i am just going to shoot this out in the open on behalf of all shelters and rescues

because it is something none of us like talking about....missing stuff. we don't like talking about it because mostly it is truly great people who's memories might be as bad as mine is and just forget to return things. but it impacts us by draining our resources and taking up even more of our time.

the fact of the matter is...stuff disappears and just one something here and there, eventually ends adding up to a lot of stuff that is no longer here. i bet 89% of the time, it is borrowed for a sick or new pet or one of our fosters when they are close to the end and we gladly want to help out as much as we can. i think 10% simply gets lost somewhere around here where we can never find it because it is not put back where it belongs, and probably only 1% of the time is stuff (or money) actually intentionally stolen (but still even 1% is horrible because stealing from homeless animals is pretty damn low.)

the real problem is the borrowed or misplaced stuff which is innocent of any evil doing but still never makes it back to where we can use it again. and that means when we suddenly need it for someone or something around here..i have to go out and spend the money to buy it AGAIN. i can't even count how many ramps, collapsing cages, xpens, dog beds, cat traps, hip lifters, tools, or what have you that have disappeared into the black abyss over the years..i can't even tell you how many hundreds or maybe even in 10 years, the thousands of dollars, we have spent to replace stuff that we at some point actually once had and do need for the animals here (i am not talking about the stuff i give away, because we don't use it here..i am talking about the stuff that is borrowed that we would like to get back.)

right now we are looking for our new instamatic camera that we bought a couple of months ago to keep the animal area bulletin boards up to date with which animals are in each area...i know it is around here somewhere but we cannot find it anywhere. if anyone has seen it poking thru a spot on a some shelf..please let me know..i really do not want to have to spend a hundred and fifty bucks on another one!

anyway. since we are looking for that camera...this is the perfect opportunity to say something that needs to be said...not just for us but for all shelters and rescues out there. shelters and rescues are pretty convenient places to borrow stuff from because most likely we do have whatever it is that someone may need. but PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, if it is going to be long term or forever..just keep borrowed stuff for a short time until you can buy your own and then as soon as you can return it so we don't have to waste time and money shopping or gawd forbid, turn into some kind of selfish scrooges that refuse to lend a helping hand or a temporary loan of a piece of equipment...we'd all feel pretty shitty being selfishly unhelpful like that.