Introducing - the Littles

Two new cats are in the care of Joa's Arc - Tiny & Minnie. As you can see in this photo, they are little cats with little names.

How little? Both of these girls are just about 4 lbs ... full grown, adult cats and they are only 4 lbs! No adult cat should be so little - however, these aren't just any adult cats. They are two of the first cats removed from a local South Philly hoarder whose home was filled with trash, filth, fleas and cats.

When Joa's Arc's founder, Joyce, saw reports of this home and the cats, she was reaching out to PSPCA contacts as quickly as possible to see how she could help. She wrote "Just saw the story of the hoarding situation in South Philly. Don't know what your process is with this but I am willing to take two from you. I felt so terrible, their poor faces were covered with fleas. Sick situation.". Obviously, these cats absolutely need some TLC and special care. That's how she found out and got these two kitties. Meet Tiny & Minnie...


Tiny

Minnie

Here are some news articles on the house and cats:
- Dozens of cats found in South Phila. home

- PSPCA Rescues Dozens of Cats From a S. Philly Home

Thank you to Joyce for openning your home to these cats. Thank you, Jim and Karen Diamore of Lipkins Pharmacy, for once again helping out and donating some much needed vitamins & dietary supplements to help the Littles recover! Thank you to the PSPCA staff for going into those awful conditions to save these cats and clearing them so quickly for rescues to help.

Although medically cleared, Minnie & Tiny still have a long road to recovery. They need some weight put on, some trust restored and some love to remind them that not all people are like that. We're just glad they got out and survived!

Donations to continue our work and help animals like, Minnie & Tiny can be sent to:
Joa’s Arc
PO Box 243
Audubon, NJ 08106

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Gabe's Been Cleared For Adoption!!

How about some good news?!

Gabe has been cleared for adoption! Yes, after months of surgery, funny colored casts, rest and recovery, Gabe is finally all ready for a home of his own!

A great big thank you to Winslow Animal Hospital's staff, including the very awesome, very skilled Dr. Coudrai who did Gabe's surgery and monitored his recovery. The people at this vet office are just exceptionally sweet, caring and kind. This is the same office that has done two Spring/Easter fund raisers for us and helped Cup of Joe too!

Thank you to Jen S and Hailey for their awesome love, energy and time fostering Gabe. Thank you to Joyce for kindly offering to transport Gabe occasionally to the vet's for his check ups too! Last, but not least, let's thank Gabe for being such a good patient. :)

Now, we anxiously wait for that special family to complete Gabe's long journey and wants to call this hound boy their very own... Will it be you? Tweet This

Sadness over Scooter

This took me some time to write...

Scooter is across The Rainbow Bridge now and at peace. On May 11, 2011, we lost our boy.

So, S is for Sadness once again. S is for I'm Sorry and S is for we will sincerely and severely miss the presence of Scooter's little life.

I'm sad for Jen S and her daughter Hailey for these losses ... but I cannot imagine these animals with anyone else. Through tears and heart ache, Jen S has continued to love animals like Scooter, not caring where they've come from, what baggage they might bring or how much time she'll have with them...

Scooter had a short life, but because of Jen S he experienced love, kindness and caring. Thank you, Jen S, for all you did for him.

Thank you, Scooter, for teaching us that special needs animals deserve our love even if it is for a short time. Your big spirit will remain with us, reminding us of what we do and why.

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Blessings for Sick or Injured Pets

Joyce is out at Best Friends Animal Society right now for her annual vacation.

Last year, while attempting to stay in Dogtown, Joyce was suckered into visiting the clinic where she met and fell in love with Rory, a blind, bob-tailed kitty who had neurological issues. Joyce was so in love with Rory, she brought him home to Jersey with her. However, it wasn't too long after stealing Joyce's heart and arriving in Jersey that Rory's neurological issues became much worse. He was hospitalized and after extensive testing and brainstorming, Rory passed into peace.

In memory of Rory, I wanted to post the below here which I received in an email recently. Blessings, prayers, good luck, positive vibes, etc - we'll take it all for the animals!

"Blessings for Sick or Injured Pets"

Heavenly Father,
We ask for your mercy that
this beloved small creature,
which is your own, be not in pain.
We ask that health be
restored and sustain
if it is your will
so that they be allowed to stay with us
a little longer here in this world,
where they are needed.
We ask that if there is medical care needed,
that the way be provided.
We ask that this one does not suffer needlessly.
We ask for your compassion
and grace that this one be healed
through your love,
through your mercy
and through the help
of those here on earth,
through whom your love comes forth.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, we ask
these things not for ourselves, but for this small life that is so
precious and carries the light of your love.

Amen."

Thank you Joyce, the endlessly helpful medical staff that was there for Rory and all those that loved him while he was with us.

Rory is a symbol for so many animals... may they be healed and healthy in this life, or the next. Tweet This

Fundraising & News

Were you out at Winslow Animal Hospital getting your photo taken with the Easter Bunny? Joa's Arc was! Nennee and Gabe were out socializing and thanking the wonderful animal hospital (and pet photographer) for doing a fundraiser for our rescue ... and it was a success! Winslow Animal Hospital raised $600 for us!

Just in time too because Joa's Arc has been a bit tight on money recently with all of Gabe's doctor visits (note the hot pink cast in the photo, which wasn't extra thank goodness, just ridiculously cute). We've had some unexpected medical costs from sick kittens (yes, we've got kittens!) too and we've suffered the loss of losing a few pets too, like our loveable Minnen :( However, Phil was also adopted and we've gotten some great updates from his new family who looks like they love him terribly.

Come out this weekend for the wonderful Washington Township Earth Day at Washington Lake Park. We'll be there with some information, a few items for sale, a donation jar and treats for any animal friends that pass us by.

Have a wonderful week, friends!

PS- Lots of belated posts coming soon. We've been busy spending time with our special little animals :) Tweet This

Hi From Phillip

Hi Mom,

It’s me, your little boy Phillip. I just wanted to check to make you’re doing OK without me there to help you with everything. And my brother, Will, is he happy?

I’m doing great here in Bethlehem. The food’s good, and there’s plenty of it, and after a few days of my grrrrrr-ing and hissing at all the other cats, I realized that they’re real nice. I fit in perfectly and even got yelled at last night for knocking over a stupid vase full of ugly twigs with ridiculous lights! Who needs that crap standing around anyway? I have a new best friend, a big girl named Patricia, but her friends call her Patty. We both sleep in bed with my new mommy.

Thank you for saving my life. I miss you and will keep in touch.

XOXO
Your orange boy,
Phillip

Thank you for the wonderful update, Phil!

In case you haven't heard, handsome Phil has been adopted ... and to a wonderful family! Please keep in mind that you can check us out on Facebook and Twitter for updates as well.

We are wishing Phillip and his new family all the happiness possible. Tweet This

Introducing Gabriel the dog

An email flashed in our inbox which was hard to ignore: "Gabriel the hound suffers severely broken leg then violently attacked!!!!"

The email explained that Gabriel is a sweet, tri-colored hound boy ... and “EVERYTHING BAD seems to happen to him”!

First, this hound dog came into a county shelter in North Carolina with a severely broken hind leg (see photo). A group down there and a wonderful woman named Sylvia were nice enough to spend thousands of dollars on the vet bills to piece poor Gabriel’s leg back together. After Cup of Joe, we at Joa's Arc know this isn’t an easy task – the fundraising, the time, the trips to the vet for check-ups, the special care that extends for weeks even after surgery to ensure the leg heals properly, etc. This is not an easy journey for a rescue or a dog.

Gabriel was boarded at a kennel for his recovery. Well, as if poor Gabriel wasn’t going through enough just with a broken leg healing, another dog escaped its kennel and went after poor Gabriel! Obviously, Gabriel was in no position to get away, let alone defend himself and he suffered horribly! During the attack, the other dog practically scalped Gabriel and nearly ripped one of his ears off too.

“No dog should ever experience the pain or suffering that this pathetic creature has endured in his short life time. It is so unfair.” The quote from the initial email about Gabriel could not be more true.

The emails we get are always heartbreaking, but obviously this one struck a chord ... a shelter dog already set back from being adopted due to a broken leg and then to be so violently attacked in a kennel... Ugh! Poor baby!

Like we do as often as we can, Joa's Arc volunteers wrote to check in on Gabriel and see how we could help – even if that just meant networking around. We got some more information from our friend and found out that although there had been talk, no solid offers of rescue for this poor guy had come through. The organization that had been helping Gabriel had pretty much exhausted their funds and Gabriel still needed a rescue/foster/adopter ... obviously recovering in a kennel had not gone successfully and a quiet home would be best.

Our hearts broke for Gabriel. So much so, that Jen S wrote the woman in NC that had Gabriel:

Hi, I left you a voice mail about Gabriel.

If he does not have a foster and is available for transport, I would love to foster him through my South Jersey Rescue, Joa's Arc. Our mission is to assist with Special Needs animals for local NJ and PA rescues/shelters.

Gabriel is tugging at my heart strings, I would love to open my home to him so he can know love and kindness. I know Gabriel is outside our Mission but we the Board of Joa's Arc unanimously voted to reach out a helping hand (paw) to Gabriel. Plus, we had a Special Needs kitten named Gabriel who has since crossed the Rainbow Bridge. He was attacked by a dog and became paralyzed in the rear. He lived a happy life for a little over a year. No more fear of being attacked for Gabriel.

I have 2 friends that own hounds and I will make sure he has regular plays dates with all 3 of them. All my hound friend's want to do is play!

Please let me know the current status and availability of Gabriel.

Thank you!!

Jen S, Board Member
Joa's Arc

Well, guess what? As of today, Gabriel is on his way to Joa's Arc!! Coincidentally, a small transport of dogs were already scheduled to head up from the same shelter Gabriel came into in NC to a town near by in South Jersey. Joa's Arc! is also making a donation to the rescue who put so much hard work, time and love into Gabriel already. We're all excited for Gabriel's arrival sometime between tomorrow and we're looking forward to a quiet, happy and safe recovery for Gabriel in Jen S's home while she fosters him.

Thank you for all your support, friends. Without you, none of this would be possible. Check back for an update soon! Tweet This