Agoura Animal Shelter calendar now on sale
Calendar created from the work of local photographers
By Nancy Needham nancy@theacorn.com

A photo of Mount Boney covered with snow, a shot of a man surfing at a nearby beach and another of the Stagecoach Inn Museum, all captured by local photographers, are going to provide the gift of life to pets dropped off at the Agoura Animal Shelter, thanks to Starbucks barista Jan Romero.

The coffee server and animal lover came up with the idea of gathering the work of local artists, making a calendar and selling it to raise money for Malibu Pet Companions. The small desk calendar which sells for $10, is available at Starbucks at 421 S. Reino Road in Newbury Park.

“Starbucks is very involved in community outreach benefits, so I thought I’d get on their bandwagon and do something for animals, which is my passion,” Romero said.

She put up a flier at the Starbucks store and, through her customers, came up with 12 outstanding photos that include shots of Hidden Valley and the Conejo Valley Days carnival, she said.

The first printing will number only 250, so those who get there first can give the calendars as holiday gifts, she said. If those sell out, she can print more.

Not only will the calendars be useful and attractive and promote local artists, they will save the lives of broken and sick animals dropped off at the Agoura Animal Shelter, she said. All proceeds from calendar sales will go to the nonprofit petsaving organization.

Malibu Pet Companions’ goal is to bring injured and ill animals from the shelter back to good health so they can find new homes, said Robin Kahrs, a volunteer with the group.

“Typically, when most animals in need of something beyond basic medical care are brought to an animal shelter, they are euthanized,” Kahrs said.

This is not the case at the Agoura Shelter, thanks to Malibu Pet Companions, which works with the shelter to provide necessary medical treatment for sick animals left there, she said.

The group covers the cost of medical treatment for dogs, cats, potbellied pigs, rabbits, reptiles, horses and other unfortunate creatures that find themselves ill and homeless.

The group offers a wide range of assistance, from treatment of ear mites to major surgery, said animal control officer Cyndi Bays.

“If a dog comes in with a broken leg, it gets set. They’ve taken out tumors, removed eyes and provided medicines,” said Bays.

Animals with skin disorders are given lotions. Those with food allergies get special prescription food. If recovery takes a long time, foster parents nurse the animals back to good health. A knee operation, for instance, can take eight weeks’ recovery time, Kahrs said.

Once, a puppy named Chelsea suffered from failure to thrive, taking months to improve with tender loving care from Kahrs and others. She was fed intravenously by a veterinarian until she could eat on her own. Gradually Chelsea was able to eat and digest specially formulated food.

“One day, for the first time, she wagged her tail and gave a kiss. We all cried. She was a normal pup,” said Kahrs.

Now Chelsea is grown, Kahrs said, and has been adopted by a kind man who takes her to the dog park every afternoon.

Old fat cats that are left at the shelter often cannot handle the stress of leaving their longtime home, Bays said, presenting another serious problem.

“They stop eating and have to be force-fed,” Bays said.

Malibu Pet Companions even provides a cat hormone dispenser that emits a calming substance into the air inside the felines’ habitat, she said.

But sometimes, when an animal is too old and sick, nothing can be done. One such story involved a golden retriever abandoned at a pet store in Newbury Park, Kahrs said. The gentle old fellow had a heart condition and a vet predicted he would live only another two weeks. Placed in a hospice foster home, he lived happily for another six months, surrounded by love, she said.

About five pets a week at the shelter receive care from Malibu Pet Companions, Bays said, and Romero added that along with money from calendar sales, “every donation will help.”