June 15, 2018
The Longest Winter
It occurred to me a few weeks ago that last winter started in mid-November and didn’t really end until mid-April. So, in Ottawa, we endured a full six months of winter. It was the longest winter that I recall. But now that the weather is finally warm, we are all pretty happy to finally get out and enjoy the outdoors.
At the OHS, our happiness at the better weather is tempered by the dramatic increase in the numbers of animals that need our care. A lot of animal issues are seasonal and weather-dependent. The late spring has meant a late “busy season” this year, so we are still gearing up and bracing for the boxes of kittens brought to us, the rescues from neglect, the dogs left in hot cars, and the many more injured animals needing care, as our intake of animals that need our care rises from a dozen or so animals a day to as many as 40.
Unfortunately, the warmer months are also a time where donations to the animals drop off precipitously as the people who care and support all that we do for animals go to the cottage, travel, or are busy with all the other things that make spring and summer so great.
So, please, enjoy the warm, get outside, soak up the sun. Lord knows, we all deserve it. But once and a while, please think of the animals here at the OHS. They need your help all the more when the weather is nice.
Bruce Roney
Executive Director