Going Home: Lily

Happy Feline Friday!

Berkeley Humane has some incredible events coming up: if you're looking for a new pet you won't want to miss Maddie's Pet Adoption Days this weekend, and if you're a fan of beer you won't want to miss Pints for Paws next weekend. 

More information about these events is further below. First, let's take a moment of appreciation for a lovely, happy feline.

Robyn Hoke wrote in to share some pictures of her beautiful cat Lily (who went by the moniker Chicklet when she was with Berkeley Humane). 

Just wanted you to see how beautiful little Chicklet (now Lily) turned out. She turned 2 in November and she's such a character. She puts on shows for us, dropping to the ground and rolling around to show off how cute she is. When she's not performing for us, she's usually snuggling with us or her kitty brother, Frankie. 

She's a very special girl. Thank you for taking care of her. 

Robyn, it is our pleasure to have been a part of Lily's life. Thank you for the update on how well she's doing!


Looking for a friend? This is a great weekend to adopt a pet at Berkeley Humane: Maddie's Pet Adoption Days are here! That means free adoptions on Saturday and Sunday!  This is a chance to unite a record number of adoptable pets with welcoming homes. Visit us this weekend to meet some amazing dogs and cats!

After the thrill of Maddie's Pet Adoption Days, we aren't letting the excitement die down: Saturday, June 6 is our second annual Pints for Paws event! "Pints" equals 80 craft brews from 20 craft breweries, and "Paws" means that Berkeley Humane animals benefit from 100% of ticket sales! It's a great event with live music, delicious beer, and good company. Crowd-friendly dogs are welcome! Head to our website to buy tickets.

Going Home: Molly

Happy Woof Wednesday! We’re delighted to share a lovely update on another former resident of Berkeley Humane.

Meet Molly (formerly known as Winn Dixie). We think this fun photo of this adventurous little pup says it all! Here is what her adopter, Ivy Tran, told us in a note:

“Look at how happy Winn Dixie (now named Molly) is! She is the perfect dog and we love her so much!”

A big thanks to Ivy for keeping us updated. Molly looks like she’s having a great time, and we hope you have many fun, wild adventures together!

This weekend, May 30 and 31, are Maddie's Pet Adoption Days, during which we'll waive 100% of the adoption fees! Stop by Berkeley Humane between 10am and 4pm to meet our wonderful adoptable cats, dogs, kittens, and puppies. Check out some of the cats and dogs who might be looking for new homes during the event.

You can also visit our website to learn more about both this exciting event and Maddie's Fund, which makes this Maddie's Pet Adoption Days possible.

Maddie's Pet Adoption Days: May 30 and 31!

Welcome to Feline Friday: the best way to ease into Caturday.

We interrupt our usual Friday cat focus to share wonderful news that benefits all adoptable felines and canines at Berkeley Humane.

Next weekend, May 30 and 31, are Maddie's Pet Adoption Days, during which we'll waive 100% of the adoption fees! Stop by Berkeley Humane Saturday and Sunday between 10-4 to meet our wonderful adoptable cats, dogs, kittens, and puppies. 

Visit our website to learn more about both this exciting event and Maddie's Fund, which makes Maddie's Pet Adoption Days possible.

While you're on our website, check out some of the cats and dogs who might be looking for love during Maddie's Pet Adoption Days. 

  
Here's resident superkitty Catgirl, for example, posing for photographer Michael Goldberg.

We hope to see you May 30 and 31 at Berkeley Humane! 

Going Home: Jerome

Happy Woof Wednesday!

Woof Wednesday is a great day to put on our party hats, enjoy some cake or dog biscuits (depending on your species), and celebrate the May birthday of a Berkeley Humane alum.

Jerome the dog may have been born in the Bay but he now lives the good life in Oklahoma. His proud adopter Judith Leroux Martin got in touch to celebrate Jerome's eighth birthday and to show us how loved he is.

"Jerome wanted to say "hi" on his 8th birthday! My husband got him from Berkeley Humane when he was 4 months old. He is possibly the best dog in the world."

Thanks for inviting us to Jerome's virtual birthday party, Judith! We're so happy that you found the best dog in the world at Berkeley Humane. Cheers to eight happy years together, and may there be many more.


If you adopted the best pet in the world, please get in touch and tell us about it! We love it when happy adoption stories are posted to our Facebook page.

Help animals! Drink beer!

Throughout May, enjoying a pint of refreshing Pyramid Alehouse beer means helping adoptable animals!

This week's featured pint is the Dopplebock. The memories don't end at the bottom of the glass: for $1 extra you can take home the special Berkeley Humane pint glass.

Fifty percent of every pint helps Berkeley Humane. So drink up and do some good!

Less Talk More Touch: What's Your Dog Saying to You?

Guest post by: Erica Feuerbacher, PhD, of Carroll College Anthrozoology Program (Facebook)

via Flickr creative commons

Hi Mia and Julie,
 
Like you and your readers, much of my energy is devoted to my dogs’ happiness. I can identify a plethora of things they do that make me happy and I want to know what makes them happy; I explore this in my research. What types of human interactions do dogs prefer and under what circumstances? Knowing this might help us understand how to produce and maintain better bonds with our dogs. 

Two common ways of interacting with our dogs are petting or verbally praising them. My collaborator, Clive Wynne (@caninecognition), and I decided to ask dogs which of these interactions they prefer. 

Schematic and dimensions of the room arrangement for concurrent choice procedures. The drawing is approximately to scale and the room dimensions based on those of the room at the shelter.

We gave dogs a choice between two concurrently available options and measured whether they spent more time with one than the other—and how much more—as common way to measure preference. One assistant provided petting whenever the dog was near her, and another assistant provided vocal praise whenever the dog was near her. The dog was free to interact (or not interact) with either person for ten minutes. To test whether the dog really preferred the specific interaction and not just that specific person, we had the two assistants switch interactions halfway through the session. That is, the person providing petting switched to providing only vocal praise and vice versa. If the dog preferred petting in the first five minutes of the session, would the dog switch to the other person who was now providing petting?