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Frenchie pupIn April 2017, I adopted Alfie, at the time a 17 lb. puppy, from A New Dawn Pet Adoption Centre. Alfie was a delightful, very happy, 4-month-old puppy.  I brought Alfie with me when I took some towels and blankets donations to A New Dawn. I was so impressed with how happy Alfie was visit AND. When we pulled into the driveway Alfie realized where we were and could not wait to get out of the car and get inside and visit. To me, Alfie’s eagerness to visit AND was a testament to what good work this small facility was doing in rescuing small puppies and dogs (20 lbs and under) and giving them lots of love, one on one attention and socialization with other dogs and people in preparation of them finding their furever home.

In early April of this year 2018, I had to say goodbye to my Sweet Millie, (golden retriever mix) aged 12 years, due to her multiple and severe health problems. Although, I still had Alfie and another sweet pup named Tucker, 5 cats and an 18-year-old Sun Conure, (what can, I say I love animals), my house felt lonely without a third dog, having had 3 dogs for many, many years.

SnickersSo back to A New Dawn I went and I adopted Snickers, a precious little toy Spaniel and Chihuahua mix. Not only did I adopt Snickers, I also started volunteering at AND because I was, and still am so impressed with Dawn’s (the founder) vision for this small facility.

AND houses only around 10 pups, and a few cats at a time. The pups have their own little rooms with a small white picket gate for a door. In their rooms they have a dog bed, with blankets, and several toys, and fresh, cold water at all times.

AND has no paid staff, it is run entirely by volunteers that truly love animals. Because AND is small, the volunteers can spend quite a bit of time just playing with and loving on the pups currently staying there.

 A regular day volunteering at AND consists of the usual chores associated with caring for multiple pets, feeding, watering the animals, mopping their rooms and laying down fresh paper. But the day is also spent taking a few pups outside at a time to one of the two outdoor fenced in areas to allow them to play with each other and also enjoy the outdoors.

volunteer and pupAt the same time, there are sometimes 2 to 3 pups in the office where Dawn takes care of the paperwork involved in running AND. There are usually 1 or 2 volunteers in the office also, answering phone calls, meeting with potential adopters and always petting on, playing with and oftentimes, just holding and loving on a puppy.

A New Dawn is completely funded by donations, volunteers and fund raising. In order to adopt a puppy from AND, an application is filled out by the potential adopter and then the application is thoroughly checked out. Veterinarians are called to verify that any current pets are up to date on their shots, are current on heart worm and flea preventative and are either spayed or neutered. If living in a home a fenced yard is required; if renting a house or apartment, the landlord is called to verify that pets are allowed, and that any pet deposit required has been paid.

AND is a small no kill centre, that receives its pups/dogs and cats from various animal shelters that know of A New Dawn’s commitment to small canines and cats. When a shelter has an animal that fits AND’s criteria, the shelter calls AND and informs them of a puppy they have that they feel meets AND’s requirements. Once a dog/cat comes to AND, they stay there until they find their furever home.

green-eyed kittyThey receive all 3 sets of shots, are spayed/neutered, and put on heart worm and flea medication. If they have a health problem, be it mange, kennel cough, heartworms, they receive veterinary care and will not be up for adoption until they are healthy. Their adoption fee is a nominal fee of $160.00 for pups/dogs and $65.00 for cats.

A New Dawn is located at 202 W. San Augustine, in Deer Park, Texas. Newdawnpet@comcast.net, their phone number is 281-904-0280. And they are on Facebook at A New Dawn Pet Adoption. Donations can be made through their website address.  www.anewdawnpetadoption.org

Earla Hollow

 

 

Five Good Reasons for Having Your Cat Neutered

  • Reduces fighting, injury and noise
  • Reduces spraying and smelling
  • Much less likely to wander and get lost
  • Safer from diseases like feline AIDS, mammary tumours and feline leukaemia
  • Reduces the number of unwanted kittens