Pets Alive, Inc.

I began as a volunteer for Pets Alive located in Middletown, NY approximately 8 years ago. One of my friends who was a volunteer there also came to me and told me about this beautiful Rottweiler that was tied to a street sign and was emaciated. His name was Mikey. I was introduced to Mikey and feel in love. This poor sweet boy was so very thin and wanted nothing more than to be loved.

With great concern about his weight, I immediately went to the supermarket and bought chicken, chop meat, liver and rice. When I got home I immediately started to cook for Mickey and with warm food in hand rushed back up to Pets Alive to feed Mikey. Mikey started to flourish and put weight back on.

Unfortunately Mikey had a set back and we found that he was bleeding from his nose. That night 3 of us volunteers stayed up with Mikey at the Sanctuary to make sure he would be ok. Fortunately I was single and able to stay the next night with him also. After some discussions with a few of the volunteers we decided we would foster Mikey at my house so that someone could be with him. Keys were given to 2 of the other volunteers so that Mikey could be checked on throughout the day while I went to work.

Mikey began to improve and put on more weight. He went from an emaciated 53 lbs to a healthy 84 lbs. We were all thrilled to see such an improvement in him. Soon after it was decided that the 3 of us would adopt Mikey and he would stay with me with an occasional overnight stay with one of the other volunteers.

We took Mikey to the vet to have a complete physical and we received a horrible blow. Mikey had cancer in both of his kidneys and would not be with us for long. We brought him home and gave him the love that he so deserved. Mikey thrived on the attention he received from us but that unfortunately did not last for long.

Mikey couldn't get up one day and would not eat or drink water. We knew that he was trying to tell us that it was time. The 3 of us loaded Mikey into our car and proceeded to take him to the vet. The vet agreed with us that Mikey was tired and we were doing the right thing by him. Letting him go was so devastating. Before Mikey took his last breath I whispered in his ear and promised him that I would turn Mikey's Pad into a room for senior/hospice dogs that needed to be loved and have the care they so deserved. Since his passing, Mikey's Pad has been a home to 4 additional senior/hospice dogs from Pets Alive who lived out there days in happiness and love.

I am thankful to Pets Alive for allowing me to care for these wonderful dogs and give them the love they so deserved.

To begin with, let me state that I am extremely fortunate: however, retiring from 30+ years as a high school English teacher who was also an empty nester left a gaping hole in my world. I tried to fill it with shopping, long weekends with a group of friends and more shopping. To say the least, that lifestyle just wasn't for me. I started to volunteer at my local humane society; this was an almost fit! I loved working with the dogs, but something still wasn't right. I then heard that a renowned dog trainer, Pat Whitacre, was working at Pets Alive, one the New York's oldest no kill sanctuaries. I decided to sign on with Pets Alive and Pat. He became my mentor and the dogs, my inspiration. After working closely with him six days a week for about five months, I stood in the middle of the kennels crying: Pat had suddenly died the night before. I couldn't just stop because he wasn't there: this was my fit. Two weeks later, the director called me to her office: This was not usually a good summons. She asked me to take over as lead trainer. I accepted the position with one caveat: I would not accept a paycheck. Because of her faith in me, I enrolled in internships with well know animal rescue organizations. This was about 3 years ago, and since then I've become certified, giving me a solid foundation based in science instead of 'gut' instincts. I was allowed to create an Adoptability Team, a group of dedicated volunteers who work with the dogs who have difficulty finding their forever homes because of behavior issues. Fear of strangers, food guarding, pulling on leash, jumping'you name we rehabilitate it. Each dog is treated as an individual. All training is done on the dog's timeline, and sometimes it can take weeks for an abused dog to trust. We at Pets Alive never use anything but positive training techniques. Because of this dedicated group, we've been able to find homes for about 1/3 of our dogs each and every year. Their adoptions are bittersweet (saying goodbye yet knowing they'd be sleeping in a home), Mrs. Zarrita, Sherman, Mystic, Bruno, Ginger, Sophia, Minnie, Lucky, Tucker and many, many more are snuggling with their families right now. For every dog we adopt out, we can save another. If a dog cannot be safely adopted out, that dog will always find a safe home with us'a home with plenty of love.