Monthly Archives March 2021

Best Friends

My sister Alex and I decided to stop in and browse the animals one afternoon. One dog in particular caught our eye. She was petite, oddly quiet among her howling companions, and had the sweetest brown eyes I’ve ever seen. We were asked if we wanted to take her for a stroll, and we figured why not?! It was a sunny day and a dog walk would be fun. What we didn’t anticipate is that we would be unable to stop thinking about her all night long. We rushed back the next day—simply put, this was our dog. We were
Read More

Cut Up Dog Found in Ypsilanti – Tips Wanted

Ann Arbor, MI (March 27, 2021) — An Ypsilanti family is desperate for answers on what happened to their dog. Their 12-year-old terrier was found dead on the side of Ecorse Road, just off Michigan Avenue on Monday, March 22. The owners said he’d been missing for four days, last seen at 7 a.m. on Thursday, March 18 at their residence about 2 ½ miles away, in the Ypsilanti area of Chevrolet Street and Zephyr Avenue. He was reportedly in their backyard on a tie-out, and when the family came home from the hospital at 3 p.m. on March 18,
Read More

Blankets for the Animals

The students at St. Michael Lutheran are kind kids indeed! The third through eighth grade students donated blankets for our dogs and cats as part of a service project because HSHV is their favorite humane society. We know that our animal residents will love to cuddle up with their soft and cozy new blankets. Thank you so much for your kind donation, St. Michael Lutheran!
Read More

Ypsilanti Resident Charged with Animal Cruelty, Sentenced to Probation 

Ann Arbor, MI (March 26, 2021) — After pleading “no contest” to animal cruelty, on February 18, 2021, the Honorable Judge Erane Washington sentenced Ypsilanti Resident Connie Denham to one year probation and over $5,000 in restitution fees. In late December 2019, Animal Cruelty Investigators from the Humane Society of Huron Valley (HSHV) executed a search warrant on Denham’s residence, following a tip from another case. The property was infested with cockroaches, littered with excrement, and inhabited by Denham, an older adult, and six dogs. With fur caked in feces and urine, the dogs were so matted that they had
Read More

Life of Riley

In April 2020, we adopted Riley. She was 103 pounds, had bald spots the vet didn’t think would grow back and she was suffering from allergies. She loved to walk, however she was tuckered out after one mile. For the first few months, Riley was at the vet every few weeks for allergies and infections from constant licking. Flash forward one year later.. Riley is 80ish pounds, her coat is healthy, her hair grew back and with the help of some homeopathic remedies, her allergies are under control. Riley can now walk for miles and recently went on a 3
Read More

We Waited for the One

I’ve wanted a cat all my life. When my fiancé and I got together, there were some allergy issues with our children and we couldn’t have an animal. Flashforward, our children are now teens and allergies are almost non existent! We applied to dozens of shelters and rescues and I often visited HSHV website for new animals that would work for our family. I never heard back from any of the places we’d applied to. We had several heartbreaks, when animals we fell in love with were adopted from right under us. I thought we may never find a cat.
Read More

Animal “refugees”?

Ecologists, conservationists and other scientists argue that we are on the brink of experiencing the world’s first mass extinction event since the time of the dinosaurs.  But while previous mass extinctions have occurred due to dramatic natural events like volcanic eruptions and meteor strikes, the next mass extinction will likely be the result of human activity’s impact on the environment. Continuous land development and human sprawl is undoubtedly one of the leading factors in our current extinction problem.  Every time we clear land for a new subdivision or strip mall we are destroying a habitat and creating animal refugees who
Read More

Deer Doctor makes a virtual house call to Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI (March 12, 2021) – In 2015, Ann Arbor City Council approved a four-year deer management plan including shooting deer in city limits; 2020 was the fifth year. To date, Ann Arbor has spent over $750,000 on deer management, including $469,700 to contracted sharpshooters who have also been counting the deer. In 2020, their aerial survey counted 137 deer in the city, versus 224 the year previous. “As a community leader faced with the impact of deer damage in parks, yards, and gardens, and conflict among your constituents regarding an effective solution, you are not alone,” writes Sandy Baker,
Read More

Emery Loves Animals

Emery is such a kind kid! She had her birthday here at HSHV because she loves animals. She donated towels, food, bags, and blankets. Thank you for helping our animals, Emery!
Read More

Why all the barking?

“How do I stop my dog from barking?”  is a common question trainers get. To answer that, the first things we need to know are 1) in what type of situations is your dog barking, and 2) what need are they trying to meet? Dogs bark for a lot of reasons: boredom, fear, attention, excitement, etc.  In any of these cases, the focus shouldn’t be on stopping the behavior, but instead, thinking about meeting the dog’s need before the barking starts.  For good tips on addressing different types of barking, check out this blog post: https://positively.com/dog-behavior/nuisance-behaviors/barking/ Avoid devices or methods
Read More