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Welcome to our page!

Lucy Angel prays you will adopt just one more, before it is too late for that special cat or kitten.

What can we do to convince you to ADOPT, one more! Homeless pets are fighting for their lives everyday. The competion is fierce, so many in need of homes. You look at their pictures and then pass them by. Do you every wonder what happened to that life that you viewed for a moment? It may be just a picture to you, but sitting somewhere in a shelter is a living being, who may not see tomorrow. We have many, many more cats than listed on our site. So please stop by for a visit, i'm sure you'll meet your match. ng a long time for a home.


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Adoption Fees

A Helping Paw, Inc. wants to be sure our pets are going to great homes. They've been through so much, don't they deserve a safe and loving permanent home. We require a completed application, an adoption fee to help cover medical costs and a consultation with an adoption counselor. Please bring proof of home ownership or a letter from your landlord stating you are allowed to have a pet. Applications are usually approved within three days. Finding the right match is crucial. Pease don't be offended if we feel the pet you are considering isn't appropriate for you and or your lifestyle.

Adoption Fees: (Includes spay/neuter, rabies, distemper, Fiv/Felv testing, worming, advantage)

Dogs - $250 and up. Depending on breed and age.

Cats - $89. Kittens - $109. - $129. Full bred and declawed varies.

Small animals and birds - please check with shelter volunteers.



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Some Answers to Common Questions

Q: If you want to get more pets adopted, why don't you give them away free or cheap?

A: First, if you can't afford an adoption fee, how will you be able to afford even basic medical care, never mind emergency medical care. We expect are adoptive homes to make a commitment to their pets and offer the same good quality care they received here at the rescue center. Second, without the funds from our adoptions, we would simply would have no funds to care for other pets in need.


Q: Yeah, but don't you make money on the pets you adopt out?

A: Please consider our average monthly expenses are over $2,000 and this doesn't even include rent : In addition, please consider on average each pet we take in costs us an average of $157.00 in medical costs. The cost would be much higher but we have several wonderful vets who offer our pets discounted services.


Q: But I can get medical care done cheaper at my vet.

A: Please tell us where!!!! Each pet we adopt out is spayed/neutered, wormed, treated for fleas, rabies vaccinated, received between 1-3 distemper vaccines, and felv/fiv combo tested, another words, they've had the works. If you had to do this all by yourself, you would be looking at anywhere from $275.00 to $400. for a cat.


Q: Don't you get money from the state.

A: Don't we wish, gosh I would have a lot more time on my hands and my teeth wouldn't be ground down to the bone. Unlike organizations who are provided for by town contracts or the state, we rely completely on generous, people who care enough and want to truly make a difference to help us continue the great work we do. Sometimes we are lucky if we take in $200. per month. Try paying the above bills on that!


Q: I notice that most of your cats aren't caged, why is that?

A: We believe that if at all possible our residents should enjoy a comfortable stay with us while they await new homes. Kitties kept in cages too long, pretty much go crazy and the stress reduces their immunity. We also find that a cage-free environment allows for better interaction between the pet and the prospective adoptive family. It's is hard to judge a pet's personality if it's stuck in a cage. Finding the right match between pet and new family is crucial for a long lasting relationship.


Q: Do you offer a health guarantee?

A: Let me ask you, did the hospital offer your mom a health guarantee when you where born. Of course not. The only reason pet stores offer health guarantees is to encourage people to buy from them. Should you return a pet to a pet shop, chances are that pet will be destroyed. We are a 'rescue 'organization, unlike many animal shelters who deal in 'prime' pets, a majority of our pets were rescued from the streets, meaning we don't have a back ground to go on. Each pet is vet checked prior to adoption. Should a pet have a known medical problem we will make you aware of it. Some people think that animal shelters hide medical problems just to get a pet adopted, that may ring true for an extremely rare organization who doesn't have their heart in it, but for 99% of shelters, lying to an adoptive home would only put the pet in jeopardy. Obviously you do assume some risks when adopting from a shelter, versus buying from a breeder, but when you consider there are some really horrible breeders who don't breed for health or temperament, I would say this pretty much equals things out. My mom purchased an 8 wk old German Shepherd from a breeder in NH, the dog died 1 week later from Parvo. My oldest living cat recently died at a ripe old age of 18, she was a sickly underweight stray full of worms.


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News!

JOIN US THE FIRST SATURDAY OF EACH MONTH, 10AM -2PM KITTY MEET & GREET DAY at the new PETCO 2421 Cranberry Highway, Wareham

Come by and say "Hello", meet some of our available cats/kittens and learn more about us. Can't make it Saturday? That's OK, our rescue center is open Tues-Sat 10-5 and Wed evenings till 7PM.

For store directions, please call the shelter 508-759-2887. We are also looking for meet & greet volunteers to help on Saturdays or Sundays.





WATERS was locked in a basement to the point of near death. She weighed only 3.4 pounds. Your donations towards emergency vet care kept her alive and after 4 years she's doing purrfect!
   
Adison was an older boy, living with a woman who hardly cared for herself and has recently passed away. Adison was shipped to another shelter and moments from being destroyed. Safely he made his way to us and now has found his forever home! Please Help Us Save More Pets! Donate Today! With over 100 hungry mouths to feed and care for, everyday is a struggle to keep up with bills. Become a furry friend...send your gift today! Whether your gift is $500, $100, $50 or $5, every penny counts when there is a life to be saved. We promise to make your funds work as hard for our pets as you have to earn them. AHP, PO Box 387, Buzzards Bay, MA 02532. New! You can now make your donation while sitting at your chair. Simply go to PayPal.com and click on 'send funds' to ahelpingpaw@aol.com. What could be easier. As one of the only no-kill organizations in the area, we care for over 100 homeless pets per day. Many of these animals are rescued directly from the streets, have ongoing medical issues and/or are in need of rehabilitation prior to being placed up for adoption. It costs over $40,000 per year to keep the shelter open, with a large percentage of the money going to medical care for pets in need. Please join us and help stock our pantry with desperately needed supplies. With the overwhelming amount of litters being born this time of year, we need your help more than ever. The less we spend on supplies, the more money we will have to help yet another pet on 'death row'.

We can't save anymore lives until we find homes for all the wonderful pets we've already saved! Please adopt just one more. Adopt a friend today and save a life! Our main goal at A Helping Paw is to rescue precious pets who have been living difficult lives on the streets. So many of these pets face death everyday. Many times at the hands of humans ,who simply don't care. All they need is a second chance. Many of these cats and kittens don't know what it means to be loved and tend to shy away from humans initially. Our volunteers put a great deal of time into rehabilitating them so they can find safe loving homes. Many socialize easily once they feel safe and secure, while others take a while longer and of course there are always the few who will remain a little shy. But each and every one deserves to live. It is crucial to get these pets into new homes ASAP! Please won't you open your home to one of these special kitties in need - every single day you will see the difference you have made in their lives by offering them love and security. We are looking for adult homes with truly special caring people who don't mind putting an extra effort into a relationship. Special adoption discounts apply! Please contact us for more information. The faster we can find them homes, the faster we can save the life of another cat or kitten living on the streets






VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
Come help us GROW! It feels so great knowing that the gift of your time helps save so many precious animals. Cleaners - groomers - shelter assistants, public relations - fundraising coordinator - donation can distribution - and more!
Feline Fantasy Sanctuary Saves Lives!
Currently we have over 60 resident pets staying at our sanctuary. If you can't adopt, please consider sponsoring one of our special pets. Our next addtion to the sanctuary is the desperately needed play yard. We need to raise $4,000, so the pets can enjoy the great outdoors safely and secure. Click here to learn more about our sanctuary: ahelpingpaw.org/Offer.html. For only $25 per month you can sponsor a sanctuary kitty!
Trappers Needed!
There are so many homeless cats and precious kittens living on our streets, with your help we can rescue them and place them in proper homes. We need people willing to spare just a few hours a week to help us trap. Please contact us for more information.



We are currently in the process of trying to rescue kitties from the streets. Many are young kittens and we would like to get them before the weather gets much colder as we fear they may not survive. So far we have taken in 60 but don't have enough funds to continue at this time. Estimated cost per kitty for medical treatment etc is $90. If you would like to sponsor one of these special kitties and help get them off the streets please let us know.



Are you that X-tra special person who can offer just a little addtional love and care to one of our X-Tra special pets?who have either mild behavior or medical issues? These pets don't do well at our care center so in order to get them homes ASAP, we offer discounts towards their adoption.




Who We Are

A Helping Paw is a NEVER-KILL, 501 (c) (3), nonprofit organization that is totally dedicated to ending the killing of innocent pets through increased adoptions and spay/neuter. Unlike many shelters who only take in full bred or highly adoptable pets, we are a TRUE rescue shelter, which means we spend countless hours removing homeless pets from the streets and caring for those that aren't 'perfect'. Many of the pets we care for would be euthanized in tradtional shelters. Our goal isn't to place as many pets as we can, it's to place as many as we can into great homes. Every pet we take in gets a second chance at life, and becomes part of our family forever. ng a long time for a home.


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Contact Us



Shelter Hours: Tues - Sat 10-5, Wed 12-7.

Please come see our pets in our new facility. We offer a comfortable, home-like setting where you can interact with our pets in a cage-free area. We still have a lot of work to do, so if you can spare a few hours a week, we desperately need your help. Please ask about our discounted adoption fees for our 'special' pets, who have been waiting a long time for a home.


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