Piggy is a 3-5 year-old terrier mix being fostered for the ACCT by West Philly resident Meagan Coneeny. Through no fault of her own, Piggy was surrendered to the shelter by her family when they were unable to keep her. She must have had a happy home, because she is one of the happiest and most good-natured dogs.

Piggy is a playful and energetic girl, and she loves to play and go for runs and walks, but she’s also very understanding when you need to stay in all day and work, and is very mellow in the house. All she wants to do is cuddle with you all day – she has absolutely no body handling issues. You can hug and squeeze her and give her belly rubs and she just loves it! This is a good sign that she would do well in a house with children. She has been gentle with the few children she has met while she’s been staying with Meagan.

Piggy has been living with two cats and is very good with them. She is friendly, but does not focus or fixate on them. She will curl up next to the older cat in the house sometimes and they will sleep together happily for hours. She is not very food motivated (and never shows food aggression), and has never stolen food or been otherwise destructive in her foster house. She even leaves the cat food alone! Piggy is well housetrained and crate-trained, and is very good with sitting and waiting. She pulls a bit on the leash, but is improving every day.

Piggy is a little picky with her doggie friends, so if you are interested in adopting her and already own a dog, you should schedule a dog meet to see how they get along. Sometimes her energy level can be a little intimidating to other dogs, although there are a few very mellow dogs that she gets along well with.

Please adopt this wonderful girl today! She is healthy, spayed, and up to date on her vaccines, so she is totally ready to go. She would be a fantastic addition to any family – prepare to be loved unconditionally by happiest dog in the universe!

Piggy needs a forever home before Thanksgiving!

Please contact Meagan Coneeny at mconeeny[at]vet.upenn.edu with questions or for more pictures. Adoption information can be found online at http://www.acctphilly.org/.

Reader Lisa has written to us expressing her concern about the increasing number of dogs without leashes in our area. She wrote:

“I’ve been noticing more and more people walking their dogs without leashes. Inside the bowl at Clark Park is an accepted location, but I’m talking about up on the sidewalk, in the north section of the park, and around the neighborhood. I am afraid this is a bad trend, and something bad is going to happen. My dog does not like when other dogs run up to him, even if they are friendly, so we stay out of the bowl. Today I had to leave the park altogether because two large dogs were roaming the sidewalks quite a distance from their apparent owners. How do I know if they are friendly or not, or how close I can get without them trying to meet my dog, or if they will run immediately to their owners if called? There are plenty of children (and adults) who are not fond of dogs either. It is likely that off-leash dogs make them uncomfortable also.

I’m sure the owners think their dogs are perfectly trained, always friendly, and thus special and safe enough to disobey the law. Many may be right, but certainly there are exceptions. Is it really fair to ask me to assume that any off-leash dog must be friendly and safe just because the owner obviously thinks it is? Can a parent be expected to promise their child that the 80 pound dog down the street is not going to run up to her? Everyone has the right to feel safe. That is the point of the leash law. I’m glad owners of social dogs have the bowl to let their animals run, but that should be the only place. What can we do? Post more leash law signs? Ask the police to give out tickets for a while? Or will a few good dog fights or bitten children solve the problem?”

Lisa adds that she does NOT want law enforcement to ticket dogs that are off-leash.  Also, with the number of dogs, it is remarkable how rarely we see missed droppings in the neighborhood.  The community is generally good at that.  However, she does not want “a few overconfident people to mess things up.”

This week’s featured cat is Jax, an adorable 12-14-week-old tuxedo kitten. Jax is currently in the window at Baltimore Pet Shoppe (4532 Baltimore Ave).

This kitten started life rough (in a weed-choked lot in West Philly), but despite that, is a super sweet, loving and trusting little guy. He has a mellow temperament, loves to play with toys, and is always happy to have his belly rubbed or be held for a cuddle.

Jax is neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, dewormed and flea treated. If you would like to meet him please stop by Baltimore Pet Shoppe, where Jax will stay for one more week. He is available for adoption through Project M.E.O.W. To request an online adoption application please email: projectmeowadoptions [at] gmail.com.

Henry, a big grey tabby mix cat (grey with darker grey stripes) has escaped from his home at 5012 Kingsessing Ave.

Henry has a white belly and chest. He is fairly social and usually comes when called by name.

Please contact Christina at 215-514-6630 or Brendan at 267-597-9679 if you see him wandering around the neighborhood.

Here’s a great chance to get your dog or cat vaccinated and examined. A low-cost vaccine clinic will be open this Sunday, Oct. 30, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Penn’s Alpha Psi Veterinary Fraternity (4002 Pine St.).

Members of the community are invited to bring their cats and dogs for physical exams, rabies and distemper vaccines ($10) and microchipping ($20). Flea and tick prevention products ($10), as well as additional vaccines that will be available.

The event marks World Rabies Day. All proceeds will go to benefit the PSPCA and help the homeless and abused animals in Philadelphia.

This week’s featured dog is Violet, a 6-12-month old female American Pit Bull terrier mix with a gorgeous black coat.

Violet ended up at the shelter after wandering the streets of Philadelphia for a while. She was picked up by a nice police officer who was hoping she’d find her family again. No such luck! But surely there is someone out there who would love to bring her home with them.

Violet loves the staff and volunteers at the shelter because they give her attention and treats! She’s relatively easy to walk on the leash and quickly learning new tricks. She did well in her behavior evaluation, but didn’t show much interest in toys or food, she just wanted to explore and get head scratches. She showed a little too much interest in cats so she probably shouldn’t live with them in her new foster or forever home. She did well in her dog meets, they said ‘hi’ and sniffed appropriately. If you have any dogs at home, please bring them in to meet Violet to make sure it’s a good match.

Unfortunately, Violet is currently on treatment for ringworm. Ringworm is a contagious fungal condition that is easily treatable with topical medication, but it can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months for a dog with ringworm to fully recover. Ringworm thrives on animals with suppressed immune systems (which can be caused by stress from being in the shelter), and heals more quickly on healthy, non-stressed dogs in home environments.

Violet is currently located at the ACCT shelter at 111 West Hunting Park Ave in Philadelphia. Adoption hours are 1 – 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on weekends. If you are interested in fostering, please contact nsmith[at]pspca.org or jsweeney[at]pspca.org.