Animal Crackers - Humane Society

Animal
Crackers
Summer 2014
HSPCA Honors Volunteer at Annual Meeting
The Humane Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals hosted our 112th Annual
Meeting at the Thirsty Fellow Restaurant in Columbia. At this meeting the Humane Society
honored and recognized our generous donors and committed volunteers. Those in
attendance were privileged to hear about the special commitment and dedication exhibited
by one particular volunteer.
The late Ron Clements, pictured right, lived his commitment to our community and to
animals throughout the Midlands every day. He and his wife Lisa were instrumental in
initiating and maintaining the Pet Soup program, which operated a “pet food bank’ for area
families in need of help caring for their pets. He lent his time and talents to many Humane
Society events, including See Spot Run, where he was often the first volunteer to arrive, ready
to get right to work. If Ron had a motto, it would be “I’ll do whatever you need me to do to get
the job done.” He was a tireless worker and a strong supporter of many animal welfare causes
throughout the Midlands.
At this year’s Annual Meeting, HSPCA Board President Jared Libet noted, “The Humane Society and this community lost a dear
friend and animal lover this past February. Ron was a person who put the needs of other people and the needs of animals above
himself.” Ron could be gruff and direct, but he had a softer side that many people came to know and love.
The Humane Society was fortunate that Ron chose to share his gentle side with us. If something needed to be done and if it
would help an animal or neighbor, Ron was there to do it with a cheerful smile.
A memorial plaque was presented to his wife, Lisa, who is also a long standing volunteer and animal welfare advocate.
Legislative Efforts A Success
As part of the South Carolina Animal Legislative Coalition
(SCALC), the Humane Society has worked diligently with
other area animal-welfare organizations from around the
state to see anti-cruelty legislation signed into law. We’re
pleased to report these efforts have been successful and
animals in abusive situations have more rights than ever
before in South Carolina.
SCALC worked with the Senate on S-193, which would
provide for more significant penalties for those found guilty
of misdemeanor or felony animal cruelty. Our team also
worked diligently with the author and sponsors of H-3361,
which addressed issues about domestic violence and pets
and added our concerns regarding animal cruelty convictions
from S-193. After minor changes in the House and Senate,
we’re pleased to announce that H-3361 passed and was
signed into law by Governor Nikki Haley in June.
Highlights of the law include:
l
D
ecision of punishment in animal-cruelty cases
are left to the judge thus giving the judge greater
authority to maximize fines or incarceration time.
l
The penalty process is streamlined and repeat
offenders face more serious penalties.
l Misdemeanor penalties are increased to a maximum
of 90 days in jail and a $1000 fine. Felony penalties
increased to a maximum of 5 years and up to a
$5,000 fine.
Welcome to
our new officers!
Welcome to our new officers! The Humane Society is
fortunate to have a hard-working board of directors, and
we know our new executive officers will help the Humane
Society continue to serve animals and animal-lovers in
the Midlands.
President: Jared Libet
Vice President: Carrie DeVier
Treasurer: Michelle Jones
Secretary: Karl Kemmerlin
Special Thanks To
Our See Spot Run
Sponsors and
Participants
Many thanks to everyone who
participated in our fifth annual
See Spot Run 5K run/walk in May.
Runners, walkers and four-legged
friends joined us for the race, which
raised more than $26,000 for the
Humane Society’s low-cost spay and
neuter clinic and our animal cruelty prevention programs.
In its fifth year See Spot Run saw more runners and walkers
than ever before. Each year Humane Society supporters
look forward to the chance to run with their dogs, families
or and enjoy the race-day atmosphere.
We want to extend our gratitude to all of our generous
sponsors for making this event possible and look forward
to an even bigger and better See Spot Run 2015.
SAVE THE DATE – MAY 16, 2015
2014 See Spot Run Sponsors
Platinum Level Sponsor
Silver Level Sponsor
Renick Chiropractic and
Soft Tissue Clinic
Gold Level Sponsors
Shops at the
Arcade
Jim and Laura Sonefeld
State of the Art Care, In the Heart of the State
Bronze Level Sponsor
Another Printer
Charles Karesh
Employee Spotlight
Mary Beth Miskelly is one
of our fantastic veterinary
technicians. She helps our
in-house veterinarians with
spay and neuter surgeries and
so much more. Since joining
the Humane Society in April,
she’s already right at home
helping animal.
Q: How long and where else have you been a vet tech?
A: I’ve worked as a veterinary technician for two years
and previously worked for South Carolina Veterinary
Specialists & Emergency Care.
Q: What do you love most about your job?
A: I love our patients and enjoy seeing and interacting with
all varieties of dogs and cats that come through our clinic.
Q:
A:
I s there anything you wish more pet owners knew
about spay/neuter surgeries?
Spaying and neutering has significant health benefits
and will greatly lower or prevent the risk of infection and
cancer. Spaying or neutering will NOT make your pet fat!
Lack of exercise and overfeeding will cause your pet to
become overweight. Spaying and neutering also helps
fight pet overpopulation by preventing unwanted litters
that lead to millions of euthanized animals every year.
Humane Society
Benefits from
Midlands Gives
The Humane Society was the recipient of many generous
gifts from community members during Midlands Gives, a
local 24-hour online giving challenge presented by Central
Carolina Community Foundation. We are grateful to those
who donated to our cause. The event took place on May 6,
2014 and raised $1,651 for spay and neuter services.
Together, we
can make a
difference.
Q: What else does your job entail beside spay/neuter?
A: A side from nursing duties, I spend a lot of time
educating our clients on spay and neuter practices,
post-operative care and the importance of
heartworm preventative and vaccines.
Q:
A:
Do you have any pets? If so, what are they and
what are their names?
Y
es, I have five pets! Gusto the basset hound,
Moochie the fearless chihuahua mix (except for
thunderstorms), Charlie Pickle the chihuahua,
Agador Sparticus the siamese cat, and Cleopatra,
“Cleo,” our beautiful bearded dragon.
Q: What do you like least about your job?
A: T he hardest part of this job is coming upon an
animal that’s suffering. We do all we can to help that
animal and it does require a tremendous amount of
time, effort and financial resources. The silver lining
is when that animal recovers and we can find it a
new, forever home.
The Humane Society:
More than just Spay
and Neuter!
It’s no secret that The Humane Society and our in-house
veterinarians offer the lowest price spay and neuter
surgeries around. But did you know that we can help you
with more of your pet’s needs? The Humane Society also
sells top brands of heartworm and flea and tick medicine
and offers services like microchipping and routine vaccines.
Every dollar you spend at the Humane Society means that
you’re helping us help other animals by fighting animal
cruelty and keeping spay and neuter surgery costs low for
pet owners in the Midlands.
Visit humanesc.org
for a full list of services
our clinic offers.
NON-PROFIT ORG
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
PERMIT NO. 1127
COLUMBIA, SC
Look us up online
If you regularly shop on Amazon.com, consider visiting
www.smile.amazon.com before you make your next
Amazon purchase. By searching for the Humane Society
in Columbia, S.C., and selecting our organization as your
charity of choice. A portion of qualifying purchases you
make will benefit the Humane Society.
Visit smile.amazon.com for more information.
It’s an easy way to help!
The Humane Society has an updated our website to make it even
easier to use. Visit us online at www.humanesc.org to check out
our new look! Our new site makes it easy to forward links to our
monthly specials in the clinic to family, friends and co-workers as
well as check out other services the Humane Society offers.
Make sure to like our Facebook
page and follow us on Twitter.
We’ll see you online!