The Sanctuary took in 4 one month old rescued puppies on Saturday, March 16th.
These precious puppies were found in the road with their mom, between Texas and New Mexico. The puppies are doing well, the man who rescued the family is keeping the mother. There are three males and one female puppy. They are available for adoption. Please contact us if you are interested.
Bats of New Mexico: a presentation
SATURDAY, JULY 30, 2022 from 3:30-4:30 p.m.
KIDS WELCOME!
New Mexico is home to 29 native species of bats. Join us to learn about the life, history, behavior, biology, and conservation of this amazing group of mammals. Incredible footage taken in New Mexico will highlight the reproduction and beauty of our native bats.
PRESENTERS Justin Stevenson and Holly Smith have spent a decade working with bats and for bat conservation in the Southwest and nationally. They provide the only bat rehabilitation and rescue in the state. As bat biologists, their goal is to bring more education and conservation to North American bats.
FORMAT For approximately one hour, the presenters will provide a talk, amazing videos, audios, and more.
LOCATION THE HEART AND SOUL ANIMAL SANCTUARY in Glorieta. Road 63A, Fire Gate 74, Franciscan Lane. Call 505-757-6817 for directions.
* NO CHARGE FOR ATTENDANCE *
Santa Fe Community Rallies to Help Sanctuary Save Abandoned Dog
December 2021
A community comes together on only a few hours’ notice to save someone in need. A timely reminder of the plotline of the holiday movie staple It’s a Wonderful Life, and it also happened for real at the Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary this week. An awesome tale about the immediate coalescing of the Santa Fe community, and a true holiday gift for this dog, her rescuer, and her adopting family.
One evening we received a call from a true Good Samaritan named “Zero.” He had just found a young female dog, a Heeler mix, deep in the Bisti Badlands of northern New Mexico. She was freezing cold and emaciated, shivering and starving. He had to act fast.
His own circumstances made caring for the dog (long term) impossible, but he could not just walk away, either. He contacted Natalie Owings at the Sanctuary for help. We jumped into action and got the word out on social media: immediate foster or adopter needed. In less than 12 hours, more than eighty people responded, at least seven of whom were ready and willing to take our rescued girl into their care.
In the meantime, her rescuer purchased over $100 worth of food for the young pup, dressed her in a warm little hoodie, and drove more than four hours to Santa Fe, delivering her directly to her adopting family. Named “Binti,” the rescued dog joins an older Lab brother (also a rescue) as well as a cat sister in a safe and warm environment that shows great promise as her forever home. The Sanctuary is funding her first visit to the vet as well as her initial vaccines and spaying.
The benefits of fostering are well known. A reliable foster network enables the Sanctuary to save more dogs (and cats!) while they await their forever homes. Providing temporary housing for a rescued pup offers households with pets an opportunity to see if everyone gets along. Even if temporary, a foster home (with or without existing pets) provides often critical, immediate socialization for a rescued pet, whether with other dogs, potential cat siblings, or just a loving human. In Binti’s case, her new mom Ruth said that she had been contemplating adopting another rescue dog when she saw our post. She felt that her intervention was not only necessary but “meant to be.” She also credited Zero for his work, saying that he, not she, was the true hero of the story.
If, as they said in It’s a Wonderful Life, “every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings,” the bells surely were ringing this December, because two human angels got their wings, and a young dog got a second chance at a wonderful life herself. Your support for the Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary enables it to do everything possible on behalf of rescued dogs like Binti.
Twelve Puppies and Two Pregnant Strays Rescued Because Passersby Acted Quickly
December 2021
The last few weeks of 2021 were extremely busy at the Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary – with puppies! Believe it or not, many of our rescues are initiated by Good Samaritans: passers-by that see an emaciated, pregnant dog, or two puppies in an abandoned house, or a box with a rock on top of it in an unusual spot or out-of-the way location.
These are real stories in which someone saw something, had a gut feeling, and thought to act immediately.
In late November, two tiny, six-week-old dachshund-mix puppies were found in an abandoned house in Amarillo, TX. Their rescuer drove them over four hours to the safety of the Sanctuary. They resided with us for a few weeks before adoption.
The dachshunds were immediately followed by two seven-week-old female Lab mixes found in a northern New Mexico town – in a closed box with a rock on top of it. Local residents noticed the box and investigated. Upon discovering what was inside, they immediately called the Sanctuary. After spending a few weeks with us, the two little sisters were scooped up and adopted quickly – by two sisters! – resulting in a heartwarming victory for all involved. A new family of four!
Unfortunately, these stories are all too common. A year ago, a rancher on a mesa noticed a closed box, also with a rock on top of it. He looked inside and found seven one-month-0ld puppies. He took all of them to the Sanctuary just in time; in two days they would have perished. Just prior to that, a puppy was found on a nearby country road, similarly in a closed box that seemed out of place given the surroundings. The Sanctuary took this adorable puppy in as well.
Faced with a slightly different set of circumstances, a woman in southern New Mexico called the Sanctuary after finding eight tiny Border Collie mix puppies, only two weeks old, after their mother was killed and one sibling sadly had already passed away. She drove them to our care just before Christmas, and we fed them with syringes until we were confident that they were eating enough on their own.
All eight puppies were scooped up by adopters by the end of the first week in January.
To close out 2021, the Sanctuary participated in the safe rescue of two very pregnant dogs, struggling to survive. Before either gave birth, the Good Samaritan that noticed the dogs, along with a driver hired by the Sanctuary, managed to get both dogs to safety in Colorado, where they and their puppies will find forever homes. Both mother dogs gave birth within two days, and many lives were saved!
If you find yourself in a situation like any of the ones described here, please get in touch with Natalie at the Sanctuary immediately. We will do whatever it takes.