The Texas rescue emphasizes the need that currently exists within the sanctuary industry. How do donors know that there funds are going to worthwhile organizations? Are the animals truly receiving the benefit of their gift?

Although bad facilities exist, we do not want you believing that there are not some very good organizations out there. These sanctuaries need your help and support.

We have mentioned in previous newsletters that the sanctuary industry is still very much in its infancy and does not receive the kind of funding that other animal welfare enterprises do. Sanctuaries however, are beginning to self-regulate and their efforts to establish realistic standards are starting to pay off.

Wolf encourages you to check out the two sanctuary associations that Wolf is accredited through. The organizations that are accredited by these two groups have been inspected for all aspects of their operation. The professionalism that they demonstrate in their day to day operations has been reviewed and meet stringent guidelines for the long-term well-being of the animals in their care.

You can check them out at:

 

 (Frank Wendland)

I must apologize for the content of this newsletter. We usually try to cover a better variety of stories, however the 'Texas Rescue' has totally occupied our time and thoughts over the past several months. We also believe it is an important issue that should be told in its entirety. We wish the story was over with, but we are still struggling to save all of these animals and insure that they are placed in quality situations for the rest of their lives. We will keep those of you on our email list informed with regular updates and the rest of you will have to wait for the next newsletter. If you would like to be added to our email list please send us a note at: fwendland@wolfsanctuary.net.

Winter has been mild, this year, scaring us all with what the dry months ahead may hold in store. There was no precipitation to speak of through December, January and most of February. Finally over the past several weeks we have accumulated approximately 18 - 20 inches of snow, bringing the seasonal average close to 90% of normal. We are praying for more.

The health of the majority of the animals is great, with the exception of Bacchus. His quick illness and death was another blow to our emotions (see Bacchus). Artemis seems to have stabilized quite nicely on her twice-a-day insulin shots for diabetes. She is acting and looking spectacular. We do have a few geriatric type ailments with some of the animals, but nothing major.

We were blessed toward the end of the year with a good sized grant, that came out of the blue, from the Seeley Foundation. It was an answer to a prayer as the $15,000 grant was just about what donations had been off for the year, because of the economy. It allowed us to catch up with the piles of bills. We will be finalizing all of our financials within the next several weeks and will give you a breakdown for 2002 in our next newsletter.

It always seems however, that as soon as the numbers are looking up there are just as many situations that arise requiring the expenditure of those funds. The Texas Rescue has been an extraordinarily time-consuming and money-consuming adventure. For whatever reason we could not turn our backs on these animals. It was very apparent to us that no one was willing to become their champion. The grant from the Seeley foundation and a $2,500 grant from The Wildlife Legacy Trust (administered through The Community Foundation Serving Boulder County) allowed us to get involved with this rescue. As we have become more involved a $5,000 emergency grant from the Ahimsa Foundation and a $5,000 grant from an anonymous supporter from the San Francisco area has allowed us to continue with the effort.

We have joined the "Community Shares of Colorado" program, which is similar to the United Way, but quite possibly more efficient in administration. The program allows employees to sign up for regular deductions from their payroll checks to be designated to specific charities. Wolf will be on this years listing of approved charities. If your employer is not part of the Colorado Shares program we can assist you in having the benefits explained to your administrators. The more organizations that participate in the program, the more potential there is for Wolf to receive more donations. Please call us if you can help.

We truly appreciated all of the wonderful holiday cards that we received. We wish we had the time and resources to answer each one individually, but we just don't. Please know that they enrich our lives and recharge our spirits. We thank you all and keep you in our thoughts.