Best Friends Teens

KidsArtMicky

isabelm — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:43:14 GMT

Kids Art -Olivia

isabelm — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:42:19 GMT

kids art Caleesta

isabelm — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:41:01 GMT

Teen Projects

isabelm — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:04:21 GMT

Pets rock! You may have an adopted an animal and know that, just like us, they love attention, play and good care. There are many homeless animals waiting in shelters who you can help in a variety of ways. You can also do things to improve the lives of pets who have already been adopted. Check out these ideas and get your parents, teachers or other adult friends to take action for pets!

Help Pets

Protect Pets in Disasters! Find out what you can do that will help save animals in case of a natural disaster like a tornado or an earthquake so pets aren't left behind as they were during Hurricane Katrina.

Flip a Home for a Pet! If you already have a dog or cat that hogs the couch, you know how that animals, like us, love a cozy environment. There is lots you can do to make home sweet for your own pets and your friends' animals too!

Do a Dog Wash! While they might not be thrilled about a bath, keeping dogs brushed, bathed and groomed helps their skin and coats stay healthy. You can do this solo or with friends and the help of your parents and other interested adults.

Get Safe with Animals! Lots of times we don't know what animals are trying to tell us with their body language. Find out more about animal behavior and share it with friends so both they and their pets are safe. Your pets will really appreciate you getting their messages!

Shift a Shelter Environment! Shelters generally do a good job of caring for animals waiting to be adopted. You can help them improve the lives of homeless pets by making toys for them that will give them stuff to do as well as make cozy beds for snoozing!

Use Your Art Talents to Save Animals!

Grab your paint brushes and video cams! Open up your computer graphics program! Art can be used to create messages that help people understand things like what's great about pit bulls and what they are really like.

With the support of teachers and parents, you can actively help in finding homes for shelter animals by drawing or painting photographing or filming them.

Pictures help people to connect to an animal and that's how many have gotten new homes. You can create flyers with shelter pet pictures and find out where you can post them.

You can create art about animals -whether your pets or animals looking for homes. With your parents and your teachers, plan an art show where you work can be sold and you can donate the proceeds to your local shelter.

Videos that show animals in action are very powerful tools to help animals get adopted - you can check with parents and teachers about where you can go to video homeless pets and also where you post them on the net.

Work with Friends

Here's ways to get your friends together to raise money for animals and have fun doing it! With your teachers and parents help you can:

Find a place in your town where you and your friends can do a mural that will draw attention to the needs of pets.

Plan walkathons and dog walks where you can raise money that will help people moving from homes into rentals to keep their pets.

Plan a Flea Market where the funds will be used to help cat owners get their pets back if they get out of their homes and are lost

Rescued Kittens Get Second Chance

JNA — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:16:47 GMT

Written by Emma - Volunteer Teen Writer

Natalie was the first to arrive at the shelter out of three kittens. I was introduced to her standing outside her cage; she was huddled in the middle of it peering at me with cautious eyes. Natalie and two males, Roger and Christopher, were found looking for food in a dumpster. They were all rescued, lifted from the dumpster; they were frightened and ran off. Traps were set down for the kittens and soon they were safe and headed for the shelter. Natalie was named after the woman who noticed and found her and the two males. Natalie and Christopher looked alike; they both had a swirl pattern to their fur. Roger was all black with a white locket. They were all shy at first. When I first started to pet Roger he was quiet and then after one minute he began a loud purr. I was so happy that I was able to encourage him to purr and that this was the first time he had. Natalie was the first to be adopted. Christopher and Roger were always close and now growing closer, playing and sleeping together. They were at the shelter a while, socializing with their friend Evan, a gray and white kitten. Soon, they were adopted…together. We were all very happy that the three kittens once looking for food were now adopted.

Miracle Cat

JNA — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:59:53 GMT

Written by Blythe, Volunteer Teen Writer

Meeshy, (who came by that name because he was thought to be a girl when we first adopted him and named him Missy, which we later had to change) is our beloved, soon-to-be 20-year-old cat. About a month ago, we noticed that his usually eager eating habits were waning. It got to the point where he would only eat hand-fed chicken or beef, and he was starting to get noticeably skinnier. He also developed a limp, which made it difficult for him to walk straight.

One day, about three weeks ago, we found that Meeshy had a serious injury on one of his legs. We took him to the vet and found that the wound had started as a small cut and had become infected and gotten much worse, and no one had noticed it because of its inconspicuous location on his leg. The doctor bandaged it up and gave us antibiotics for him. He also said that there was only about a 50% chance that Meeshy would recover, because of his age. When we took off the bandage a couple weeks later, not sure what we would find, the wound was healed! Meeshy is walking fine again, and back to eating normally. At his age, it seems like a miracle. Now he’s strolling around and bathing in the sun and completely back to his old self, which we love so much. We hope to have Meeshy for many years to come!

Teen Concerned Over Costa Rican Strays

JNA — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:37:37 GMT

Written by Volunteer Teen Writer - Mika

Have any of you been to Costa Rica? Well, during spring break, a small group of nine students and two teachers from my middle school went to Costa Rica, and let me say, it was one of my best vacations ever.

I was naturally interested in the animals of Costa Rica, so I kept an eye out for some when we went on hikes, swam in the ocean, and did other stuff.

Once, when we were on the hike up to the beach, we found a deer (I have no idea what type) eating about three feet from us! If you stretched out a hand, you could’ve touched it! We all stayed really quiet, and it just kept munching away on some exotic plant I never got the name of. It was green and leafy, and looked exactly the same as pretty much every other plant species out there.

We also saw numerous toucans, macaws, parrots, hummingbirds and other colorful birds! I guess Seppi’s a little jealous, huh? One time, our tour guide told us to look up, and, not 20 feet above our heads, were at least six red macaws! We had to be on the lookout, though, because who knew if those birds had eaten lunch!

The sounds the birds made were not unlike the sound most of you probably hear everyday, but there was a difference. Random squawks, chirps and peeps were almost deafening out in the wilderness with no building sites or malls around to displace them.

And, best of all, we saw monkeys! Because the monkeys in Costa Rica have become familiar with humans, they were comfortable with us approaching to take pictures and even approached us! One howler monkey actually stole one woman’s sandwich! She was just lying on the beach, when this very sneaky little monkey came up and grabbed her sandwich right out of her bag!

Surprisingly, the monkeys didn’t make as much noise as the birds. Although I’m pretty sure that way up in the lush, dense trees, it was a different story. At least I heard enough to figure out why they’re called howler monkeys. They make this really strange screeching noise that echoes through the forests so that one monkey will sound like there are hundreds out there.

I guess its time for the less happy note of this story, now. There are so many stray dogs in Costa Rica! I took one look at a puppy, most likely only about 5 months old, and saw he had an awful case of mange! Another dog had a really bad gash on his front leg! I think he got caught in some barbed wire. Barbed wire was everywhere, so getting stuck in some wouldn’t be a problem for a mischievous little dog.

Why is this dog issue so out of control, you may ask? Well, most people in Costa Rica can’t afford to spay or neuter their pets, so more and more puppies and kittens are out on the street every year.

What makes this even worse is that the dogs are so friendly! (The cats just hide). There wasn’t one stray dog that saw us that didn’t came padding up, tail wagging, to ask for a scratch behind the ear, a treat, or a home! (We couldn’t take them with us, or even pet them, though I wanted to).

Me (talking to a puppy): Shh. Just lay low. I’ll hide you in my suitcase!

Puppy: Woof!

Unfortunately, I did not hide the aforementioned puppy in my suitcase. He wandered off to sniff at some other locals who were walking around.

It’s really sad, because most of those animals found on the streets would be in a shelter or in a home with a family of their own if they lived in the United States. But, they do not.

If you are interested in helping groups that are already helping animals in Costa Rica please visit:

http://www.worldanimalnet.org/new.asp?co=COSTA+RICA&geo=ca&prov=&cat=

PEACE for PUPPIES

JNA — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:14:13 GMT

Wow! There are many special animals in the world and we are lucky to have just as many special kids in the world. Please read about an exceptional girl named Lizzie. Excerpts from a letter from Lizzies Mom -

My daughter, Lizzie, is a 9-year old 4^th grader who is passionate about rescuing, saving, and bringing awareness to all abused, neglected, homeless animals and puppy mill dogs. Her crusade started 2 years ago on her 7^th birthday when she asked me if she could collect donations for her birthday party instead of getting presents. I was a bit shocked that a little girl would give up gifts, but I was also proud and jumped in full force to support what Lizzie believes in (and so do I).

She created PEACE for PUPPIES and in the last 2 years, she has held bake sales, car washes, lemonade stands, and collects towels all year long that we deliver to Main Line Animal Rescue and to Paws (Philadelphia). She also follows the ASPCA and Best Friends websites and blogs.

Lizzie held a lemonade stand at the end of August for her birthday with the help of her cousins, and they raised $200.00. Lizzie would like this money to be donated to the Vicktory dogs.

Virtual Gallery - Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School

JNA — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 19:40:22 GMT

Art teacher Judy Zubrowski was kind enough to share her students amazing artwork. They were introduced to a variety of animal welfare organizations and used their own creativity to design these wonderful works of art.

"Credits" are as follows:
Rain Forest - Corinne K.
Day Glo Wolf - Dom D.
Dog with Ghandi Quote - Miss Sam C.
Housefire - Emily S.
Horses - Jessica R.
Mouse - Angela C.
Dog - Ben G.
Mountain Lion(s) and Wolf - Nina L.
Gorilla - Brittney B.

Patricia’s Kittens

JNA — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 17:59:21 GMT

Written by Volunteer Teen Writer - Emma

This spring, I worked with and took care of four nursing cats and their kittens. I feel greatly privileged to have watched them grow and to have been welcomed into their intimate relationship. The mother cats, Ana, Patches, Harriett, and Patricia, allowed me to pet them and trusted me with their kittens as I spent time with them and took them to be weighed. Ana and Patches were sisters and they both had five kittens. Patches, a calico, would always greet me with soft meows. Harriett was found with Ana and Patches, she had four kittens. At only one year old, this was her first litter, and she was very petite. Patricia, also one year old, had three kittens, Patrice, Patty, and Patrina. They were slightly longhaired and very sweet. Patrice was gray and white, Patty was black and white, and Patrina was a tiger like Patricia. They all had blue eyes and would kiss my nose. Patricia was FIV positive and the kittens also tested positive because of the antibodies in the milk. Slowly, they began to test negative except for Patty. Patty has inherited the FIV and his healthy. Now all the kittens and mothers are adopted, except for Patricia who is still at the shelter looking for a home. I bonded with all the cats and kittens who gave me this amazing experience, they are all very close to my heart.

Cat Family

JNA — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:06:43 GMT

Written by volunteer teen writer - Emma

I am surrounded by the love of my cats. We all sleep together fur and whisker touching face and skin. All of my cats are rescues, found as kittens wandering outside. My Kiwi was found in the woods with only her orange brother. Taken in by a local animal clinic they were treated for colds, and soon I found and adopted this tiny kitten. Kiwi, now a beautiful five-year-old tabby, loves sleeping on my head and playing with catmint covered mice. I adopted my Sammy and Luka from the animal shelter where I volunteer. Sammy found at nine weeks old was considered feral. Sammy was at first frightened by his new surroundings, although he would always watch me with the other kittens. The first time I touched him was while he was eating deli turkey from my hand. We soon became best friends. Sammy, now one year old, is the sweetest cat. Luka was found outside with Sammy. When I first met him he was very weak and thin, he had contracted feline distemper. I gave him his medicine and a lot of love, and slowly he recovered and survived. Luka, now a healthy one year old, loves to play with Sammy and sit with me all day.

I believe that it is important to adopt cats and other animals, there are many in shelters waiting for their forever home.

Seven year old takes action to help rescued animals.

JNA — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:47:17 GMT

Watch the video that Blondie a vibrant 7 year old on a mission created to raise awareness about rescue animals, and raise funds for Gregory's Gift of Hope, a rescue/re-home program in Wisconsin. You can meet Peppermint Patty a rescued fighting dog from Georgia and see many of the cats and dogs that Gregory's Gift of Hope and Blondie have helped find forever homes for!

Watch her amazing video!

Visit her site at http://www.blondiesgift.com

Resources

admin — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:06:59 GMT

Animal Related Careers

HeroesHandbook_2007-01-26.pdf

Best Friends Dog Training Information

Dog Training Here is Where to Start.pdf
PS_RelationshipTraining.pdf
Puppy Class at Best Friends [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/7360.Puppy-Class-at-Best-Friends.pdf:550:0]
Prevent/Reduce Dog Bites [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/2604.CSPResponsible_5F00_Dog_5F00_Owners.docx:550:0]

Best Friends Activity sheets for Kids, Teachers and Community

Cat Body Language Worksheet - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/1185.Cat-Body-Language.pdf:550:0]
Focus on Felines - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/6837.Focus-on-Felines.pdf:550:0]
Dog Safety - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/3755.Making-Friends-With-Scruffy.pdf:550:0]
Dog Safety - Spanish - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/3833.Making-Friends-with-Scruffy-Spanish.pdf:550:0]
Pit Bulls: Saving Americas Dog - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/3465.Saving-Americas-Dog.pdf:550:0]
Forever Home - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/2045.Forever-Home.pdf:550:0]
Adoption Option (Puppies Aren't Products) - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/0257.Adoption-Option.pdf:550:0]
dog safety song.pdf

Capturing Kindness Lesson Plans

Capturing Kindness.pdf - Geared toward Jr. High and High school students - math, language arts and more.

Creating Crafts for Critters

Crafts for Animals.pdf

How To Sign Up to be a Network Member

Interested in being a Volunteer Teen Writer?

Introducing a new baby and your pet

Preparing Your Pet for Baby.pdf

What You Can Do to Help the Animals

Ways to Help Animals.pdf

KidsMakeADifference.pdf

Puppy Mill Education

Role Playing Activities - [View:http://network.bestfriends.org/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.UserFiles/00.00.02.54.77.Attached+Files/1348.Amb_5F00_PAP-InteractiveActivity.pdf:550:0]
Alternatives to Buying.pdf
How to be sure your next puppy isnt from a puppy mill.pdf
Whats a puppy mill [in template]-FINAL.pdf

Volunteering at Best Friends - What to expect!

Other Stuff!