Langley Animal Protection Society received an early delivery from the elves up north, leaving staff and volunteers at the Aldergrove animal shelter awestruck by cuteness.
On Sunday, Santa arrived with five “fluffy, adorable” puppies from Smithers, and they’re lapping up all the love, said the local shelter’s acting executive director Jayne Nelson.
“We are pretty excited to have puppies for Christmas,” she added.
These dogs were born Sept. 15 near Smithers, and brought into care at the Interior animal shelter when they were just a few days old.
The mother was in rough shape, but she was a “good mama” and all of the babies are plump and healthy, Nelson explained, noting there were six in the litter – five girls and one boy.
They were given Remembrance-related names, Vimy, Geneva, Ally, Poppy, Memory, and Charlie.
Put into foster care for a short time, the puppies were returned to the Smithers shelter when they were five weeks old, in an effort to find them homes.
Only one pup, however, was adopted.
That’s when the call went out for help, Nelson said. She noted LAPS has partnered with the Interior shelter a few times through the years.
Nelson said the local team was happy to help, and she was on hand when the puppies arrived in Langley late Sunday night.
“Their realty is so different from ours…” she explained. “They can’t find enough good homes for the dogs they have, and we can’t find enough dogs for the great homes we have.”
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Hunting for homes
“They are super fluffy with very short legs,” she exclaimed, picking up one and smothering it with kisses.
Mom is a Dachshund, while dad is believed to be a Spaniel mix.
“We think they will mature around the same as Mama at 19 pounds, or so. The puppies appear to be in great shape medically. We will have to have them spayed and neutered, vaccinated, dewormed, etc. Plus they will receive training, as will their new families.”
But otherwise, they’re pretty much ready for their new forever homes, and Nelson is confident the little imports will find loving families before the holidays.
“This is a pretty great example of a lot people working together to help this beautiful little family,” Nelson told the Langley Advance, noting their arrival at LAPS was captured on video.
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CAPTION: Five puppies were brought in from Smithers and are looking for homes before the holidays, if possible, including Ally.
Moving into livestreaming
In fact, several of the animals in care at the shelter have become Internet stars, she said, explaining how LAPS is transitioning into the world of livestream video, and consequently garnering more fans around the globe.
Nelson is excited to add the video feeds as a way to bring more awareness to the work being done to care for abandoned and unwanted pets that currently call the Aldergrove shelter home.
Nelson and her team watched the online successes enjoyed by an off-shoot organization of LAPS, the Tiny Kittens Society. It has garnered more than a million followers around the world with its livestreaming of cats.
Now, LAPS hope to mirror that attention with some “day-in-the-life” footage the Remembrance puppies and other shelter animals.
Committed to continuing to video intakes of animals and litters of kittens and puppies, they’re hoping to find a way to consistently livestream 24/7. For now, they’re just doing segments – as what they’ve dubbed a Day in the Life at LAPS.
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CAPTION: Porter is a Boston terrier, only four weeks old in the photo. He and his mother, Dolly, are being livestreamed by the Langley Animal Protection Society.
Showcasing mom and pup
One of the most popular livestreams, thus far, from LAPS has followed the life and times of Dolly and her son, Porter.
Dolly is a five-year-old black-and-white Boston terrier who came into the Patti Dale Animal Shelter as a stray 10 weeks ago from Langley City. As of last week, she has an adoption pending.
Given Dolly’s physical condition when she arrived, it was apparent she’d had at least a few litters in past, said Nelson.
An ultrasound about a week into Dolly’s stay confirmed she was, in fact, pregnant again.
This time she was expecting a single puppy, which was brought into the world two months ago now, through a C-section.
There have been close to 13,000 people watching the movements of both Dolly, and Porter – who goes to his new forever home on Friday, Dec. 2.
The daily routines of these dogs, and the often humorous shenanigans of Porter, have periodically been livestreamed – online for all to watch – Nelson explained.
And the feedback has been “tremendous,” she added.
Educating the masses
Watching Porter and Dolly – as an example – helps drive home the realization that some of the shelter animals require “incredible amounts” of medical/veterinarian care, Nelson said.
Money from this month’s gala, for example, was earmarked in part to cover the shelter’s vet bills, which Nelson said easily average about $100,000 a year – and that’s a discounted rate thanks to the partnerships they enjoy with many of the local veterinarian clinics.
“Vet care for the amount of animals we care for is significant,” she added, grateful for any contributions for the shelter.
“I don’t know if people realize how expensive veterinary care is and how much each animal costs the shelter. The adoption fee generally doesn’t cover the costs incurred to house, feed, and provide good medical care – so LAPS is left trying to find ways to cover those costs. Livestreaming does allow us to introduce people to the animals as they come in and helps us tell their story,” she added.
It’s important to educate the public about the work being done by staff and volunteers at the shelter, but it’s also “great” to showcase the animals they have in care, all in an effort to find them “forever homes.”
The Patti Dale Animal Shelter is located at 26220 56th Ave. in Aldergrove. People can call 604-857-5055, or find it online at LAPSBC.ca.
• Click here to see another LAPS video