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Katie Stafford, operations manager at the Lawrence Humane Society, cleans up an accident that happened Wendesa day afternoon. This accident was caused by a combination of excitement and too much grass eating.
Pets
CONTINUED FROM 4A
The class has worked on other community service projects in the past, but this one was unique because Guth has a personal connection to the shelter; he adopted his golden retriever, Boomer, from the Lawrence Humane Society.
Marissa Rosenblum, Kansas City, Mo., said the project allowed the group to help a respectful organization. Through analyzing the shelter's needs, she learned that students could still volunteer their time to help increase community awareness of the shelter's needs and goals, despite not having the money to help financially, she said.
The 10 groups presented their work to Grinstead at the end of April. She said the Humane Society planned on adding some of the students' proposed events and ideas to their current fundraising and publicity campaign, including a Valentine's Dayevent and poker parties. The students also suggested that it be the host of animal rights seminars and recruit more involvement from the Greek community.
Playtime
MUTT 'N' STRUTT FUNDRAISER
Who: Lawrence Humane Society. Get involved by volunteering, walking in the main event or sponsoring a participant. Dogs that are on a leash and have a current rabies shot may participate, but participants are asked to leave cats at home.
What: A fundraising walk for the Lawrence Humane Society. The one-to two-mile walk will begin the morning of events that will also include pet competitions, booths and lunch.
When: Saturday, May 13.
Registration begins at 8 a.m. and the walk begins at 9 a.m. Events will continue until about 12:30 p.m.
Where: Sunflower Elementary School, 2521 Inverness Drive
For more information, visit the Lawrence Humane Society's Web site at http://www lawrencehumane.org.
Although Gerdsen has already adopted her mutt, Cassie, from the Lawrence Humane Society, the Wichita senior still volunteers at the shelter three to four times a month. She said it was easy to get attached to the dogs, especially the ones that were there for long periods of time.
Source: Midge Grinstead,
executive director
of the Lawrence Humane Society
Grady said she quickly found favorites, including Peanut, when she volunteered. If she didn't live in a sorority, she said she would take the puppy home with her.
Each week she goes in hoping to play with Peanut. But at the same time, she hopes Peanut can find a home where she will get attention from a full-time family, instead of just occasional visitors.
— Edited by Jodi Ann Holopirek
Crackdown on cruelty
LAWRENCE
BY RACHEL A SEYMOUR
editor@kansan.com
KANSAN CORRESPONDENT
State ups penalty, makes animal cruelty a felony
Betsy McLeod returned home last September to find her bunny's cage empty. The bunny, Coco, wasn't hiding under the bed or with McLeod's roommates though. She was dead.
The bunny that McLeod, Overland Park sophomore, bought nearly three months before had been thrown off her balcony by a man who claimed he was too drunk to know what he was doing. "He blamed it on his alcoholism," McLeod said.
On Sept. 28, that man went to court for charges of animal cruelty. He was sentenced to probation and fined $200. McLeod said she thought it was nothing more than a slap on the wrist for his actions. At the time animal cruelty was not considered a felony in the state of Kansas. Today, intentional animal cruelty is a felony according to the Senate Bill 408.
For Midge Grinstead, director of the Lawrence Humane Society, the bill was a nine-year battle. The bill finally passed unanimously through the house in March. Just last month Gov. Kathleen Sebelius signed the bill into law.
"It not only passed, but it was a slam dunk," Grinstead said.
According to the bill, people convicted of intentional animal cruelty will be sentenced to jail for a minimum of 30 days or a maximum of one year and fixed $500 to $5,000 depending on the severity of the abuse. They must have a psychological evaluation while in jail and they cannot own an animal for the next five years.
People convicted of international animal cruelty will be sentenced to jail for a minimum 30 days or a maximum of one year and fined $500 to $5,000.
For McLeod though, the bill came too late.
"I wish they would have made it a felony a long time ago," McLeod said. "It should have been a felony." The Lawrence Humane Society performed more than 750 investigations on animal cruelty and neglect last year according to Grinstead. About 20 percent of the investigations resulted in the animals being removed from the home.
Dogs, especially larger breeds such as pit bulls and rottweilers, account for a majority of animal cruelty cases, Grinstead said. The most common type of abuse for all animals the Humane Society sees is neglect. Under the new law, neglect isn't automatically a felony; only on the second offense of neglect can a person be convicted of a felony.
Animals that are removed from homes because of abuse or neglect are taken in at the Humane Society. After the police department gives releases for the animals, they can be adopted. Background checks for animal cruelty are done on anyone adopting a pet.
People interesting in adopting an animal rescued from abuse are informed about the animal's history before adopting. Knowing the history of the pet doesn't discourage people from adopting though.
"I think they all want to help." Grinstead said. "People
are very sympathetic and want to adopt." Holly Romero, Colorado Springs, Colo., senior, is one such person. Last fall she went to nearly every pet store in Lawrence in search of a ferret, She ended up at the Humane Society. Quentin, a neglected ferret, arrived at the shelter with a family of ferrets.
"If you can take in an animal that's been abused or neglected it's an amazing thing," Romero. "I immediately fell in love with Quentin."
The Humane Society told Romero that Quentin came from a home with a number of pets that had been neglected. Grinstead remembered that when the ferrets arrived at the shelter they were invested with fleas and underweight. When Romero first brought Quentin home he was less active than her other ferret, Baz.
"He slept a lot and seemed exhausted," she said. "It would take Quentin awhile to come out of the cage, like he was scared."
Quentin is more active and less timid now, Romero said.
Today, the fleas and fears are gone, but Quentin deals with a more permanent problem because of his neglect.
"He doesn't have good use of his back legs," Romero said.
From what she had been told, Quentin's legs suffer from being caged and walking on the wire floors of the cage for too long.
Romero said the new law would give people more of a reason to not abuse their animals. Not that people should need a reason, she said.
- Edited by Timon Veach
Caution
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Jayhawk Bookstore ...at the top of Naismith Hill
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Kansan Classifieds
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