As the COVID-19 situation evolves, we want to share with you some changes that we have put into place at the MSPCA-Angell so we can continue to serve the pets and people of our community while keeping our staff, volunteers, and clients protected. We recognize the vital role that our hospitals and adoption centers play as a safe haven for animals especially in times of crisis. We are committed to being a resource for our community during the outbreak with services and support. As we adjust to these unanticipated changes, our front line team is grateful for your support and patience. For CDC Recommendations Regarding Companion Animals and COVID-19, please see the bottom of this announcement.

Angell Animal Medical Center

As an essential business, Angell Animal Medical Center has remained open during the Massachusetts lockdown and is providing urgent medical care, without disruption, to animal patients in our charge. We have implemented extensive safety precautions to protect both our clients and employees and we have concluded that, for now, we feel the safest choice is to continue with our policy of not allowing clients inside the building. As Mass state regulations change, we will evolve our own social distancing guidelines. We thank you in advance for your understanding.

• Referral cases to Waltham and Boston. We are now welcoming all referral cases at our Waltham and Boston locations. Clients or primary care veterinarians please call 617-522-7282 or call the specialty service directly for availability.
• Emergency services. As always, our emergency room is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at our Angell Boston and Angell Waltham locations to care for our most acutely ill patients.
• On-site specialty consults and telemedicine. Angell’s specialists are available either to consult on your pet’s case while your pet is at Angell or to facilitate phone or video appointments. Contact information by specialty is listed at angell.org. Please reach out to our specialty services for more information.
• Primary Care. Please contact us for an appointment by calling 617-524-5653.
• Call ahead. We encourage you and/or your primary care vet to call before your visit (if your pet is not experiencing a life-threatening emergency) so we can direct your needs in the most time and cost efficient manner.
• Pharmacy.  Angell continues to fill prescriptions 7 days per week. Curb-side pick-up and mailing of prescriptions are both available (shipping fees apply). Clients can submit their prescription requests at angell.org/pharmacy or by calling 617-524-5700.
• Please support Angell by ordering your Angell patient prescriptions through org/pharmacyversus other online sites.

• • Current pharmacy operating hours. Pharmacy orders can be picked up during pharmacy operating hours: M-F 8a-8p and Sat/Sun/Holidays 9a-5p  Pharmacy pick-ups for our Angell Waltham facility are also limited, call for details 781-902-8400. Additionally, on nights (after 5p) and during pharmacy business hours on weekends/holidays, curbside order pick-up may only be available every half hour (e.g. 1pm, 1:30pm, etc…), due to our pharmacy’s capacity to both deliver client orders outside while continuing to fill prescription orders inside. Please call the pharmacy when you arrive at 617-524-5700 and we will bring your pet’s order out to a designated pick-up area at our entrance. Please take note – clients who arrive outside of these hours to pick up will not be able to refill or pick up their pet’s order, as there will not be staff available to provide this service. We are grateful to be able to continue to provide needed pharmacy care to your pet, and appreciate your patience and cooperation as we navigate this challenging time together.

How Angell is delivering emergency or urgent care to your pet while minimizing risk of coronavirus transmission

• To help ensure Angell’s clinicians and staff can safely continue to deliver care to critically ill animals, clients currently are not permitted to accompany their pet into Angell’s Boston, Waltham, Danvers and Westford hospitals.
• Communication by phone. Signage outside our front entrance provides specific phone numbers for clients to call from their mobile phones upon arrival. As clients remain outside the building, our team then guides clients on next steps for an emergency, a necessary recheck, or medication/food pick up.
• Highly critical emergencies or those without cell phones are instructed to use the intercom in the foyer of our front entryway.
• The emergency/urgent care process. Following the client’s initial phone call at arrival, if deemed appropriate, a staff member will meet the client in the parking lot to take the pet into the hospital.
  • Dogs must be leashed.  If the client does not have a leash, we will provide one.  The client will be asked to exit their car and hand the pet to the employee and return to their car.
  • Cats and all other pets must be in a carrier.  If the pet is not in a carrier, a temporary box carrier will be provided.  The client should place the carrier on the ground and step back 6 feet and then the employee will bring the pet into the building.
  • Once the pet is examined, the doctor will call the client on their cell phone (if the client does not have a cell phone the employee can meet the client in the parking lot to discuss care while maintaining a 6 foot distance) and report findings and discuss next steps. Some doctors may be able to put you on speakerphone during examinations or even video conference with you, but this will vary greatly depending on the precise situation.

• • Payments are accepted over the phone with a credit card.  Gloved employees will also accept check and cash.

• • Returning your pet to you. We will wait until your pet’s prescriptions are filled for the visit before returning your pet to you, along with the medications. In the event that your pet is hospitalized, you will not be able to visit, but will receive phone updates and texted photos.
• Our clinics, Angell at Nashoba in Westford and Angell at Essex in Danvers remain open for primary care services with entry into the hospitals restricted to patients and staff.

Please know that though we have cancelled the visiting of hospitalized patients, we will continue to text pictures and updates so that you can stay in close contact with your pet while they are hospitalized. The only visiting exceptions will be for end-of-life scenarios.

You can reach our call center 24 hours a day at (617) 522-7282.

Animal Care and Adoption Centers

• Animals are still available for adoption – you just need to make an appointment! Finding homes for our current population of shelter animals will be vital for our ability to provide temporary housing and increased surrender intake as a result of the outbreak.
• Animals in need of surrender will continue to be accepted by appointment. Please visit our website at mspca.org/surrender for more information.
• Our adoption centers are providing emergency temporary housing for pets whose owners are ill or hospitalized. Please call us to discuss your situation should you need help.
• Our Community Outreach teams are providing food, animal care supplies and regular check ins to ensure owners and pets have the resources they need.
• Our adoption centers have disaster preparedness supplies available to the public on an as-needed basis in the event of emergency. Supplies include dog crates, water bowls and pet food is available. Please call our adoption centers if you are in need of supplies.

Protective Measures

• The Adoption Centers are closed to the general public. For our animal loving friends who simply enjoy visiting our adoption centers, we ask you to refrain from casual visits at this time.
• MSPCA humane education events and vaccination clinics are postponed. If you have registered for a class or event, an MSPCA coordinator will be in touch to re-schedule.
• Spay/Neuter Appointments are postponed until further notice.
• Donations of gently used supplies (blankets, toys, etc) cannot be accepted at this time. While we are grateful for your consideration, we are not able to accept these items.
• We are choosing social distancing whenever possible. If you are coming in for a scheduled surrender or adoption appointment, we ask that you respect personal space, and don’t be surprised if we offer an air high-five in lieu of shaking your hand!

How You Can Help

• Donations of pet food ARE ENCOURAGED. Cat and dog food (canned and dry, in original sealed packaging) are very much needed to support our community outreach programs and to distribute to local food pantries to ensure people with food insecurity have food for their pets. We have a comprehensive Amazon wish list on our website so you can donate from the comfort of your home! Visit mspca.org/wishlist.
• We encourage every pet owner to develop a preparedness plan should you become ill or hospitalized. Please visit our website at www.mspca.org/disasterprep for helpful information.
• Helping pets in your community – We are encouraging community members to check in with friends, neighbors and relatives that may be living alone with pets or be more vulnerable to this virus to make sure they are ok. If you have room in your home, consider offering emergency housing to those that may need to separate from their pet due to hospitalization.

Thank you for your understanding and support as we strive to continue our work on behalf of animals and the people who love them. We are thinking about all of you – our staff, volunteers, supporters, clients, and community partners – and doing everything we can to be here for those who need us the most. The effects of this crisis will be far reaching. By following the latest trusted science and being compassionate and kind to one another, we will get through this.

CDC Recommendations Regarding Companion Animals and COVID-19

Public health officials are still learning about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
(SARS-CoV-2. This is the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease), but there is no evidence that pets play a role in spreading the virus in the United States. Therefore, there is no justification in taking measures against companion animals that may compromise their welfare. Further studies are needed to understand if and how different animals, including pets, could be affected.

Until we know more, CDC recommends the following:

• Do not let pets interact with people or other animals outside the household.
• Keep cats indoors when possible to prevent them from interacting with other animals or people.
• Walk dogs on a leash, maintaining at least 6 feet from other people and animals.
• Avoid dog parks or public places where a large number of people and dogs gather.

If you are sick with COVID-19 (either suspected or confirmed by a test), restrict contact with your pets and other animals, just like you would around other people.

• When possible, have another member of your household care for your pets while you are sick.
• Avoid contact with your pet, including petting, snuggling, being kissed or licked, and sharing food or bedding.
• If you must care for your pet or be around animals while you are sick, wear a cloth face covering and wash your hands before and after you interact with them.

For information on how to keep your indoor cat entertained, check out these tips from the MSPCA Animal Care and Adoption Center:

Organization’s Oldest Adoptable Loves Attention and Time Outside

BOSTON, May 20, 2020 – She loves fruit salad and dandelions, attention from people, and time outside.  And at 53, she may just be the oldest animal that the MSPCA-Angell has ever been charged with adopting into a new home.

She is “Ms. Jennifer,” a loveable tortoise whose owner died this week of COVID-19, and who the MSPCA is eager to place into a loving adoptive home.

Ms. Jennifer arrived at the MSPCA on May 9 after her owner was admitted to the hospital.  Since then, staffers have showered the loveable reptile with affection (and vegetables) to make life at the shelter as pleasant as possible.  Now, with no home to go back to, Ms. Jennifer needs a hero more than ever.

At just four pounds, and about the size of a large dinner plate, Ms. Jennifer is the perfect-sized tortoise for any reptile or turtle-enthusiast.  Her previous owner absolutely doted on Ms. Jennifer, scheduling her wellness checkups at Angell Animal Medical Center, bringing her along on errands and showing her off to friends and strangers alike.

Sadly, Ms. Jennifer is just the latest animal to arrive at the MSPCA as a result of the pandemic.

“We continue to see animals coming to us because their owners have either died, fallen too ill to care for them, or been so impacted economically that they could no longer care for the pets,” said Victoria Odynsky, manager of the MSPCA-Angell’s Boston adoption center.

“Like we do for every animal in our charge, we’ll take the best possible care of Ms. Jennifer until we find her a suitable adoptive home,” added Odynsky.

Birthday Celebration!

Ms. Jennifer turned 53 on Wednesday, May 20 and to celebrate that milestone, MSPCA staffers threw a birthday party complete with time outside on the grass, loads of TLC from staff and volunteers, and a fruit salad—a particular favorite for turtles of all kinds.

“We like to think she knows the attention is for her, and that she feels the love and support of all of us taking care of her,” said Odynksy.

Anyone interested in adopting Ms. Jennifer can email adoption@mspca.org for more information, or to schedule an appointment to meet her.

The MSPCA’s three animal care and adoption centers in Massachusetts remain closed to the general public, with the organization continuing to pair pets with adopters via individual appointments.

###

Adorable Five-Year-Old “Chloe” Needs Surgery to Heal her Leg, and a New Adoptive Home

BOSTON, April 22, 2020 – The MSPCA-Angell’s Boston adoption center is now the temporary home for five-year-old Chihuahua Chloe, who was surrendered from a home in Brockton, Mass. after her owner died of COVID-19, the organization announced today.

Chloe arrived on Friday, April 17th with a metal plate attached to the bones of her right front leg.  The plate, a leftover from a surgery performed on the dog in 2016 to repair a broken leg, was supposed to have been removed after the leg healed.

While she appears to stand and walk with little pain, adoption center staff are concerned about long-term health implications associated with the plate staying on.

“We’ve scheduled an x-ray for later today and based on the result of that we’ll know if we can safely remove the plate,” said Anna Rafferty-Arnold, associate director of the MSPCA’s Boston adoption center.

If the plate cannot be removed without creating more damage to her leg, the veterinary team will amputate the leg to spare her any future health issues associated with the plate.

Chloe’s medical bills are expected to top $1,500 and will be paid for by Spike’s Fund, which meets the medical care needs for homeless animals in the MSPCA’s Boston adoption center.  Anyone who wishes to help contribute toward her care can donate at www.mspca.org/helpchloe.

Chloe is described as shy at first, but very friendly and staffers feel she will do well in most homes, and encourages anyone interested to contact the adoption center directly at 617-522-5055.

Owing to the ongoing pandemic, all three of the MSPCA’s adoption centers—in Boston, Methuen and Centerville on Cape Cod—have temporarily transitioned to appointment-based adoptions and surrenders.

“This new model ensures we can respect social distancing and do our part to mitigate the spread of the virus while still finding homes for animals like Chloe who need them,” said Rafferty-Arnold.

The number of animals surrendered to the MSPCA’s adoption centers have actually decreased since the pandemic began.  But Mike Keiley, director of adoption centers and programs, cautions that the trend may not hold.

“We are bracing for a wave of COVID-19 surrenders in the coming weeks as both the disease—and the economic fallout associated with it—bite deeper in Massachusetts,” he said.

The MSPCA is doing everything it can to stave off a surrender crisis by continuing to find homes for the animals in its care and providing necessary resources to the community.  “In just the last four weeks we’ve delivered over 50,000 pet meals to food pantries, ensuring that animal owners facing economic hardship can at least feed their animals,” said Keiley.

###

Pandemic Nixes Wildly Popular Springtime Fundraiser—but Runners can Still Participate AND Win Prizes!

BOSTON, April 12, 2020 – The Coronavirus pandemic has made holding May’s Fast and Furriest 5K Run, Walk, Wag impossible, but the MSPCA-Angell is still offering participants a chance to exercise, raise critically needed funds for animals and win big prizes!

Participants can sign up to run (or walk, or wag) a virtual 5K anytime between April 2 and May 31 and post photos of their effort—whether running shoes, a course map or a tired and happy canine who went along for the run—to Instagram with the hashtag #MSPCAFastAndFurriest.

Participants can sign up for the virtual event at fastandfurriest.com, and anyone who has previously registered for the May 17^th event is automatically enrolled.  The Fast and Furriest typically raises over $200,000 to fund the MSPCA’s adoption, advocacy, law enforcement and veterinary programs, and the organization hopes this (first-ever) virtual event will raise $75,000.

Prizes for Top Fundraisers

One of the Fast and Furriest biggest draws has been the number and kind of big-value prizes on offer for top fundraisers.  This year’s virtual event is no exception.  From Samsung flatscreen TVs and Vitamix blenders for those who raise at least $10,000, to AirPod Pro and GoPro cameras for those who raise $5,000—the big money prizes are there for the taking.

Any participant who raises $100 or more will get a human and canine medal mailed to them, and anyone who raises $1,000 or more will receive a “Fast and Furriest 5K”-branded fleece.

 Organization’s Law Enforcement Dept. and Hampden County District Attorney’s Office File Four Counts of Felony Animal Cruelty

BOSTON, Feb. 28, 2020 – The MSPCA at Nevins Farm in Methuen, Mass. is caring for two horses that literally had to be dug out of their stalls at a Ludlow home on Feb. 5 because the manure in which they were standing had piled so high that they could not exit through the doors, the organization announced today.

The horses were freed after nearly two hours of digging by MSPCA Law Enforcement and Adoption Center personnel.  Once extracted from the stalls in which they had been trapped, the sores on their backs—a result of standing on piles of manure so high that their backs were pressed into the building’s rafters—were made plainly visible.

The MSPCA-Angell’s Law Enforcement department has, in coordination with the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office, leveled four counts of felony animal cruelty against Nancy L. Golec of Ludlow, the former owner of the horses.  Golec was arraigned in Palmer District Court on Feb. 24, 2020.

The horses—a 13-year-old Arab named Shakira and an 11-year-old Quarter Horse/Arab cross named Tia—were surrendered and immediately transported by way of the MSPCA’s equine ambulance to Nevins Farm.

“Worst Case of Neglect I’ve Ever Seen”
Roger Lauze, the equine rescue training manager at Nevins Farm, said he hasn’t seen such neglect in nearly 40 years of working in horse rescue.  “The hooves on these horses were so overgrown and disfigured that it will take years of farrier work for them to reshape—if that’s even possible,” he said.

Both horses had overgrown teeth, with hind legs were caked in manure.  Tia is underweight, an additional sign that she had been neglected for years.

Their overgrown and misshapen hooves contributed to imbalances that have significantly impacted their health.  “We’re going to do everything possible to help them live the rest of their lives without pain, but that will be determined by the degree to which we can reshape the hooves,” said Lauze.

X-rays confirmed changes to the coffin bones of both of Shakira’s front hooves, but the staff are hopeful these changes will not further erode the quality of her life.  “It really depends on the extent to which her hooves can be reshaped,” added Lauze.

Tia’s radiographs, however, show immense deformation of the coffin bones in her hind hooves, among other bone changes that could forever compromise her health.

The Nevins Farm team will continue to rehabilitate both horses in hopes that they can be placed for adoption.  Anyone interested in adopting can email barnstaff@mspca.org for more information.

Readers who wish to contribute toward the horses’ mounting medical bills may do so by way of the MSPCA at Nevins Farm Ashton’s Hope Fund.

###

Boston City Council Lauds the MSPCA-Angell’s Community Outreach Team on World Spay Day

Presents Resolution Highlighting the MSPCA’s Work to Protect Pets within Boston’s Most Vulnerable Communities

BOSTON, Feb. 25, 2020 – City Councilor Matt O’Malley, on behalf of the Boston City Council, will present a resolution to the MSPCA-Angell on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020 in recognition of the critical strides the organization has taken to reduce the homeless pet population, and to keep pets and their families together in Boston, the organization announced today.

WHAT:

The Boston City Council has declared Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020 World Spay Day and congratulates the MSPCA for the work it does to ensure the health and vibrancy of the animal community in Boston, and across the Commonwealth, by way of MSPCA-C.A.R.E.S., an initiative that focuses on breaking down barriers to services and resources for families with pets.

WHEN and WHERE:

The resolution will be presented to members of the MSPCA Advocacy and Community Outreach teams before its City Council meeting at noon on Wednesday, Feb. 26 inside the Ianella Chamber at Boston City Hall.

PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES:

Members of the media are invited to the ceremony, after which members of the City Council, and MSPCA officials, will answer questions and take photos.  Photo opportunities include:

• The resolution itself, as well as MSPCA officials posing with it
• Dog(s), who will be in attendance, along with members of a family that the MSPCA’s community outreach efforts have helped
• City Councilors and MSPCA officials making remarks from the podium

“I am thrilled to partner with the MSPCA-Angell to promote awareness of the importance of having pets spayed or neutered at the next Boston City Council meeting,” said Councilor Matt O’Malley, who was the author of the ordinance banning the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in pet stores in the City of Boston in 2016.

“This is a great opportunity to educate pet owners on ways to support their pets’ health and extend their lives, and this service will help address overcrowding in animal shelters,” added O’Malley.

The full text of the resolution is below.

RESOLUTION OF CITY COUNCILOR MATT O’MALLEY

WHEREAS:     February 26^th is widely recognized as World Spay Day since it was established in 1995 by the Doris Day Animal League; and

WHEREAS:     World Spay Day is recognized in over 70 countries to bring attention to the importance of spaying or neutering animals and the need for affordable services in our communities; and

WHEREAS:     Pets provide companionship to 68% of U.S. households; and

WHEREAS:     Of the 3 million cats and dogs that are euthanized in shelters each year, approximately 2.4 million are healthy and adoptable; and

WHEREAS:     Spay/neutering a pet is an effective and humane way to save animals’ lives and prevent surplus litters and reduce the number of animals that are put down in animal shelters; and

WHEREAS:     Neutered male dogs live 18% longer than intact male dogs and spayed female dogs live 23% longer than intact female dogs; and

WHEREAS:     Neutered dogs can help curb aggressive, curb undesirable behaviors such as marking, and reduce a dogs risk of certain tumors and cancers with spay/neuter surgery; and

WHEREAS:     There are numerous programs sponsored by Boston-based non-profits, such as the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) that offer spay and neutering surgery for animals in low-income communities free of charge as well as offer to do the surgery to the general public; and

WHEREAS:     The MSPCA-Angell, located in Jamaica Plain, does community outreach to provide resources and services, such as providing spay or neuter surgery, and vaccinations. The MSPCA-Angell, through a continued presence in Boston’s communities seeks to create a safety net for family pets; and

WHEREAS:     The MSPCA-Angell’s community outreach in Boston in 2019 has resulted in meeting 737 families and 975 pets who became clients. The MSPCA-Angell conducted 437 spay/neuter surgeries, conducted 677 veterinary visits, and provided 27,184 meals to pets for free to families with lower incomes; NOW THEREFORE BE IT

RESOLVED:    That the Boston City Council, in meeting assembled, does hereby declare that February 25, 2020 as “World Spay Day,” and congratulates and thanks animal welfare organizations like the MSPCA for ensuring the health and vibrancy of our animal community in Boston and throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.