Saturday, February 22, folks got the chance to come to an open house at Lakeshore PAWS. This was the first event held in their spacious new facility at 405 Elm Street. The group has been here since August and in our community since April 2011. In that short amount of time, Jeanne Sommer, founder, and her team have saved between 850 and 900 lives!
This adoption event was to help bring people in and to feel comfortable in the new surroundings, along with showing off the animals still looking for homes. Among these adorable creatures available for adoption are dogs, puppies, cats, kittens, and one very special little pig called Ben, who sits for apples. The puppy room was particularly abuzz with excited squeals and giggles from the smallest children to the burliest men. Puppies have a way of burrowing not just into the crook of your arm, but also into your heart, don’t they? One man, Charles Jones, holding a pup explained why events like this are so special.
“It gives people an opportunity to come out, see what we have here, and hopefully take somebody home with them!” said Jones, never taking his eyes off the Pit-mix in his arms.
The organization’s values run through every aspect of their work:
Compassion – treating each animal with the kindness it deserves
Community – creating partnerships for a better world for pets in Northwest Indiana
Results – working to ensure that every pet receives a second chance at a forever home
Advocacy – working as a voice for every animal in despair
This open house invited the community into Lakeshore PAWS to see the work being done, the compassion that’s doled out, and the love the volunteers who work there radiate. Founder Jeanne Sommer seems to know every animal’s personality and took pride in giving a tour of the shelter. How are they so successful?
“We pulled them from the shelters – whether they’re going to be euthanized or they’ve been sitting there for a long time – we do behavioral tests with them, we take them to the vet, make sure that they’re vetted, we take pictures of them and market them to the public, so it works out real well,” said Sommer, on how they’ve helped so many.
Scrolling through the pictures on this page and in our photo gallery, I’m willing to bet that you’re thinking the same thing I was the whole time I was there: “I could take care of one of these little guys or girls!” If you’re interested in adopting one of the furry friends you see here, you’ve just been thinking about getting a pet, are curious about PAWS, or would like to help out, they have a wonderful website to assist in facilitating what you want to do! In addition, you can stop in for a personal tour and to get to know the animals!
Are you curious about the adoption process at Lakeshore PAWS? It’s all for the benefit of all involved. They don’t do same-day adoptions to ensure that the match is good enough for both the animals and the humans involved. We all know that sometimes personalities don’t match or that some animals do better with adjusting to your current pets or that some of us need different sized animals than we might realize! Thankfully, the Lakeshore PAWS adoption process will help you and your family choose the pet that’s right for you! This involves a short survey and a lot of attention to detail by the PAWS staff. If you’re looking for more security in your decision-making, here’s what a five-time dog foster mom has to say.
“I personally feel these dogs have the most love. It’s when you get a dog out of a kennel or animal shelter, or something like that – those dogs really love, they want to be loved, and they seem to have the biggest heart, to me! They want to be loved, just like everybody else. But it’s nice to foster rather than adopt because you’re not committed,” said Maura Myers, smiling all the time at two-year-old foster dog Lux.
This event showed our community’s strength in many ways – the excitement of children holding a wiggly puppy for the first time, the smiles of “grownups” made children again themselves by the wagging tails of shelter dogs, and the looks of happiness on animals’ faces when hands and fingers extending into the cages for a brief bit of petting. Jon Thomas, who runs the Porter County Animal Shelter, brought two of their full grown cats along to show off the need in other shelters in the area, as well.
If you can’t bring an animal into your home, but feel the tug in your heart to help these adorable little creatures, there are so many ways to help! You can volunteer at Lakeshore PAWS and get some awesome hands-on animal loving time! You can donate to their 501c(3) nonprofit cause! You can do something as simple as sharing this article, clicking the “Like” button on their Facebook page, telling your friends, and sharing their flyers and stories.
Let’s show the animals in our community that they’re a valued part of it by helping them out! Visit their website at http://www.lakeshorepaws.org/.
Click here to view photos from the event!