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Show I I bv CAROL DAVIS ah anctuary an Animal's Best Friend a - i" . - 'M-Hv refill' . rni i&io . ft . ft ft vu' The foster home to 1,800 rescued animals, most of which will find permanent homes. Tommy and Tyson were among the countless teral cats scrounging tor survival in Los Angeles garbage cans, hui (here was something uniquely ditterenr alx)iic tins feline pair: Their tails alwavs were intertwined. In vicwinj.' the odd tandem, a curious neighborhood resident kit something might he wrong and managed to capture them. 'Sin realized that Tyson was blind and the other car was leading him around by having their rails woven together." sas Michael Mountain, co-founder and president of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, located near Kanab. Utah 'pop. 3.616). Their rescuer, a Best Friends member, arranged tor Best friends to take them in Five years later, the two black tats are well ted and living happily, hap-pily, but they re no longer inseparable insepa-rable "They did that at first, with Tommy showing his pal Tvson around. " Mountain saw "But he's in familiar surroundings now." Prevailing animal welfare practice has long dictated dic-tated that animals such as Tommy and Tyson be euthanized. But today the two are in sale surroundings surround-ings at Best Friends -50-acre animal haven the flagship tor the ' no-kill" animal rescue movement founded in the 19Os by Mountain. Faith Maloney. the sanctuary s director, and a small circle of friends. Their work has earned astounding results. In 198". some 1 million homeless dogs and cats were destroyed in U.S. pounds and shelters: in 1 999. fewer than live million were killed. sas Best Friends, which attributes the dramatic drop to responsible pet owners spaving and neutering their animals and to pet lovers who choose to adopt from shelters Best Friends is home to more than 1.800 cats, dogs, horses, rabbits, birds, and other animals. Most eventually find homes across the country, but about one-fourth remain as permanent residents because, like Tyson and Tommy, they are considered consid-ered unadoptablc due to aggressiveness, advanced age. or health problems. Before Best Friends was founded. Mountain and Maloney individually rescued animals from pounds and shelters. "We realized there was a need to create some form of sanctuary to help a lot of the animals, particularly particu-larly the ones not easy to place." Maloney says. "That translated to Best Friends." Their search for a large site eventually led Sanctuary Director Faith Maloney and pal. them to the scenic red rock country of southern Utah, where today the sanctuary features an assemblage assem-blage of folksy habitats. Dogtown; the TLC (lit Club, a specialized shelter for handicapped cats; ildCats Village, where feral cats congregate uncaged: the Bunny House for rabbits: pastures for horses and burros: bur-ros: aviaries tor birds; plus a veterinary clinic. Once Maloney became attuned to pet irresponsibil ity and overpopulation, she had no choice but to devote her lite to it. Once you open the door, once sou become aware of it, vou can't turn it off: vou TO LEARN MORE... Write Best Friends Animal Sanctuary Sanc-tuary at 500 1 Angel Canyon Road. Kanab. UT 84741-5001; call (435) 644-200 1; or visit its website at www.bestfhcnds.org. can't say it's somebody else's problem," she says. "Once I became sensitized to that, I couldn't not do something." Best Friends' work is not limited ro the sanctuary. They've organized a nationwide network of about 5.000 volunteers, such as the woman who found Tommy and Tyson, tliat keeps them apprised of situations sit-uations where they can help. It also sponsors a number num-ber of outreach ettorts such as mobile spayneuter marathons, seminars on starring a no-ki!l shelter, classroom programs, fund-raising benefits, and a website and magazine, of which Mountain is editor. The story of Rhonda, unadoptable because she was snappy and unfriendly, best explains Best Friends. "She lived a wonderfully full and active life and took up with another dog." Maloney says. "When he-died he-died from bone cancer ... I had never seen a dog grieve as profoundly." Vilien Mountain wrote an editorial about her. an Atlanta woman adopted the dog. Rhonda lived only 1 8 more months before dying of cancer at age 9, but she got to live out her life in a loving home. Typically, animals with behavioral or med'cal problems are quickly euthanized without being given the time or medical attention to grow up. "By the time she was 9. Rhonda had matured and was not snappy anymore." Maloney says. "She was a very charming little dog " Rhonda's story, and others Uke it. proves that Best Friends venture is most worthwhile. "At some point the right person comes along," Maloney says, "and that makes me feel so good." Carol Dam. national tdit'ir of American Profile, has adopted fijiir abandomd amiiiah tuo dop (Toby and Maggiu and tuo cats (Gnzzahtlla and Calht). Page 4 American Profile |