Invest in Kindness

When you think of an animal shelter what comes to mind?  For many people the first thing they think of is it is a sad, lonely and dark place for homeless animals.  It isn’t normally a place that the community is proud of or is willing to visit regularly.

The Idaho Humane Society is on a mission to change this perception.  We want the public to view our animal shelter as a warm, caring and kind place where homeless pets in our community our temporarily housed until they can find their forever home.

Twenty years ago across the country, shelter pets were euthanized if they didn’t find a home in a few days.  This was simply the reality of a stretched budget, not enough space or adopters, and no vigorous spay/neuter efforts.  Thankfully, our organization has evolved over time and added programs to help get more animals adopted and we have ramped up spay and neuter programs to reduce unwanted litters of puppies and kitties.  Luckily, we enjoy an extremely pet friendly community that supports our mission.  Our adoption rate for dogs is now at 98% and for cats it is 75% - both are well above the national average.  But there is still work to do.

The current shelter located on Dorman Street was built to accommodate animals for a short term stay.  Since our organization never euthanizes an adoptable dog due to time or space some of the pets that come through our doors end up living at the shelter for well over 6 months.  The dog kennels are so loud and noisy that it is very stressful for the animals.  Many of the pets are afraid when they come to the shelter.

The community of Boise needs an animal shelter with more space to give all pets a second chance and find their forever home.  The Idaho Humane Society envisions a facility where pets are housed in a “homelike” atmosphere that will help reduce stress, sickness and the spread of disease.  We need more space to accommodate clients at our veterinary medical center that cannot afford services and have nowhere else to turn.  We need a facility where children can have proper space to learn about the importance of compassion and being a responsible pet owner. 

We have been encouraged by our community to do better.  We are lucky enough to be a position to move forward with this life saving project.  Our hope is to get closer to finishing our campaign and build an animal shelter the community will be proud of.  Will you join us in our efforts?  Please make a donation today to support the Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign.

Click here to donate today!

Preserving Open Space

During a press conference at City Hall today, the City of Boise announced that Mayor David Bieter and the Boise City Council will be considering the purchase of 160 acres of open land located West of Bogus Basin Road currently owned by the Idaho Humane Society. This undeveloped land connects to the Daniel's Creek Trail Easement and a 40 acre parcel recently purchased by the city. 

The 160 acres of land was recently donated to the Idaho Humane Society by a generous individual that wanted to preserve the land while helping the pets in our community.  The money received for this parcel will benefit the Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign.

“If approved, this acquisition is another opportunity to create a seamless trail connection from Polecat Gulch to Stack Rock,” said Mayor Bieter. “We are pleased with the opportunity to enhance the health of our community by providing recreational access near existing neighborhoods and businesses, and to continue expanding the great legacy of the Foothills levy.”


“At the Idaho Humane Society we are happy to see this land can go to the preservation of open spaces that can be enjoyed by all, including pet owners,” said Dr. Jeff Rosenthal, Chief Executive Officer of the Idaho Humane Society. “Funds from the sale of this land will go toward our “Designed to be Kind” Capital Campaign to build a new centrally located, community animal resource center, which will include a new pet adoption center, education center, veterinary medical center and public dog park.” 

The Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign has now raised $8.7 million! Please consider making a donation to help us reach our $11.5 million goal.  Please click here to donate today!

Boise Mayor Bieter speaks at the press conference

Help Make Tails Wag

My chance started at the Idaho Humane Society  

Last week I overheard my mom talking about the Idaho Humane Society’s Designed to Be Kind Campaign to support their new facility and asked if I could share my own story.  My mom and dad adopted both me and my younger brother, Tucker from the Idaho Humane Society and they have given us a life full of fun, love and adventure. 

Charlie Quintana

Prior to finding a loving home, however, my tail didn't wag as often as it should have. I often forgot how things used to be and thought about all the homes I entered that decided not to keep me or the times that I needed care due to neglect and abuse. For the first year and a half of my life, I didn't even know what kindness was.  But that all changed as soon as I set my first paw in the Idaho Humane Society.

As a dog, I’m wired to love life and everything in it.  There are so many things to eat, sniff, bark at and chase.  Because of the caring staff of the Idaho Humane Society and volunteers, I am able to enjoy all of these things and more.  

Today, my life is filled with kindness.  I get to go on long walks, hikes in the foothills and swim in the river, chase the Frisbee in the park, and snuggle for hours with my loving family.  I have learned to sit, shake, lie down and other simple acts that sometimes excite my parents enough to give me treats.  Now my tail wags often!

The Quintana Boys

You can help other abandoned and abused animals like me to find home and receive the care they need. You can help make a difference for the over 13,000 animals the Idaho Humane Society serves each year. The new facility will provide a great environment for the animals, offer an expanded Veterinary Medical Center and even a public dog park!

So on behalf of my brother Trucker and all my furry friends, I hope you consider helping the Idaho Humane Society expand and improve their facilities to bring more kindness to thousands of animals.  We need you.  Please give today - and help make more tails wag! 

Sincerely,

Charlie "Bear" Quintana
Fur-kid of Christine and Ben Quintana

Christine and Ben Quintana with their pups Tuck and Charlie

To donate to the Designed to Be Kind Capital Campaign please click here.  Please remember that a gift of any size will help make more tails wag!!

Can you be their Voice?

Watching a sweet stray dog being beaten in front of my grandparent’s front yard by a close relative as a small child, forever changed the way I viewed the world.  I could not understand why someone would abuse an animal that had only passed by looking for companionship or maybe a morsel of food.  The look of confusion and fear in that dog’s eyes is ever present with me and is what propelled me to volunteer my time and donate to animal shelters today.  As a small child I felt helpless and without a voice to speak out for that dog, but many years later in life I was blessed with opportunities to offer love and care to animals at the Idaho Humane Society who held the same look of fear in their eyes. 

In 1981, as a teenager, I began to volunteer at IHS.  The shelter at that time was a tiny little place, with poor housing for the animals, but also held the hope, compassion and the strong voices of volunteers who worked tirelessly to find homes for these stray or abandoned animals.  Since that time I have also been blessed with the opportunity to develop the Meridian Valley Humane Society and to serve on the Idaho Humane Society Board of Directors.  I continued to be overwhelmed by the individuals who consistently stepped up to give of themselves, seek donations, and speak out for shelter animals in our community. 

I watched as IHS grew into the facility they are in today, which is now far too inadequate to provide for the growing needs of our community as the staff and volunteers care for 14,000 animals each year.  Fortunately due to the vision of IHS’s leaders and those that give so generously, IHS has a plan for the future to build a new facility that will stand as a beacon of hope for the people and animals of our community; a place where animals are housed humanely and where they can receive the best possible veterinary care. 

This is a wonderful vision, but IHS will need help and great support from the community in order to move to this next phase and make this a reality.  I marvel at the opportunity we each have to participate in building a loving environment for all stray and abandoned animals in our community. 

If you have ever looked into the eyes of an animal in need and perceived their pain, I wonder if this might be your opportunity to be its voice. I invite you to please join Idaho Humane Society and use your voice and resources to spread the word of this need and to give generously to the Idaho Humane Society Capital Campaign in hopes of a brighter future.  Each donation however great or small gives a stray animal a new chance at life.

With gratitude,

Connie Petersen

If you would like to join Connie in supporting the Idaho Humane Society's efforts to build a new animal shelter please click HERE.

Leave a LASTING LEGACY

We are absolutely thrilled to announce that Idaho Humane Society’s Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign total jumped up significantly this week.  The IHS Capital Campaign was the recipient of two major bequests together totaling more than $700,000.  The shelter is extremely fortunate to have such wonderful community support.  We are very proud these individuals were so passionate about the important work of the Idaho Humane Society that they chose to leave behind a lasting legacy to benefit the many abandoned pets in our community.  

Planned giving is an excellent opportunity to provide tax benefits for you and your family while still supporting your favorite charity such as the Idaho Humane Society.  There are many ways to help make a brighter future for animals in Idaho and leave behind a lasting legacy.

Here are a few options for making a planned gift:

·         Include the Idaho Humane Society Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign in your will

·         Invest in a Charitable Gift Annuity

·         Create a Charitable Trust

·         Buy an insurance policy and list the Idaho Humane Society as a beneficiary

For more information on these options please click here to check out our planned giving website.  If you have any questions or are interested in making a planned gift please contact Samantha Parrott at sparrott@idahohumanesociety.org or (208)331-8556. 

Your dedication to helping animals is deeply appreciated.  We hope this information inspires you to make a meaningful contribution to the welfare of companion animals today and in the future.  Thanks for your support!

Extra! Extra! Read all about it…

Did you receive the latest Idaho Humane Society Paw Prints quarterly magazine?  The 2014 Summer magazine is a special Capital Campaign edition featuring articles about our journey to build a new animal shelter. 

Highlights of the magazine include: 

• Q and A session with Frances and Roy Ellsworth the campaign chairs
• History of the Idaho Humane Society 
• Letter from our Chief Executive Office explaining the need for a new animal shelter in Boise.
• How to help with the Capital Campaign
  

Please CLICK HERE to read the special edition Paw Prints magazine now.

If you don’t currently receive IHS mailings such as Paw Prints, please CLICK HERE to sign up. 

A record year for the 24th Annual Lawn Party!!

Joined by a crowd of over 300 people, the Idaho Humane Society hosted its annual fundraising event, the Lawn Party. It was a record breaking year with over $200,000 raised to build a new, centrally located animal shelter as part of our Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign.

A beautiful evening for the annual Lawn Party!

One of the many highlights of the night was the "fund-a-need" portion of the program where guests are invited to make a contribution to a featured project at the shelter.  This year the IHS asked for support to build play yards for our dogs at the new facility.  We were absolutely overwhelmed with the outpouring of support for this project from our guests at the Lawn Party. Almost $53,000 was donated to build the play yards!

Picture this: twenty shelter dogs gleefully running and playing in a large grassy area.  There are pools to splash in and plenty of shade to relax in.  Volunteers begin throwing a ball for several of the four legged friends to play fetch. This is the vision we have for play yards at the new facility.  We want to design a space that is available for shelter pets to spend much needed time in the beautiful outdoors.  It is vital to the health of shelter pets that the receive proper exercise and adequate time outdoors.  Currently, our shelter pets don't have the opportunity to spend much time outside.  The Idaho Humane Society wants to address this problem by building play yards at our new facility and we need YOUR help.

Our goal is to raise $2,000 more to build the play yards. Would you consider helping us reach that goal? Please consider making a donation to fund this amazing project as part of the Designed to be Kind Capital Campaign. Please click here to donate to the Play Yard project!