The Animal Shelter has some good news and some bad news. First the good news: Michael, the reclusive big black tom, has found a home. It was love at first sight with his new owner. On meeting her he dropped his defenses and allowed her to pat him and pick him up. He will be moving to Vermont shortly. The bad news is that the owner of a sociable lab/terrier mix fell ill and had to surrender him to the shelter. Her name is Greta. She could be the stand-in for Sandy in Annie. She is a friendly, agreeable five-year-old, hale and hardy. Need to increase your exercise?
The staff and board of directors at the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard would like to recognize the retirement of one our most passionate and tireless volunteers, Janet Norton. Since the beginning of the animal shelter, Janet has helped do the many tasks and thankless jobs that are a necessary to care for the dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs that come through our doors. Without the time and care Janet and the many other volunteers do at the shelter, we could not operate as we do.
The Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard’s fourth annual fundraiser added more than $10,000 to shelter coffers on Sunday, with an additional $15,000 received from shelter supporters unable to attend the event.
On the surface, not much has changed at the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard in the past few years. The unassuming building on Pennywise Path in Edgartown still draws Vineyarders old and young searching for the perfect new friend. Inside, shelves of pet care books line one side of the front office, next to a stand of colorful collars and leashes.
Studies have shown, and plenty of them, that pets of the canine variety are so good for our health, happiness and longevity that if medical science could have seen it coming, they would have found a way for doctors to prescribe dogs.
At the same time many Vineyard businesses are succumbing to the recession and closing their doors, the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard in Edgartown is taking in more money than it is spending, allowing it to expand hours and raising hopes it will continue to operate through next year and beyond.
“It’s a Vineyard success story, and there aren’t a lot of those right now,” said Dukes County manager Russell Smith, who oversees the shelter’s finances. “Things are going better than we hoped.”