w w w . S t r a y d o g. o r g U p d a t e
POSTED SEVEN DAYS A WEEK AT FIVE P.M. CENTRAL TIME U.S.A
(Except Saturdays, when we post a morning pre-Adoption Day update and then an evening post-Adoption Day update)

Straydog Inc., The Late Pat Arnold's Happy Home for Strays, a No-Kill Dog Shelter
P.O. Box 1465, Gun Barrel City, Texas 75147 * (903) 479-3497 * EMAIL: straydog@straydog.org

Bill Arnold's Daily Straydog Log

TUESDAY OCTOBER 12 2004

FIVE P.M. UPDATE

Pat Arnold's way must be reiterated

     A very successful businessman (who didn't really care much for dogs) told Pat and me one time several years ago that he could cut expenses at Straydog Inc. by a huge percentage. He said we should build rows and rows of very small kennels on a cement slab floor. One $6-per-hour employee (or Pat herself) could take care of all the kennel cleaning with a high-pressure water hose. Feeding could be done once a day by this one worker, tossing a cup or two of the cheapest dry dog food though the bars of the kennels. No vet expenses--survival of the fittest.

     "When our kids were growing up, Bill taught school and I stayed home with the kids, and we never had much money," Pat said to the businessman, "but we took good care of our children. We provided them with shelter, a loving home, nutritious food, clothing, medical and dental care, and we made sure our children grew up in a happy environment. We had a good time together as a family each and every day. We had cats as pets when the kids were very little, and later when we could afford to take care of a dog, we got a dog, and we always taught our children to love and respect our family pets as if they were their siblings--full members of our family. Bill and I now consider each and every one of these dogs we've rescued as a member of our family." The businessman thought we were crazy and went away.

     Pat and I realized early on that to think we could adopt out 15,000 dogs and cats a day (the total number put to death daily in this country) was a bit of a stretch. When Pat first started rescuing dogs, we spent a lot of money putting ads in our local paper, saying something like "Beautiful dog free to good home." No one ever called. This went on for a few months, and then we started looking into the statistics about the number of homeless dogs being euthanized, and we realized why no one had called about our ads advertising dogs ready for adoption.

     As we came to the realization that most of our rescued dogs weren't going to go anywhere, weren't going to be adopted by anyone, Pat continued to provide each dog she rescued with the same kind of happy, healthy and secure home we had provided for our children and our family pets.

     Our family dogs had always had a big, securely fenced back yard to run and play in. Pat insisted that every dog she rescued have a spacious kennel, the size of an "average back yard," to run and play in. Pat wished she could bring the dogs inside during the hot summar days and nights and the cold winter days and nights, but there just wasn't enough room, so we had to settle for dog houses (filled with hay in the winter) inside small uninsulated shelter buildings.

Max and Molly in their spacious, grass-covered kennel.

The original Central Section of kennels build per Pat's specifications in September 1994.

Old Angel, one of Pat's original rescues in her and Old Pup's
big kennel right next to the kennel office.

Today's dog walker mows the park while the dogs he's walking
play on the other side of the park off camera.

     Pat insisted that each and every dog receive complete medical care. Pat insisted that every dog be fed twice a day ("to always give them something to look forward to") and that they be fed premium dog food (as we had learned long before beginning to take care of dogs that the better the food an animal eats the fewer health problems the animal will have--this theory, of course, holds for humans as well). Pat insisted that caregivers (she, herself, for the first several years) spend quality time with each and every dog each and every day, playing with them, petting and hugging them and brushing and grooming them--showing them they are loved unconditionally.

     Anytime anyone (including me) suggested a way to "cut services" in order to save money, Pat would say, "We're either going to take care of these dogs my way, or we're not going to take care of them, and we ARE going to take care of them. There is no other option." ... Then she would look at me and sternly say,

"Somehow we must raise the necessary money."