OMVNA Newsletter, March 2005

Our first OMVNA General Meeting of 2005 was held at Landels Elementary on Saturday, February 5. Unfortunately, due to many reasons, (including some much appreciated beautiful sunshine after a full week of rain) only ten adults and five young people under fourteen attended. This meant that we did not have the quorum (15 people over the age of fourteen) required to make any official decisions.

We did, however, have a very productive discussion about what people in Old Mountain View are concerned about. Some concerns mentioned were proposed changes in Mountain View-Whisman school district, the need to change the lights at the intersection of Calderon and El Camino and the recent proliferation of door-to-door "salespeople" in the neighborhood which suggests the possible need for a neighborhood watch.

We also had a lovely conversation with Karen Bricker, the head of children and youth services at the Mountain View Public Library. She explained how the library gets grants and other funding and told us about some of the upcoming and ongoing programs that are offered by the library. All library programs are free, and the library staff works hard to keep it that way.

We wrapped up our afternoon by visiting the children who were working on art projects under the capable supervision of Lauren Reay. The parents who brought children said that if we have activities such as art projects to entertain children, they will be more likely to attend future OMVNA General Meetings.

The next General Meeting will be a bicycle safety fair and bike rodeo held on Sunday, May 15 on the blacktop at Landels Elementary School. Save the date and watch this newsletter and OMVNAtalk for further details.

Family Focus: Our Companion Animals
By Jennifer Smith (Dana Street)

In the last two months, on separate occasions, I found two little dogs who were obviously lost, wandering the streets of Old Mountain View. Having worked and volunteered at a local animal shelter, I knew exactly what to do. In both instances, I was able to reunite the dogs with their owners, but it was not without difficulty. The first dog was wearing a collar with outdated (and out-of-state) owner information. The second dog had no collar, tags or identification whatsoever.

Prepare - get some identification

It is important to note that a lost animal that bears some form of identification is far more likely to be returned to its owner. There are several ways to prepare so that the person who finds your pet or our local animal shelter can contact you.

ID tags (including both license tags and tags bearing current contact info for the owner) and microchips (sub dermal implants) are the most effective way to identify your pet.

Dogs in the City of Mountain View are required to be licensed with our local animal shelter facility, and it is the law for all dogs over four Our Companion Animals (cont.) months of age to be vaccinated against rabies and licensed. As an aside, a rabies tag alone (for a dog) is not a reliable way to track you as the owner, so please don’t rely on it.

You can license your dog with Palo Alto Animals Services in person by bringing a completed application, rabies certificate and spay/neuter certificate to their office, Monday through Saturday, between 11 am. and 5:30 pm., excluding holidays and alternate Fridays. Dog License fees range in price depending on the age of the animal and whether it is spayed/neutered or not. The City of Mountain View contracts with Palo Alto Animal Services to provide shelter, cruelty investigations, lost and found and adoption services. They are located at 3281 E. Bayshore Road, Palo Alto. Telephone number is 650- 496-5971.

Many people also are unaware that the shelter has a wonderful low-cost spay/neuter clinic open to the public with appointments. Their fees for these services are extremely low and the staff and services are excellent.

Microchipping is fast becoming the standard for pet identification. A very small (painless) implant is injected into your pet’s shoulder blade. The owner then fills out owner contact information and sends it off to a national company who maintains owner contact information for your pet. Most shelters and veterinarian offices have hand-held scanners that can instantly register and identify your pet and contact you immediately. Palo Alto Animal Services also provides microchipping for your pet at a low cost of $25. You can drop in Monday through Friday between 12 pm. and 2 pm. to have your pet microchipped. Just call ahead and let them know you are coming.

So far I have focused mostly on identifying your dog, but it is important that your cat should also be microchipped and/or wear a collar and tag with current information. Outdoor cats tend to roam and can be spotted far from their homes. They can be attacked by other animals or hit by cars. If your cat is injured or killed and is picked up by animal control, it can be identified and you can at least be contacted and know what happened to your companion.

Also, get some good photos of your pet now, before it is too late. Take close-up shots so that details will show up well in a "lost pet" flyer. You want your photo to be unique and your pet to be unmistakable.

If your pet is lost, what should you do?

Prepare a flyer with the picture, description, date missing and your contact information for your lost animal. Distribute the flyer to residents in the neighborhood where you believe your pet went missing. You should do this within at least a one-mile radius of your home. Leave something with your pet’s smell (or something familiar to them) outside your own home so they can recognize their house. Animals find their way by scent as well as sound.

Visit your local Animal Control humane societies and animal shelters. In our case, Mountain View is serviced by Palo Alto Animals Services as mentioned above. Fill out a lost-pet report in person and bring a photo if possible to help reunite you with your pet. The holding period for strays found (without identification) at Palo Alto Animal Services is seven days. You should go in and fill out a lost report as soon as you realize your pet is missing. After the seven-day holding period, the shelter will evaluate an animal for health and temperament and possibly put it up for adoption or euthanize it depending on the outcome of the evaluation. It is important that you visit the shelter in person every day to see if your pet has been found. Sometime the "found" description may not match your pet exactly so it is important to visit the shelter in person.

You can also place an ad in your local newspaper. Some will do this for free. Also place an ad in any "Penny Saver" type of publication that you can find for our area.

When injured animals are picked up, they are occasionally found by calling local veterinary hospitals. Adobe Animal Hospital in Los Altos is a 24-hour full-service and emergency hospital. If your animal was picked up injured and required emergency treatment, call the clinic to see if they have your pet. Their phone number is 650-948-9661.

You have found a lost pet, what should you do?

Contain the animal if you can; a dog in a bathroom or enclosed backyard, a cat in a carrier or box. However, do not approach an animal if it appears to be vicious or very frightened - you do not want to get bit. If you find an animal you cannot approach, immediately call Palo Alto Animal Services to report a found animal. They can pick up the animal and take it back to the shelter. If the animal is friendly and wearing identification tags, try to contact the owner. Try to withhold identifying markings or behaviors when contacting the owner, and have them describe them to you, or better yet, ask them for a photo before you give back the animal. There are some unscrupulous people out there scouring the "found" ads trying to get animals for not so nice reasons. If you cannot contact the owner or contain the animal as mentioned above, immediately call Palo Alto Animal Services. Talk to your neighbors and let them know you found an animal - word gets around quickly and a lost pet and their owner can have a successful reunion.

Remember, owning a pet is a responsibility and a privilege. Our companion animals depend on us for food, water, shelter, medical care, proper identification, and (most importantly) our love.

Please be responsible and spay or neuter your pets to prevent unwanted litters of kittens and puppies. In California alone hundreds if not thousands of unwanted animals are euthanized at shelters every day. We can only begin to reduce the numbers if we are responsible to our pets and have them spayed or neutered.

CERT Review: OMVNA CERT - Be Prepared!
By Aaron Grossman

What is CERT? CERT means Community Emergency Response Team, which in OMV comprises a group of almost 40 volunteers. During a local emergency, we'll act as coordinators and radio communicators.

We cannot provide water, food, or shelter! Each household will be responsible for taking care of these things for themselves.

What CERT will do is help with advice on getting prepared. Some things you can start thinking about include:

If you have special needs such as refrigerated medication, what's your back up?
If water lines fail and the toilet stops flushing, what will you use?
Think about what else you'll need for safety and health.

Battery and solar powered coolers and camping porta-potties are possible solutions if you get them beforehand. Our website at www.omvna.org has links to good resources and can get you thinking.

Many blocks in Old Mountain View still don't have a CERT volunteer. Look at the CERT Map to see if you have one nearby. If you're interested in becoming a CERT member (it takes very little time), or have questions, contact Aaron Grossman at aagrossman@yahoo.com or 408- 202-2802.

Looking Ahead
By Nikol Jackson

In upcoming issues we would like to take some time to look at the state of the neighborhood schools. In particular, we will try to provide some information on the PACT and Dual Immersion programs.

We will also try to preview the Family Safety & Bike Fair by talking a bit about safety in the neighborhood and possibly highlighting a few bike outings favored by your neighbors.

If you have questions on any of these topics or have other topics you would like to see covered please contact me at editor@omvna.org

Family Bike Fair
Sunday, May 15, 2005, Landels School
1:00-3:00 pm

Join OMVNA and the Mountain View Police Department
for kids' safety training and skill builders
biking information, bike repairs, and a kid's bike swap.
More detail next month.

The OMVNA Newsletter
is published by a volunteer editorial committee & distributed to some 2400 homes and businesses by volunteers.

To get in touch with us:

Write to P.O.Box 391328, Mtn. View, CA 94039
E-mail the editor editor@omvna.org
Find us on the Web at http://www.omvna.org

The opinions printed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of the OMVNA Steering Committee.

This site provided as a public service by meer.net

Last updated: 4/12/05

OMVNA Newsletter

March 2005Volume 17, Number 2

March 2005
Volume 17, Number 2