On the heels of my last post, Are You Struck too by Mankind’s Generosity in this Crisis , exclaiming that we must do all we can to give of ourselves now, this is a special post on the Humane Society here in our county. I want to share a little of our family’s story of how we’ve involved ourselves and tried to help them.
When we moved here, we bought riverfront property and it was immediately apparent by the many mouths that came to be fed that there was a problem with feral cats in our county. At the time, there was a discounted program to fix, inoculate, and release the cats. I managed to have some 30 cats taken care of before the new director said we made too much money to use the program. I left her office in tears. I was pregnant and maybe the universe was telling me I needed to just worry about me. The current director agrees that more educated people may be more concerned about the overpopulation of the cats.
We’ve still managed to be the custodians of critters here. All three of our indoor cats were Eastern Shore adoptees, two from our county and one at the college in Queen Anne’s county. Plus the lovely longhair calico outdoor cat, Mrs. Cheesewheat. Many cats have been caught/cared for. And anything that eats Purina Cat chow seems to be welcome. Blue Jays and raccoons and some very plump squirrels named Elmo and Cookie Monster. Anytime I spot dead cats on the side of the road, as soon as I’m stopped, I call the humane society immediately. I donate all of my old towels and blankets to them.
A very very friendly young cat visited us last year. Although there would be nothing better than to have a kitten to play with at this time of quarantine, I knew then she would make a wonderful pet for someone because we have a rule that we may only have as many animals as people. Much to my daughter’s dismay, I took her over to the Humane Society. The smell that greets you there is sobering. And so is the sight of the cages piled three high all down the hallway containing cats. I said Hi to one cat on top and suddenly there was a paw protruding from the cage below to get attention. Broke my heart.
My children have soft hearts and we’ve encouraged their philanthropy towards this cause. In 2015, my son donated his own money to the Humane Society. And my daughter did the same last year by donating half of her lemonade sales. Recently, we had an opportunity to be generous with some unexpected funds and the Humane Society was extraordinarily grateful. I said it was the least that we can do. And it is.
In 2014 and 2015, I decorated chairs for auctions to benefit the Talbot County Humane Society. I was flattered to be asked to do this and I was pleased with the way the chairs came out. The chairs were sold on and moved on to local businesses.
I’d like to encourage everyone to consider donating anything they can to the Humane Society in your area, be it food, linens, cleaning supplies, toys, or just plain cash to the unsung heroes working there and the animals that still deserve the same care and homes they always have.
Any act of kindness to others is an act of kindness to yourself.
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