December 19, 2020

This week, Natalie of NC reached out to the Sierra County Humane Society & Desert Haven Animal Refuge via our Facebook page (Facebook.com/DesertHaven) to ask for help on behalf of her dear friend who recently lost his mother. His mom resided locally with her two beloved dogs — now homeless and grief-stricken. Because of the generosity of our supporters and the compassion of our team of volunteers who knew that Desert Haven would be the very best environment for them to be at this traumatic time in their lives, Bubba and Lil Bit have now joined us at the sanctuary.  Once we get to know them a little better, we will list them for adoption on our Petfinder page at DesertHaven.Petfinder.com. If not for consistent contributions to our animal welfare organization, we could not have accepted these two fur-boys. This week’s heartfelt plea from Natalie is not uncommon. When a community member has unexpectedly passed-away or needs to move into our local nursing facility, we are often asked to take in their now-homeless beloved companion. A bonded pair of very sweet Chihuahuas, Chico and Diamond, came to us for this very sad reason. Our small organization quietly helps the dogs and cats of Sierra County, thanks to you, our supporters and our dedicated volunteers.

Compassionate deeds like these are within our reach when resources are available. There is an erroneous belief that small non-profits such as our own Sierra County Humane Society benefit financially from the larger, widely known animal advocacy organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). This is not true. Not a single dime trickles down to small organizations like ours.  The agenda of the Humane Society of the US does not include financially helping local rescue groups like ours. The HSUS is neither a parent nor chapter organization for any US non-profit animal welfare organization.  The HSUS focuses on national-level issues like ending the puppy mill industry, strengthening cruelty laws, and eliminating large-scale animal abuses. Our independent organization is governed by its own board of directors and focuses, locally and specifically, on the dire issues seen right here in the Desert Southwest. So, as we receive no dollars from any other organization, we alone are responsible for raising funds to provide for the care and well-being of our little rescues.