Category: News


SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR
to benefit the SPCA Serving Erie County
In-person fair May 2-3 & 5-7, 2022

Online Book Fair >>

Ages 5 – 16
25% of your purchase benefits the SPCA!
Family-friendly pricing!

IN-PERSON
Visit the SPCA 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday & Tuesday, May 2 & 3, or Thursday -Saturday, May 5 – 7!

ONLINE
CLICK HERE to purchase books online, to meet popular authors, to watch book videos, and for direct access to more than 6,000 additional titles (plus nearly 300 titles listed by grade)!

MORE INFORMATION
Contact Director of Humane Education Christine Davis
(716) 875-7360, ext. 262 or
ChristineD@yourspa.org

Lab? Spaniel? Shepherd? Terrier? Chihuahua? Boxer? Husky? Hound? Bulldog? Newfie? We’ve asked these questions for 155 years. ONE. HUNDRED. FIFTY. FIVE. YEARS. It’s taken us this long to become unstuck! Watch as SPCA Pres/CEO Cait explains the SPCA’s newest dog breed ID policy!

See the science behind this change >>

–Gina Lattuca, SPCA Serving Erie County Chief Communications Officer

 

 

Country Music Artist Tyler Rich and Wife, Actress Sabina Gadecki, Help Put a Spotlight on SPCA Animals

April 23, 2022
By: SPCA Chief Communications Officer Gina Lattuca

A little bit of country came to the SPCA Serving Erie County this afternoon!

Country music artist Tyler Rich, performing tonight at Buffalo’s Town Ballroom, and his wife Sabina Gadecki decided to share their time with some SPCA animals waiting for new homes!

As part of their Rich Rescues platform, the couple visited our SPCA and spent some time with wild animals being rehabilitated by members of the SPCA’s Wildlife Department, a couple cute puppies temporarily residing at the SPCA, and staff favorites, dogs Reese, Tiva, and Clover!

Kadie Daye Country 106.5 WYRK was along for the fun too!

Thank you, Tyler and Sabina, for taking time out of your busy schedules to spotlight our animals!

Below are photos from this afternoon’s visit. When images and videos are added to Tyler’s “Rich Rescues” platforms, we’ll be sure to share!

Last year, National Volunteer Appreciation Week looked unlike any year prior. The SPCA Serving Erie County chose to continue serving the community as effectively as possible while the county…and the world…continued navigating a worldwide pandemic. Our volunteers stood by, ready and willing to help us continue to serve the people and animals of our community in whatever way possible. This year during National Volunteer Appreciation Week, as we continue to rebuild and restructure, we take a look back at last year’s efforts and again thank our volunteers for their dedication, their loyalty, their smiles, and most of all, for their love.

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION WEEK 2021
Day 7, April 24 [Reposted April 23, 2022]

“Beauty is not who you are on the outside, it is the wisdom and time you gave away to save another struggling soul like you.”
― Shannon L. Alder

“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.”
– Willie Nelson

We ended 2021’s Volunteer Appreciation Week spotlighting SPCA volunteer teams who dedicated their time to help pandemic front line workers.

About one month into the pandemic, when staff members at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC) were asked what could be done to help make them feel just a little better, the response included an overwhelming desire for therapy pets. Pandemic protocol did not yet allow in-person visits, so Paws for Love volunteers went to work with House Calls: Project ECMC video therapy visits that staff members viewed on ECMC’s intranet (full story & videos: https://YourSPCA.org/SPCAHouseCallsECMC).

Finally, after many, many months, volunteer teams were able to make in-person visits to other front line workers at stress-relief events, and continue to do so. SPCA volunteer teams were able to work their healing magic with those performing their own healing magic, working the front lines at Kenmore Mercy, Mercy, Mount St. Mary’s, and Sisters Hospital, and Spectrum Health Services. Wegmans also jumped aboard, asking that therapy visits be made during stress-relief events for their workers.

Several photos of these visits are included at the end of this story!

How can our organization adequately express the gratitude and appreciation we feel for our volunteers who work every single day to make our community a more wonderful place in which to live? Their dedication, love, and compassion are beyond compare.

These past seven days we could only touch on a very few areas that are enhanced and efficient only because of the volunteers making them that way. Volunteers in Adoptions, Humane Education, our Petique, Foster Care, and so many other departments do so much more to help thousands of animals every year, and even mid-pandemic, they have given us no indication that they plan on stopping.

We think Willie Nelson, cited above, said it best…we count each and every volunteer among our blessings.

Thanks for turning the lives of so many in our world around!

–Gina Lattuca, SPCA Chief Communications Officer











Last year, National Volunteer Appreciation Week looked unlike any year prior. The SPCA Serving Erie County chose to continue serving the community as effectively as possible while the county…and the world…continued navigating a worldwide pandemic. Our volunteers stood by, ready and willing to help us continue to serve the people and animals of our community in whatever way possible. This year during National Volunteer Appreciation Week, as we continue to rebuild and restructure, we take a look back at last year’s efforts and again thank our volunteers for their dedication, their loyalty, their smiles, and most of all, for their love.

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION WEEK 2021
Day 6, April 23 [Reposted April 22, 2022]

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” – Leo Buscaglia

Every single animal reacts to being at our shelter in a different way. Every one. But how can each individual need be addressed? Former SPCA Director of Behavior and Research Miranda K. Workman, among other tasks, headed up the team responsible for determining (to the best of our ability) how to help each animal adapt to shelter life in the best way possible. Thousands of animals are admitted to the SPCA year after year, so it’s not a stretch to understand what a monumental task this is, and why we so heavily rely on volunteers to help these animals. Every adoption success story at the SPCA has at least one volunteer who helped write that story, constantly giving time, energy, and especially love to these animals from what seems to be an endless supply within themselves.

From Miranda: “The volunteers have allowed us to continue to provide quality care and enrichment to the animals at the SPCA. Their dedication to and love for our sheltered animals is evident in the time they spend ensuring our animals experience positive behavioral welfare while they wait to meet their adopting family.”

In these photos, courtesy of Communications Manager Bethany Kloc, we see some of our volunteer team members at work, enriching the lives of our animals! You’ll see Miranda with Cindy, Red, and Ken (who is doing amazing work trying to teach Little Red how to be a big, brave girl!), and Gary, helping Callie overcome her fears by softly and gently reading aloud to her. You’ll also see feline specialist volunteer Cary with kitty Tommy, packed up to be taken to the airport so he could fly home (full story: https://YourSPCA.org/TommyReunion2020/)!

These photos are representative of the work done by our volunteers with all the animals in our care. From bunnies to turtles to farm animals and reptiles, all our animals receiving kind, loving words and touch (when appropriate) every day, as our caring volunteers work to enrich their stay at our SPCA.







-Gina Lattuca, SPCA Chief Communications Officer

SPCA Serving Erie County Assists BISSELL Pet Foundation in Air Transport of 150 Animals to Buffalo

April 21, 2022
By: Chief Communications Officer Gina Lattuca

More than 150 animals will take to the skies the morning of Saturday, April 23 as the BISSELL Pet Foundation, assisted by the SPCA Serving Erie County, engages in a major animal transport to Buffalo.

The dogs and cats will arrive by air from Baton Rouge, LA to Buffalo, NY in “…an effort to relieve overcrowded shelters due to seasonal high intake, short-staffing, a shortage of shelter veterinarians, and slowing adoptions for larger dogs,” according to the BISSELL Pet Foundation in a recent press release.

The press release stated, “This lifesaving flight has been organized and made possible through BISSELL Pet Foundation. Our trusted partner, the SPCA Serving Erie County in Buffalo, NY, will be leading the ground team for unloading and distribution to other shelter partners.”

Fifteen of the transported dogs will stay at the SPCA Serving Erie County, and the other animals will be divided between eight other animal shelters in NY, OH, PA, even Toronto and Windsor, Canada.

The SPCA Serving Erie County’s Annual Giving Manager, Phillip Weiss, will depart for Louisiana from Buffalo Friday, April 22 and will return with the animals Saturday. The flight is scheduled to arrive in Buffalo between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. at TAC-Air BUF, 50 North Airport Dr. in Cheektowaga.

“This will be such an exciting experience and I am very blessed to be a part of it,” Weiss says. “I can’t wait to represent the SPCA Serving Erie County and our region during this transport, and most importantly, help get these precious animals to Buffalo safely. These animals are coming from unfavorable situations and from shelters that do not have the resources and staffing to provide the care needed; they’ll now receive that care from us and the other receiving shelters. We are very fortunate to have such generous communities in our region that help us provide for these high-risk animals. Thank you to the Bissell Pet Foundation for making a huge difference in the lives of so many animals! ”

SPCA President/CEO Cait Daly couldn’t agree with Phil more. “We are honored to be working with the Bissell Foundation on this transport that will save the lives of these precious animals. We are incredibly grateful to our community for stepping up to foster, adopt, and donate. We could never do what we do without that support!”

“Transport is a lifeline to at-risk adoptable pets as shelters throughout the nation struggle with overcrowding,” said Cathy Bissell of BISSELL Pet Foundation. “BISSELL Pet Foundation is incredibly grateful for our shelter and rescue partners who have opened their doors to give these deserving pets a second chance.”

Photos and videos of the transport will be shared on the SPCA’s Facebook page >>  and other platforms. When the transported animals are available for adoption they will be listed, along with all other available animals, on the Adoptable Animals page of YourSPCA.org >>

 

A few behind-the-scenes photos sent by Phil on Friday afternoon:

The SPCA’s New SHADOW CAT Initiative

February 10, 2022
By: Vice President of Veterinary Services Melanie Rushforth

UPDATE 4/21/22: The adoption fee for all Shadow Cats, regardless of age, has been waived! This includes the adoption of Shadow Cats from either the SPCA shelter or a foster home! Wondering if an adoptable kitty has been designated as a Shadow Cat? Check out adoptable animal photos here >>  and click on individual listings of our cute cats to read their descriptions and find out if they are Shadow Cats!

******************

The SPCA Serving Erie County is proud to roll out a new initiative that shines the spotlight on a unique population of animals in our care.   Effective immediately, the SPCA’s Shadow Cat effort will work to meet shy or fearful cats where they are behaviorally to assist them in navigating the journey to becoming adoptable pets living out the rest of their lives in long-term homes. 

Fear is common and a perfectly normal, innate, and adaptive behavior in all animals. However, if fear isn’t addressed appropriately, it can develop into serious behavioral and health problems and result in deterioration. Our goal with Shadow Cats is to be proactive in managing a cat’s fearfulness or shyness should a cat surrendered to the SPCA present those behaviors while in the shelter.

Transitions and big changes are hard for many cats, even ones who are not identified as fearful. In preparing to introduce a cat into the home regardless of their confidence level, it is very important to set the cat up for a successful experience by making some small, but important adjustments.  The intent of Shadow Cats is to offer a home environment, in the form of a foster home setting, to allow the cat to gain confidence, relax, and build trust.  These cats may wind up being the best friend that was missing in that particular home, and we always consider that a foster “win” rather than the traditional term “foster fail.” Even if the stay is temporary, the effects of a loving and welcoming home environment will be permanent. 

Introduction to a new home can be very challenging for a fearful cat. Fearful cats usually do best in relatively quiet homes or quiet areas of the home. Many fearful cats slowly become more confident as they get used to their living space and daily routine. The Foster Department of the SPCA Serving Erie County will assist new and experienced foster parents with whatever they may need to help  Shadow Cats acclimate to their homes.  Time, patience, love, and food are some of the ingredients that will help a Shadow Cat step into the light a little bit at a time. 

It is a special experience to build a relationship and bond with a fearful cat, and it is deeply rewarding. The journey may be long, but patience is a true gift to a nervous cat in need.  Just like people, cats can have vastly different personalities.  Some of these Shadow Cats may blossom into lap cats, while others may remain the quiet roommate that is grateful for love, attention (from a distance) and a safe place to call home.  Whatever the end result, we are grateful to have the opportunity to showcase these special cats in an effort to save more lives. 

Do you have room in your life for a Shadow Cat? Find out how you can get involved right here >>

 

Last year, National Volunteer Appreciation Week looked unlike any year prior. The SPCA Serving Erie County chose to continue serving the community as effectively as possible while the county…and the world…continued navigating a worldwide pandemic. Our volunteers stood by, ready and willing to help us continue to serve the people and animals of our community in whatever way possible. This year during National Volunteer Appreciation Week, as we continue to rebuild and restructure, we take a look back at last year’s efforts and again thank our volunteers for their dedication, their loyalty, their smiles, and most of all, for their love.

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION WEEK 2021
Day 5, April 22 [Reposted April 21, 2022]

“Good actions give strength to ourselves and inspire good actions in others.”    – Plato

“The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems”
– Mahatma Gandhi

Today’s appreciation post comes to us from Director of Wildlife Barbara Haney:

Last year, when COVID hit just before our busiest time of year in Wildlife, we immediately had to pause our 150 volunteers because, like everyone else in the world, we didn’t quite know how we could ensure their safety during a pandemic. Not having volunteers didn’t change the fact that, in order to keep serving the animals and people of our community, we needed to somehow prepare for the 500 or so sick injured and orphaned wildlife that would be admitted in May alone.

The few volunteers we were able to bring back were put to the test, working long hours and constantly pivoting as we regularly changed every policy and procedure to stay in compliance with pandemic protocol.

The level of patience, understanding, and hard work that was put in by the small group of elite volunteers that we did bring back is astonishing. Everyone in the entire community should be proud of the wildlife volunteers that helped us to continue to care for over 3000 wild animals during what was one of the most challenging years that the world has endured.

Kindness and compassion drove every one of the volunteers, and together, we found a greater purpose and joy in the selfless service that is provided for our wild animal friends.

Thanks to volunteers, our Wildlife Department was able to continue caring for the wild animals of our community throughout 2020 and into 2021, including the animals you see in these photos.

Christin, an Environmental Studies major at University at Buffalo, is weighing Cypress the turtle. You’ll also see orphans and an opossum who was seeking an orthodontist who came to us in May; a turtle, fox, green heron, and one of five Northern Flickers who became our patients in July; a feathered friend not having his best day who was an autumn visitor; and a grease-covered robin who received a bath while slightly sedated in November.

Thanks to the volunteers who helped these animals receive second chances over the last 13 months.








–Gina Lattuca, SPCA Chief Communications Officer

Last year, National Volunteer Appreciation Week looked unlike any year prior. The SPCA Serving Erie County chose to continue serving the community as effectively as possible while the county…and the world…continued navigating a worldwide pandemic. Our volunteers stood by, ready and willing to help us continue to serve the people and animals of our community in whatever way possible. This year during National Volunteer Appreciation Week, as we continue to rebuild and restructure, we take a look back at last year’s efforts and again thank our volunteers for their dedication, their loyalty, their smiles, and most of all, for their love.

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION WEEK 2021
Day 4, April 21 [Reposted April 20, 2022]

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
– Helen Keller

“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men.”
– Herman Melville

The dedicated Paws for Love volunteer teams were *THRILLED* to be able to get back to work in some fashion when pandemic protocol allowed! For awhile, virtual visits were the only way Paws for Love pets could provide anxiety relief, comfort, or just a few smiles. Finally, however, the SPCA was able to keep serving the community “IN PERSON!”

Naturally, these actual visits are much more involved. There are different screening measures, depending on location. Volunteers of course must wear masks. Necessary criteria that must be met depend on the audience at approved venues.

Did our volunteers hesitate to jump right back in, even with all this extra work? Not only was there NO hesitation, but visit rosters were filled just moments after we put out word that the visitation opportunities existed! In fact, they can’t wait to resume visits in area nursing homes, hospitals, funeral homes, the Buffalo Airport, and other favorite spots throughout our community.

Our Paws for Love volunteers are just another example of why we at the SPCA Serving Erie County think our volunteer teams are the best in the nation….and in the WORLD!

–Gina Lattuca, SPCA Chief Communications Officer

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