Tag Archives: social media

2020, animal abuse, ANIMAL CRUELTY, Chained dogs, Dogs, FOTAS, neglected pets, News, SOCIAL MEDIA

Frightened, Sad Shelter Dog Reminds Us We Can Still Make a Difference

Posted on by Bob Gordon
23
Jul

At a time when we might feel helpless in a world out of control, Kai’s story reminds us we can still make a difference.

His fear also hits home. There’s a lot of scary going on.

Maybe that’s why this traumatized dog with a broken heart became a social media celeb in just one day. More than 68,000 people around the globe shared his post. Another 25,000 offered tears, donations, and prayers.

KAI was saved by a rescue that specializes in helping dogs traumatized by abuse.

As one reader in Virginia put it: “The comments under Kai’s post restore my faith in humanity at a time when I need it most.”

At the time of our first post, Kai was a sad frightened dog in the corner of his kennel. Fear like we haven’t seen in a long time. When he heard a noise while eating, food fell from his mouth.

Now, through your sharing, Kai can rest peacefully in the lap of his foster hero Jessica, with Southern Tails for Precious Paws Rescue in Charleston, SC. She is an expert in healing dogs who’ve been beaten and abused.

When this photo of ACAS dog KAI was posted on Facebook along with his sad story, more than 68,000 people around the world shared it. Within hours of the post, KAI was rescued by an expert who specializes in healing dogs traumatized from abuse.

What’s more, three other struggling dogs got homes too, from the 500 plus emails the Aiken County Animal Shelter woke up to that morning, all asking to adopt Kai.

Please take a minute and take it in. You saved four dogs by sharing one post. That’s power. That’s goodness. That’s the love that changes everything.

Whatever you may think about social media, at the Aiken County Animal Shelter, where over 4,000 unwanted animals were received last year, this communication tool and the sharing of our Facebook posts (especially during this chaotic time) has been a blessing in helping us to continue to save so many lives. Your sharing of a FOTAS Facebook post could be the one that saves that shelter pet’s life.

Thank you. Their lives are in our hands.

— By Martha Anne Tudor, FOTAS Volunteer

2020, Adoption, coronavirus crisis, Dogs, FOTAS, News, SOCIAL MEDIA, Therapy Dogs

Maggie’s Wagging Tail and Furry Face Are a Balm for Difficult Times

Posted on by Bob Gordon
25
May

If it’s true miracles happen when they’re least expected, maybe it’s not so surprising what happened to a Pointer-mix named Maggie. How, with the whole world hijacked by the COVID crisis, she was rescued off the streets and brought into the Aiken County Animal Shelter. How she was then adopted by a 49-year-old fitness guru who’d never had a dog.

Shelter dog Sophia has a new home, a new name — Maggie, and a new job helping people.

The life Maggie has now, however, no one saw coming.

She’s got a hashtag #MascotMaggie. She’s got a weekend name, Mountain Maggie. She’s got a best friend, Tambra Wilkerson. What’s more, she’s got a mission.

“She has exceeded my expectations,” says Wilkerson, who walked away from her job at Savannah River Site in 2017 to follow what she says was a calling to work fulltime with patients of neurological issues such as Parkinson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, and stroke.

Along with her husband, Steve, she founded the non-profit Day One Fitness, providing therapeutic boxing classes out of a gym in Beech Island, SC. With certification as a personal trainer specializing in neurological conditions, Wilkerson continues to expand her programs, spending a lot of hours on the job. When the pandemic suspended in-person classes, she worked to keep clients connected and active, developing online exercise sessions and virtual social gatherings. Still, her schedule was much lighter than usual.

Sophia aka Maggie was a staff favorite at the shelter due to her sweet personality.

“The shelter’s Facebook posts capture my heart every time I see them.,” she said. “I love dogs, but I never felt I had the time a dog deserved. I thought maybe I’d get a dog in my retirement. But during COVID-19, I realized I did have time.”

Using the shelter’s appointment system for socially-distanced adoptions, Wilkerson emailed the staff and scheduled a visit. They brought out Maggie, a shy and skittish stray who wouldn’t look people in the eye. Until now. She seemed to know this was the family she’d waited for her whole life. Wilkerson describes their bond as exceptional.

“Second to my husband, Maggie is my best friend. She’s by my side all the time. Her loyalty draws my heart in even more.”

Maggie and Wilkerson are partners in work and play. When it’s time for a Zoom exercise class with Parkinson’s patients, Maggie joins in. When it’s time for Wine Down Wednesday with Day One clients, Maggie is there for a virtual game of Pictionary or a client’s Facetime tour of his chicken coop.

At a time of fear and uncertainty, Maggie’s wagging tail and furry face are a balm for difficult times. She brings laughter, and the reminder life is good.

Maggie “on the job” at Day One Fitness in Beech Island, SC

“She’s such an asset to my mission. She’s my faithful sidekick.”

Wilkerson takes Maggie on weekend excursions, too. Those usually include trips to north Georgia, where Wilkerson and her husband work on their mountain house while Maggie explores and plays.

“She’s just fantastic. Smart, well-behaved, sweet – she has it all,” Wilkerson said.

Their lives are in our hands.


— By Martha Anne Tudor

2020, Adoption, Dogs, FOTAS, News, senior pets, SOCIAL MEDIA, surrendered pets, Volunteers

Power of Social Media Saves Bonded Senior Shelter Dogs

Posted on by Bob Gordon
03
Mar

A woman from Ohio saw two bonded, senior Beagle mix siblings, Benson and Aggie, posted on Facebook and, with a little help from some FOTAS friends, adopted them and had them in her home in less than 24 hours.

That’s the power of social media and a great example of how it saves homeless pets’ lives every day. When you share a FOTAS Facebook post or create your own post about a dog or cat available at the Aiken County Animal Shelter (ACAS), that pet’s face and description reaches more people than any advertisement or print media – and often results in a successful adoption.

Benson and Aggie make themselves at home.

For Benson and Aggie, their journey to a new home began when Martinez, GA resident Steve Wall saw Martha Anne Tudor’s Facebook post about the two dogs in need and decided to share it on one of his favorite Facebook community pages, called “I love my Beagle.” Cindy Lejeune of Cleveland, Ohio saw Steve’s post and commented that she missed her two late Beagles who had recently died from cancer less than two months apart. From there, Cindy contacted Steve on Facebook messenger and a dialogue began.

After communicating with Steve, Cindy wanted to learn more about the dogs, so she called the ACAS and talked to FOTAS volunteer Joanne Goble. Joanne answered all of Cindy’s questions and told her that the Benson and Aggie had been on the adoption floor for a long time. Joanne also explained that their previous owner had passed away and that’s how the poor senior dogs had ended up in the shelter.

Aggie & Benson were staff and volunteer favorites but they kept being overlooked by potential adopters until a woman in Ohio saw their picture and story on Facebook.

“Everyone was so helpful and friendly,” Cindy said. “But I wasn’t sure how I was going to get them here. To be honest, I was a little afraid of driving all the way to Aiken and back by myself.”

Then Steve Wall made a very generous offer. He said he could transport Benson and Aggie part of the way. If they met at Beckley, WV – the halfway point between Aiken and Cleveland – it would cut her trip in half.

Steve Wall and ACAS shelter dogs Benson & Aggie meet Cindy Lejeune in West Virginia.

“I told her we shouldn’t let 675 miles stop these dogs from finding a good home,” he said.

Cindy agreed and on Saturday, Feb. 22, Steve picked up Benson and Aggie for their ride to a forever home. Shelter staff members and FOTAS Program Coordinator Kathy Jacobs processed the dogs and got them ready, so Steve could pick them up first thing in the morning.

At 3:30 in the afternoon, Steve and the dogs met Cindy at a BP gas station in Beckley. Steve also passed along their paperwork, medical records and toys. By 8:30 p.m., Benson and Aggie were safe and sound in their new home.

“They’re such sweet dogs,” Cindy said. “Benson jumped up on the bed right away and made it clear he was sleeping there and Aggie, who’s a real sweetheart, slept with her head on my shoulder.”

–By Bob Gordon, FOTAS Communications Director

2019, Adoption, Bully Dogs, Dogs, FOTAS, kennel stress, News, Pibbles

The Power of Social Media Saves Sweet Tiffany

Posted on by Bob Gordon
18
Oct

Adoptions have been slow. Kids are back in school, families are busy with activities and people just aren’t coming out to adopt. This is disheartening for the many adoptable dogs and cats at the Aiken County Animal Shelter.

Tiffany in the County Shelter play yard.

Recently, our sweet Tiffany was shutting down and losing hope. When people look to adopt, they want the pet to look at them and get excited. They want to feel an instant connection. But when we showed Tiffany to potential adopters, she no longer wagged her tail or carried one of her toys to show off. Instead, this brindle and white mixed breed now ignored people or ran to the corner of the play yard to hide. After waiting more than two months on the adoption floor, she no longer believed anyone would actually take her home.

Desperate to help Tiffany, we posted a video on our FOTAS Facebook page of her sitting in her kennel. It captured her depression, showing how she sulked and avoided eye contact.

Within hours of posting it on Facebook, people responded – more than 900 shares of her video! People were calling from Wisconsin wanting us to send her to them. Our amazing social media community started calling and coming to visit her! We showed her to multiple people, and then she found her match: a fabulous Aiken resident, Tina Watson, who fell in love with Tiffany and gave her a forever home.

Tiffany goes home with her adopter, Tina Watson. She saw a video of the depressed dog on Facebook and fell in love.

What still gives me goosebumps as I write this, is the number of people that cared about this dog from just seeing 20 seconds of video. In that brief clip, they could see and feel her loneliness.

What I hope people remember is that Tiffany is not alone. While we do everything to make their time at the shelter a happy and loving experience, at the end of the day these homeless pets are in a kennel. They are not at home.

Tiffany was lucky because people online responded to her sadness. But there will always be others having difficulty living in a shelter environment. There’s Chloe, a 6-year-old sweetheart who pines in her kennel. There’s Porter, a young mixed breed, who jumps in his kennel because he is stressed. And then there’s Sydni, a beautiful female Lab mix who is getting depressed from waiting so long for someone to adopt her.

Poor Chloe has been at the shelter for too long!

We will continue to reach out to our Facebook friends – they always seem to come through. But if you have room in your heart and in your home, please come to the County shelter, located at 333 Wire Road in Aiken, and ask the staff who really needs saving, is shut down and feeling hopeless. That dog or cat will fill your heart in a way that is indescribable.

Their lives are in our hands.

— By Kathy Jacobs, FOTAS Program Director

BY THE NUMBERS

In the first 10 days of October, The Aiken County Animal Shelter took in 172 strays and surrendered pets – an average of 17 animals per day. Please spay/neuter your pets!