Tailwaggers doing a doggone good job saving dogs and cats

An increasing number of cats and dogs in the Siloam Springs Animal Shelter found new homes or were returned to their owners in 2014 thanks to Tailwaggers.

Last year Tailwaggers found new homes for 267 cats and dogs and helped reconnect 262 pets with their owners, according to an annual report released by the nonprofit. The numbers are up from 253 adoptions and 226 reclaimed pets in 2013.

Since Tailwaggers was founded seven years ago, the number of animals the organization helped has risen each year, said director Tina Berrios. The organization is dedicated to improving the lives of pets through education, promoting spaying and neutering, and promoting adoption from the Siloam Springs and Gentry animal shelters.

Of the animals that were adopted in 2014, 187 were dogs, 80 were cats. The animals reclaimed by their owners included 247 dogs and 15 cats, Berrios said. A total of 28 animals were transported outside of northwest Arkansas for adoptions, including 25 dogs and three cats.

Tailwaggers provides money to pay the medical bills of injured or sick animals that come into the animal shelters, Berrios said. In the past those animals were euthanized because the shelters don't have enough money in the budget for medical treatment.

The organization also provides funding to lower adoption fees, which cover spay and neutering and immunizations, so more animals can find new homes. Tailwaggers volunteers help make animals more adoptable by spending time walking dogs and socializing cats so they will be ready to go to new homes.

Tailwaggers' Facebook page has been an important tool to help lost animals find their owners and abandoned animals find new homes, Berrios said.

The group's efforts have drastically reduced the number of animals that are euthanized, Berrios said. Last year, only six dogs in the Siloam Springs Animal Shelter were put down due to space. The numbers for cats are more grim. One-hundred-fifty cats were euthanized; 50 percent of them were feral, she said.

During 2014, Tailwaggers spent a total of $7,447.97. The expenditures included $400.66 spent at the Gentry Animal Shelter, $1,554.42 for medical expenses, $1,900 for reduced price spay and neutering, and $790 to transport animals to adopters outside of northwest Arkansas.

More than $400 was spent for supplies for the Gentry Animal Shelter and more than $730 was spent for supplies at the Siloam Springs Animal Shelter.

All of Tailwaggers' funding comes from donations, Berrios said. The organization has fundraisers throughout the year, including a poker run, a 5K race, and a "Pouring Cats and Dogs" wine tasting event. Tailwaggers will also be soliciting donations through a flier that will be included in city water bills in February, Berrios said.

In addition to providing donations, supporters can also help Tailwaggers by logging the distance they walk their pets on a smartphone app called Wooftrax. Wooftrax donates money to a shelter or rescue of the user's choice each time participants walk their dog. "The more money we make, the faster they (animals in the shelter) go out the door," Berrios said.

Berrios' goals for 2015 include increasing the number of cats that are adopted or reclaimed. Eighty-five percent of cats that come into the Siloam Springs Animal Shelter don't have microchips, which are key to helping shelter staff reconnect them with their owners, Berrios said. She hopes to encourage owners to microchip their pets, especially cats, during the annual "Chip 'n Dip" event held in March.

Another strategy Berrios has to improve the number of cats that find new homes is to raise money to spay and neuter feral cats and adopt them as barn cats.

She also hopes to raise more money in 2015 to help people who personally rescue animals and foster them until they find new homes pay for medical expenses.

Tailwaggers works closely with the staff at the Siloam Springs Animal Shelter. The shelter has opened their arms to allow Tailwaggers to volunteer, Berrios said.

"They put so much effort into trying to help animals," Berrios said.

Employees even take sick baby animals home to give them round-the-clock attention, she said.

"They are a really, really good group of people to work with," Berrios said.

For more information about Tailwaggers visit their website at www.tailwaggersnwa.org or the Tailwaggers Siloam Springs Facebook page.