Operation Kindness Helps with Hurricane Isaac



Braithwaite, LA

In September of 2012 Operation Kindness received a call from KAT5 Animal Rescue, an emergency response group working in Braithwaite, Louisiana, a town that was especially hard hit by Hurricane Isaac. KAT 5 Rescue was able to rescue more than 50 animals, and all had been reunited with the exception of a few. Operation Kindness was asked to see if we could take any animals remaining homeless.

Amy and Saber's owner returns and says goodbye

 

Amy and Saber are 3-year-old Bloodhound mixes who are lucky to have survived. Flood waters rose in their house within minutes and their owner was pulled through the attic to safety. He was forced to leave the two girls on the roof. The two girls swam away to safety and returned to their house when floodwaters fell to faithfully wait until their owner returned. KAT 5 fed the girls for several days after the flood and they were there feeding them when their owner returned.

He has lost everything and is living in a shelter and does not foresee when or if he can return to his home. He asked KAT5 Rescue if they could take the girls and "find a home for my babies where they will be loved and allowed to live their lives together, forever." That is when the call was made to Operation Kindness.

Can I get a boarding pass?

The girls were flown from a New Orlean's airport to DFW Airport, where Animal Care Director Sandi Laird was waiting for them. They were immediately brought to Operation Kindness where they were given much love and TLC. Both are healthy, happy, and well adjusted sweethearts.

Because Operation Kindness is a no-kill animal shelter, we can provide a stable, loving environment for them to share until we find them a forever home... together. It can take some time to adopt a large dog, and finding a home willing to take two could take even longer. But we are determined to help these girls stay together and find a great home.



UPDATE! Saber and Amy were adopted together to a loving family in November 2012!

Going for a walk at Operation Kindness

Mama Dog Adopts Abandoned Kitten

Onyx was a days-old kitten that had been found in some bushes. We don't know where her mom went, but she never came back for her. A good Samaritan found her and brought her to Operation Kindness. We were attempting to bottle feed little Onyx, but she wasn't eating much and we were so worried for her.

Faline is a one-year-old Pomeranian mix who was transferred to Operation Kindness from a city shelter in early July. She had four puppies only a few days old, and therefore she couldn't be adopted from a city shelter. She was brought to us so she could go with her babies to a foster home, and when she was old enough she would be spayed (along with her pups) and they would all be available for adoption. 

That's where an idea came in. Maybe we could introduce Onyx to Faline's litter so she could nurse and also receive cleanings, body warmth, and everything else a mom could give her. Onyx was also black just like all of Faline's other babies!

Before we introduced Onyx to Faline, we rubbed her babies all over Onyx so that she would smell like them. We almost couldn't believe it, but it worked! Faline accepted her and started to clean her. The look on Faline's face when she got a mouth full of cat hair was priceless. And Faline has been protective and loving of her ever since.

Both Faline, her babies, and Onyx are in a foster home. Faline will be available for adoption when her puppies (and kitten) are weened from her at 6 weeks. The kitten and puppies will be available for adoption at 8 weeks.

Click here to see the story as it aired on NBC5 News.

New Dog Kennel Nears Completion!

Mark your calendars for the official Grand Opening of Bear's Den on Wednesday, March 28th at 10:00am and an Open House on Saturday, March 31st at 10:00am. Both are open to the public!

 

Bear's Den

We thrilled to announce the near completion of Bear's Den, our new large dog kennel that will provide an addition 32 large dog runs at Operation Kindness! Named after Bear, the Great Pyrenees mix adopted by the building's donors, the new addition at Operation Kindness will double the number of big dogs we can shelter at any one time and increase our overall dog capacity by 50%. To enhance the environment for the dogs, our new dog kennel will have garage doors that can be opened on nice days and a leash-free dog park that can be used in addition to the two leash-free dog parks currently used at Operation Kindness.

New Education Room/Office Space

In addition to Bear's Den, we are adding more office space and a new education room to our facility! The Education room will be used for volunteer orientations, girl and boy scout troops and more. The new office space will be used for our business team with their previous office spaces being converted to a new Animal Intake area with separate rooms for new dogs and cats, and a more private area for those surrendering new animals to Operation Kindness.

New Gazebo

Another major addition is the large gazebo that has been erected on the grounds at Operation Kindness! Soon convertible benches and tables will be put in the space to make it the perfect place to host Kamp Kindness (a children's day camp in the summer), our Anniversary and Alumni Celebration on July 21st, or just sit with a dog and enjoy the nice weather! All supporters of Operation Kindness are invited to attend our Ground Opening on Wednesday, March 28th at 10:00am.

Farrah and Puppies Rescued!

Farrah and her 7 pups are safe at Operation Kindness!

Did you know that half of the animals at Operation Kindness are transferred from city shelters?
Such is the case of Farrah and her 7 babies. Farrah, a Shih Tzu mix, was found as a stray and brought to Garland Animal Control where they discovered she was pregnant and going into labor at any time. City shelters are often unable to provide an environment for the puppies to live until they are old enough to be adopted, or to provide any necessary medical treatment. Therefore the dogs like Farrah and her puppies must go to rescue groups.

Our friends at Garland Animal Control called Operation Kindness about Farrah, and she was transferred here on Tuesday, February 21st- the day her 7 babies were born. Mom is extremely matted, and we will get her groomed so she is more comfortable. She and the 7 puppies will also go into a foster home.



The 7 puppies are just one day old

The babies will remain in foster until they are 8 weeks old and they have received two rounds of shots. Mom will be available in about 4 weeks, when her puppies are weened from her and eating on their own. All of the puppies and mama Farrah will be spayed or neutered, microchipped, and current on vaccinations. Interested in fostering animals like Farrah? Contact us!

Update:
Farrah received a haircut and bath and she feels much better. Some of her skin was scalded from urine locked in her matted fur. We were surprised to learn that unlike Farrah Fawcett (for whom she was named) she doesn't have blonde hair. It's actually white and gray!
She and her 7 puppies are going to a foster home today where they can have a quiet environment to thrive and grow!

Zip Tie Puppy and Mom Recovering at Operation Kindness

 

Twyla Fae when she arrived

Two puppies and one mother dog who were the victims of cruelty in East Dallas are now safely recovering at Operation Kindness. Someone had place zip ties around the necks of the puppies and as they grew larger they were suffocating while their wounds were becoming infected. Unfortunately Twyla Fae, seen left when she first arrived at Operation Kindness, was very swollen and the zip tie had to be removed by our veterinarian after Twyla received a heavy dose of pain medicine. The tie had actually grown into her skin.

Sweet mother Charlotte

Dallas Animal Control made several attempts to recover all of the dogs and after many days each was removed and taken to Operation Kindness. No owners have been identified for animal cruelty charges. Unfortunately one of the puppies passed away from the injuries, but Twyla Fae, her sister Chelsie, and mom Charlotte are at Operation Kindness. Charlotte, the mother dog, has many scars on her neck and face- evidence of a life hard lived. She is incredibly sweet, though, and will give you kisses the second you sit and talk to her. Maybe she understands that she is now in safe hands.

Chelsie

Sister Chelsie did not have wounds from zip ties, however we have discovered she may have a heart murmer and we are currently running tests. She also has a very bad cold we are treating with antibiotics. From the current photo of Twyla Fae below you can see she is recovering well in our animal hospital. We hope to have her available for adoption in late February. To watch a video from CBS News click here.

Update! Twyla Fae was adopted into her forever home on Saturday, February 18th, 2012!!! A comment from her new family, "Twyla Fae, (now Mae Joon), is thriving and getting along well in our home. She loves to play, eat, and sleep! She comes with me to work at The Velvet Snout and is making lots of friends! Her wound is almost completely healed and she is growing so fast! Still leery of strangers tho, and rather be chased then come to you, but we're working on that. Thank you Operation Kindness for your care and abilities that have made it possible for our family welcome Joon home. She is loved and cherished, even more so because of her sad story. You guys are awesome and I just can't thank you enough!" Mama Charlotte was adopted in late September, and this entire family now has homes!

Twyla Fae hoping for a home soon!

20th Annual Canines, Cats & Cabernet

It's official, we've booked our 20th Annual Canines, Cats & Cabernet at the new Omni Hotel in downtown Dallas in the beautiful Trinity Ballroom! The event will be on Sunday, October 28th, most likely from 6-9pm. For our 20th year we're rolling out new changes like fewer, better quality silent auction packages and table seating for all guests. The ticket price is increasing (ticket price to be determined) and will continue to include all food, wine, and complimentary parking. For the first time ever we will be offering specialty cocktails like Cosmo"paw"litans during our VIP reception for Sponsors and their guests! More details soon!

Welcome to 2012!

Welcome to the Operation Kindness No-kill Animal Shelter Blog! We hope to share up-to-the minute news of the shelter including Happy Adoption "Tails," information about new animals in the shelter, and more!

Grand Totals are in for 2011: We found loving homes last year for 2844 dogs, cats, puppies and kittens! With approximately 250 animals in our shelter and another 100 in foster homes we were able to rescue more than 3,000 animals in 2011. Thank you to our volunteers, donors, foster families and supporters for making this happen!