First Rescued Critters Truck Load
I sent off an email to Bennett at PACC asking what their pet
food requirements were and waited. (Walmart and many supermarket brands are
corn based). Sunday after collecting our donations I ran a quick tally and got
$97.04. Wow, that was enough to buy three 52 lb. bags. Couldn’t hold back so I
drive to the Broadway Walmart and was stunned. All of the Purina bags were
gone.
I had two choices, Walmart way up on Speedway or the one in
the Marketplace Mall on Kino. My gut said Speedway and off I drove. The pet
department is way in the back of the store. As I got near, I could see a
massive pallet brimming with large green bags. Perfect.
Bennett’s Quiet
Intellect
Late Sunday afternoon Bennett replied to my email.
“We wouldn’t feed
these (Purina
Dog Chow and Pedigree Steak and Vegetable) in shelter because dogs need to eat more of it to
get their nutritional needs for the day and so many of our dogs won’t eat
enough already, but we would definitely use it for dogs we’re encountering
while doing outreach. They tend to eat a little more and their owners tend to
be on top of making sure they aren’t losing weight.”
Fascinating. I read his paragraph a couple of times to
understand their feeding concept. It makes perfect sense but what I had thought
about most rescues organizations was, they feed what they have. Not true for
PACC.
 |
| This is a photo of Haley in her former home where her hair is thin and she was not given the best of care. |
Eliminating beef and chicken from her diet diminished the
symptoms a bit but nothing really worked. I even tried rabbit and kangaroo.
Each did a little but when I combined them, she got better. But only for a
couple of months.
One day Haley refused to eat her food. This was remarkable
because Haley is a very enthusiastic eater. In less than 60 seconds she empties
her bowl and starts eying Cody’s. To that point I tried maybe 15 different
brands looking for the one protein and formula she could tolerate. And one meal
of any food is all I needed to determine whether she was allergic to the food
or not, similar to what happens with peanut allergies.
 |
| After a few months on an improved diet and lots of hugs, Haley begins to shine. She was easily spooked and very shy. Not so any more. Folks on our daily walks often comment on her amazing transformation. |
All I had on hand after she refused her current food was
Cody’s Blue Buffalo Salmon and Potato. I gave her a bowl. Twenty minutes later,
magic … no reaction. Consequently, I know exactly what Bennett and his team of
nutritionists are faced with and what they are doing. This makes me love Pima
Animal Care Center even more. They don’t have to try but like me, yes, they do.
The
Mountain We Have to Climb
In a subsequent email, Bennett told me in general how much
dog food they purchase. (No cat food, dry or wet is included in the
calculation.) “We go through about 5,000 bags of just dog food a year, so
close to 200,000 lbs. …”
That translates to 100 tons. A lot but we here in Tucson can
reach that goal. There are 130 neighborhoods. If 50 neighborhoods participated
in the Rescued Critters Food Drive and collected 4,333 lbs. each year, that
would do it. However, as energized as our Miles Neighborhood is, we are
destined to get way more than 4,333 pounds.
See you Sunday,
Peter
No comments:
Post a Comment