Exciting things are happening at the TLC Canine Center… no, the Center is not closing, and no, it is not expanding… It is enlarging the vision to help more needy dogs not just in our local area, but throughout the state!
Locally we are in the midst of our spay and neuter campaign to help families afford to get their dogs altered, so that there won’t be an “oops, we have a litter of puppies… can you help us?” Iowa already has a definite overpopulation of dogs… there are simply not enough forever homes for all the dogs that need care, and this is your opportunity to be part of the solution to the problem. Vouchers are available to help with the cost of having this procedure done. Please contact your veterinarian or the TLC Canine Center for details.
Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 27 and join us for our annual Woofs and Wags” event in Storm Lake. The Walmart crew, under the direction of Lisa Billings, has a day planned for both four-legs and two-legs. There will be a bake sale and rummage sale with all proceeds going to the local TLC, and there will be TLC dogs there to meet and greet you. Details will be published next week, but be sure to reserve the day for the dogs!
Iowa needs a village of animal lovers… actually more than one village… to advance the humane and responsible treatment of companion animals, which will be accomplished through education and grassroots advocacy. The TLC is excited to have an associate who is committed to opening a TLC facility in another area of the state that recently received national attention because of a puppy mill facility that was ranked as 2nd worst in the entire country…. Because of the efforts of Iowa Voters for Companion Animals, with the support of various animal welfare groups throughout the state, this mill has been forced to close. We now have the opportunity (and responsibility) to restore the image of how companion animals are treated in our state. We are excited and hope you are too.
It takes a Village by Ellen Hartstack
What craziness is this? Something pretty exciting must be happening?!?! You’re right: it is! I am so excited to come back to my beloved Iowa.
We dream big! And to allow you to dream with us, we have opened an online fundraising campaign to help us establish a TLC facility in central Iowa which will include a no-kill canine shelter, and also a training facility where needy, abandoned dogs of the Midwest can be rehabilitated and live until they find their forever homes. With two TLC shelters serving northwest and central Iowa, we will be able to save even more of these wonderful dogs.
“Saving one dog will not change the world,
but surely, for that one dog,
the world will change. Forever.
-Karen Davison
You know the phrase, “It takes a village”. It was originally a part of an old African proverb which I think perfectly captures the day to day efforts of running the TLC. No single person can do everything the TLC needs to in order to function. It has taken hundreds of individuals to turn the TLC into the canine sanctuary that it has become. With diverse talents, abilities, and resources, working together, the NW Iowa TLC Canine Center has operated for 15 years. It has not always been easy; we have faced many challenges, but together we have seen hundreds of dogs have better lives. I have no doubt, that together we will do it again. Our dream will become reality!
I can do things you cannot.
You can do things I cannot.
Together. We can do great things.
– Mother Teresa
We need $25,000 by October 17 to help fund this new venture. Impossible? As Shel Siverstein asserts, “Nothing is impossible. Anything can be!!!” One of Silverstein’s poems refers to “all the Woulda-Coulda-Shoulda’s talkin’ about the things they woulda-coulda-shoulda done.” Would you join us in our journey as we become doers, not woulda-coulda-shouda’s. It is going to be a scary, exciting trip as we raise funding for the down payment on an acreage in Story county, near Ames, Iowa and the Iowa State University, to provide a sanctuary in that area to rehabilitate more dogs, and keep them safe until they find their forever home, and if there is no suitable home, there will be no time limit for a dog’s stay at the center. Healing often takes time, and whether for a few weeks or a few months, or years, we will provide them with TLC! (The NW Iowa TLC Center has had dogs as permanent residents for as long as 8 years. They chose the TLC for their forever home.)
Some believe it is only GREAT POWER that can hold evil in check.
But that is not what I have found.
I have found that it is the small, everyday deeds of ordinary folks
that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love.
– Gandalf, Lord of the Rings
Visit our brand new online campaign at igg.me/at/tlccaninecenter to learn all about this new facility fundraising effort. We have numerous great prizes for those who are able to donate and we appreciate everyone who is able to chip in. If you can’t donate at this time, you can still help the TLC out! “Like” us on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/TlcCanineCenter and share our campaign post with your family and friends using the buttons below.
Remember, it takes a village… or two… or four… or maybe more… but NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!
No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. – Aesop
