By Joanna D. Samson, FOTAS VP

Once again, the Aiken community has responded to our cries for help.

As the temperatures soared to triple digits, so did the intake numbers at the County Shelter – to a dismal degree not experienced in years. In June the number of homeless, orphaned and abandoned animals topped at 625 animals, and July promises to be equally bad. In fact, in a single hot day after the 4^th of July holiday, the shelter took in 50 animals.

The dogs were crowded 2-3 in a run in the Intake Wing, and the shelter was forced to consider something it has not had to face since the new shelter has been open – euthanizing animals who had been on the adoption floor the longest to make room for other adoptable animals from Intake.

“It is heartbreaking,” says Jennifer Miller, the President of FOTAS. “We had hoped those days were over.”

To those of you who follow this column, it will come as no surprise that the Code Red dogs – the dogs that had been on the adoption floor the longest – were all what we call “pibbles”, that is bully breed or pit bull crosses. Every one of them was a volunteer favorite: sweet lab/bull dog Alana with the soft brown eyes and white stripe down her nose; the handsome, muscular black and white Mack; the playful brindle Brees with two white front socks and maybe the world’s longest tongue; beautiful, ice cream-loving Roberta; magnificent little Milo with the hopeful eyes; big ol’ beautiful Butch.

“The bully breeds are saddled with a bad reputation,” says Miller, “primarily because of disreputable owners. There is nothing inherently dangerous about these dogs; they are devoted people lovers. Cesar Millan says ‘A breed is like a suit of clothes, it doesn’t tell you anything about the dog inside.’”

And here’s the thing about the pibbles at the Aiken County Animal Shelter – by the time they make it to the adoption floor, they have been observed by shelter staff for up to 10 days (or longer when the adoption floor is full) and have passed a rigorous temperament test. Moreover, once they are on the adoption floor, the volunteers or trainers work with them every day. Since these breeds take longer to adopt than other breeds, staff and volunteers have had longer to work with them and assess their behavior. Point being, we know they are safe dogs.

The good news is that thanks to the Aiken Standard and the community, by the end of the week, Alana, Milo, Brees, Mack, Roberta, Zach and all of the other Code Red dogs had found forever homes.

The bad news is, our collective job is not done – there are so many more lovable, deserving pibbles on the adoption floor, like Destiny, Rhett, Bane, Gigi and Joshua, who need good homes, not to mention those animals in the Intake Wing just waiting for a chance to move to the adoption floor.

Please don’t wait. Come and adopt one today, before they become Code Red dogs. Plus, for every dog adopted, another dog from Intake gets a chance to move to the adoption floor and find its forever home. That’s two lives for one, folks. How great is that?

Their lives are in our hands.

By Joanna D. Samson, FOTAS Vice President

The Fourth of July holiday is a time to celebrate heroism – not only the monumental heroism of the colonial Americans who risked their lives and freedom to protect liberty and the pursuit of happiness for generations to come, but the day-to-day heroism of everyday citizens who make a difference in the lives of the people around them. People whose hearts radiate kindness and for whom compassion trumps self-interest. People whose natural instinct is to protect the weak and the vulnerable at any cost. People like Scott Tyler.

Scott lives with his wife Amanda, his three children and three dogs in Beech Island in southwest Aiken County. We first met Scott in the fall of 2014, when he set about to save a little bull terrier cross with a dark brindle coat and white chest named Harley, who had lived most of his short, unhappy life abused and neglected by drunks and crack addicts. Harley’s disposition was so sweet and his situation so desperate that Scott began feeding and providing shelter to Harley even though his resources were scant.

“It’s tough,” says Scott, who attributes his extraordinary tender-heartedness to a life-long love of animals and his 7 years of service as an army combat medic. “My wife Amanda and I work hard to take care of our three kids and there’s not a lot extra, but I say to my wife, ‘If we don’t do it, who will?’ The truth is, neither one of us can bear to see anything suffer, so we bite the bullet and do what we can.”

As a result of Scott’s care and concern, Harley was rescued by the Aiken County Animal Shelter and FOTAS and lives today with his forever family, cherished and loved.

Harley is just one of the many dogs that have come under Scott’s protection. Over the years, he has provided food, water and shelter to numerous strays, abandoned puppies, and neglected neighborhood dogs and networked to find them homes with responsible owners. Just last year, Scott was picking up supplies from the County Shelter at the same time a bereft woman was about to surrender a little 3-year-old maltese to Animal Control. Scott intervened, and now little Ma-Ma shares canine honors in the Tyler household with Cody and Polly. And so it goes.

Last Saturday, volunteers gathered at the Tyler’s home to fence-in a large play area for the dogs in the back yard as part the Fences for Fido program sponsored jointly by FOTAS and the SPCA-Albrecht Center, which will make it easier for the family to protect and contain their dogs and any other dogs lucky enough to encounter Scott in their time of need – a fitting tribute for a man who asks himself on a regular basis: “What kind of person would I be if I don’t help? What would that say about me?”

Now that’s a question only a hero would ask.

Be a hero yourself. Come to the Aiken Animal Shelter and adopt your next best friend, or volunteer, or be a foster family. We need you. They need you.

Their lives are in our hands.