The Woodlands Dog Park Club

Upcoming Events

(scroll down for News)

April 17th, 2010

Don't miss out on this fun event! Please fill out a Registration and Pledge form and we are looking forward to you and your pup strutting your stuff for a good cause.

We are asking rescue groups that would like to participate in Spring Bark to spread the word about this great event and get a minimum of 10 participants to register for Spring Bark.

For sponsor information please email Laura

News

Back in 2007, Harris County passed an ordinance banning the roadside sales of animals which is an important step in reducing pet overpopulation. Unfortunately, it has pushed some of the sellers to start selling their animals in Montgomery County and surrounding counties.

The Woodlands Dog Park Club (TWDPC) feels very strongly that the ban of roadside sales in our area is a necessary measure in order to reduce the number of animals euthanized every year. Some of you will remember that we have tried in the past to get this accomplished and while we were able to create awareness amongst our representatives, we did not succeed in getting such a ban enacted in our county.

The Woodlands Dog Park Club and the Texas Humane Legislation Network are teaming up to pass a bill banning the roadside sales of companion animals during the 2011 Texas legislative session. Your THLN contacts will be Brian Craft, Southeast Chapter President, and Shanda Bailey, Southeast Chapter Marketing Chair. THLN and its network of members will actively support the roadside sales ban bill. We will encourage you to voice your support for the bill to your own legislators during the session and to specific committee members when the bill is being heard. You can find who represents you by going to the "Who Represents Me" website and entering your personal information. THLN will also send action alerts with details on who and when to call, so please be sure to sign up on the THLN website to receive these e-mails. This is a grassroots movement so spread the word to everyone. As constituents, we must show our elected officials that this is an important issue to us.

Let us know if you have any questions along the way and let's get to work for the animals!

Feel free to contact Brian or Shanda at THLN if you need more information.

Why this is so important to us?

These animals get sold at a discounted price to "anyone". There is no qualification process for dog/cat ownership and they are usually spur of the moment decisions and often these same animals end up at Animal Control once they have outgrown that cute puppy/kitten stage. It's a vicious cycle of breeding, selling and killing and the only ones profiting are the sellers of these animals. Rescue groups like TWDPC are left to pick up the pieces or in the worst case the animals pay the ultimate price - death.
The sellers are unqualified breeders and do not have proper licenses to breed animals. We don't know if they are running puppy mills and don't know what conditions the animals especially the breeding stock is living in. We don't even know if the animals are healthy and we don't know anything about the temperament, lineage or genetic predisposition of the animals. All deals are usually based on the seller's word and if you are lucky on some AKC paperwork, which we all know is pretty much worthless.
We have thousands of animals processed through the various shelters each month.... some find forever homes through area rescue groups and adoption programs, but sadly many are euthanized. An average of 3,000 dogs per month are processed through animal control in our county, and 35% - 50% of these animals are euthanized. Breeding, selling and killing is a vicious cycle we must stop!
There is no mandatory dog or kennel licensure or spay/neuter in Montgomery County. These are important steps toward reducing the number of animals euthanized at our local shelters.

These issues have been brought to the attention of our State Representatives and County Officials and it is important that they hear your concerns first hand.

We need your help to have your voices heard. Please write a polite email to the representatives listed below showing your support of the BAN OF ROADSIDE SALES OF ANIMALS!

Event Recaps

6th Annual Holiday Parade at Market Street

Another great event. Thank you for coming and showing off your lovely pooches and making this a fun event. Pictures of the event can be seen here.

Old Town Spring Pet Fest 2009

Thanks to our dedicated volunteers we not only promoted TWDPC's mission, but we also helped to save lives. $286 were raised for our "Have a Heart" Fund to buy Immiticide to treat HW positive dogs at MCAS.

SPRING BARK 2009!!!

Thank You!

To all of our fabulously generous sponsors, to our tireless and dedicated volunteers, to the fantastic pledge walkers and fundraisers, to our hosts - the Community Associations of The Woodlands - Parks & Rec, to the devoted Rescue Groups, to our wonderful vendors and exhibitors, and last, but not least, to the compassionate community, two-legged and four, who came out to join the fun ... THANK YOU for making Spring Bark 2009!!! our biggest success yet!

Please visit the Spring Bark!!! '09 Album and also last year's Spring Bark!!! '08 Album for Event Pictures.

Check out links to some of our great sponsors and many local rescue groups on the Pet Services page.

For more information on TWDPC Events, please contact Laura McConnell: lakoalamac@sbcglobal.net