Click Here for SNIPSA
Hi, I am new to the Northern Hills area. We just started renting a home in the area. I wanted to let everyone know about the SNIPSA Pet Adoption Center. If anyone is looking to adopt a new pet, we have tons of wonderful dogs. I am a long time foster mom and volunteer for them. Thank you.

If you have lost your pet, here is what you can do to find it as soon as possible:

Since some local shelters receive over one hundred stray animals a day, they require that you file a Lost Pet report in-person after touring our kennels. Make a list of shelters, their hours of operation, website links, maps, etc. You should also review photos of strays animals..  currently being cared for.  Some lists are updated hourly, but may not include animals currently under medical treatment or DOA animals.

In general, impounded animals are held for 2-3 business days, not counting the day of arrival, Sundays, Mondays, or holidays. We recommend you visit our agency 3 times a week. After the impoundment period, animals are evaluated for health and behavior and at that time, may be re-homed, transferred to another agency, placed into foster care, or euthanized.

Other Ideas for Finding a Lost Pet

• Check other animal shelters in this region. One organization will have jurisdiction over stray animals throughout the unincorporated portion of the County and the City. Check other shelters in the County that have jurisdiction over strays found within various city limits.
   
• At the shelter(s) review the “Found Pet” and deceased animal reports. Tour the entire shelter, including isolation, quarantine and treatment areas.
   
• Post signs around your neighborhood and at local veterinary hospitals. If possible, include a color picture of your pet as well as detailed description, lost date and location.
   
• Place an ad in the local newspaper post on Craigslist.  The local newspaper may offer a substantial discount to owners who have lost their pets.
   
• Check ads in newspapers, shelter websites and on-line Found Pet ads daily.
   
• Canvas a three-block radius from your home (cover much more area if your pet is unaltered or frightened) and talk to your neighbors. Someone may have some helpful information about your lost pet.
   
• Check with all local veterinarians to see if any injured stray animals fitting your pet’s description have been brought in, or if someone has posted a found animal flyer there.
   
• If you've lost your cat, remember that she is a nocturnal animal, so try searching later in the day when she's more likely to be awake.
   
• Call Pet Finders (800-274-2556) – which for a fee will call neighbors in the area where the animal was lost.

It is Most Important to Keep Looking for Your Pet.
Animals turn up at shelters weeks, and sometimes months, after they've been lost.  Likewise, finders will sometimes not report a wandering animal to us until weeks after it first appeared in their neighborhood.

• Microchip your animal.  These are readily available at most shelters and vet clinics for just $20.00 No appointment is needed!
   
• Confine your pet and if necessary, explore training or behavior modification to prevent future escaping.
   
• Be sure your pet is always wearing a collar and ID tag.
   
• Spay or neuter: Sterilized animals are less likely to roam and won’t contribute to pet overpopulation. Call around for information on spay/neuter assistance.

It is a sad fact the there are people out there that are now stealing small dogs for resale. Please take precautions that this does not happen to your valuable pet. If you are buying or getting a new pet, make a record of how to get back in touch with the person you got it from in the event it is stolen. Invest in the MicroChip and use a collar with an owner identification tag that includes your phone number.

Feb 16, 2010
Keema was found downtown just about one month after being lost. She was very thin and wary of people. The owner got a call from someone that found the listing online at "Craig's List". They went downtown and found her after one hour of searching. It has been a great reunion for the family, the dog and the dog's litter mate.

Dec 20, 2009
Please help us to find our 3 yr old female doberman pincher last seen 12-12-09 at the 4 way stop of Higgins and Stahl Road. She was hit by a car and ran towards the rail road tracks. She is a very smart dog and wary of strangers. so if you see her, please call us before trying to catch her. Her tail is docked but her ears are not cropped. Our phone numbers for Greg 210-393-8021 and Stacey 210-393-8107. We live in Northern Hills Subdivision so she could be in any of the surrounding areas. She is a friendly dog and has been around our 8 year old daughter since she was 5 years old.

Update Dec 20, 2009 - Hello, I just wanted to report that Sissy has found her way home. She is in very poor health weighing in at 4lbs now from her 12lbs before she got out. She is at the vet getting her fluids now and hopefully she will make a speedy recovery. Prayers are needed to help Sissy. Thank you for posting her information! Laura

Lost October 20, 2009 - Sissy slipped got away near Brushy Hill and Putting Green. Sissy is declawed and spayed. She does not jump well. Her feet will look rather large. She does have a collar on with a tag with her name and an invalid number. She is very precious to me and anyone who finds her will be rewarded. She will hiss at whoever is close to her and will be difficult to catch. Please call 210-412-4262. Click photo to enlarge it.

Found August 16, 2009 "Benji Look-a-like"
I live in the 12700 block of Sandtrap, our driveways are behind the houses. I noticed yesterday and again today just now when I got home that there is a cute (I think female) dog without a collar wandering in the driveway street between my block and Hilton Head. The dog is friendly but has no collar. She reminds me of the old movie dog Benji. I gave her water both days, she seems fairly well cared for. Just wondered if any NH residents have lost a pet. Pam

LOST, Then FOUND: This started July 10, 2008: Lost Male Black and White short hair male neutered 1 year old cat. He got out of the house Wednesday evening, July 9th in the 4200 block of Hilton Head, (golf course side). "Schmitzie" is a short hair cat with his front paws declawed. He did not have his collar on, but has been micro-chipped. Schmitzie has always been an inside cat so possibly when seen may be very scared when approached.
Please call Joey or Carolyn Baumann 210-657-6265 or 210-861-1377

How we found our cat.
My vet gave me helpful ideas when I talked with him this morning about what I could do to help him find his way home that I would like to share.

He said any time you have an "indoor pet" you can do the following to help the pet find their way home.
1. Put their bedding, a favorite toy, or some of your clothing that has been recently worn out by your door.
2. In door cats put their cat box complete with their used litter out by your door.
3. Birds will often come back to their bird cage if it is hung outside in a protective area around the house, again have some of your clothing near by the cage area.
We put our cat's litter box outside this morning and he came home within 3 hours.
Again I thank you for your quick response in getting our Lost Cat Bulletin posted.

DOG FOR SALE
(Read the sales pitch!!!)

Whether you own a dog or not, you must appreciate the efforts of this owner to sell her dog.

Free to good home. Excellent guard dog.Owner cannot afford to feed him anymore, as there are no more drug pushers, thieves, murderers, or molesters left in the neighborhood for him to eat.

Most of them knew him as 'Holy Crap.'

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New Intact Pet Law Takes effect January 1, 2009For more information Contact ACS (Animal Care Services) 4710 State Hwy 151, 207-4738 or visit http://saacs.net/intactanimal.asp

Given our community’s ongoing animal overpopulation issue, City leaders unanimously approved sweeping changes to the collection of local animal laws known as Chapter 5. The ordinance, which was approved in December 2007, institutes a permitting and licensing process for variety of animal related concerns beyond general pet licensing. One of the most important areas relates to the licensing of intact or unsterilized dog. These permits will go into effect January 1st, 2009.

Effective January 1, 2009, any owner or keeper of a dog that is not spayed or neutered must obtain an annual intact dog permit. There are exemptions for dogs that qualify for certified medical exceptions (from a licensed veterinarian) or dogs less than six (6) months old.

The new law does not apply to:
1) A dog or cat owner who is a nonresident of this City and is keeping the subject pet in the City for fewer than sixty (60) days; or
2) Dog or cat owners who have been a resident of this City for fewer than thirty (30) days. Permit applications and instructions can be found on this page of the ACS website.

Please see the bottom of the page on this link for an application. Click Here

All fees are payable to the City of San Antonio. Non-compliance with City Ordinance can result in citations and mandatory court appearances.

The complete Chapter 5 ordinance and Animal Care Services fee structure (including permit fees) can be viewed at: www.sanantonio.gov/animalcare/chapter5.asp.

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Do you have stray pets hanging around?   

Let us prepare them for good homes. Consider the fact that leaving food and water outside encourages wild animals to come to and from your door at night. This dramatically increases the opportunity for you and your neighbors to have a surprise confrontation with wild skunks, racoons and possums. It also encourages supports a growing population of even more homeless pets. Most of these live a very poor existence . Some end up starving or fall prey to coyotes. Let us suggest that you get the help of an animal rescue organization that will set a trap after you stop feeding them. Once caught, a participating vet will spay or neuter the animal, provide the necessary innoculations and either return them to you or find them good homes.

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Facts about Cats - The T.N.R. program is working!

Since cats are prolific breeders, a "TNR" program is effective against large colonies.  T.N.R. = Trap, Neuter, Return.

Trap - Set humane traps to capture feral cats from colonies.

Neuter - Transport feral cats to the vet to be spayed/neutered, tested for viruses, vaccinated, de-wormed, and treated for fleas/ear mites.

Return - Release the feral cats back into their feral colony, with their ear notched to identify them as fixed.

The T.N.R. program is the most efficient and humane way to help reduce pet overpopulation of feral cats and improve the health of feral colonies. Our goal is to spay or neuter the feral cats in a colony to prevent the reproductive cycle. Each trapped cat will be tested for common viruses, FELV and FIV, if they are found to carry either of these they will be humanely euthanized to protect the health of the remaining cats in the colony as well as owned cats that may come into contact with them. The cats will be vaccinated, treated for fleas, worms, and ear mites. A notch or hole will be marked in their ear as a universal sign that they have been TNR'ed. With over 60 million feral cats in the United States alone, the TNR program has proven to be the most effective and least costly way to control the situation. TNR is endorsed by the American Veterinary Medical Association.

The standing alternative to TNR is extermination, which is not only inhumane, but costly as well. Continued attempts to catch feral cats, house, euthanize, and dispose of them costs much more than to simply TNR them.

• Stops the cycle of reproduction.

In 1997, the San Diego Department of Animal Control showed a decrease of almost 50% in the number of cats impounded and killed compared to 1992, the year in which their TNR program was started.
• Reduces negative behaviors such as yowling, fighting and spraying.
• Reducing the number of feral cats also reduces the threat that they may pose to native species.
• Reduces diseases and illnesses which may affect people's pets along with feral cats.

Volunteers  assist with trappings and transport the cats to and from the vet.

Feral Colony Caretakers/TNR locations
If you are caring for a colony of feral cats around Northern Hills that needs TNR, please contact webmaster. Some vets charge $25 to TNR adult cats.
Trapped kittens will be taken into our adoption program and most will not charge for them.

Trap On Your Own
If you would like to trap the cats in a colony yourself, you can rent a trap for about $10 a week plus a $50 deposit.

For low-cost veterinarians that may be able to spay and neuter your ferals, please contact webmaster.

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Adopt a Pet from ACS most Sundays from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm

If you can, Please Help rescue the 120 or so new arrivals each day by adopting a pet. Approximately 32,000 pets are lost each year in San Antonio.
Animal Care Services(ACS) is changing its hours of operations, with the goal of increasing adoptions and improving efficiency at the facility. For more information, call Craig Brestrup at 207-8155. The new hours of operation will be as follows:

• Adoptions  Monday – Friday 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. and Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• Reclaims   Monday – Friday 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. and Saturday 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• Relinquishments   Monday – Friday 8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. and Saturday 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Dear Residents: Ask any home service provider you are pleased with to advertize here by emailing the webmaster.

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