The Fur (& Feather!) Flyer

This just in - the schedule of events for HAWS' 26th Annual Pet Walkathon sponsored by the Friends of HAWS.

9 a.m.                     Kick-off the Walk
9 - ??                      Appearance by Marilynn Mee from Classic Rock 96.5 WKLH
10 a.m. - 3 p.m.       Lure Coursing - extended hours ($5 for each fun run - prize for the fastest participants)
10 - 10:30 a.m.        Contests: Owner/Pet Look-alikes, Shortest Legs, Tallest Pet (all 4 paws on the ground)
10:30 - 11 a.m.        Featured Breed:  the Greyhound
11 - 11:30 a.m.        Mascot Fun:  "Marilynn (Simon) Says" - Laugh and play along!
11:30 a.m. - Noon    Poo Toss & Contests: Longest Tail, Most Spots and Biggest Smile
Noon - 12:30 p.m.    Let's eat - Lunch break!
12:30 - 1 p.m.          Parade of HAWS Adoptable Pets
1 - 1:30 p.m.            Special recognition for Survivor & Senior Dogs - dogs that have overcome a disability or are seniors
1:30 - 2 p.m.            HAWS Alumni Parade - show your HAWS pride with your favorite alum
2 - 2:30 p.m.            More Contests:  Best Kisser (pet!), Best Trick, Best Rollover
2:30 - 3 p.m.            Lure Coursing Awards, more games
3:00 p.m.                 Winners of "Win at the Walk" announced!

So far the weather forecast is looking favorable for Saturday, too...fingers and toes crossed...

Come, join in HAWS annual celebration of pets and their people!

By the way - there is still time to collect pledges and donations - log onto our Walkathon web page to get started!

We at HAWS have been the proud (?) users of a “Sha-poopie” for about 6 weeks now.

The first reaction from staff and volunteers was “Sha-what?  What’s a Sha-poopie?”  (And, of course, there's the obvious singing of "Sha-poop, sha-poop, falala-lalala lalala-lalala...")

For the uninitiated, a Sha-poopie is a hand-held, telescoping-pole device to be used for easier and cleaner dog-doo pick up (think golf ball retriever).  The idea is for your pooch to do his business straight into a plastic collection tray/liner/reservoir at the end of the Sha-poopie pole, eliminating (heehee – get it?) the need for humans to stoop, scoop and toss.  This saves waste baggies, is cleaner for the human, and keeps the bacteria count down in your yard.  Or wherever your canine companion is prone to poo.  Check it out at www.theshapoopie.com.  (The inventer has both Hollywood and Wisconsin ties.)

Our device was a gift of sorts from our friends at 96.5 WKLH Classic Rock – we have lots of dogs and lots of doo, so who better to test it out?!

One of our long-time dog walking volunteers was game to try it out as soon as we got our Sha-poopie, but abjectly REFUSED to be photographed in the process (chicken!).  Unfortunately, the dogs she was walking were not as cooperative.  And, as luck would have it, test day #1 was rather windy, and the lid to the plastic tray kept blowing closed – or flapping into the behind area of the dog, which would in turn startle the canine and produce…poopus interruptus.

Subsequent testing went a little better – and the helpful hints for ease of use started to, um, flow:

“How about a trigger of some sort at the top of the pole to open and close the lid on the collection liner?  Sha-poopie Sharp-Shooter!”

“If the plastic tray were a little heavier it might stay in the scoop-pole better – it blows out on windy days, well, before it’s full, anyway.”

“We’re gonna need a bigger model for some of our bigger dogs…”  (Hmmm, why does the theme from Jaws come to mind?)

Overall we’ve been having some success with our Sha-poopie – and a whole lot of fun.  Once the dogs get used to what we’re doing, they aren’t so freaked-out by us trying to catch their deposits.  (Well, maybe they still are, but they’re putting up with it.)  And, our SNIP Clinic vet techs have found it is pretty helpful if trying to collect a sample for any medical testing.

So now we ask our newbies:  “Have YOU Sha-poopied?”

Thanks, 'KLH!

By the way...in case you hadn't heard, our 26th Annual Pet Walkathon is coming up VERY soon - Saturday, May 2nd.  Raise funds on foot or online - log onto our Walkathon webpage for all the details!

Exactly one month from today:  its the HAWS 26th Annual Pet Walkathon, sponsored by the Friends of HAWS. 

On the first Saturday of May each year - this year its May 2nd, hundreds of pet lovers high-tail it to our day-long festival of pets and their people.  The main event is walking the 1-, 2- and 3-mile trails of beautiful Minooka Park in Waukesha.

Not a fan of hoofin' it to secure pledges?  You can create an online fundraising page for the HAWS Walk - actually, close to 20% of our funds for this event now come from online pages!  Start your own team online, or do an individual page; either way you can personalize it and forward it to all your friends so they can get involved, too.

Your participation and pledges ensures that HAWS can continue to provide proper care, food, bedding, toys and lots of attention for the animals at HAWS.  Funds are also used to support HAWS' humane education programs, which promote responsible pet ownership and prevent animal abuse - ultimately making us ALL better pet people.

There's so more to do than just walk:  visit vendor booths and do some shopping, participate in contests and games (back by popular demand...LURE COURSING!), have a great lunch, meet adoptable pets from HAWS, enjoy meeting up with old friends - and making new ones.

The best thing about this event:  100% of the money raised for this event goes straight to HAWS!

So join us, won't you?

By the way - HAWS is a busy place this spring!  We've got seminars and classes galore...and we're diggin' in and starting the building on our facility expansion!  Don't miss a minute of the action...