Kane's Krusade

Celebrating Whisper

Everything Kane's does focuses on helping people keep their dogs. The exception is helping pet families provide a peaceful, comfortable transition for their dog to the Rainbow Bridge.

At 10 years old, Whisper was having a lot of difficulty with arthritis, to the point where it was getting harder and harder for him to get up and go outside, despite medication. We first heard about Whisper when one of our board members saw a post in a Facebook forum. Jill connected us to the family and things moved quickly.

Whisper deteriorated overnight to the point he was in pain and could no longer get up. The family made the difficult decision to end his suffering. That's when we reached out to our dear furrends at Paws Finding Peace. Dr. Atkins got back to us after hours. Not only did she provide in home euthanasia this afternoon, she also offered assistance through their Angel Fund, which helps pet families in need. Whisper's family contributed $350 and the remaining balance was covered by the Angel Fund.

Here's what one of the family members said, "I just wanted to reach out to give my sincerest thanks. As you can imagine, it wasn't easy, but Dr. Atkins was wonderful. I don't think there could have been a better person to guide us through this difficult process. She was incredibly compassionate and we're so grateful for the kindness and care she showed our family and Whisper.

Thank you again for everything you've done, for your guidance as well and to all of you at Kane's Krusade who made Whisper's peaceful passing possible. Many blessings."

We are so grateful to Dr. Atkins and the team at Paws Finding Peace!

We're giving BIG PAWS UP to the great hoomans at Salmon Brook Veterinary Hospital in Granby CT!

Every year, Salmon Brook hosts a community pet food drive and Kane's is one of the recipients. Salmon Brook then matches what the community donates, providing additional donations they order specifically for our pet families needs. This includes sensitive skin/stomach dry food which we feed many of our allergy dogs. They also purchase canned dog food and small breed dry food for us.

Let's be clear: we are only able to assist as many pet families with special diets because of Salmon Brook. We simply could not afford to buy this dog food retail. Yet again, they have come through for Kane's and our pet families.

Thank you to Board members Jill and Sherry for unloading!

Feel Good Fri-YAY!

Thanks to your support and a generous grant from the Hampden County District Attorney's office, our Pet Family Housing Initiative helped another family. Maz is the sweetest, most chill pittie girl. She and her hoomans are unhoused. They were living in their car when they could not afford a motel room. Unfortunately, their car is no longer drivable. One of her hoomans works, and the other is disabled.

Maz has a heart condition and chronic allergies requiring medication. Kane's sponsored a month's worth of meds. We also sponsored a week in a motel to provide some comfort and safety. This pet family is so grateful - lots of hugs and tears of thanks. Please know what a difference your support makes in the lives of those who have so little!

Why are we feeling judged? BOL

Disen's hooman says he definitely has a judgmental look at times. Perhaps his cookie allowance is too low? We'll have to speak with his hooman about this!

Disen lives with a serious chronic skin condition requiring daily medication. Although Disen's hooman is disabled, she arranges a ride every month to pick up his medication from our furrends at Tufts at Tech Community Veterinary Clinic because they offer subsidized pricing.

Thanks to you, Kane's sponsored $159.38 for a month and a half of meds. Without our support, Disen would suffer horribly. Thank you for helping us keep pet families together in the 413 and beyond!

Celebrating 15 Years!

From June 21, 2014

Hideeho, Krusaders! I'm a 1 year old chi and this week I had my very own spaw day! I got neutered, vaccinated and microchipped. I got a nail trim too!

Yippeeee!
Cubby

~

Cubby is the 4th dog in an apartment building of 12 dogs that we have s/n. Our goal is to get all 12 dogs altered. All of this began with Lion's family introducing us to Pupe's family and so on. Word spreads when you do good things to help people and their dogs. People LINE UP to do the right thing for their pets. We'll do our best to keep up with the demand. Thanks to a generous grant from the DJ & T Foundation, we were able to help Cubby and Juan today.

Feel Good Fri-YAY!

Meet Journee. She and her hooman are unhoused. Through our Pet Family Housing Initiative and a generous Community Support grant from the Hampden County District Attorney's office, Kane's sponsored a week and a half at a dog friendly motel. This short-term motel stay is intended to be a bridge. It gives the pet family additional time to look for housing options in a comforting and safe environment.

Journee's hooman shared, "I'm finally in a place where I can just be grateful for the present moment. Thank you for giving us a chance to just relax and not worry for a bit. This really means more than words can describe."

It's always about more than a bag of food or a motel stay. Thank you for supporting our mission, because when we assist pet families it sends a powerful message - You matter. Your dog matters. Being together matters. And while we can't wave a magic wand, we can provide some nights of comfort and care. We can help pet families be safe. Together.

We're giving BIG PAWS UP to our furrends at Smithland Pet & Garden Center in Westfield! Today we received a donation of more than a pallet of dry dog food, treats and canned food. We just completed C.A.R.E. Kit deliveries last weekend and this generous donation will help us replenish our inventory for the next round of deliveries. We are so grateful to Miranda and all the great people at Smithland who consistently come through for Kane's Krusade. Please stop by and thank them for helping us keep dogs with their furever families!

We're also giving BIG PAWS UP to Jill L. and The Brown's for picking up and unloading this large donation!

Hey Krusaders!

The Krew made a pit stop this weekend (see what I did there!) and boy was I excited! I love sticking my big blockhead in the bag to check out my goodies! Sometimes there's a bone!

Ruv,
Rambo

~

Rambo and his hooman live in Springfield. Isn't he a handsome boy? Rambo was one of over 100 dogs that received a C.A.R.E. Kit of dog food, treats and other essentials. Kane's delivers right to the homes of pet families whose hoomans are homebound, disabled, veterans and elderly. We supply C.A.R.E. Kits to unhoused pet families as well.

We're giving a BIG PAWS UP to our Krew members that went out this weekend and to the local businesses and organizations providing donations to this program. Thank you Smithland Pet & Garden/Westfield, Salmon Brook Vet Hospital and Westfield Animal Shelter!

Feel Good Fri - YAY!

The Red Cross referred King and his hooman Jonathan to Kane's after they lost their apartment in a fire. Finding affordable housing is a daunting task. Having a dog makes it even more challenging. Our Pet Family Housing Initiative advocates for and provides resources to unhoused pet families. To set King up for success, we sponsored an exam, vaccinations, flea/tick treatment and heartworm preventative. We've provided information on Emotional Support Animal documentation.

This picture taken during their motel stay really struck us. Does anything stand out to you in the picture?

Of course it features King, an adorabull pocket pittie. Jonathan lost nearly everything in the fire. And yet, what does King have in the motel? A basket full of toys. Even in desperate times, or maybe especially in desperate times, people do what they can for their dogs. This pet family may not have much, but they have each other. And a few toys certainly helps!

Your donations make this support possible. Knowing that King is healthy and has what he needs eases Jonathan's mind. It's one less struggle in a sea of uncertainty. This is why we Krusade!

Celebrating 15 Years

One of our favorite events through out the years was the Dog House Build Off. In the early days, there was a great need for insulated dog houses for dogs in the Western MA area who had to spend some time outdoors. We worked closely with area Animal Control Officers who gave us referrals of pet families needing some assistance.

Once a year, we recruited teams of Krusaders from the community. They raised the funds to sponsor the building materials and we all got together in one day to build Kane's Kondos. With support from area businesses and contractors, Kane's created and evolved our very own Kondo design - fully insulated, shingled roof and a wind wall to create a "bedroom" that we stuffed with straw.

This was an amazing experience - so much fun, so uplifting. Krusaders even signed the inside of the Kondos they built with messages of hope. Various community groups participated over the years, including Springfield YouthBuild. The Beaver Club in Chicopee built many Kondos for us, as well as some Eagle Scouts. Even Berkshire Bank had a Build Day with some branch employees. Kane's Family Krew volunteered as well to build, paint and help deliver Kondos. And let's not forget our dear furrends at Juno's Place for their amazing support!

Thankfully, the needs and laws have changed over the years and we no longer need to build Kondos. We still work closely with ACO's to meet needs in our community.