Foster pets, change lives |
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As part of Petco Love's National Foster a Pet Month, we'd love to welcome new foster volunteers to our lifesaving crew!
Over 1,400 animals spent time in foster homes in 2022 while receiving medical care, growing big and strong, or getting a break from the shelter. Any amount of time an animal spends in a foster home is beneficial, whether that's an overnight sleepover or until they are adopted!
When you sign up, the animals you foster and how long you foster them is up to you. Even if you can't commit long-term, you can make a big difference for an animal. "By fostering animals, we not only provide them with a temporary home, but also with the love, care, and attention they need to thrive. Fostering saves lives and has a significant impact on an animal's future, and we would love for you to be part of that," shared KHS Foster Assistant Betty Santos.
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Celebrate Pride and support pets in need |
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Happy Pride Month! Show your Pride and support shelter pets with our fur-bulous Love is Love clothing line, available exclusively on our online storefront.
Every purchase supports our essential programs and services for pets in need. Wear it at Kitsap Pride on Saturday, July 22 and share your love of shelter pets!
Styles, sizes, and color options can run low sometimes, so please keep checking!
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PetsWALK is a bark-tastic success! |
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A huge thank you to the hundreds of animal lovers who joined us for PetsWALK in Poulsbo on June 3. Five puppies and one kitten found loving homes during the festival, and the event raised more than $57,000! Every dollar helps us provide comfort and care to pets in need throughout our community.
Thank you to Mayor Erickson and the City of Poulsbo for hosting PetsWALK, to the forty KHS volunteers who made this event possible, and to our paw-tastic presenting sponsor, VCA Central Kitsap Animal Hospital, and all of our other wonderful sponsors. We also want to shout out Oath Pizza, Viking Ice Cream, Finn Hill Starbucks, and Little O's mini donuts for making the day extra tasty for our volunteers.
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Big dogs offer lots of love to their lucky families. To honor big dogs and help them find loving homes, we are running a Big Dog Days Adoption Special in June!
KHS is discounting adoption fees by 50% for dogs weighing over 50 pounds all month long. It's the perfect time to bring home a big dog bestie to share summer sunshine and adventures.
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Drive and putt for pets in July |
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Our friends at Haselwood Auto Group are bringing back Drive for a Cause! They will donate $20 for every vehicle purchased and $5 for every service repair order to KHS in July. To celebrate this drive, we will bring adorable available pets to Haselwood Auto Group on Saturday, July 15, from 12 pm to 3 pm. Find a new furry best friend and bring them home in the vehicle of your dreams!
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Enjoy birdies and doggies at our Putting Fore! Pets charity golf tournament on Friday, July 28! Play golf with animal lovers surrounded by beautiful trees and local wildlife at White Horse Golf Course. Registration includes a round of golf, a cart, lunch, and fun prizes. The Putting Fore! Pets Golf Tournament Presented by The Latitude 48 Group is all aces for pets in need. Register today!
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April showers bring fun May events
Thank you to everyone who met us out in the community last month! Pints for Pets and our other events brought together more than 250 animal lovers and raised over $1,200. Twelve animals found loving homes through our offsite adoption efforts in May. Check out our upcoming events for more meow-velous fun!
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The VLC and Barn are coming together!
The Russ & Linda Young Veterinary Lifesaving Center (VLC) is rapidly taking shape and the Barn footprint is looking more like the beginnings of a world-class facility as construction continues. Follow our VLC Capital Campaign updates on the KHS blog to stay up to date! Want to see the project in person? Email Jamie Nocula to join a tour!
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Adorable Available Animal
Domino!
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Give a warm welcome to Domino, once again! After being in our care for over 500 days, he is back at the shelter long-term, due to no fault of his own or his foster's. Our staff and volunteers continue diligently working to set him up for success in finding his family, and we're excited to share more about Domino!
We completed a DNA test on our furry friend and found he is a true Heinz 57 or, rather, Heinz 17! Domino has a combination of 17 breeds in his genes, and the top 5 are 25% American Pit Bull Terrier, 21% German Shepherd Dog, 13% Bull Terrier, 6% American Staffordshire Terrier, and 6% Australian Cattle Dog. He is also 4% or less American Bulldog, Australian Shepherd, Chow Chow, Border Collie, Miniature Schnauzer, Boston Terrier, Siberian Husky, Labrador Retriever, Argentine Dogo, Miniature American Shepherd, Toy and Miniature Poodle, and Basset Fauve de Bretagne. While it can be helpful to know your pup's breed(s), the breed doesn't always make the dog! So, Domino wants to speak for himself...
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"Hey ya'll! I'm a laid-back country boy at heart. Humans may think I need acres, but all I need is a fenced space where other animals and younger humans aren't around to scare me. I haven't made many dog friends and am uncomfortable meeting them, so let's make a deal: I promise to keep your feet warm at night and join you on remote hikes if you promise to love me for who I am. Here's what I hear humans say about me..."
- Domino lets you know when he needs to go outside and hasn't had an accident in the house.
- Domino is smart and food motivated so positive-reinforcement training is a breeze.
- Domino loves chasing tennis balls, and he's a snuggle bug.
- Domino easily learns new cues! He already knows 'let's go', 'come', and 'sit.'
"I've been patiently waiting to find my person, and I've heard humans say these things about why it's taking a little longer..."
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- Domino has 'stranger danger' and needs an experienced parent who is comfortable redirecting reactive dogs.
- Domino displays fear-based reactivity around kids and needs an adult-only home or one with older teens and few visitors.
- Domino may want a dog friend someday but currently needs to be the only dog because he is fearful of dogs and reacts defensively when not given space. He also needs a home with no cats.
Thanks, Domino! If your house (no apartments, condos, or townhouses) doesn't match those guidelines, but you think Domino could be your best buddy, please email our adoptions team to see if you could be a good fit.
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Volunteers Spotlight
Elsie and Emmy
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Elsie and Emmy are two KHS youth volunteers who joined us in April 2022. These twin sisters started helping with their mother, walking dogs after their neighbor told them about KHS. "I immediately applied to be a volunteer, because I have always loved animals and I want to help the animals without homes," said Elsie.
Elsie and Emmy have grown tremendously, both in their animal skills and in their comfort in a shelter environment! They participated in the pilot program, Caring For Critters, an after-school youth volunteer program that was developed as part of the Maddie's Fund Open Arms Grant Challenge. Their passion for animals and goofy demeanor came out as they developed expert-level clicker training skills and helped with critical tasks like laundry and dishes. Elsie even fully committed to the shelter animal experience by putting herself into an animal carrier during one volunteer activity!
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Their youthful energy has resulted in some silly moments, and they have developed a deep sense of appreciation for the KHS mission. "I love seeing animals go home," said Elsie. Elsie also shared that a standout moment for her is seeing the progress that an animal can make when they feel safe and supported. She admitted that a rough day saw her coming to KHS in a less than good mood, but she volunteered anyway to get some time with the cats, not expecting to feel better.
"There was a blue-ranked cat [ranked this color to denote that they are especially shy] who was hiding up on her shelf. I didn't think I'd be able to get her to come down, but I just sat there and talked to her, and five minutes later she came down and sniffed my hand. Two minutes after that, she was asleep on my lap. I couldn't get her off me for almost twenty minutes, I'm not kidding! I think we both felt a lot better by the time she woke up, I know I did."
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Their volunteer time also allowed them to form a strong bond with another cat, Javier, who they recently adopted! "We'd made it almost exactly a year without adopting any fur balls, and I swear he chose us, not the other way around."
Having youth volunteers like Emmy and Elsie breathes fresh life and perspectives into KHS while allowing new animal welfare advocates to develop within our community. Together, they have given over 100 hours and we're excited for them to keep growing at KHS! Their volunteering has become a full family affair, as their father recently went through our volunteer training, too. "We've loved watching Elsie and Emmy grow, come out of their shells, and feel safe to be themselves at the shelter," says KHS Volunteer Manager Chris Russell. "The twins started shortly after I did at KHS and it has been incredible seeing them jump in and find new ways to help out. I am excited for the future as we develop more youth programming for teens like Elsie and Emmy!"
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Staff Spotlight
Meet Mike Bush!
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Mike Bush is our Director of Communications and his first connection with (and admiration of) KHS wasn't as an employee, but rather as a client, when he adopted his best buddy—a rescue Rottweiler/Husky named Kennedy.
Joining the team in May 2023, Mike was born and raised in the Puget Sound area, graduated from Central Washington University, and has spent his career guiding award-winning marketing, advertising, and communications programs across a wide range of organizations, from world-renowned integrated resorts to iconic local nonprofit museums. Residents of Bremerton since 2017, Mike and his girlfriend Sherri are grateful to be a part of the Kitsap community and love spending time with their niece and nephew who attend Klahowya Secondary School.
"Mike is an amazing addition to the KHS team. In the short time he's been here he has already made a tremendous impact on our staff, our volunteers and our community," shared KHS Director of Philanthropy Jamie Nocula. "He approaches each and every day with a positive, can-do attitude and is clearly a leader that is eager to learn, serve, and help where ever he can. On any given day you will find Mike assisting in Vet Services, walking dogs with the volunteers, giving scritches in the Cattery, connecting with the staff and genuinely looking for ways to fully immerse himself in the mission. We are so glad he is a part of our KHS family and can't wait to see what the future holds under his leadership."
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Donor Spotlight
Monica Ioset and the Hoser Family
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A huge thank you to Monica Ioset for donating art by her mom Midori Hoser last year! Monica is a longtime KHS supporter and she reached out to give the art after learning about our holiday auction fundraiser. It was hard for the family to part with Midori's beautiful artwork, but they wanted to make a big difference for shelter pets.
Midori was an award-winning artist and their work captures the natural beauty of the PNW and has been displayed in juried art shows. The art contributed to our raising more than $19,000 at the holiday auction. We deeply appreciate the generosity of their family and are touched by their gifts to pets in need.
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A huge thank you to our June Puppuccino Pals Sponsor, Washington Stormwater, LLC! They offer clients water treatment solutions that adhere to US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Washington State Department of Ecology (WSDOE) compliance requirements.
Washington Stormwater is a small family-owned business, and they love to support local. Their industry knowledge and expertise allows them to pinpoint water filtration challenges and develop solutions. "We care about the environment and helping to keep the water being put back into the environment clean," shared President Bobbi Lashbrook.
They're excited to support KHS as a Puppuccino Pals Sponsor. "I personally love animals and I love supporting Kitsap Humane Society in any way I can!" Are you seeking stormwater management and treatment systems support? Check out Washington Stormwater: https://washingtonstormwaterllc.com
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Many Thanks to Our Grand Shelter Sponsor: |
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Kitsap Humane Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization; Tax ID: 91-0728353 |
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