Are you an animal lover who would like to help pets in need locally? You're in luck. Dog and cat lovers from all over Orange County will be gathering June 26th from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Newland House Museum grounds in Huntington Beach for the 2nd Annual “Pups and Pinot” event, a food-and-wine tasting event set to raise money to help fund the efforts of A Leg Up Rescue.
Dogs are welcome to join in the fun with a costume contest and a Best In Show award. Weenie dog races, entertainment, a magician and live and silent auctions round out the evening's fun festivities so grab your pup and have fun while supporting a great cause. Tickets are $30 per person for advance sales and $35 the day of the event.
Who is A Leg Up? They are a statewide group who rescue pets via local people and network for services and placement. “They also pull dogs from local shelters and get them locally adopted,” says Administrative Director Gisela Campagne.
The biggest challenge in helping endangered animals today, according to Campagne, is “trying to save as many pets as we possibly can. We are hoping for spay and neuter laws to go into effect. We just need more homes for everybody and it takes up to several months to find homes. Most (pets) are on their last leg. We also rescue strays with medical attention, even if a shelter says there is no hope.”
A Leg Up Rescue is a nonprofit 501c3 organization dedicated to rescuing dogs and cats from life-threatening situations, then nurse them to health while fostering and placing animals in new homes that have been checked out to be good environments for them.
Animals rescued are either in danger of being euthanized in animal shelters, neglected or abused, or taken from the public so they are not moved from space to space or collected and sold to research labs by "bunchers," who gather groups of pets to sell for research.
An estimated 600,000 dogs and cats are put to death in California, with just one of Orange County's shelters accounting for 15,000 of that number in 2010.
A Leg Up believes adopting a pet is a lifelong commitment and want to help, but their biggest need is funding. The funding is 100% towards the care and medical needs of the pets rescued. Every pet is chipped, neutered or spayed, receives vaccinations, and other health issues are addressed. But perhaps the best news for Fido is that all pets are in the system for life so if a pet is adopted out and lose their home they can be re-homed.
For those who wish to attend the event the Newland House is located at 19822 Beach Boulevard, Huntington Beach.
For more information on the event, go to http://www.pupsnpinot.com/ and anyone who would like to help via donations or providing a foster home for pets can contact Gisela Campagne at: 714-328-8661 or email campagne123@socal.rr.com
Story by: Jennifer Patalsky, Freelance Writer, HBcool.com
