Yogie and FriendsFIV+ Cats

Mar 2nd March 2008 Sanctuary News

Greetings All!

Well it is March already and we will be opening for the season on April 5th if the weather permits. This is the time we prepare for that opening and hopefully a banner year of support for these magnificent animals.

As many of you may have seen on KTBS, Chris Redford did a story about one of our Siberian tigers, Pooh Bear. Pooh is over 16 years old and showing signs of old age. As is common with animals in the wild they begin to show a “wasting” of body mass. Typically in the wild these animals will go off to die alone. In captivity there is so much advance in medical technology, no common predators (other than humans), and better nutrition that these animals can live longer. Pooh Bear had a rough start, but the past several years he has enjoyed the best comforts we could provide him. Nothing compares to a natural living outside of captivity, but he has a good life with us. Blood tests don’t always show things that could cause an animal distress. So, one of our vets has placed him on an antibiotic regimen to rule out anything that could be causing his weight loss. He does have some arthritis in his back legs and he is on anti-inflammatory medicine to ease that. If Pooh Bear stops eating and drinking water, which he has not done, then we will look at the most humane thing for him. Until then, we continue to do the best for Pooh Bear and appreciate everyone’s prayers and support. We’ll continue to post updates on his progress.

We have several upcoming events scheduled:

Our semi-annual bake sale is scheduled at Courtyard Coffee on Youree Drive (next to Michael’s and Sam’s Club) on Saturday, March 15th from 11 A.M. – 4 P.M. Stop by, have a cup of coffee, and buy some really amazing baked good to support the cats. These keep getting better and better. We hope to see you there.

Wild Wing for the Wild Ones at Buffalo Wild Wings on Youree Drive in Shreveport on Wednesday, April 2nd from 11 A.M. – 1 A.M. Just take this coupon into Buffalo Wild Wings and they will donate 20% of the cost of the meal you purchased to Yogie and Friends. This applies to take out orders as well.

Belk’s Department Stores are holding another charity day on Saturday, May 3rd at all the Belk’s Department Stores. You can purchase a $5 raffle for a chance at winning a $1000 gift card.

The biggest need for any sanctuary, of course, is money. Since we are a 100% volunteer driven organization nobody here receives any compensation. All money donated goes to the care of the animals. You donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. There are several ways you can donate to Yogie and Friends and please feel confident that your donations are properly handled. We appreciate all your donations for these wonderful animals.

Volunteers of the Month: Our volunteers of the month are Jarret Snow, Glenn Hannis and Jeremy Louk. They have been working hard to get our education building up and running.

Yogie’s three cubs (BC, NC, and RC) will be celebrating their first birthday on 16 March 2008. Happy Birthday little ones!

If you are interested and able we could use your help with lawn care and other cleanup and prep work for our opening season and throughout the year. Just let us know. We can sure use volunteer help as well. Also things like fundraisers, car washes, you name it. If you have the skills we can use them. Please come and help us out.

Check out the programs being offered at Yogie and Friends. There is the Yogie and Friends Membership Program , Sponsorship Program, and Corporate Sponsorship Program . These are programs that help us support the animals and another way that you can get involved. Program packages are available here on our website.

Don’t forget the different ways you can help us help the animals. If you are a big magazine subscriber, then your subscriptions or renewals can help us when you do so at www.magfundraising.com and purchase or renew your magazines at there. You will receive a big discount while helping Yogie and Friends. They give us a large percentage.

Also, when you shop online you can go to www.igive.org and sign up for Yogie to be your charity of choice and every time you visit one of the igive affiliates they will donate a percentage to Yogie and Friends.

You can also donate at www.networkforgood.org to help the cats.

Also, if you use www.goodsearch.com as another type of search engine and designate Yogie and Friends as your charity. We receive money for each legitimate search you make on this search engine. How easy is that?

Sad news here for us. The Kroger share card program will be coming to an end this month. Kroger said they will no longer be doing the share card, but they will have a continuation of this type program in conjunction with the Kroger Plus Card. All you have to do is add Yogie and Friends as your charity of choice and they will donate 1% of what your grocery bill is to Yogie and Friends. This will save you a step and you won’t have to worry if you have the share card in your wallet. It will be one easy step now. We are still learning about this new method and will have information available to help you designate Yogie and Friends as your charity of choice. As soon as we get this info we will let you know. This is good in Louisiana and Texas.

Please remember to spay and neuter your pets. Also, do what you can to prevent flea and ticks causing serious illnesses to your animals. They deserve your care and kindness. Remember too that it is extremely hot out again. Please make sure you provide all your animals, inside and outside, fresh, clean, and cool water. Provide good shade shelter for those animals outside. NEVER leave your animals outside in the hot car. I don’t care how cool you may think it is the temperatures get dangerously high and they will die in a closed vehicle. Even when it is parked in the shade. Love your animals with your caring kindness.

Be good to your animals. Be good to people! Be a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves.

Jenny and the Yogie Cats!