The Mid Shore’s original pet photo contest is back! Talbot Humane’s 3rd annual photo calendar contest, Petparazzi, offers pet lovers the opportunity to enter their dogs, cats, or other small companion animals in a photo competition while raising funds for the shelter’s animal care and community outreach services.
Participants may enter their pets online beginning June 1 until the contest ends on July 31. Using email and social media, entrants urge their family, friends, and co-workers to “vote” with their dollars for their pet on the contest website. The top dogs, cats, and other companion animals who receive the most votes in their respective categories at the end of the contest will be featured as a Pet of the Month in the 2022 Talbot Humane Petparazzi Calendar. The pet who raises the most funds overall in the voting will also appear on the cover of the calendar. The entry fee of $30 is considered a tax-deductible donation to Talbot Humane and includes a copy of the 2022 calendar with each entry. Pets entered in the contest are not limited to Talbot Humane alumni, or even to Talbot County; all pets are welcome!
Through the generous support of our community, in its first two years, the Petparrazzi calendar contest raised over $35,000 for the animals of Talbot Humane.
Those crazy cats at Yo Java Bowl are stepping up for the animals for the month of April! For every Acai Bowl sold at the Easton Farmer’s Market they will fund 1 meal for a pet. The Easton Farmer’s Market opens Saturday April 10th, and Yo Java Bowl will be there all month long, supporting your need for delish food and feeding the animals in need!
Keeping Your Pets Safe from Common Household Items
According to the National Safety Council, thousands of lives have been saved due to physical barriers like child resistant packaging and awareness campaigns. Likewise, in recent years, the veterinarians at Pet Poison Helpline have worked tirelessly to raise awareness about protecting our vulnerable and unknowing pets from common household items that are highly poisonous to them. “Every year, we receive thousands of phone calls from pet owners, veterinarians and veterinary technicians about potentially poisoned pets,” said Justine Lee, DVM, DACVECC and associate director of Veterinary Services for Pet Poison Helpline. “Fifty percent of the calls are for pets that have been accidentally poisoned by something that is safe for humans, but toxic to pets. It only takes a few minutes to educate yourself on how to avoid these situations. Appropriate petproofing and awareness of what to do in the event of a pet poisoning situation could spare you and your pet trips to the veterinarian for expensive, but life-saving treatments.”
Below are the most common household items that are toxic to pets. Ensuring that your pet doesn’t ingest them will be well worth the time and effort needed to keep them a safe distance away.
Xylitol: Many sugarless gums, including some Trident™, Orbit™, and Ice Breaker™ brands, contain xylitol, a sweetener that is toxic to dogs. Candies, mints, flavored multi-vitamins, desserts and baked goods may also be made with xylitol. Even small amounts when ingested can result in a life-threatening drop in blood sugar, or with large amounts of ingestion, liver failure. Signs of xylitol poisoning include vomiting, weakness, difficulty walking, tremors and
seizures.
Human medications: Common human drugs including NSAIDs (e.g. Advil®, Aleve® and Motrin®), acetaminophen (e.g. Tylenol®) and antidepressants (e.g. Effexor®, Cymbalta®,Prozac®) can cause serious harm to your pets when ingested. NSAIDs can cause serious stomach and intestinal ulcers as well as kidney failure. Acetaminophen can damage red blood
cells in cats, limiting their ability to carry oxygen, and in dogs, it can lead to severe liver failure. Ingestion of antidepressants, which, of all human medications account for the highest number of calls to Pet Poison Helpline, can lead to neurological problems like sedation, incoordination, agitation, tremors and seizures.
Flowers: With Easter and spring right around the corner, flowers will begin to bloom. As beautiful as they are, some flowers can cause severe toxicity, or even fatalities, in animals. Certain types of lilies including tiger, day, Asiatic, Easter and Japanese lilies, are highly toxic to cats. Severe kidney failure can result from ingestion of even a few petals, leaves, or even the pollen. In addition, ingestion of certain spring bulbs (e.g. daffodils, tulips) can cause severe vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. More serious reactions include abnormal heart rate or
changes in breathing.
Chocolate: With the Easter bunny on his way, make sure your kids hide their candy from your dog. While the occasional chocolate chip in one cookie may not be an issue, certain types of chocolate can be very toxic. Baker’s chocolate and dark chocolate pose the biggest problem. The darker and more bitter the chocolate, the more dangerous it is to our pets. The chemical toxicity in chocolate is due to methylxanthines (a relative of caffeine) and results in vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, abnormal heart rhythm, seizures, and possibly death.
Fertilizers: Many fertilizers are basic gastrointestinal irritants. However, some are often combined with dangerous chemicals and compounds called organophosphates or carbamates, which can be harmful or deadly to pets. Ingestion can result in drooling, watery eyes, urination, defecation, seizures, difficulty breathing, fever and even death.
Pest Control Products: Rodent, snail and slug baits are often used to keep pests at bay. However, if ingested, these poisons are extremely harmful to pets. They are highly toxic and without immediate veterinary attention can be fatal. Rodent baits typically can result in blood clotting disorders, brain swelling or kidney failure, while snail and slug baits can result in severe tremors or seizures.
Pet Poison Helpline recently worked with VPI pet insurance to produce several videos with helpful and interesting information about keeping your pets safe from toxins inside and outside the home. They are available here: http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/Ask-the-Vet-Videos
Remember that what is safe for humans isn’t always safe for pets. If you think your pet has ingested something poisonous, it is always better (and less expensive) to get help immediately, rather than waiting until your pet is showing severe symptoms. Contact your veterinarian or Pet Poison Helpline immediately at 800-213-6680 for life-saving help. Pet Poison Helpline is the most cost-effective animal poison control center in North America charging only $35 per call, including unlimited follow-up consultations.
Our friends at Legal Assets are supporting the animals of Talbot Humane! We are so thankful for our community partners and this new addition to Easton from our dear friends the Oristian family who have supported us for years is exciting.
Sunday March 14th they are having their first Bark and Brunch. Legal Assets is teaming up with Tito’s Handmade Vodka for a fundraiser for Talbot Humane. HOLD THIS DATE! Then join us in the Legal Assets Backyard Patio for a Dog-Friendly afternoon. They plan to have giveaways, special treats, raffles, and more.
January 2021 in a unanimous vote Bridget Horner was named new President of the Board of Directors of Talbot Humane after Joe Petro stepped down from his 5 years of incredible leadership. Bridget hails originally from the Baltimore area where she worked for Baltimore Gas & Electric/Exelon for 31.5 years until retiring in 2018, moving to Easton with her husband John in 2016. Serving and supporting Talbot Humane as a member since December 2019, and previously on boards for the Everyman Theatre, and the former Institute of Notre Dame, both in Baltimore, MD Bridget brings a passion for animals and a commitment to the community. “We are excited to have Bridget take the helm as we continue our growth to serve the animals and their humans” shares Patty Quimby, Executive Director.
The Talbot Humane Board of Directors also voted 2 new community members to serve the animals of the Midshore, welcoming Dr. Jan Tesi and Vicki Petro to the Board of Directors. Dr. Tesi a private practice veterinarian who has volunteered her services and as a foster parent for the last several years. Vicki is employed with Easton Utilities as their Director of Human Resources and has been a volunteer and supporter of Talbot Humane with her husband Joe for over a decade.
Looking forward, we are excited to see what our team of seasoned members and new friends will bring to the animals and citizens of our community.
Saints Peter and Paul school has been a long-time supporter of the shelter. Several times a year, the students raise funds and do food, toy, and supply drives for the animals who reside adjacent to their playing fields. The latest gifts came from the members of the SSPP Art Club, who combine beautiful artwork with service to the community. The high school-age youth painted ceramic dog and cat food bowls, made feather wand toys for the cats, and baked peanut butter dog treats for the pups. Just before Christmas, the club officers and adviser dropped off their donations and got to test the wands and treats with some of our charges. As always, we are grateful to the youth of our community for their love and concern for the shelter animals!
What a year of unprecedented changes and challenges! We are thankful to have been able to continue our services to the community through it all. In order to keep our team of staff and volunteers safe and keep you safe we will be continuing the following policies until further notice into the new year.
Lobby Policies
ALL guests must properly wear a mask or face covering the entire time while visiting the building
Limit of 5 guests in the building at any given time
If the limit has been met in the building we will kindly ask you to wait in your vehicle until we have completed assisting other guests
Anyone who has experienced symptoms in the days prior to visiting are asked to refrain from entering the building
We are happy to serve you from the parking lot for any needs possible
Donations of goods and supplies are welcome to be dropped off at our front door bin or bring inside during office hours. We will happily provide receipts as requested.
Adoptions:
All visitation of animals will be done by appointment following an adoption application being submitted and approved. We have found this has allowed adopters a more one-on-one experience while allowing our team to limit the number of people in our small workspace.
Talbot Humane commits to keeping our pets for adoption listings up to date so potential adopters can see who is ready for a new home!
Hours
Our hours will remain the standard hours at this time.
M,T,W,F: 9:30A-5:30P
TH: 11A-7P
Sat: 11A-4P
Sun: Closed to the public
We thank you for your support and cooperation during these times. May we all get to the other side of this healthy and stronger than before!
Talbot Humane is once again participating in Giving Tuesday! We are setting a $10 challenge to our supporters for December 1, 2020! We hope you choose to join us and help reach our goal of 1,000 friends donating $10 each to raise $10,000!
