December 1, 2011
What to do when a purple dog arrives
Kamloops may be turning into a centre for lost dogs. First there was Pollux from Montreal. Now partly purple Snowball has turned up from Chilliwack.
For reasons we don’t fully understand, the SPCA had to be prodded into sharing the story of the purple dog with The Daily News. They should realize that stories like this, while not guaranteed a happy ending, make for wonderful free publicity.
Just one look at Snowball’s face was no doubt enough to tug at the heartstrings of half the city. If the owner hadn’t been found, she would have been adopted soon enough.
And along with that, the SPCA got a lot of attention. The many people who would have liked to adopt Snowball may instead take in one of the other dogs or cats at the shelter who need a home. Or failing that, they may decide to make a much-needed donation.
When an emaciated purple dog is plunked on the SPCA’s doorstep, the first instinct should of course be to care for it. The next step, though, should be looking at how a bizarre incident such as this can be used to help the shelter’s other animals.