Second Chance: Being in a New Year!

29 Dec Second Chance: Being in a New Year!

Second Chance Humane Society’s Animal Resource Center and Thrift Shops have been serving San Miguel, Ouray & Montrose Counties for 27 years. Call 626-2273 to report a lost pet, learn about adopting a homeless pet, or about our Emergency Response, Community Medical, Spay/Neuter, Volunteer, or other services. View shelter pets and services online: www.adoptmountainpets.org.

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Writing the last Pet Column of 2021 should be an honor, but quite frankly I am feeling rather anxious about it. What if it is not as inspiring and uplifting as I want it to be? How do you encapsulate a year like 2021 into 600 words? Why am I such a perfectionist? Why am I spinning out right now? Why am I homeless?

Ok, big breath… I saw this sticker once that said “Just Breathe.” At first, I was like, duh, if I don’t breathe, I die. But now I get it. For cats it is natural to use our breath to release stress and fear; people must be reminded.

Like all cats, I am very empathic, and we have been absorbing your various anxieties, fears, and divisive thoughts, words, and actions all year. Wow, it was a heavy load to carry. But I am letting it all go. I am not hauling that heavy bag of bleakness into 2022. And I invite you to join me in leaving all that behind you too.

That doesn’t mean that we are going to pretend the pandemic and all the fallout from it will disappear in 2022. It doesn’t mean you won’t feel anxious or fearful or super judge-y of others. But right now we are releasing it all in order to envision a world that is not dominated by anxieties, judgments and fears. That idea alone lets me take a huge cleansing breathe.

Skip the New Year resolutions you can’t hold to, the promises that get broken, and the expectations that just weigh you down. Instead, let’s just be who we are in this very moment. That is the best way to enter the new year (or a new day or a new moment). Cat-style. Just be. That is how to find your best self.

Let 2022 be the year we accept our flaws, we assume the best instead of the worst in other’s intentions and we see the beauty and the truth in the world. If that is not part of your current life story, then make it so. Begin re-writing your story in the truest and most beautiful way you can imagine. Despite the pandemic.

There still may be a pandemic in 2022 but, perhaps, how we respond to it can be different this time around. If we respond to it from a place where fear does not reside, will our response be different than it has been over the last two years? How would that feel not to be in fear? The fear-response has not been helpful as yet, but maybe this new way will be? Will it hurt to try? Breathe it out. Find you. Ask a cat for help.

My name is Sweetie. I was abandoned to the streets several months ago and have been here at Second Chance waiting for a new family. I am a 3-year-young female. My true and beautiful story for 2022 is that my new family adopts me the first week of the new year and I live my life’s purpose of companion, confidant, and co-conspirator in making the world a better place. One breath at a time.

AND… To continue the new Second Chance Highlights section we wanted to share the following holiday messages:

We Believe…

In this Season of Giving, we thank you for supporting our organization and mission. We believe pets and people live better together and are grateful that, through our work together, we get to improve the lives of both.

We deeply appreciate every dollar you invest in our work, every volunteer hour, every view of our social media outreach, every donation and purchase at our Thrift Shops, and most of all, every animal that you care for and let into your home and heart, where they belong.

Warm wishes for Happy & Healthy Holidays!

In Gratitude,

Kelly Goodin, Executive Director

Towaoc Puppy Kisses!

We’ve had so many inquiries on the 28 pets transferred from one of our hard-working partner rescues on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation in Towaoc, particularly on the pups that were so ill. Great news: the puppies have bounced back (literally at this point), been spayed, neutered, vaccinated, and given a bill of good health by our veterinarian. They will be available for adoption as soon as their quarantine period ends. The little guy in the video, Sequoia, sends kisses of gratitude to all (especially our incredible shelter and medical staff)!

Our three adolescent female cattle dogs, Jocelyn, Mimosa, and Nova, have all been adopted into loving forever homes! Kylo, our adult male cattle dog, is nearing the end of his treatment for two tick-borne illnesses and is so in love with his forever family. Our momma cattle dog, Nia, and her 7 nursing puppies are all thriving in foster care, while one of the 5 cats has been adopted; the others are nestled in our Cat Castle awaiting their forever families!

Thank you for your support of our mission. We couldn’t do it without you!