Peanut Pet Shelter Helping People Angel Notion, one of our community's most important charitable organizations, has just put out an urgent call for help. The last few months in this area have been awful for most Playenses, with layoffs galore, no work and no money. Angel Notion has been made aware of a number of local families with pregnant mothers who need the most basic of life's necessities: Food. We too want to help so we are asking our Wash Day visitors if they could please bring with them an item or two.  We can then deliver these to Angel Notion and any other donations that people can give. Here is the list of food items they are in desperate need of: fresh fruits and vegetables extra calcio milk. lactose free (deslactosada) milk, light, semi, entero Cal-C-Tose (dried milk) Cal-C-Tose (chocolate) jamaica cereal oatmeal dried fruit and nuts pasta sardines olive oil peanut butter multi-grain bread Bottled water - Nestle, Bonafant and others - not Electropura or Cristal natural, sugar free yogurt butter cheese eggs Might we also suggest also gift cards or vouchers as most of the food most needed is perishable and there is little storage for this at Angel Notion. You fill the fridge and cupboards for a week, but it's an ongoing need Those of you in our online community can help by going to: http://www.angelnotion.org/

MARVET Visits the Peanut Pet Shelter -  www.marvet.org   Students studying as part of the MARVET 2009 Workshop in Playa del Carmen (July 8 - 18) volunteered their services at Peanut Pet Shelter last Saturday. The students participated in washing, parasite removal and Rabies vaccination for the dogs currently at the shelter.   One of Marvet's purposes is to acquaint student's with the concept of 'One Health', which combines human medicine, veterinary medicine and ecosystem health. For more info visit www.marvet.org   We at Peanut Pet Shelter are pleased and proud to have had the opportunity to meet and spend time with the delightful and hard working students of the MARVET 2009 Workshop and their wonderful tutors, Raymond Tarpley (Marvet Founder), Petra Cunningham Smith and David Smith. For more photos click here: Playa.Info

Exciting Peanut Pet Shelter News- Big Announcement !! Peanut Pet Shelter has received a generous donation of land to be used for two specific purposes:   1. A spay/neuter clinic   2. A cat sanctuary Our wonderful benefactor is an ardent cat lover and like ourselves is overwhelmed with sadness for those domestic cats, that for whatever reason, lose their homes.   The Peanut Pet Shelter Cat Sanctuary will not be a traditional shelter and no cats will be kept in cages or pens. It will instead be a cat 'Haven', where cats can live a natural life whilst still enjoying the comfort of shelter, shade, freely available food and water, medical attention and of course those much needed cuddles!   The purpose of the Peanut Pet Shelter Clinic will be to provide free spay & neuter for the animals of those local people who otherwise would not be able to afford this. Many wonderful vets and associations already provide this at certain times of the year. It is intended that the Peanut Pet Shelter clinic will provide this service on a permanent basis.   In 2007, Peanut Pet Shelter was asked by the local municipality to help them, in a humane way, overcome the problem of the vast number of animals living on the streets of Playa del Carmen. The Peanut Pet Shelter clinic will enable us to take that commitment to the next level.   One female dog and her offspring can produce 67,000 dogs in 6 years   One female cat and her offspring can produce 370,000 kittens in 7 years   There is obviously much groundwork that needs to be done. We are currently in contact with other well established charities both in Mexico and U.S. who are very much in support of this project. We will keep you posted.   If you or your business would be interested in becoming a Peanut Pet Shelter Share-the-Care Partner in this fundraising project, please contact us at info@peanutpetshelter.org for more information.   Our very first Share the Care Project partner is Lori Dean, who has very generously donated the costs of her Dream Vacation win back to the Shelter.   More Great News!!   Peanut Pet Shelter is now able to offer it's donors the benefit of 501(c)(3) tax exemption. Peanut Pet Shelter's own 501(c)(3) (Federal) application is currently in process, but through our connection with NACER, we are able to provide this tax benefit with immediate effect.   The changes will shortly appear on the 'Donate' page.   NACER (www.NACER.org) is an amazing organization that has given Peanut Pet Shelter help, support and encouragement virtually from the start and in our early days a generous NACER donation enabled us to spay & neuter all the animals that were in our care at that time.   As always, we would like to take the opportunity to thank all our wonderful Peanut Pet Shelter 'Friends'. Your warm and generous spirits sustain us.   Andy, Jen and the Peanut Pet Shelter Board

Peanut Pet Shelter Dog Susha Saves the Day. Our friend Maureen forwarded the following email regarding Susha (formerly Sushi). Here are the details....... I think you are going to be thrilled to hear this story. The other night Alex was sleeping in Beverlys house as his bodega isnt quite ready for him to move in. Around 3 in the morning, Susha started barking until Alex woke up. There was a fire in the Bodega. Thank goodness for Susha as the bodega is very close to a gas tank plus as you know Beverlys place is not far from the gas station. In fact, guys from the station saw the fire and came over to help put it out. Alex did not have to call the fire department and not alot of damage-although his new tv was ruined. Jim is sure it was an electrical fire. Alex received some minor burns but all in all if could have been much much worse if it hadnt been for Susha. So Susha is a hero! Monica

Cross Border Adoptions - It's Easier Than You Think !         Ciaron and Nikki Lewis We recently adopted a dog from the Peanut Pet Shelter and I could not believe how easy the process was. My wife and I had considered getting a second dog for sometime, but it would have to be the right kind of dog to complement our family. Our boy TJ is 5 1/2 years old and we did not want to bring a puppy into the picture or another male dog that would challenge him for dominance. Trust me, that would not go well. When we first saw Roxi at the shelter back in January she was curled up in a little ball away from the rest of the dogs. She would never come to us and was extremely timid. When we came back in May, she was still there…the little black ball. We got to interact with her more and she started to respond. This was not a dog with issues, she just need some love and guidance. Once she trusted us, we could see that she had a wonderful calm/submissive playful energy about her. Perfect match for our boy TJ. There where so many other great dogs there, but she really struck a chord with us. Done deal as far as we were concerned….now how the heck do we get her back to Canada with us? My wife was staying in Playa del Carmen for the month, but I had to go back after 2 weeks because of work. Now my wife’s original flight was with US Air with a 4 hour stop over in Charlotte. This would not do as it is too long a stop over . So I researched a few airlines and found that Air Canada had direct flights on the weekends and they do fly pets as claimed baggage. So I booked Nikki on a Sunday flight and reserved the space for Roxi. There were a couple of conditions, and these can change from airline to airline. 1.    Animal and kennel combined weight can not exceed 70 lbs. Other wise you will need to fly the animal as live cargo on a separate flight. 2.    Only 3 pets per flight allowed, individuals are only allowed 2 pets personally. So this can impact your booking if there are already 3 pets on the plane that day. 3.    You must be on the same flight as the animal. The shelter prefers this but can make arrangements for other supporters visiting the area to have your adopted pet fly with them. 4.    Must have up to date vet papers showing rabies vaccination. – All Peanut Pet Shelter animals have up to date shots and vet papers. 5.    There are times of the year where most airlines will not fly animals due to ground temperature being too hot or too cold. Air Canada will not fly pets from late June – September in certain areas as they animal will have to spend some time on the tarmac before being loaded on the plane. Again, check with your airline of choice on the different conditions when flying with a pet. Booking was simple. I bought a ticket for my wife and reserved a spot for Roxi. I was instructed my wife would have to pay for Roxi’s way upon arriving at the Cancun airport. The cost depends on the size of the animal and can vary airline to airline. The agent told me we could pay in either Canadian or US dollars with no exchange rate applied. My wife ended up paying in Pesos which the Air Canada airport rep gladly accepted. On travel day Nikki and Roxi arrived at the Cancun airport with Andy from the Peanut Pet Shelter. He was there to ensure the whole process ran smoothly with no hassles, which there were none. Andy then took Nikki and Roxi to the Air Canada counter and they were processed immediately before everyone else in line. Then an Air Canada representative escorted my wife and Roxi to the security processing area. Andy was still with them every step of they way. In the security area they had my wife walk through the metal detector (as normal) and then they ask the dog to be brought out of the kennel. The kennel was searched and Roxi was loaded back in. The airport officials carefully loaded the Roxi on to the conveyer belt which slowly took her to the loading area. Nikki and Andy then went back to the Air Canada check in desk, again ahead of the line. The Air Canada rep escorted my wife to the cashier where she paid for Roxi’s flight. Then it was back to the Air Canada check in desk for the boarding passes, and with that, Nikki and Roxi were on their way to Toronto. We can not thank Andy enough for everything he and his wife Jen did to make the whole process run as smooth as possible. Upon arrival at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Nikki went from the plane to the immigration as normal, no special process, then off to baggage claim where she pick up her baggage and then Roxi who was waiting in a side room off the main baggage claim area. Once she had the bags and kennel she was off to Customs so that Roxi’s vet papers could be inspected. For this process she was asked to pay about $30.00 CDN fee. Depending on the airport this fee can vary. After this it was off to our home to introduce Roxi to her new home and our boy TJ. THERE IS NO REQUIREMENT TO QUARATINE  DOGS AND CATS TRAVELLING FROM MEXICO TO CANADA OR THE  U.S.A. AS LONG AS YOU HAVE SIGNED VET PAPERS STATING UP TO DATE VACINATIONS. The whole process at the airports took no more than 10 extra minutes on each side. Nikki kept saying, “If I had known it was going to be this easy we would have adopted  sooner.” It has been a week and Roxi has settled in nicely to her new Canadian home. TJ and her are now best buds and do not let each other out of their sight. Roxi is adapting to her new life amazingly, she walks well on leash, plays wonderfully and socializes well with other dogs. I have even taken her to our local dog park and she loves it. The once timid little black ball we saw at the Peanut Pet Shelter is now a happy, confident, sweet, playful poochie who now has a forever home with us and our pack. I could not ask for a better outcome for this sweet little Mexican street dog and our family. For more information on how to adopt a Peanut Pet Shelter dog or cat - Contact Us. Here are a few photos of our new girl Roxi and our big boy TJ.

Impact of the H1N1 Virus on the Peanut Pet Shelter  Firstly, there are no cases of H1N1 virus in Playa del Carmen, Mexico where the Peanut Pet Shelter is located but this has not stopped the International media from scaring everyone from travelling to this wonderful part of the world. This has greatly impacted the shelter as this has prevented many of our supporters and tourists from coming to Playa del Carmen and bringing much needed donations/medications. This source of support has immediately dried up and we are not sure this issue will be resolved in the foreseeable future. The negative impact on the community here has been described as being worse than three hurricanes combined. Honest hard working families that rely on the tourism trade for their living are really suffering and so are the animals of this region as some families that can no longer afford to keep their animals are simply abandoning them on the streets. Just to give you an idea of the ongoing operating costs of the Peanut Pet Shelter here are some numbers: To feed 80 dogs and 3 new cats the bill comes to $1800.00 USD per month Vet bills can range from $100.00 - $1000.00 USD per month Additional operating costs year to date are 8660.00 USD Immediate Need: Ticks are real major problem here and are causing major health issues for the animals in this area. Ticks cause Ehrlichiosis which is a deadly disease for animals. Some of our dogs have come down with this disease and unfortunately have died. For more information on Ehrlichiosis click here. All 80 of the shelters dogs will need doses of Doxycycline . We wash the dogs with a certain soap and dip treatment to help control the tick infestation. Manual removal of ticks from the dogs is carried out every wash day but within a couple of days they are infested again. In order to prevent the dogs from coming down with this potentially deadly disease they must be given doses of Doxycycline for 21 days and this will need to be done every three months. That works out to be over $5000.00 USD per year. Plus we will need to fumigate the shelter every month with a special formula that will kill the ticks but not harm the animals at an additional cost of $3600.00 USD per year. How you can help: We need your help by either donations and/or by soliciting your local vets for medications, specifically Doxycycline. Please download and print the following letter and forward it to your vet and send it out to every vet you can find in your local Yellow Pages. If the vets have any further questions please have them contacts us at info@peanutpetshelter.org Click Here to Download the Vet Letter. Click Here to make a Donation to assist with the purchase of Doxycycline. Those of you that are coming to the Playa del Carmen area can help by transporting donated medications. Contact us and we can help coordinate with those donating meds. A Special Thank You to Dr. Glenn Kauppila for donating 5000 doses. Glenn and his wife also dedicate there time to: IGCA Rescue Representative Upper Michigan and Northern Wisconsin Italian Greyhound Rescue http://www.italiangreyhound.org You can also help by assisting us with feeding the animals. Click here to make a Food Donation. All donations go directly to the care of the animals, there are no paid staff employed by Peanut Pet Shelter. If you are in the Playa del Carmen area attend our Wash Days which are held every Saturday, Shuttle provided in front of the MEGA on Constituyentes. Please email us at info@peanutpetshelter.org to let us know you will be attending. We will also appreciate any folks that would like donate some of their time to assist us with the daily activities. If you were planning a trip to Playa del Carmen and had to cancel please rebook as it is perfectly safe and encourage all you know to book their next vacation here. Thank you for your kindness, it means the world to us and the dogs and cats at the Peanut Pet Shelter.

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