Blog
We're pleased to share that the Spring 2021 edition of our Pawprints newsletter is now available for download.
This edition features a focus on some of our adoptables and a recap of the good news from 2020 as well as several adoption stories and notable updates. This edition also includes information about CCA’s wish list and a list of the quarter’s memorials and donors.
You can download the newsletter here and view previous editions here.
We're pleased to share that the Winter 2020 edition of our Paw Prints newsletter is now available for download.
This edition features a focus on some of our adoptables, an amazing story of Maddie Reed, an Eagle Scout to-be, who designed, built and financed an agility course at our shelter, several adoption success stories, and a feature about our latest Tik Tok sensation - One Tough Cookie! This edition also includes information about volunteering with CCA and a list of the quarter’s memorials and donors.
You can download the newsletter here and view previous editions here.
Giving Tuesday is part of a global generosity movement meant to unleash “the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world on December 1, 2020 and every day.”
The movement began in 2012 with the idea to simply encourage people to do good, and the idea has grown since then, inspiring millions of people to give, collaborate and celebrate generosity. It’s easy to get involved in your own community! And if you feel so inclined, there are several ways to support CCA this holiday season:
Give money through PayPal to support our mission in the Upstate
Donate items for our shelter cats and dogs (View our wish list on Amazon.com)
Support CCA via smile.amazon.com
Volunteer your time or talents to impact CCA’s mission
We are thankful, today and always, for those of you who share your resources - whether time or financial - to impact our mission in the Upstate!
Team of volunteers following agility course build.
On her way to earn the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) Eagle Scout ranking, an upstate teen is hoping to help CCA soar with the creation of a K9 agility course.
Maddie Reed, a Simpsonville, SC native and dog lover, got into scouting when she heard there would be a new Boy Scout troop formed specifically for girls – they would work to meet the same rank advancement criteria as the boys. Now, two years later, Maddie is nearing the end of her journey towards earning the Eagle Scout rank – the top achievement in scouting.
“Getting the Eagle Scout rank is a pretty big deal. Only five percent of scouts achieve this rank,” she explains. Requirements for Eagle rank work on building leadership skills, and one of these requirements is an Eagle project through which the scout must plan, fundraise and carry out a project for a charitable organization.
Maddie’s pup, River.
In addition to scouting, Maddie spends her time with her pup River, a three-legged, boxer-retriever mutt with a big personality who loves food, tennis balls and a good cuddle. She also volunteers with CCA, and has been a part of our volunteer network for the past two years, walking dogs and helping to socialize our cats.
Blending Passions
Through her CCA experience, Maddie saw a clear opportunity to use her Eagle project as a way to blend her passion for scouting and love of dogs…in an effort to get more pups out of the shelter and with their own families.
Her goal? Build an agility course at CCA’s Upstate shelter as a way to help our dogs learn obedience and burn off some pent-up energy. “I wanted to give the dogs a way to productively get their energy out, and I know that if dogs are trained in agility, they tend to have a higher chance of being adopted,” Maddie explains.
With a plan in place, Maddie set out to raise money for the course, and did so through an electronic silent auction where she sold her own artwork and other items. The auction raised over $300.
One of Maddie’s paintings that was auctioned off to raise money for the course. It sold for $75.
The Build
On November 14, Maddie and a team of volunteers – representing both Scouts and CCA – worked to build the agility course, which included weave poles, an A-frame, a hurdle, and a platform. The poles and the hurdles are made of PVC pipe, and the A-frame and the platform are made with wood.
“My favorite element to design was the hurdle. I had to plan the PVC pipes out in a way to make sure the dog wouldn’t be hurt if they ended up being a little low on the jump. I did this by having the pole they jump over rest on top of a T-joint,” she says.
“I felt a large wave of relief seeing the course go up. I started planning this project earlier this summer, and to watch it all come into place was amazing. I hope the course will help more dogs get adopted.”
Now What?
Maddie has a few more merit badges – each one serving to teach life skills or give experiences related to potential careers – to complete before she earns her Eagle rank, but she’s well on her way. Beyond that, she hopes to put her love of art into a career in animation or video game design.
We need your help as we support Zippers - and his mama - during their time of need.
An eight-year-old chihuahua poodle mix, Zippers has been in great health his whole life. Unfortunately, a collapsed disk in his back has put him in a precarious situation - in desperate need of surgery that his family can’t afford to pay.
Zippers’ surgery will cost more than $4,500 – way more than his family can afford. CCA is proud to sponsor $1,000 towards the surgery - with the family matching this amount - but we need your help to cover the rest! Every donation will make a difference for this family. Can you help? DONATE HERE!
We're pleased to share that the Summer 2020 edition of our Paw Prints newsletter is now available for download.
This edition features a focus on some of our adoptables, highlights of the celebration of Jayla Thomas, and several adoption success stories – including those from a litter of puppies who got their start in a parking lot. This edition also includes some helpful tips if your pet goes missing and a list of the quarter’s memorials and donors.
You can download the newsletter here and view previous editions here.
Zoey and her puppies
When Ronica Shekar found a dog in her office parking lot one afternoon, she stepped in to help and little did she know she was walking into a special opportunity. Read her story below!
Little did I know that a regular Friday would change my life forever! Last December, sweet Zoey was found roaming in my office parking lot in Piedmont. As soon as I saw her, I could see that she was a sweetheart. When I sat down to pet her, she immediately took to me, curled up on my lap to take a nap - and I was DONE!! It wasn't difficult for me to decide to take her home with me. I took her to the vet the next day - there was no tag/license, no microchip, no ads on the local lost dog channels even after a week's lookout - she was mine to keep!!!
A few weeks later, we were in for a surprise! During a check-up before her spay appointment, we were informed that Zoey was actually expecting and would be giving us 8-10 puppies soon!! My landlady was amazing enough to open her house for the great adventure that was about to come, and that was the very beginning of a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime journey!
I love dogs but I'd never before seen a dog give birth, or seen newborn puppies before, let alone care for a whole litter. With lots of online research and some helpful tips from our vet, we took up the challenge!
On February 2, Zoey gave us nine adorable puppies: five girls and four boys, each one as cute as they could be!! I could spend a whole day just watching them…the whole thing was all truly mesmerizing! From the moment they started opening their eyes to the moment they gave their first barks and then the moment they first started walking before running and jumping around like crazy, I have lots of moments to cherish.
Before we knew it, they were eight weeks old and it was time for us to face the next challenge: finding forever homes for the nine pups!!
We were lucky to find homes for three of them almost immediately, but then had to reach out to CCA to seek help with the adoption of remaining pups. Within no time, we had applications flooding in and today, I'm extremely happy to say that eight of the puppies are now in their forever homes!!
We are hoping the same for our ninth baby soon!
I will never forget these three/four months of my life, and I'd like to extend my sincere thanks to CCA for helping us give a happy ending to this story... And, also, a special thanks to Scout (our three-year-old doby), Ande, Cindy and my mom! I couldn't have done this without y'all!
Help us find a home for the last puppy!
Sweet Rosie is quite a catch! She has amazing ears – we think they’re her most beautiful feature – and she loves to snuggle and play – with toys and other dogs! She is a little shy at first, but warms up quickly. She is doing very well with potty training and would do best with a fenced in yard.
Are you interested in adopting Rosie?! We want to hear from you! Contact us here and download the adoption application here.
Rosie is waiting for her forever home!
Welcome home!
Scroll through the slideshow below to see some of the puppies with their new families! (To advance the slide show, simply click on the photo below.)
A CCA volunteer for the last three years, Jen Izzo currently focuses her time managing the website, and supporting the organization’s social media presence. In the past, she was a Sunday shelter volunteer. Two of her family’s four dogs are CCA pups.
Allie (left) and Jojo (right): my two CCA pups!
I was out running errands with my mom – nearly seven years ago – on a snowy February afternoon when we stopped by Petco to buy dog food. Immediately when we walked into the store, I kept my eyes focused forward and walked directly to the back. Why? There was a dog adoption event in the front of the store. I knew I didn’t need a third dog. There was already enough fur in my house with the two I had at home! 😉
So I picked up the dog food and saw a volunteer sitting at a table far in the back of the store – away from the adoption event – with an information table. Just a lady and her pup. “This is safe,” I thought to myself.
Allie (left) on her first day at home.
I bent down and started petting her sweet pup while my mom made conversation with the lady. “What’s her name?” I asked. “Delta,” she replied. “She’s available for adoption.”
At that moment, this big black dog with the softest floppy ears was nuzzling her head into my hand. My heart started racing as I told myself “no more dogs, you already have two!”
We finished our conversation and got up to leave. This sweet dog, with her floppy ears and big brown eyes, got up and tried to follow us. She reached the end of her leash and just kept watching us walk away.
It broke my heart.
I couldn’t get her out of my mind, and less than two hours later I was on the CCA website searching for the adoption application, sending an email and praying so hard no one else scooped her up before I could adopt her.
Fortunately, they didn’t! I went through the adoption process with CCA and was immediately struck by how intensive it was. They asked for references, and actually followed up with them. They came to visit my house, met my other dogs and inspected my fence. I immediately knew how much this organization truly cares for the animals under its care.
I adopted Delta, named her Allie and she has become one of the most dependable friends in my world. In fact, more recently, she’s the only one of the four dogs who knew I was pregnant last year. When I couldn’t sleep in a bed, and had to be on the couch, she stayed with me every night. She checked on me and snuggled me and followed me everywhere. I think she’s one of the greatest dogs in the world.
Allie helping my husband propose <3
Anyway, I digress. When I met and married my husband, we tried to adopt another dog together, and sadly it just didn’t work out. And that experience caused him to have a tough conversation with me about how perhaps I should volunteer AT a shelter instead of trying to BE a shelter.
He had a point.
We couldn’t rescue every dog, but I could use my time and talent to help an organization that could. Immediately, CCA came to mind!
I started volunteering walking dogs every Sunday morning, and did that for nearly a year. Somewhere along the way, there was this litter of puppies that came in. Black lab mixes. MY FAVORITE.
Jojo as a puppy at the shelter. She was Shiloh back then.
We ended up fostering one when a hurricane came through the Upstate a few years ago. Her name was Shiloh. She was the most chill puppy we had ever met and seemed to truly fit into our little pack of senior dogs. We couldn’t bear to bring her back after the weather returned to normal. So, she became our new addition – JoJo. Named after a baby kangaroo because of her passion and enthusiasm for jumping.
From there, I began to work with the board to build a new website for the organization. In 2019, I served as a member of the board, and now in 2020, I manage CCA’s website, support our social media and act as a communications advisor to the board.
When I’m not volunteering, or working my day job, I moonlight as a crazy book lady as an independent consultant for Usborne Books & More. Through my small business, I have the opportunity to raise money for meaningful persons and organizations through a fundraiser called Cards for a Cause.
I held my first Cards for a Cause fundraiser for CCA during the month of March, and I’m so proud to share that we raised more than $500 for CCA’s Upstate shelter to provide a wall-mounted cat climbing tree and other needed supplies. If you were one of the folks who bought a box of greeting cards through the fundraiser – thank you from the bottom of my heart! I so very much appreciate your support.
I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to continue to make a difference in our community by helping homeless dogs and cats in the Upstate. CCA is a small organization, it’s not the most fancy, but that’s why I love it. It’s a place where people who love animals can work together to make a difference.
The CCA team is hoping to find a foster (or forever!) family for our sweet Copper! He has lived at the shelter for several years, and we desperately want to find him a new and more comfortable home for his K-9 retirement!
Celebrating National Peanut Butter Day
Meet Copper!
Hi, I’m Copper! I am a 12-year-old hound who is looking for a retirement home! I would really love some TLC in a nice warm home with a human who will give me plenty of ear scratches and food! I am a laid-back guy, and I know you’ll love my amazing hound “rarf”!
I love to be warm and curling up in my blankets at night is my favorite! I LOVE going for walks and using my excellent nose to take in all of the wonderful smells! I am usually indifferent about other dogs, as I have two rather rambunctious neighbors who don’t phase me at all.
My vet suspects that I have spleen cancer, which is why I am rather thin, but it doesn’t slow me down! I’m 48lbs right now. My hips are also not in the greatest condition, so I am on medicine to make me feel better, but please be gentle with me.
Can you Foster?
CCA is looking for a foster home for Copper that is quiet and low key with no kids and preferably no other pets. We will cover all costs associated with fostering him: food, vetting, medications. We just need someone to give him a warm, comfortable and loving home!
If you’re interested in meeting or fostering Copper, we would love to hear from you! Please contact us at sheltercca@gmail.com.
On Saturday, CCA volunteers and board members gathered at the Upstate shelter to meet Rhonetta Thomas and her family in person as we celebrated the life – and animal-loving legacy – of her daughter Jayla.
Last year, Jayla Thomas passed away as the result of a homicide, just days after her 21st birthday. Jayla would have been 22 on February 13.
Jayla is remembered as a beautiful and creative person who had a huge heart for people and animals. Despite being allergic to dogs, she was determined to spend her life caring for them and dreamed of one day owning a home with a lot of land and plenty of room for dogs.
This dream of hers is why, when Rhonetta set out to honor Jayla’s memory and love of dogs with a fundraiser, she chose CCA. “When I saw the photos online, I thought of Jayla’s dream of having land with a lot of dogs, and this just looked like somewhere she would want to be,” she explained.
Through a Facebook Fundraiser, Rhonetta raised $625 for CCA, which she presented at the shelter celebration on Saturday. Since then, an additional $200+ in donations have been made in Jayla’s honor.
Following the check presentation, Rhonetta and her family toured the shelter and saw the patio where we will be installing a brick in Jayla’s memory.
This isn’t the end though!
Rhonetta shared that she would like to partner with CCA in honor of Jayla’s birthday every year.
“We would like to do something special too,” said CCA Board President Kim Ledford. “We aren’t sure what that will look like yet, but we would like to celebrate Jayla’s kindness and how she always tried to put others before herself.”
While we think of the perfect way to honor Jayla next year, we wanted to thank Rhonetta and her family for including us in celebrating her daughter’s life. Her donation will make an impact on CCA’s mission in the Upstate. And her story touched each of us.
