SPARC: First shelter adoption event Saturday offering loving pets
June 15, 2012
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
After barely two weeks in operation, SPARC (Santa Paula Animal Rescue Center) is off to a running, panting, and belly rubbing start, with plenty of dogs and cats with their own stories to tell.
And on Saturday SPARC is presenting its first adoption event so you can become part of the happy ending of that dog or cat’s story by taking an animal to a new home.
According to SPARC President Diane Rowley, “We’ve already been presented with a newborn kitten requiring round the clock bottle feeding, a litter of 12 kittens almost ready for adoption, and a blind senior terrier.”
Nonprofit SPARC opened for business June 1 to become Ventura County’s first no-kill shelter, with a heavy emphasis on outreach and education - as well as spay and neuter connections - to make sure every animal has a loving home “furever.” Located at the corner of East Santa Barbara and 7th streets, SPARC is already filling up.
“Several dogs have been brought in as strays and then reclaimed and returned to their owners,” while “other dogs have been found wandering on the freeway or turned in by folks losing their homes and moving out of the area.... Each animal,” noted Rowley, “has its own story.”
On June 16 from noon to 3 p.m. SPARC, 705 E. Santa Barbara St., is having its very first adoption event for their first “class of graduates.... With adoptions, SPARC’s mission of helping the animals of Santa Paula will come full circle... these are local animals who, through no fault of their own, need new, loving homes.”
Rowley said there will be 11 dogs and three cats ready to go out of the shelter and into your heart. “The dog breeds available include mini-pinscher, lab, terrier, Maltese, two fun-loving chow-shepherd puppies, Chihuahua mixes, and a 10-month-old blue and white pit bull named Judy Garland. The three cats are beautiful, healthy and loving,” as you can see for yourself by visiting www.santapaulaarc.org and clicking on the adoptions section.
All animals are spayed/neutered, up-to-date on vaccinations, and the dogs will have Santa Paula licenses. The dogs have also all been temperament tested for “dog and people friendliness,” and Rowley suggested, “If someone is interested in an animal and already owns a dog, they should bring their current dog with them for an introduction.”
SPARC is the place for the first step of animal adoptions, where everyone - human and pet - is a winner, not a whiner. And, said Rowley, “SPARC believes this is the perfect example of Santa Paula helping Santa Paula with a local solution for a local issue!”
Take time Saturday to visit SPARC, where the dogs and cats up for adoption are waiting just for you.
