Source: South Bend Tribune, Ind.自存倉Jan. 06--Dog's best friend is not quite down to his last straw.A month into Bill Sykes' latest mission to protect dogs and cats from the bitter cold, calls from pet caregivers wanting to insulate their animals' outside bedding with straw have dropped off."I hope that is a good sign," Sykes says on New Year's Eve, as Michiana temperatures dip into single digits and wind chills cast the snowy air into a deep freeze."Meaning," he adds, "that people are taking the initiative and are bringing their dogs in during this cold snap."Cats, too, particularly wild, outdoors feral cats."I had about 10 people that I delivered straw to," Sykes says. "Half were for dogs, and half were forcats -- there seems to be a lot of feral cats taking refuge in people's garages."It's never too cold, or too hot for Sykes to lead the charge for animals under the flag of his nonprofit Michiana Animal Alliance Group, a marquee that is somewhat misleading.Anybody who has seen Sykes in action knows he is a one-man animal rights brigade.During the summer, he takes to the streets of any given neighborhood like a door-to-door salesman, handing out literature on the pitfalls of backyard breeding and educating anybody who will listen how to properly care for a dog.Sykes' pet cause: the American Staffordshire terrier. Call his beloved breed "pit bull," then sit down for a lesson in canine semantics."Always refer to pit bulls as 'pit bull-type dogs,' " Sykes explains. "There are so many mixes out there, and they get grouped together and referred to as 'pit bulls.' "The past few winters, Sykes has devoted his time delivering wooden houses for dogs and cats to needy pet owners. The shelters were built by students in Steve Whitaker's construction class at Clay High School using plywood, shingles and other materials donated by area construction companies.But the Homes for Hounds project -- a project Sykes spearheaded after reading about free doghouses provided through a PETA newsletter -- fell through before this winter's first frost warning."Donations dropped off and Steve Whitaker retired," Sykes says, "so it was a little difficult to get that rolling."Nothing would stop the winter from getting cold. And there were still pets living outside in frigid temperatures.So Sykes turned to straw."From what I understand, straw is hard to come by right now," Sykes says. "It sets an example, and plants a seed in people's minds that short-h迷你倉出租ired domestic dogs can't tolerate the cold."If we're cold," he says simply, "they're cold."Somebody to deliver straw for a new litter of foster puppies was warm news to Dorothy Ruggles, of Niles."I was just unable to find straw," says Ruggles, who fosters animals through Seven Star Rescue in St. Joseph, and recently took in a litter of pups from North Carolina. "They were in the garage; it was heated. I have an older foster (dog) who is separated from the puppies, and it was getting cold out. I had hay for the puppies to poop in, but I needed the straw for bedding."What (Sykes) is doing is extremely important," Ruggles notes. "He does it on his own out of the goodness of his heart."He doesn't do it for the publicity and he's uncomfortable because "some factions think I'm a publicity hound.""My hope," he insists, "is that more awareness for the issues we face concerning animal welfare be addressed."But the media has served as an ally recently. In early December after a local TV news station picked up on Sykes delivering free straw to pet owners, his phone began ringing off the hook.One of those callers, Kim Sells, of South Bend, had just found a pair of newborn kittens in her garage."I gave him a call and he was more than helpful in all ways," Sells says.Not that Sykes is the only one handing out free straw for animal beds. South Bend Animal Control is also providing free straw to pet caretakers who go to the city's animal shelter at 521 Eclipse Place to pick it up.Sykes is the only one delivering straw, however."He has been an advocate for the animals in our community for many years now," says Valerie Schey, South Bend City Council member who was instrumental in getting the city's new animal shelter up and running. "He will go out into the community and work directly with pet owners, and I think what he's doing right now is so important."The way the weather is," Schey says, "it's life threatening with these temperatures for the animals."Just not on this straw dog's watch."Doing what he does," says Sells, "is like being on the front lines seeing a lot of sad things, and that's a hard place to be."I couldn't do it, my heart would be ripped out every day," she admits. "Thank God there's somebody that can."JHarrell@SBTinfo.com574-235-6368Copyright: ___ (c)2014 the South Bend Tribune (South Bend, Ind.) Visit the South Bend Tribune (South Bend, Ind.) at .southbendtribune.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉
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