fabulous tool to use to help get more of a history, as we rarely get anything useful when new pets come into the shelter. Possibly due to the high cost of dentals on older pets, we are seeing a huge increase in the need for more involved dentals as well. This will help us correctly treat/repair issues many of these older pets have.”

This new piece of equipment will give vets a better idea on what to correct to keep a shelter pet’s mouth healthy and pain free—a win for everyone involved!

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By Amy Reynolds

FROM FOSTER TO TO FOREVER HOMEFOREVER HOME

Puppies Wish,Amazon DeliversEvery year our Puppy Foster Program receives tiny orphaned puppies that aren’t able to survive at the shelter. Our puppy foster families take them in to care for them until they’re old enough to be adopted to their forever homes.

Through our Puppy Foster Program Amazon Wish List, VBAS supporters like you can help our puppy fosters get the supplies they need to be healthy, happy and hearty while in foster care.

Scan the Q-code on our PFP Wish List flyer (pictured on the right) or go online to donate live-saving nourishment and supplies.

Amazon Link - http://amzn.com/w/YYQK14QB696A

My first foster dog was quite a few years ago when a friend found a dog in a park. We spent some time helping her heal, and then got to place her with an incredible family. I knew someday I’d do that again.

My most recent foster was one of the first members of the newly-formed, still-evolving, VBAS Adult Dog Foster program. Jerry was a frightened pup who was overwhelmed with the noise and commotion of the shelter. We took him in and helped him learn the world wasn’t as scary as he thought. Through networking, help from other volunteers, and time, Jerry found his new dad and dog-brother (and a new name!). He’s still adapting to his new life and family, but he’s happier and has a better life now.

Enrichment of life is the purpose of a foster program for adult animals who may have already been through a lot in life or just don’t thrive in the shelter environment. Being in a foster home gives them the chance to learn how to be with a family again (or for the first time), learn necessary skills, and settle into a routine. For dogs that are anxious, high-energy, or older, there are countless advantages to being in a foster home. For the foster family, you have the reward of knowing that you helped a dog be more prepared for a forever home, which may not have been the case if they had stayed in a shelter situation.

The Adult Dog Foster program has since found a home for one other dog, and we have one more currently looking for her forever family. We’re still in the learning and research stage but hope to continue to see the Adult Dog Foster program grow and become a big part of what the VBAS can offer the Burbank community.

Photo by Amy Reynolds

P r o g r a m S p o t l i g h t

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GENERAL INFORMATION

BURBANK ANIMAL SHELTER ADDRESS:1150 N. Victory PlaceBurbank, CA 91502818.238.3340

HOURS:Tuesday - Saturday: 10:00am to 5:00pmSunday: 11:00am to 3:00pmMonday: Closed

ADOPTION & REGISTRATION RATES

ADOPTION FEES: • Dogs - $104 • Cats - $78 • Bunnies - $30 (Prices include spay or neuter, vaccinations and micro chip)

You must be 18 or over to adopt a pet.

LICENSE FEES FOR BURBANK RESIDENTS: • Unaltered Dogs: $100 • Altered Dogs: $20A rabies certifi cate is required for all dogs.

• Cats (Unaltered & Altered): $5 • Horses: $15 • Wild Animal Permit: $15

PLEASE NOTE: Licenses are required for all animals and must be renewed annually. There is a 100% penalty for late renewals.

VBAS BOARD MEMBERS

Jill GardnerBoard Chair

Chris de ZorziBoard Member, Finance Chair

Cecelia Martinez WoodBoard Member, Secretary

Amy ReynoldsVolunteer Representative to the Board

VBAS MANAGEMENT TEAM

Eleanor O’BrienVolunteer Services Director

Jennifer Heeber Kitten Foster Program Director

Amy Chen Publications Director

Renee White Eyes Volunteer Services Manager

Tiffany Brain & Pat McCauleyVolunteer Training Managers

Debbie Peterson Puppy Foster Program Coordinator

Leah Castle Adult Dog Foster Program Coordinator

Tiffany VictorMedical Liaison

Megan Craig Development Liaison

Everyone loves pictures of cute animals. Need proof? Just look at any social media site, and you’ll fi nd adorable cats, dogs and even rodents with thousands of followers. A great picture can showcase an animal’s personality and expedite the adoption process. Enter the VBAS’ photo team!

Team lead, Lorry Izor, adopted her dog, Max, from the shelter and wanted to give back to the place that helped bring her so much joy. “I started the team with no photo skills and a point-and-shoot camera,” she said. “I was [eventually] asked to write the weekly Pet of the Week feature, which came with the need for photos. I was solo then, so dogs had to be tied up to what-ever was handy to keep them still.”

When David Snyder joined the team, Lorry became a wrangler—she helped keep the animals still, comfortable and as happy as possible. David started on the photo team after realizing that the photos could be improved. He started taking pictures weekly, and the team steadily grew.

For humans and animals alike, a good fi rst impression is crucial. “I have had people

come in to adopt and say the photo fi rst caught their eye,” explains Snyder.

A few of the team’s wranglers shared how they got involved and what they love about their role:

I like animals more than people. At the fi rst VBAS meeting, I attended, they announced they needed help, and I’ve been showing up ever since.

— Ed Canavan

It is so much fun to wrangle the animals for their glam shots. I love when I can sit with a shy dog to help it feel comfortable!

— Sue Stimpson

I wanted to work on the photo team, so I could have one-on-one time with the animals. It is a good time socializing the pets and seeing them get their forever homes. It is so fulfilling.

— Bruce Redack

I enjoy getting to know the animals outside of their pen or condo. Plus, everyone on the team is so motivated and cares so much.

— Aaron Walk

Photo by VBAS Photo TeamStanding (L to R): Ed Canavan, Wrangler, Sue Stimpson, Wrangler, Aaron Walk, Wrangler, Bruce Redack, Wrangler. Seated (L to R): Lorry Izor - Team Leader, David Snyder, Photograher.

Not pictured: Bianca Altschwager, Photographer

VBAS PHOTO TEAMBy Jenna Tucker

Photo by Ed Canavan

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Scratching PostThe By Cecelia Martinez Wood Our NewsletterSPONSORS

www.thevbas.org

If you would like to place an ad in City Paws, please send your request to cecelia@thevbas.org.

To receive a copy of City Paws in the mail, please send name and address to cecelia@thevbas.org.

/thevbas

instagram.com/thevbasPhoto by VBAS Photo Team

Each spring hundreds of kittens arrive at the Burbank Animal Shelter, many needing special care. Too young to survive without around-the-clock care, and sometimes ill, injured or traumatized, these kittens are placed into the VBAS Kitten Foster Program.

Last year over 250 kittens were taken into the program, including siblings Luna and Cosmo fostered by KFP fos-ter volunteer Jennifer Fagre. “Luna had a serious upper respiratory infec-tion. Her brother Cosmo snuggled by her side the entire time and helped give her baths and kept her warm. As each day passed, she hung onto dear life, sometimes struggling to breathe properly.”

Foster volunteer Kristen Klegseth tended to three-month-old Cassie, who arrived at the shelter with a severely injured right hind leg, pos-sibly the result of being hit by a car. “After a few weeks it was determined that Cassie’s leg was not able to heal

properly and had to be amputated,” explains Klegseth. “Cassie’s surgery was successful, and she rapidly adjusted to living a very playful kitten life with her three healthy legs. After healing and being in foster care for a total of four months, Cassie was adopted and now lives in a wonderful home with her loving dad and feline brother.”

From food to toys, to litter supplies, the Kitten Foster Program relies heavily on donations to keep the program running. In 2016 the KFP program went through over 400 cases of Wellness wet kitten food, and 364 pounds of dry food!

Established in 2001, the Kitten Foster Program is a lifesaving program, with a 100% adoption rate that continues to provide Burbank’s homeless kittens with nurturing homes until adoption.

Previous experience is not necessary to join the team. New volunteers attend an in-depth orientation with a member of the team before receiving their fi rst kitten and are given a training manual designed to guide newcomers through the fostering experience. For those unsure if they have the skills to foster, the management team also provides around- the-clock support for foster parents.

To learn more about becoming a kitten foster parent, visit thevbas.org/kitten-foster-program.

Photo by Kristen Klegseth

Sign up and designate the VBAS as your Target Charity. Amazon will donate 0.5% of each purchase to

the VBAS. It’s easy and costs you nothing.

To sign up, go to: smile.amazon.com/ch/95-4469452

BURBANK ANIMAL SHELTER INFORMATION

ADDRESS1150 N. Victory Place, Burbank, CA 91502

PHONE818.238.3340

WEBSITEwww.thevbas.org

HOURSTuesday – Saturday: 10am to 5pm / Sunday: 11am to 3pmClosed on Monday and Major Holidays

Ann AdrianseRebekah AlbrechtTiffany BrainEd CanavanMegan CraigChris de Zorzi

NEWSLETTER CONTRIBUTORS& EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS

1150 N. Victory PlaceBurbank, CA 91502818.238.3344

Newsletter Manager Cecelia Martinez Woodcecelia@thevbas.org

Newsletter Editor Ayra Laciste Quinn, Ph.D

Graphic Design Alexis Colealexis@thevbas.org

Initial Newsletter DesignRebekah Albrechtrebekahalbrecht@earthlink.net

m i s s i o nour mission

The VBAS provides protection, quality care, and love for animals in need, partnering with the community to promote animal adoptions and providing a united voice to help end animal homelessness in Burbank and beyond through advocacy and education.

Our Volunteers are committed to educating the community about the benefits of pet adoption, spay/neuter and proper pet care. In an effort to help provide the best possible care for all Burbank Animal Shelter residents, we have created and maintain successful adoption and fundraising programs, including our Kitten Foster Program, Happy Tails and Medical Program. For more information, or to learn about giving opportunites, please visit our website at www.thevbas.org.

Jill GardnerJennifer HeeberKristen KlegsethJessica KusherEleanor O’BrienScott O’Grady

Ayra Laciste Quinn, Ph.DAmy ReynoldsJenna TuckerVBAS Photo TeamRenee White EyesCecelia Martinez Wood