The Lily Pond 501(c)(3) ANIMAL SANCTUARY AND GARDENS

Autumn 2019 Newsletter

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How lucky we have been to enjoy such a mild and multi-hued Autumn, with sunny days and bright blue skies. The sanctuary has been aglow with red and gold leaves, first on the trees and then blanketing the ground in a carpet of color. The fruit of the apple trees ripened into a burnished red and the sunsets reflected the glory of Autumn splendor in the still waters of the pond. The geese have taken flight, heading in a southerly direction at the same time that a

bear surprised us all by strolling through the property, leaving giant paw prints in the mud. Two foxes - one red and one gray - have been sighted from time to time, and not just by the humans. A silver gray fox came right up to the window of the special needs cat room and peered in, causing quite the stir among the feline denizens. We've been busy building and expanding the horse barn and paddocks. We successfully finished the fourth stall of the barn and put it to use

with the arrival of our senior pony Apache. We then turned our attention to the installation of a run-in shed in the second paddock for Mister Ed. And finally, we are creating a temporary stall in the wash area of the barn to ensure that all five of our horses have a warm and cozy place to sleep when the storms of winter arrive, dropping temperatures below zero. Maintenance has also been a focus of our time these past few weeks. The heavy rains created a mud pit in the two paddocks, so we hauled in truckloads of wood chips and spread them over the high traffic areas, much to the relief of the horses and our caregivers, who risked losing their boots in the sinking river of mud!

The Autumn season has historically been a celebrated time of harvest, abundance and thanksgiving. We want to express our gratitude for all of our friends, donors, caregivers, and volunteers whose kindness and support have allowed us to provide a home for our thirty rescue animals here at the sanctuary. The cats, dogs, and horses who have found a new life at The Lily Pond are the souls that nobody wanted, often advanced in age and coming from various situations of abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Despite their various challenges, they still have so much love to give. We are blessed.

Welcome Home Mister Ed!

It was a sunny day in November when a group of friends gathered to welcome home Mister Ed to The Lily Pond....finally! As many of you know, we adopted this senior quarter horse last May when his previous owner could no longer support his care. At the time, we did not have a place for him in our barn, so our barn manager, Brenda Izzo, offered to foster him. With the help of our wonderful donors, we were able to purchase and install a run-in shed in the paddock. It's been a roller coaster ride caring for this sweet senior with his many health challenges. We put him on a proper diet to get his weight up and to address his problem with heaves, a respiratory condition similar to asthma. He also experienced many close calls over the summer with a painful abscess in his front hoof.

Mister Ed steps off the trailer with the help of Barn Manager Brenda Izzo.

Mister Ed greets the group of friends who came to welcome him home.

Lynn Cross from Little Brook Farm graciously agreed to trailer Mister Ed from his foster home to the sanctuary, where a small gathering of friends were waiting to welcome him and celebrate his homecoming with a champagne toast! Our boy stepped off the trailer to meet the welcoming party and began neighing loudly to the other horses who he still had yet to meet. Brenda walked him around his new paddock and run-in shed to familiarize him with his new surroundings. Then she led him to the barn to meet the other horses. Sammir and Waverly both greeted the newcomer with gentle nuzzles from the window of their barn stalls. In a comical repeat of Apache's arrival

two months ago, April expressed her immense disapproval by throwing a tantrum, turning her back and refusing to say hello. Mister Ed spent a few moments staring at the empty stall window before deciding that an introduction to this sassy senior mare could wait for a more auspicious time. Besides, he was already smitten with the lovely Waverly. Everyone falls in love with our beautiful off-the-track Thoroughbred! We could only guess at the romantic comedy that would ensue as Sammir made it clear that Waverly was his girl and April played the role of the woman scorned once again. Ah... the vagaries of love. Shortly after his arrival, Mister Ed threw a shoe and we once again had an emergency visit from the vet and farrier. Fortunately, he persevered but we made the decision to keep him in a stall for a little while to prevent any more problems from the mud in the paddock and to ensure that his hooves stay dry. We are happy to report that he is doing well in his new home and looks forward to the arrival of his beloved friend Brenda every morning.

Mister Ed greets Sammir, who welcomes his new friend to his new home.

April throws a hissy fit and retreats back into her stall, refusing to interact.

Waverly greets the new arrival, who is already smitten by her dazzling beauty.

Mister Ed would love to have a special person to sponsor him! He's a senior horse who sustained a lot of damage from lack of proper care in his previous life. He requires a special diet and accommodations due to his respiratory and hoof problems. Would you consider befriending this sweet, funny, and charasmatic quarter horse? Sponsors receive a special gift and can visit the sanctuary to spend time in beautiful surroundings with their four-legged friends. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Support Mister Ed

Celebrating Our Pumpkin-Colored Friends! 🎃

The rich colors of the Autumn season and the many pumpkins on display around the neighborhood have inspired us to celebrate two of our pumpkin-colored pets here at the sanctuary!

ABNER is a senior kitty who arrived at The Lily Pond in February 2017. He once had a family who decided they didn't want him anymore and abandoned him on the side of the freeway. They simply pulled into a rest stop, opened the car door so he could jump out, slammed the door and sped away. Abner was left alone and confused in a snow bank in the middle of a cold February day in upstate New York. Fortunately, a kind soul in the parking lot witnessed the heartless act, scooped him up and took him home. Unfortunately, they could not keep him and began contacting rescues. Fortunately, one of the rescues called The Lily Pond to ask if we could accept a friendly neutered cat in need of a home. We immediately agreed. Best decision ever!! With his ready purr, wide staring eyes, and charming personality, this ginger kitty won us over immediately. He is always helpful at mealtimes, hopping up on the counter to step in all the food bowls before we fill them. Abner has always been a little clumsy, often missing the mark and falling flat on his back. We caregivers have learned to act as his safety net, rushing to his side when we notice him preparing to leap. He only has this issue when jumping in an upward direction. Several times, we've seen him at the top of the highest cat tree aiming to jump a long way down to a nearby chair. He sails through the air and always lands successfully into the center of the cushion with a loud plunk! We're also pretty sure there's a saber-toothed tiger in his gene pool judging from the size of his front fangs. Never one to bite, he just shows them off when he sleeps with his mouth wide open. Abner's a big mush who love to snuggle, but it wasn't long before a curious thing began to occur at the cat house. Not only does Abner sleep in the most comical positions, but the other cats seem to think it a good idea to plop right down on top of him and take a nap! We've never seen any of the cats do this to any other cat, but they all seem to agree that Abner is quite a comfy spot upon which to settle down for a lengthy snooze. And Abner doesn't seem to mind either. We wonder if he might have a blinking neon sign over his head only visible to cats that reads "Comfy Pillow Here." Check out these hilarious photos of "Abner the Pumpkin Pillow!" 😊

Toulouse decides that Abner's head would make an ideal pillow.

Watch where you're stepping Destiny!

Abner provides Tristan a furry shoulder to snooze on .

TIG is a senior Cocker Spaniel who arrived at The Lily Pond in September 2018 with his friends Brodie and Jeb. They were a neglect case; former working dogs at a local hunt club who had been left alone in the basement of a condemned house after their owners moved out due to a fire. The three amigos arrived at the sanctuary covered in fleas and matts and Tig's ears were a solid carpet of burrs. Fortunately, our groomer was up to the challenge and all three looked like brand new dogs. We were told that Tig is 15 years old, but he has the energy of a youngster. He is often so excited to go outside that he launches himself in the air, and for just a moment he rather resembles a dog-shaped kite flying high at the end of a leash-shaped string. Tig fancies himself the alpha dog despite being the smallest member of our pack. This is not hard to understand when you consider that he was one of the top bird dogs at the hunt club. He was so famous for flushing out pheasants in large quantity that he earned the nickname "The Boss." Tig arrived at the sanctuary most definitely not housebroken and with little to show in the way of basic obedience skills, but his refusal to chew on toys and instead just carry them around in his mouth harkens back to his training in handling a bird without damaging it. This dog loves to chase a ball, but

Tig "The Boss" in his former life at the hunt club. Photo courtesy of previous owner.

has not quite grasped the protocol of a game of fetch wherein the dog drops the ball so it can be thrown again. Nope. Once Tig has the ball, he's keeping it! Our boy has many other talents, particularly the ability to knock over a water bowl no matter how well-secured. He has a signature technique of running at full speed and pouncing on the bowl such that it launches into showering orbit with a kick of his back foot. He practices daily and we strongly suspect he sets goals for both the number of bowls toppled and the height of the waterfall. 😊

In Loving Memory of Addie and Marta by Susan Bandy

ADELINE was one of the first kitties to arrive at the cat house in November 2016. She was a local who tried to cross a busy road at the exact same time that a car was speeding by. The accident shattered her pelvis and severed her tail. Fortunately, the next car stopped to pick her up off the road and rush her to Sheep Meadow Animal Hospital, where Dr. Patterson performed surgery to put her broken body back together. The operation was successful but left Addie incontinent. Dr. Patterson kept her at the hospital for several months, but no one claimed her. Furthermore, no one was interested in adopting an incontinent cat. That's when we were asked if we could take her and we welcomed her into our family. Addie was full of spunk and would often get the zoomies, zipping around the room so fast that she frequently went crashing into the food bowls. We nicknamed her our Miracle Kitty because of her amazing recovery and her love for life. Over the years, we've had to monitor her health closely due to complications from her accident. Finally, the day came when antibiotics could no longer correct the complications. She was beginning to lose the ability to eliminate due to neurological deterioration. This caused her to stop eating, so we had several emergency trips to the vet. She continued to get worse, losing weight and feeling miserable. Dr. Patterson did everything to stabilize her, but we realized it was a losing battle. Her broken little body was shutting down. With heavy heart, I made the difficult decision to gently assist her over the rainbow bridge at the end of September.

We love you Addie. You were an inspiring example of overcoming odds -- not just surviving but thriving. Thank you for being a beloved part of our family. May you run free, zooming across the starts and swishing your beautiful tail. ❤️🌈💫

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

MARTA was Queen of the Kitchen Sink. In fact, she owned the whole kitchen counter, where she spent her days yelling at us to turn on the faucet. None of the plebeian community water bowls for this gal! She only wanted to drink artisanal waters directly from the source. Marta arrived at the sanctuary from a situation of neglect. Her previous owner was a mentally challenged woman who was evicted from her apartment when the accumulation of garbage and the overflow of sewage alerted the landlord to a problem. Animal Control seized Marta and delivered her to a local humane society. Due to a weepy eye, the shelter decided to euthanize her immediately with no chance for adoption.

Fortunately, a staff member called her friend in animal rescue, who was at the shelter within the hour to save Marta from a dismal fate. The rescue worker called The Lily Pond from her car and we agreed to accept Marta. She only needed a short round of antibiotics to clear up her eye. Upon arrival, Marta immediately staked her claim to the kitchen counter, hovering near the faucet when she wasn't dragging and sloshing water bowls all around the house. We initially nicknamed her "Marta Mermaid" because of her obsession with water, until we realized that Marta's preoccupation with the kitchen faucet was a coping mechanism she developed at her prior home where she was not receiving food or water. Thankfully those days were behind her and she adjusted quickly to life at the sanctuary. Never much a fan of other cats, Marta did love to be pet and cuddled by people.

In the Spring of this year, we began to notice that she was feeling off. When her tummy began to bloat, we rushed her to Sheep Meadow Animal Hospital. The test results showed no cancer or infection, but delivered the devastating confirmation that Marta was in advanced stages of liver failure. We were heart broken and did our best to keep her comfortable over the next few months, routinely having the fluid accumulation in her stomach drained to make it easier for her to breathe. Abner started napping on the counter next to Marta, offering her cuddles and comfort. By early October, Marta began to decline rapidly and we lost our sweet, sassy girl before the month was over. She left a big hole in our hearts and in the cat house. The kitchen isn't the same without her patrolling the counter, making loud demands for the water to flow from the faucet. I smile whenever I think of her quirky habit and sassy attitude, which brings comfort.

Blessings and love to you dear Marta. We are so glad for your time here as part of our family. May you drink from the heavenly fountain of eternal love. ❤️🌈💫

A Special Needs Cat Finds a Special Home

The leaves were just starting to turn color when we received a call from Free To Be Me Rescue ( www.freetobemerescue.org) regarding a cat in need of a home. Otis had previously been adopted through their organization to a very loving home. Sadly, his owner was diagnosed with cancer at the same time Otis was diagnosed with diabetes. The owner relinquished Otis back to the rescue, who found it difficult to find an adopter for a 12-year old cat that requires insulin shots twice a day. As an organization that focuses on providing a home for senior and special needs animals, The Lily Pond agreed to accept Otis. Our senior cat Elliot had just been diagnosed with diabetes a month earlier, so we were already familiar with the administration of daily insulin.

Nancy Kane and Barbara McNamee, two wonderful volunteers from Free to Be Me Rescue, brought Otis to his new home at The Lily Pond and toured the sanctuary, meeting all the cats with whom Otis would be living. The gray and white fellow who stepped out of the carrier was shy but amiable, quietly exploring his new surroundings. His meow sounds like a chirp and we noted that he had already lost some mobility in his hind legs due to the diabetes. Otis walks with a slow shuffle, dragging his back feet behind him. But he is such a champ when it comes to his daily insulin shots!

Upon arrival, Otis seemed a bit depressed, surely missing his beloved previous owner. We gave him lots of cuddles and affection and he slowly started coming out of his shell. Every night we sit on the sofa and cuddle with any of the cats who want affection - so there's usually a whole pile of us. Otis usually hovered nearby until last week when he finally hopped up on the couch to join in the snuggles. We also knew we were making progress when he started eating the cat treats that we give out every evening before bedtime. He ignored them at first, but now happily chomps them down! The other cats have accepted him and we are glad to have Otis as part of our family.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! The pups have sent letters to Santa to let him know how very good they've been all year and how much they sure would appreciate more treats and chew toys...

Looking for a gift for the person who has everything? Consider making a donation or providing a monthly sponsorship for one of our rescued animals in their name! The recipient will receive a certificate of donation acknowledging the contribution in their name and sponsors will receive a special gift from their sponsored animal!

Wishing You a Joyful Holiday Season and Prosperous New Year!

2019 Winner's Circle

A heartfelt THANK YOU to our generous donors, sponsors, and volunteers!

Waverly visits with her wonderful sponsors, Lexie and Scott Clifford!

We are so grateful to the members of our 2019 Winner's Circle who have helped provide a home to animals in need. The Lily Pond Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Our EIN Number is 37-1932175. Donations are tax deductible. Donations can be mailed to: The Lily Pond Sanctuary P.O. Box 325 Ghent, NY 12075 Or click on the below link to support our rescued animals! Give Today

Anonymous (2) Anonymous - in Loving Memory of Lupe Charlotte AuClaire - in Loving Memory of Kylie Brenda & Mark Bachand - in Loving Memory of Benjamin Moore Susan Bandy Gretchen Behr-Svendson Jessica Bernstein - in Loving Memory of Milo Diane Brackett - in Loving Memory of Kidi Kristy Bonnivier Peter Buckbee Vinn Campese - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Frank Castelluccio - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Deirdre Clarke & Christa Rivelli - in Loving Memory of Paris The Clifford Family Barbara Clough Faith Connolly Kathleen Corby - in Loving Memory of Derek, beloved pet of Hanna Fushihara Jerry Crowley - in Loving Memory of Toot Catherine Davis - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Nina Deibel & Alton Anderson - in Loving Memory of Noodle Angela Deleonibus - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Deborah DeSorbo & Kathleen Keating - In Loving Memory of LaceyBug Jason & Kim DiLeo - in Loving Memory of Blondie & Puss Puss Leslie Dornfeld - in Loving Memory of Chumley, beloved pet of the Cochrane-Schwartz Family Bill Dunton Earth Angels Veterinary Hospital - in Loving Memory of Lou Denise & Cody Elmendorf - in Loving Memory of Ali & Annie James Favicchio & Jessica Bidwell - in Loving Memory of Deuce Elsie Fletcher - in Loving Memory of Charles and Hazel Maxwell Gabrielle & Pippin - in Loving Memory of Blondie, Runty, and Tiny Jason Garvey, Jhori, & Heather - in Loving Memory of Kreios Fernanda Gomez - in Loving Memory of Mojo & Bruno Gomez Roxanne Gutierrez - in Loving Memory of Oliver Jessica Handschuh - in Loving Memory of Peekachu Michelle Harrington - in Loving Memory of Oliver Douglas Hartman - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Kelly Hartman - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Amy & Matt Hausmann - in Loving Memory of Moose Michael & LuAnn Hill - in Loving Memory of Fortunate James & Blanca Hipple - in Loving Memory of Nero The Hosier Family - in Loving Memory of Ginger Brenda Izzo Joseph Izzo Morgan Izzo The Jimenez Family - in Loving Memory of Biggie Donna Johnson Nancy Kane Peter Kirker - in Loving Memory of Kitty The Kozel Family - in Loving Memory of Molly Judy Krumpus Glenn Lindsay & Alexis - in Loving Memory of Boogie Colosi Luce - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Antoine Lutens - in Loving Memory of Munchy Jenny & Billy Lysen - in Loving Memory of Bugga Tammy Maddalla - in Loving Memory of Henry Fran Martino - in Loving Memory of Loki Lorna McMurray Barbara McNamee Dr. Steve Naile, DVM Dr. Carrie A. O'Hare - in Loving Memory of Kitten & Pudge John & Suzanne Oliver - in Loving Memory of Pimpus Kim Peschieri - in Loving Memory of Toot Amanda Reed - in Loving Memory of Mojo Patricia Roberto Peter Roberts - in Loving Memory of Whisky Tracey Rostron Amy Seeburger & Misha Korablin - in Loving Memory of Nora Joseph & Tina Shook - in Loving Memory of Duke Sienna Sky LLC Andrea Small Dan Sparks Madaline Sparks & Wayne Greene Jill Spero Stephanie Stanton Mina Stella - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Jacob Stine & Heather McGrath - in Loving Memory of Mya & Maggie Patnalin Sun - in Loving Memory of Anna Castelluccio Richard Tracy & Kathleen Eldridge Lorie & Bart Trotter The Uhnak Family - in Loving Memory of Kali Nancy Van Deren Rosalie Vega - in Loving Memory of Oliver Marlene Vidibor Rose Vining - in Loving Memory of Rupert Jessica Wasserman Theresa Wasula Kristine Waterman - in Loving Memory of Jeenie & Tope Colleen Weed - in Loving Memory of Sidney Ollie Westfall Kaitlin Williams Kelley Williams Ornella Zappa

Mission Statement: The Lily Pond is a 501(c)(3) animal sanctuary that brings people, animals, and nature together in healing partnership. The sanctuary provides a lifetime home and quality care to cats, dogs, horses, and parrots in need.

The Lily Pond Sanctuary, Inc. | (518) 392-3030 | lilypondsanctuary@outlook.com

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