Dear Friends of MEHS:
2018 was a year filled with the love of animals, and was one of our most successful years yet, and it’s all because of you! You helped us save 1,134 dogs and cats through our adoption program, 277 feral cats through our trap-neuter-vaccinate-release program, and provided low cost veterinary services to 1,103 owned pets!!
While we are already paws deep in plans for 2019, we wanted to share some of the most heartwarming and memorable moments from 2018.
MEHS Happy Tails
• Billie Jean – After many, many surgeries and procedures performed to her cystic eyes, our one-eyed office monster found her forever family. Zucchini, renamed by her forever family, is ruling her new kingdom with a family that appreciates her mischief and crazy as much as we do.
• Patches – He was an anxious pup who spent almost a year at our facility before finding his forever home. He was most memorable by the public as being the dog with the red ball in his mouth. Patches attended news segments, participated in a number of training events and enrichment programs, and even spent a few weeks in a foster home. We believe that, although not ideal, the time it took to find his humans was well worth the wait. Patches is officially living the good life.
• Samson – He was our longest waiting canine tenant ever. He was originally adopted from MEHS when he was just a little puppy. Sadly, 4 years later, he was dumped at an animal control facility malnourished, hairless, and completely defeated. After many rounds of treatment for skin allergies, trust exercises, and tons of love, Samson finally found his forever home after 886 days.
Innovative Programs MEHS received grant funding for a new and innovative way to socialize our temporary residents AND simultaneously provide therapeutic support to human residents in rehabilitation, memory, and nursing facilities. We worked with 6 facilities in the Edwardsville and Highland area to create a schedule for bringing animals in to meet with residents. Our animals get additional human interaction, and the humans get love and affection from animals. As you might have already guessed, this program is wildly successful with all involved parties, and will be continued in 2019.
Collaborating to Save More Lives Looking toward a strategic goal for the welfare of animals, we are very proud to have created the Madison County Animal Welfare Advocates for Animals Coalition. The coalition, which consists of MEHS, Partners for Pets, SNIP Alliance, and Madison County Animal Care and Control, was formed to help the county achieve NO KILL status by 2021. Although our coalition is still in its infancy, our goal is to continue creating innovative programs, a strong animal welfare network, and help improve the image of our county animal control facility.
While this is just a snapshot of 2018, none of this could have been possible without your support. We hope you continue your unwavering support and help us make 2019 even better. Please consider helping our four-legged friends by pledging your support.
Thank you for all you continue to do for the animals in our community.
Sincerely,
Anne Schmidt
Executive Director