WTHR – To The Rescue
Terre Haute
13 Dogs Rescued from Horrific Conditions
Marshall County
Thirteen dogs were recently rescued from a horrific hoarding situation in Marshall County. They were emaciated and under socialized, living in dire conditions.
Many were in desperate need of medical care. To make matters worse, the local shelter was already at capacity. Rescue groups in the area worked around the clock to place them with foster families.
Thanks to our donors, Pet Friendly Services provided spay/neuter surgeries for all 13 dogs! These surgeries allowed rescuers to focus on other pressing medical needs, and put these precious pups on the path to being adoption ready.
The FIX is IN!
Partnership with Mobile Clinic, Public Vet, will fix 4,000 Cats in 2021!
Programs that serve “community cats” (feral and free-roaming cats) are the single best way to keep cats with their caretakers and avoid filling overcrowded shelters. With your support, Pet Friendly Services provides free certificates to more than 100 rescue groups that trap-neuter-return community cats.
During the early stages of the pandemic, vets were closed and slowly reopened. This small window of time allowed cats to reproduce wildly. The cats are definitely out of the bag, and we’re playing catch up as we stabilize populations.
To help as many cats as possible, we launched The FIX is IN!, a unique partnership with Public Vet. The FIX is IN! travels across the state, making low-cost surgeries available. Cat owners and caretakers are clamoring for access to our lifesaving programs
and are grateful to have their pets fixed. This single partnership will fix over 4,000 cats this year!
“We are single ladies with a friend who died of cancer. She was only 53. She had five cats, and her wish was that we would find homes for them. We tried, but no one would take them unless they were spayed. We were able to fulfill her wishes, with your help. We are so, so grateful! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!” -Amy M.
Ruth – A Second Chance at a Happy Home
North Central Indiana Spay-Neuter
Ruth is a senior girl, guessed to be about 11 years old. She was picked up by animal control and brought to North Central Indiana Spay-Neuter in Tippecanoe County. Ruth had been used as a breeding dog her entire life, and then simply discarded to fend for herself.
Her itching skin was scratched raw, but the light in her heart never dimmed. Once she was back in good health and spayed, she was made available for adoption with a rescue group that specializes in senior dogs. She had a darling personality and simply needed to find her forever home.
It didn’t take Ruth long to find her perfect match! For the first time in her life, Ruth has her own toys to play with. But most importantly, she has a loving Mom of her very own!
Conrad
People United 4 Pups Rescue
Xena and Charlie
Orange County Humane Society
Buddy
Cass County Humane Society
TNR Transport with Feral Cat Friends and CanINE Transport Project
Monroe & Owen County
A TNR (Trap Neuter Return) success story! Pet Friendly Services of Indiana collaborated with CanINE Express Transport Project & Feral Cat Friends to fix cats from Monroe and Owen counties.
In total, 53 cats were taken to the SPOT Clinic in Terre Haute for their spay/neuter surgeries. Now they’ll be happier, healthier, and returned to their home.
WTHI Coverage of this story
Public Vet Project
Communities in Need
Public Vet is a traveling veterinary clinic that works to identify communities in need of access to low-cost spay/neuter. They ask for animal owners to pay what they can for the services they provide. This critical service reaches countless animals that would otherwise be left unfixed and free to reproduce.
Pet Friendly Services has partnered with Public Vet and will cover unmet costs at clinics in 2021. Learn more about Public Vet here.
Public Vet Clinic #1
Starke County, Northwest Indiana
Public Vet is a traveling veterinary clinic that works to identify communities in need of access to low-cost spay/neuter. Cat owners/caretakers are asked to pay for services, but sometimes that isn’t possible. That’s where Pet Friendly Services steps in to meet the need!
In December we were able to help 276 cats at a project in Starke County. According Dr. Peavy, the Executive Director of Public Vet, “Many of those cats would not have gotten fixed without Pet Friendly Services’ intervention.“
Cat owners traveled from more than 30 cities and towns in NW Indiana to access these lifesaving surgeries. Dr. Peavey also said that when a cat owner expressed financial concerns, “They often ask for much less than expected in assistance and gladly pay for most of the cost.” These owners care deeply for their cats and want to give them happy, healthy lives. Pet Friendly Services is pleased to be able to make that possible. We have more plans to assist Public Vet with some of their upcoming projects. Stay tuned!
Greta & Sully
North Central Indiana Spay & Neuter, Tippecanoe County
Our free spay/neuter services allow rescue groups to pull more animals from shelters, foster them, adopt them into loving homes, and repeat. When a spay/neuter surgery is covered, rescues can use their finite resources on immediate veterinary needs and find animals loving homes more quickly. This helps save lives!
Greta is a six-pound lump of love who was found abandoned in a mobile home park. She was covered in fleas, had never seen a vet, sorely needed a dental, and had not been spayed. Pet Friendly Services covered her surgery, which let North Central Indiana Spay & Neuter focus on her critical needs. Greta was adopted and now is a constant companion of her new mom!
Sully is an exuberant Wheaten Terrier that was owner-surrendered. He was matted to the skin, had lived the majority of his life outside, was not vaccinated nor altered, and was heartworm positive. With the help of Pet Friendly Services, Sully was neutered and placed up for adoption. He quickly found a new owner and was successfully treated for heartworm!
Sully is now an inside dog who snuggles in bed with his new owner, has a couple of doggie playmates, and is very loved. What began as a very sad story has a very happy ending—and a VERY happy dog!
Love Them For Life Adoption Event
Tom Wood Subaru & ASPCA
In October 2020 we hosted the Love Them For Life Adoption Event in partnership with the ASPCA and Tom Wood Subaru. We had nine rescues join us in a safe, socially distanced event to help their animals find furever homes!
Loving families adopted animals in need and every pet available was fixed with funds from the Pet Friendly License Plate! A huge thank you to our friends at Tom Wood Subaru for being such wonderful hosts!
Mango is a cat that loves a lot of attention and affection! He insisted on being held or petted, and his loving nature helped him score a new home! Mango’s new mom followed up with us and said, “I couldn’t be happier. He has adjusted to life here perfectly. Thank you again for saving this baby!”
Ray has lots of love to give – and lots of energy to go with it! He adored other dogs, cats, kids, and every human he met! After spending over a year at a Northern Indiana shelter, he became restless and stressed with kennel life.
His luck changed at the Love Them For Life Adoption Event, where he found the perfect family – a big one! His new Mom, Dad have two children and are expecting twins in January. Ray couldn’t be happier to have this many humans to share his new home with!
We served both rescues and their animals with this fun event! Thank you to Tom Wood Subaru and the ASPCA for helping us make it happen!
Tawny & Her Puppies
Hope Haven Canine Rescue, Morgan County
Tawny was actively in labor when she was abandoned on a cold, damp boat ramp. Her luck changed when an animal control officer picked her up and immediately took her to Hope Haven Canine Rescue. Like a lot of nonprofits, Hope Haven has struggled with caring for animals during a pandemic. To ensure they could provide the best care to Tawny and her puppies, they reached out to Pet Friendly 
Tawny had a difficult labor and is still under veterinary supervision two weeks after giving birth. Rescue groups go above and beyond to help the animals that come into their care. They undo the damage done by people who neglect their animals, often thanklessly.
When rescues receive free spay/neuter surgeries, they can focus their finite resources on other critical needs, and save more lives.
Vermillion Cat Colony
Humane Society of Hobart, Lake County
The Humane Society of Hobart is continuing their work to save community cats in Lake County.
“While assisting with a caretaker with a small cat colony I was told about another “100 cat” colony down the street, I decided to talk to them about how we can help.
I told her about TNR and explained the process. She was absolutely thrilled! Unlike the “100 cats” she was purported to have, she said she was feeding between 18-22. We’ve successfully trapped 15 cats and have 6 more to go!
Natasha’s Barn Cats
Indy Neighborhood Cats, Boone County
Six adorable cats lucked out on a new home!
Sometimes, the “return” of a Trap-Neuter-Return isn’t safe or practical for a free-roaming cat. That was the case for Tom, Jerry, Ben, Izzy, Claude and Rufus – recently trapped by our friends at Indy Neighborhood Cats. Lucky for them, Natasha had a barn in need of barn cats!
Under-socialized cats can thrive in a barn or a large property and make great outdoor pets for people with allergies. Even better, you’ll never find a mouse in that barn again!
The BEST way to get every shelter to zero-kill is by reducing intake at the source. Pet Friendly Services provides spay/neuter surgeries for TNR programs that save thousands of lives very year. Together we can make more cats live happy, healthy lives.
Trooper
Speedway Animal Rescue, Marion County
Here’s a story of how our incredible animal welfare network works together to save a life:
Trooper is an 11-month old German Shepherd/Husky puppy that was found on the side of the road in Oklahoma after being thrown from a car.
A good Samaritan (who happened to be making the drive from Las Vegas to Indianapolis) with the help of an Oklahoma State Trooper rushed him to a local veterinarian, only to be told she would have to pay for his treatment upfront or he could be euthanized. She made the incredible decision to make him comfortable and drive through the night and take him to Noah’s Emergency Hospital ASAP.
Noah’s searched for someone who could care for Trooper, and Speedway Animal Rescue came to his aid. They placed him in foster care where he was on crate rest 6-8 weeks prior to his surgery.
We’re happy to report that Trooper made an incredible recovery has been fixed (with help from Pet Friendly Services.) He’s even found his furever home with his foster family, who loved him too much to ever let him go. Your donations make more stories like Trooper’s possible!
Marley
CARE, Bartholomew County
2020 has quickly become ‘the year of the cat’ and things are no different in Bartholomew County. Julie Robbins, a TNR volunteer with CARE in Columbus recently contacted us for help with a particularly daunting situation.
A mobile home park in Hope, Indiana was struggling to control a cat colony reported to have nearly 30 cats! Julie and her team have trapped-neutered-returned (TNR) 21 cats so far, thinking they only had 9 more to go. But they quickly realized there were another 20 cats plus several kittens.
One kittens, Marley, was very sweet, but struggling (he’s the black and white kitten in the photos!). Turns out that he had a hernia, which was fixed while he was neutered. This lucky little guy is now in foster care, awaiting his forever home. Your donations to Pet Friendly Services have made this possible!
This story has another hero – a cat-loving park owner. He’s working to improve the park and understands that a TNR program can be a vital part of that process, even offering to build shelters for the cats to keep them safely out of the elements. An understanding owner can make all the difference in a situation like this one!
Julie will continue to TNR and we will keep supporting the critical need for spay/neuter surgeries. Your support will make sure this work continues uninterrupted and continues to save lives!.
Susan’s Cats
Humane Society of Hobart, Lake County
Our partners at The Humane Society of Hobart, Inc. have been trapping cats on a particularly hard-hit area of Hobart since last fall. They’ve been trying to help every community cat caretaker TNR their cats to stop the cycle. Community cats that are not fixed face many challenges and exploding populations. Many kittens born in a cat colony are born so sick that even with proper care, they cannot survive.
Here is a litter from just one of the community cat caretakers they’ve helped through TNR with surgery certificates from Pet Friendly Services:
“My name is Susan and I’ve been a caretaker of 7 cats for a few years. My story started with one older cat that wasn’t fixed, her name was Kiki. Then Tommy came along, and then one day this little Siamese kitten was just dropped off – I named her Loki. I couldn’t stand for them to be hungry, so I started feeding them. I bought kennels, blankets, straw, and other things to keep them warm for the winter.
Spring came & before I knew it, I had 6 kittens (I found homes for most of them except 2). The next spring, I had more kittens, again I found homes for most of them again but not all. I wanted so desperately to get them fixed so I could stop this never-ending kitten factory, but financially I was unable to. It just completely broke my heart. The saddest thing was when some were born sick or dead. I would cry like a baby every time, like they were my babies (they were my babies). I hated that I couldn’t stop all this from happening.
I didn’t know there were places out there to help until I met my Angel (that’s what I call her) Sandi Petee from Humane Society of Hobart. She asked if I would be interested in trapping them, explained to me how the program works and I jumped right on board! Sandi and Pet Friendly Services are a life saver. I can’t thank y’all enough! Now my kids won’t have any more babies! Thank you for saving my kids’ lives & stop us from having more babies!
Sincerely,
Susan, Big Boy, Blackey, Prince, Itty Bitty, Baby, Rusty & Momma Cat!”
Baby
Volunteers for Animal Welfare, Franklin County
Baby was found as a stray by our partners at Volunteers for Animal Welfare in Cedar Grove. She needed emergency surgery to remove a tumor at the same time as being fixed. She was only 4-years old, adorable and had so much love and life left! After her surgery and vaccinations, she was adopted in a matter of days to a family that her foster describes as “the PERFECT home” – they were even willing to drive hundreds of miles to adopt her! Everyone is so glad that she’ll be sharing the rest of her life with such a loving family!
Community Cat Grant Funding
Catsnip Etc, Meow Mission, Elkhart Feral Cat Coalition, Elkhart County & St. Joesph County
After meeting with the leaders of three Community Cat rescue groups in northern Indiana, Pet Friendly Services wanted to do more to help. The women leading CatSnip Etc, Meow Mission & Elkhart Feral Cat Coalition were stretched thin, each running all-volunteer organizations with few resources.
Pet Friendly Services of Indiana approached the Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust, A KeyBank Trust, to discuss grant funding. Now in our third year of grant funding, Pet Friendly Services has provided 400 additional surgery certificates to each group, with another 150 surgeries to be issued in 2020. This is a total of 1,650 cats that will be trapped-neutered-returned due to this fabulous grant!
The important work of our three rescue partners is helping the Humane Society of Elkhart County increase their live release rates. This shelter has moved from a tragic 49% live release rate in 2011 to an 81% live release rate in 2019. The shelter director, Rob LaRoy, contributes the shelter’s success to community cat programs, partnerships with rescue groups, and spay/neuter initiatives.
Magnum
White River Humane Society, Lawrence County
In May of 2020 the Change in Venue Program (CIV) changed Mag’s life! CIV is a transportation program by CanINE Express Transport Project, where adoptable animals are moved to new shelters to increase their visibility and adoption rates. Mag was lucky to be one of the over 12,000 dogs they’ve helped move between shelters!
Mag was taken to Lakeshore PAWS in Valparaiso and posted for adoption. Thanks to the loving care of both shelters he was now a happy, social boy who loved people more than anything else. His handsome looks and great personality found him a home in just four short days!
Meow Mission Cats
Meow Mission, St. Joseph County
Our partners at The Meow Mission in Mishawaka, Indiana shared the following success story with us:
“Christina reached out to Meow Mission for help with a growing cat population she’d been feeding. She was overwhelmed with 10+ cats and who needed her help. Unfortunately, she could not afford to pay for the food the colony needed, let alone spay/neuter cost. Luckily, we were granted neuter certificates and could help Christina alter her entire colony at no cost to her. As we discussed our trapping plan, Christina was overwhelmed with gratitude and wanted to help in any way she could. Trapping day came, and Christina was right there to help. We trapped four cats pretty easily, but the others were just too hesitant. That’s when Christina lured the cats to the traps by laying in the yard and gently calling them. As crazy at it looked, it actually worked! Not only did Christina get all her colony altered free of charge thanks to Pet Friendly Services of Indiana, we now have a great new volunteer who thinks outside of the box when trapping cats! Thank you Pet Friendly Services!!!!”
Fluffy
SNAP Program
Perla is a busy mom. When her neighbor gave her a dog, she couldn’t refuse. The children were so excited! She stopped by Pet Friendly Services of Indiana’s office to ask how we could help. Funding for a surgery was out of her budget, but she knew she had to have her dog spayed. Perla used our SNAP program, where income-qualified pet lovers pay just $25.
“Thank you so much for your help. I am glad Fluffy is spayed and won’t have puppies.” – Perla
Willow
Meow Mission, St Joseph County
One evening, a volunteer at Meow Mission heard a frightened kitten meowing. She investigated and found Willow trapped in a woodpile. Willow’s poor little leg had been crushed, and she couldn’t move. Unfortunately, Willow’s leg had to be amputated. But she’s a fighter and has recovered nicely. Pet Friendly Services of Indiana paid for her spay surgery, ensuring little Willow would not have unwanted kittens – kittens that might end up in a woodpile – or worse. Willow has since been adopted into a loving home. Her new daddy is forever grateful that she was rescued.
Queen Elizabeth
Hope Haven Canine Rescue, Morgan County
Queen Elizabeth and her puppies were dumped in a forested area, hungry, cold, confused and infested with ticks. The starving and sick mother was unable to produce milk to feed her puppies. Hope Haven Canine Rescue swung into action, taking mama to the vet for urgent care and bottle feeding the puppies while they grew.
“We had to invest a lot to save the mother and her six newborns. With the free certificates from Pet Friendly Services of Indiana, we were able to spay and neuter the entire family!” – Hope Haven Canine Rescue
Mr. Guss
Ambassadors for God’s Creatures, Madison County
Mr. Gus was roaming in the county, when a concerned cat lover spotted him and called Ambassadors for God’s Creatures for help. Gus had a horrific eye injury, likely from a coyote attack. Gus lost his eye, but not his life! Gus was adopted by a couple who have a huge farm and is now enjoying the good life, chasing mice and cuddling with his new family.
“Our organization has been blessed by the support of Pet Friendly Services of Indiana for our work in Madison County.” – Ambassadors for God’s Creatures
Brookside Neighborhood Collaboration
Marion County
Pet Friendly Services teamed up with FIDO (Friends of Indianapolis Dogs Outside), the FACE Low-Cost Animal Clinic and Indianapolis Animal Care Services to help animals in Indianapolis’ Brookside neighborhood.
The Brookside Neighborhood has historically ranked at the top regarding animal calls for service, ordinance violations, and animal intakes at Indianapolis Animal Care Services. Fortunately, Brookside also has a strong and engaged neighborhood association and is geographically located between FIDO and the FACE Clinic.
This is one of many collaborative projects funded by Pet Friendly Services’ Pet Friendly plate and the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust. Projects like these prevent shelter intake, allowing shelter staff to focus on the animals already in their care. This results in increased adoptions, a manageable workload for shelter staff, and increased morale and pride among staff.
Evansville Cat Colony
Feline Fix, Vanderburgh County
Evansville’s Feline Fix was overwhelmed by the number of cats and kittens needing fixed. They had recently completed a project involving 50 cats, when they were notified of a colony of 30 cats in need. With dwindling resources, Feline Fix turned to Pet Friendly Services for assistance. The two organizations joined forces, with Pet Friendly Services covering the cost of spay/neuter, while Feline Fix trapped and cared for this colony. Thanks to you, everybody wins!
Abandoned Dogs in Silver Lake
Save a Dog Rescue, Starke County
Last month, Save A Dog Rescue (SAD), came across a nightmare situation of dog abandonment and abuse in Silver Lake. SAD volunteers were working to trap a skittish momma dog, her pups and several other frightened and elusive dogs. The dogs had taken up residence in a countryside barn that is rotting and ready to collapse.
Char Swift with SAD came to Pet Friendly Services concerned. “I’m afraid we won’t be able to fund this. They just keep coming,” she said of the many dogs that continued to wander onto the property.
“When we heard their story, we couldn’t turn them away, even though we were out of spay/neuter certificates for the month”, said Cheri Storms with Pet Friendly Services. Pet Friendly Services vowed to provide five surgery certificates to fix some of the dogs and to reach out to our supporters to secure more help.
Poppy
Morgan County Humane Society, Morgan County
Holden
Every Dog Counts Rescue, Boone County
Every Dog Counts Rescue in Zionsville saved Holden, a darling, 5-week-old puppy, that came to EDCR just before Thanksgiving with a badly mangled and infected leg. He was very sick, and his veterinary team said the only hope of saving him was to amputate the leg to get rid of the infected tissue. At just two pounds, it was the smallest amputation his surgeon had ever done. Amazingly, Holden came thru surgery like a (tiny) champ, recovered beautifully, and now he’s a happy, healthy tripod puppy. He is getting neutered courtesy of Pet Friendly Services of Indiana!
Barn Cats
SNAP Program
Amie Marino is like so many of the individuals who reach out to Pet Friendly Services for assistance. She has a big heart and a lot of love for animals. She loves horses, but her caring also extends to the cats that are regularly dumped on her property. Four cats and four kittens have found their way to Amie’s farm.
Now the adults, Simon, Clover, Carson, and Lily, have been captured and fixed using Pet Friendly Services of Indiana’s Spay Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP). They all live happily as barn cats, keeping rodents out of the barn, and keeping the horses company. The kittens were fixed and found forever homes, thanks to a friend of Amie’s who helped place them.
“I am so thankful for this program,” said Amie. “I’ve had so many people dump cats on me as well as feral cats that randomly show up. With Pet Friendly Services, I’ve been able to afford to get them spayed and neutered instead of taking them to a shelter.”
Ollie
Reigning Cats & Dogs Rescue, Lagrange County
Ollie, the heartworm positive dog, was in need of a hair dresser. But what Ollie needed even more was a foster home where he could relax while undergoing heartworm treatment before being made available for adoption. A volunteer named Christine stepped up to the challenge, offering her home with a fenced yard.
The problem? Christine had two unaltered dogs that needed fixed before she could be accepted into her local foster-provider program in LaGrange County. Christine was struggling financially but had a great vet history. That’s where Pet Friendly Services stepped in, providing the certificates to get Christine’s two sweet dogs fixed. All three dogs are now fixed, and the rescue group, Reigning Cats & Dogs, has a new foster provider.
“Pet Friendly Services helps many of our rescues get fixed! We could not save as many lives as we do without them. My little rescue sports the Pet Friendly specialty plate on all our vehicles to help advertise and get them fixed!” said Kate Wheeler with Reigning Cats & Dogs Rescue, Inc.
Deke
Alone, scared and hungry, Deke had been abandoned by his owner. He wasn’t simply left behind, he was locked in an apartment storage unit with no food, water or daylight. Perhaps the owner had thought someone would find him. Perhaps he was left to die.
Fortunately for Deke, the apartment manager found him just in time. Deke’s weight had dwindled to less than 8 pounds, and his fur had begun to fall out.
But Deke’s luck was short-lived. He was picked up by an animal control officer and taken to the local shelter. As with most Indiana shelters, this one was overcrowded. Deke was scared and confused and lashed out at the staff. So he was slated for euthanasia.
Through a magnificent stroke of luck, Deke ended up in foster care and was eventually adopted into a loving home. With lots of food and love, Deke gained weight and became less fearful. He’s now a healthy 11-pound cat, covered in thick black and white fur – complete with a beauty mark.
Major
Red Sky Rescue, Jackson County
Major had been found running as a stray in rural Indiana. He had not been neutered, so Pet Friendly Services of Indiana funded his surgery. Once he was adoption ready, Major struggled to find a home. He literally waited in the shelter for six months, but Red Sky Rescue never gave up on him. Major attended the Mega Adoption Event in Indianapolis, where people loved on him, but found him to be too large of a dog. So back to the shelter he went – and sat – and waited.
Two days before Veterans Day, Major made his appearance at the Indy Pet Expo in hopes of finding his forever home. This was his day! Retired disabled veteran, Tim Hardge stopped by the Red Sky Rescue booth to meet Major. Tim had been looking for a dog that would meet the requirements of the Working Dogs for Vets program, and Major was the perfect fit!
Tim and Major connected immediately. Major now has a new home and will become a registered service dog within one year. This mighty duo has aspirations of competing in the Working Dogs for Vets national competition in April.
