From the SPA
By Mauri Formigoni, Nov 10, 2006

Baby animals, redux

I always look forward to writing about my favorite animals that need homes and choosing the roster for the Jardín visit the following week, where we show off the best we have.

Today, I arrived to request pet grooming for Thursday and discovered that one after another of my chosen animals had been adopted! Imagine! That is, of course, the whole point of the Sociedad Protectora de Animales, the Jardín visits and the article each week in Atención, but not my chosen favorites! So it is good news and bad. I must rechoose which dog and cat to write about and which ones to bring.

The SPA is functioning as it should! We are adopting out good animals in a timely manner, and I cannot complain because they aren’t available for me to show off. This week, Sweet Pea and Peanut and Callita were all adopted, so I have chosen some of the little ones to tempt you.

Chiclet is a mixed-breed pup about eight weeks old with startlingly blue eyes and is all spunk, energy and good health. The little ones break your heart with their optimism and good will. They are so blameless, with no bad memories or bad situations from which to recover. They come with a clean slate and need so little to thrive—simply your good will, food, warmth, shelter and training. Consider a little one; their chances of succeeding at life are so much greater in a home with a real family than at an animal shelter, though we care deeply for them. But sometimes other animals share their colds, and they face the disadvantages of crowding and climate. It is getting colder, and we will struggle to keep all the animals warm and protected.

 

We have many half-grown orange-and-white kittens that play with one another. They get much comfort from their siblings and are happier adopted with one or two others. Pumpkin is a scamp and a love.

Look for her at the Jardín soon, or come down and visit and see for yourself. We have recently repainted the facility and are a new group of happy people who enjoy the SPA. Much is happening to improve our lot. We had a huge garage sale and did roaringly well financially. 

We are also very proud to announce our next large fundraiser on December 3 at Rancho Los Olivos, where we will hold an old-fashioned barbeque with great food and raffle tickets for a balloon ride and a stay in Pozos at a grand new hotel. There are exotic animals roaming the grounds—black swans, miniature horses and alpacas—and there will be live music and games for everyone. It should be a lovely fiesta in the country. Tickets will be available in the Jardín soon.

A grant from the San Miguel Educational Organization is a welcome gift. We are very grateful and proud of this cash award and will use it to improve our isolation area. Yearly awards continue to improve our facility, and the welfare of our animals is continually benefited. 

The Sociedad Protectora de Animales is located on Los Pinos 7, just off Calzada de la Estación, across from the bus station. Our hours for volunteering and visitation are Monday through Friday from noon to 2 pm, and clinic hours are 10am to 2pm. Please come by! Check out our animals at www.spasanmiguel.org 


Mauri Formigoni is an Associate Professor of Visual Arts at the University of Illinois, a long-time San Miguel resident and a lifelong animal lover. She can be reached at 154-5930 to answer questions.