https://www.jacksonsun.com/story/life/2016/12/27/make-2017-year-solutions-animals/95893670/
Make 2017 a year of solutions for animals
CAROL REESE, Special to The Jackson Sun Published 6:35 p.m. CT Dec. 27, 2016 | Updated 10:44 a.m. CT Dec. 30, 2016

I know that many of you reading this column were the child that came home with the a tiny kitten or skinny pup you found abandoned. It is certainly my story and it was only in the last decade or so that I found “my people.”

I was so grateful to find that several animal rescue groups are devoted to linking animals in need with people that can help, but it does feel a lot like the story of the little Dutch boy. There are simply more animals being born in West Tennessee than there are places for them to go.

This was the story of Jackson County, Tennessee, until Julie Jacobson took initiative. She realized that the only way to stop the tide was to prevent it. With her passionate movement called Spay Tennessee, she focuses on finding funding to get animals fixed, It became so successful that not only did she help people that were looking for inexpensive ways to get their animals fixed, but she was able to begin an aggressive program of reaching other people who were not actively seeking that service. While word of mouth proved to be effective, it also helped to pass out informative fliers at places where people buy pet food, or even knock on doors.

It wasn’t overnight, but within a few years, the tide of homeless animals began to ebb, until it was apparent that Jackson County had made this work. Jacobson decided to take her mission to other counties and any time she can get a group to hear her message, she hits the road.

I heard her at the recent meeting organized by Karen Byers of West TN Spay Neuter, and I’m all in. We learned of a few opportunities for funding from large corporations, and grants here and there, and those will certainly be sought ... but there is lots of competition for those sources.

I say we should make this work by using West Tennessee funding to fix a West Tennessee problem ... and this is how: I signed up to make a $20 donation each month and promised to find two more friends who could do the same. They are each to ask two more friends to do the same, who will ask two more friends to do the same. Can’t do $20? Even if you do $5, or $10, it will multiply exponentially until there is a steady income stream, and the beauty of it is that all of it goes to getting local animals fixed..

On Facebook, you can find and smile at the great stories already being told about the successes of West TN Spay Neuter and spread the word to those that need a hand. I hope you will be inspired and sign up to support this mission. You can also check out the web page at westtnspayneuter.org, or call 731 300 6610 for more information.

Carol Reese is ornamental horticulture specialist for the Western District of the University of Tennessee Extension Service.

https://www.jacksonsun.com/story/life/2016/12/22/carol-reese-tunnel-puppies-point-need-spaying/95729364/

Carol Reese: Tunnel puppies point to need for spaying
The Jackson Sun Published 8:28 a.m. CT Dec. 22, 2016

Some people can drive past a homeless dog with nary a pang. Certain members of my family wish that described me, concerned that I take on too many animals in need. They are right. I do. Fiercely, I explain it this way. Though I know a human life is far more highly valued than an animal’s life, the need of that animal inspires the immediate reaction that I would have for a wailing child. Could you drive past an abandoned baby on the side of the road?

Luckily, I am not alone, evidenced by the many folks involved with responsibly run rescue groups of West Tennessee. It is also true that all of them are overwhelmed with the numbers of animals that need a place to go. What do they all want for Christmas? Certainly not a call about a litter of dumped puppies just as the family is getting in the car to go to Grandma’s house! Their fondest dream is that there are no more unwanted and abandoned companion animals.

It is hard not to be angry when it is discovered that the litter came from a nearby home with an unspayed female, and this is not the first litter. It is hard not to be angry when the person who answers that door tells you they can’t afford the cost of a spay as they take another drag on a cigarette or another sip of beer or fast food soft drink.

Other times you feel a surge of love for the kindly white-haired lady who, despite a limited income, fed the hungry pregnant dog dumped on her road. Or in a recent case, for the tenderhearted mail route carrier who called with heartfelt concern about more small pups at the tunnels where she helped engineer a rescue last year.

This was more complicated. Other dumped dogs had found this a good place to bear young and, once the dust settled, it appeared there were three litters in all. A few small pups were easily grabbed, and a few older pups, befriended by a lady across the road, were rounded up. The ease in grabbing one confused pup was later explained by the discovery that he was mostly blind and completely deaf. The amazing Sarah Kidd with Carroll County Humane Society found fosters for him, the little pups, the bigger pups and one mama dog! Karen Byers of West TN Spay Neuter Coalition boldly knocked on doors and arranged with those willing to keep fixed dogs how they could get that done economically.

These people rock, and you can help. Fix your animals, and if you can, support the groups that assist with fixing those pets with owners who can’t or won’t afford it. Please go to the Facebook page of West TN Spay Neuter Coalition or westtnspayneuter.org for details, and a master plan to put this problem to rest.

Carol Reese is an ornamental horticulture specialist for the Western District of the University of Tennessee Extension Service.

https://www.jacksonsun.com/story/opinion/columnists/2016/12/15/rescuing-feral-puppies-from-wildlife-den-no-easy-task/95451606/ Rescuing feral puppies no easy task
Carol Reese, The Jackson Sun Publ. 6:51 a.m. CT Dec. 15, 2016 | Update 10:37 a.m. CT Dec. 15, 2016

I listened to the voice message with a sinking heart. Several small puppies had been seen at the same place we had staged a rescue a year before. The feral mother dog we had been unable to capture had found this an ideal site to have yet another litter. The big attraction was an extensive network of roomy tunnels in the side of a wooded ravine, where a small stream provided a ready source of water.

Failed attempts at puppy capture over the next couple of days provided plenty of opportunity to study the den’s assets, and to wonder what creature had originated it, and how many different species of wildlife may have populated it over the years ... but more on this later.
These pups had been taught by mama dog to fear humans, so the trick was to outrun them to their earthen refuge. This task was made difficult by the many openings to the tunnels, and that the paths to them wound through thick growth. The quick pups could dash through and under, while we were hindered by bramble and brush.

Why not use a humane trap, you might ask? There were several other dogs and cats in the neighborhood, and from their interest in our activities, we suspected they would be the ones greeting us from the traps upon our return. It also occurred to us that we might catch mama and she could not then feed her pups, or we might catch a pup that was left shivering alone on a cold night when it should be huddled with siblings deep in the den. The site was not close to anyone whose schedule could accommodate frequent monitoring.

The previous year we organized a mass snatching, There were six women, one for each puppy, and we met around the corner from the site and charged in like the calvary. It’s a shame we didn’t have a seventh member for videotaping, as it was a wild scene. Most of us are kindly and generously described as middle aged . Probably all of us were once described as athletic, perhaps even graceful, but those adjectives would not describe the blundering dives made that day. Successful is a word that will serve.

We decided another mass snatching with a crew of fleeter humans was the ticket. Adriane Gremmels, the mail carrier that first spotted the pups showed up with her gallant teenage son Dawson. Karen Byers of West Tennessee Spay Neuter Coalition pulled up with husband Jason, and his plucky daughter Kara.  My beau Mike Johnson brought the total up to 7 humans. If our count was correct, we would have a person per puppy once again, only this time the puppies pulled a no-show. There was no sign or sound, and we began to fear the mother had moved them to a place less plagued with puppy snatchers. To be continued ...



Carol Reese is ornamental horticulture specialist for the Western District of the University of Tennessee Extension Service.

Thank you to Carol Reese for supporting us way back when, and now!
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