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Marcello's Song
A volunteer at our animal shelter gets back as much as he gives. A personal essay.
Marcello… waiting for the right home at ARNO. Photo: Laura Richard
April 4, 2008
By Michael Groetsch
Mike’s edited essay to ARNO was published this week in Gambit, a weekly newspaper for and in New Orleans. You can leave a comment and thank Gambit for publishing and see the story online.
I'm a longtime animal lover. My wife Barbara and I have a dog named Leo and five cats that have all been rescued from the streets or local shelters. I've been a volunteer at ARNO since last October. My primary role is to walk, nurture and socialize the dogs that have been abused and neglected.
I pull into the parking lot of the no-kill animal shelter operated by Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO). A scripted glance into my rear-view mirror reflects the sight of Marcello, ‘my’ foster dog, performing flips at the sight of my arrival. On a scale of 1 to 10 relative to world importance, my volunteer work at the shelter nurturing and walking Marcello is perhaps a 1. On a scale of 1 to 10 relative to personal gratification, it is unquestionably a 10.
Marcello is a two-year-old black-and-white pit bull mix who resembles Petey the pup from The Little Rascals. He was rescued by ARNO's Lise McComiskey less then a year ago near a bar in Central City. Neighbors told Lise that people often threw bottles at him, and someone had even burned his fur and skin with chemicals or a blow torch, probably to try and make him mean. Despite his former neglect and abuse, Marcello is one of the most affectionate dogs in the shelter. He is extremely bright and knows how to sit and lay down on command. Our unconditional love for one another has brought us both immense joy
Features
NEW Shelter Hours:
Shelter Open Every Day
Volunteers Only:
9am-8pm
PUBLIC HOURS:
3pm-7pm
If you are interested in adopting a pet, we ask that you contact an adoption counselor at AdoptFromArno@yahoo.com for an adoption application and an appt. to interact with the pet(s) of your choice. No pets are adopted/released until a completed application is approved.
Help ARNO
ARNO is running CRITICALLY low on donations and more specifically, CAT FOOD, please help us feed these animals. We have a few volunteers to go out in the field to feed, but without any food, their help will be seriously hindered. Please donate so we can buy some food.
Audio/Video
Recruitment Flyers
PLEASE CONSIDER FOSTERING AN ANIMAL.
ARNO has an ongoing need for foster homes to provide animals a safe and loving environment until transport, reunion and adoption arrangements can be made.
Learn More >>
Yahoo Volunteer Group
Our Yahoo Group is open to ARNO Volunteers who want to continue to assist ARNO.
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One of five two-week old kittens found after a recent rainstorm and flood in the outskirts of New Orleans. Newborns require feeding every four hours and manual expression to move their bowels and empty their bladder.
Photo: Laura Richard‘Relief’ is the operative word at A‘R’NO
(April 4, 2009) —By Charlotte Bass-Lily
Recently while attending a conference in our state’s capital I was surprised by a national organization representative’s comments about ‘rescue organizations.’ I could tell by her fervor that this was something long thought about and hashed over in her mind, and she probably had firsthand experience as well. She basically stated that rescue organizations do no more than take people’s pets and rehome them. I was shocked and so were the two ARNO volunteers with me. The moment did not pass without me taking the opportunity explaining the great lengths that we go to find an original owner. But her comments did get me thinking more about lost and found pets in today’s post-K arena.
At ARNO when an animal is found by one of our volunteers who work the street trapping ferals or assigned to indigents, or a good Samaritan who surrenders a found pet to us, we go to great lengths to put out notice of the ‘found’ pet. We take photos of the dog or cat, a full description of where the animal was found, and post the pet on a flyer in the neighborhood where it was found, as well as send that ‘found’ notice with photograph to the area shelters. We send to all area shelters because very often animals are picked up and brought into another area and then released. Our ‘legal hold’ of the found pet is three weeks minimum to allow the owner time to find the pet. We scour ads in the local newspaper and the neighborhood forums and CraigsList. We also post the found pet on nola.com and CraigsList. If there are vet offices in the vicinity of where the pet was found we post flyers in their office on their bulletin board. This may not be enough according to the representative who was so opposed to the word ‘rescue’ for organizations like ours.
Recent Features
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More than puppies for the holidays…
(January 1, 2009) —By ARNO Staff
Please allow us to continue to be ‘angels’ to the people and the homeless animals on the street. They need us to recover more than needing buildings rebuilt… they need us for their hearts to heal.
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Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!
(December 11, 2008) By ARNO Staff
Snow is just the ticket for making all the ARNO volunteers (and our shelter pets!) feel like the holidays are nearing. We hope this holiday season you remember ARNO and the work we continue to accomplish for homeless animals in our region.
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Volunteer Efforts Earn ARNO Beneficiary Status
(November 29, 2008 ) —By ARNO Staff
The hard work of the dedicated volunteers and staff at ARNO within our community has been recognized by two prominent local organizations, one a non-profit and the other a famous New Orleans restaurant.
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An Escape into Reality
(October 18, 2008) By Molly Hargrove, ARNO Volunteer and Student
I started volunteering at this shelter for community service hours for school, since I needed 40 hours in one weekend. It was close to impossible... Animal Rescue New Orleans provided the perfect environment for me.
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Shelter Devastated After Gustav
(October 2, 2008) —By Charlotte Bass-Lily
This time we are faced with rebuilding after Gustav, certainly not as damaging as Katrina to our area but just as devastating to our no-kill triage shelter.
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Rescue Three Years Post-Katrina
(August 20, 2008) —By Lise N. McComiskey
Many wonder how animal rescue is still underway or even needed and we often are asked just what our role is in a city that is in recovery in so many ways and yet stagnates in so many others.
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The Invisible Volunteers Known as Stealth
(August 20, 2008) By Robin Siegel, Stealth Volunteer
Most people have never heard of Stealth — they prefer to remain hidden from the limelight — but to those they have reunited, they are the most important group in the world.
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A “Feel Good” Diversion
(August 20, 2008) By Allison Winfield Kaloo
High School senior Josh spends time at ARNO volunteering.
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“Biloxi Buddy” is a true survivor
(7/15/08) — forward by Merrick “Rick” Morton, Buddy’s Dad; article by Lise N. McComiskey
He is a rescue that was not supposed to live. If you saw him now you would never know he is the same dog that was rescued from the side of the road in Mississippi.
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High Fashion Arrives at ARNO
(7/15/08) - by Charlotte Bass-Lilly
It wasn’t our celebrated presence in the city, nor our donors nationwide, who brought ARNO to the attention of “W” magazine. It was our wonderful daily newspaper, the Times-Picayune...
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Can you spare a little time?
Updated 8/20/08 ARNO Volunteer
We need volunteers who can help us at the shelter. We are very short of help and need people who can help us with animal care.
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Rebuilders stumble on old friend
(7/15/08)
Family reunited with pet cat lost during Katrina.
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Vagabonds Give Up Street Life
(7/15/08) Editor's Note
The beginning of the story of two dogs, Boy and Rocca, who roamed the streets of New Orleans.
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Yes, They Still Need Us
by ARNO Staff
The animals of New Orleans still need our help.