Monty's Place Chinchilla Rescue & Refuge, Inc.

06/13/10 - Well, it's official! Summer is finally here! I hope that everyone is enjoying the (reasonably) nice weather we've been having here in the Northeast and that - despite the "recession" - everyone has some fun plans for the summer months.

I would like to start this month's blog by thanking all of those parties that supported me during the months of March, April and May. I was battling PFD (Pelvic Floor Dysfunction), a rather painful and nearly debilitating condition that, in my case, seemed to be brought on by stress. Due to the fact that I was under the weather, we made the decision to suspend rescue operations for a few months. Some of you may have received that auto response in your email if you tried contacting us. I initially figured that the suspension would be effective through the summer, but as I'm feeling much better and seem to have recovered, we are back in action! So anyway, thanks so very much to everyone who supported me this winter. I would also like to thank all of those individuals who worked with us this winter-- your patience was greatly appreciated.

Being that thanks are under way, I would also like to take a minute to shout out to the great people associated with Matilde's Mission for their generous contributions to Monty's Place this past winter. As usual, we were dealing with some special needs chinchillas who required specialized medical care. Matilde's Mission was kind enough to finance some very pricey veterinary procedures for us and we are so grateful. I encourage everyone that visits us to check out the Matilde's Mission website to learn more about the very important work that they do. MM is an official nonprofit charity organization that focuses on saving rescue and ranch chinchillas. They "promote positive activism in the pet chinchilla community and give aid to programs initiated by others to help chinchillas in crisis situations." Matilde's Mission does VERY important work and is an invaluable resource for all chinchilla-related rescues throughout the United States. We are very lucky to have such a resource. If you love a chinchilla, make sure to drop by Matilde's Mission at: http://www.matildesmission.org to learn more or to make a donation.

In other news: I have had to post our "we're-sorry-we're-unable-to-help-right-now" blurb below. Sadly, our rescue is full again and is working with one particularly difficult medical case. Being that finances are limited, as well as space, we are unable to take in any more rescues/surrenders at the moment-- we are truly sorry about this. Summer is our busy time of year and unfortunately we have more surrender requests than adoption requests. We do have a few fosters pending and an adoption or two, so hopefully, we'll be available to help those individuals in need within the next few months. Of course, these things are difficult to predict. As always, if you require assistance placing your chinchilla, we will do our very best to assist you.

Rescue/adoption news: We look forward to posting a picture of our newest arrival, Memphis! Memphis was surrendered to the rescue three weeks ago by a very nice family from upstate New York. He is a beautiful, young and spirited chinchilla looking for a happy forever home. We intend to have his picture up on the "Available Chinchillas" page within the week. Memphis is friendly and sociable and has no medical conditions. Please contacts us at: montysplacerescue@yahoo.com for additional information about this great little guy!

Upcoming appearances/events: On Saturday, August 21, Monty's Place will be appearing at the 2010 Pet-A-Palozza Event at Little Shelter in Huntington, New York. We missed this exciting and fun-filled event last year and are VERY excited about participating this year. In addition to welcoming rescues from all over the island, Little Shelter will be hosting an open house and an animal blessing. The Pet-A-Palozza event is a fun day out for the whole family and is a great way to get to know your local rescues! Please make sure to save the date on your calendar-- we look forward to seeing all of you there! For additional information about Little Shelter and for directions, please visit http://www.littleshelter.com.

Whew! This summer sure seems to be shaping up as a busy one! We look forward to meeting all of our supporters at these great local events! As usual, if we can assit you in any way, or if you're just interested in a "chin chat," please feel free to contact us. We love hearing from you!

All the best,

Renee

02/11/10 - Greetings Monty's Place visitors! As per usual, I am starting off this month's "blog" with an apology. I know that I mentioned in November's update that I would be making sure to touch base on our homepage once every month. Okay, I lied and I'm sorry! In any case, these last few months have been just crazy over here. Firstly, I am very sad to report that one of our beloved chinchillas, Speedy, passed away last Saturday, February 6th.  He had been sick since Christmas day and finally gave up his fight with what we believe to have been cancer. We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their extensive support of Speedy. Matilde's Mission, Martha, Dr. Freilicher, Dr. Buchalter, Corey-- you all served to help in the most invaluable of ways. Speedy was fortunate to have such a wonderful support system during his illness. He had such a good spirit and we will all miss him terribly.  

That said, I must make our visitors aware that Speedy had been available for adoption along with his cage-mate, Jack. You will notice, if you take a gander at the 'Available Chinchillas' page, that Jack is still available for adoption. Throughout Speedy's illness, Jack has been a little trooper. As a precautionary measure, we separated Jack and Speedy when Speedy first showed signs of illness. Considering that the pair had been housed together for over 15 years, Jack has had no problems adjusting to life on his own. However, we are still looking for a good and loving home for Jack. The ideal applicant will be a seasoned chinchilla "parent," who is unfazed by taking in a senior chinchilla. Please understand that although Jack is a senior, he is no less a wonderful addition to a family. If you feel like you fit the bill, please do not hesitate to contact us for additional information.

Again, we appreciate all the assistance that we have received over the last few months. Not surprisingly, funds have been tight and although Speedy's fight is over, we are still attending to two maloccluders that need regular dentals. If you can find it in your heart (or in in your couch cushions) - we would appreciate any type of monetary donation. Right next to this blog is our PayPal link, where you can make a safe and private donation. We understand that money is tight for everyone right now, but in order for us to help more chinchillas, we need the support of people just like you, who care about chinchillas, just like us.  We would like to thank everyone in advance for their support - it means so very much to us.

On a more positive note, we are gearing up for the spring, which means that we will be out in the community appearing a local pet-related events. We look forward to a good season and anticipate meeting and greeting all our local chinchilla lovers. I will make sure to post updates as they become available. 

Well, here's to the days getting longer and the weather getting warmer! I hope this update finds each and every one of you well and in good spirits. A Happy Valentine's Day to everyone this coming Sunday. Even if your a Valentine's "hater," try to find someone to hug. It's important that we love each other and be thankful for the people we have in our lives.

Best to all - Renee

11/08/09 - Contrary to popular belief, the staff of Monty's Place hasn't fallen off the face of the earth! In all seriousness, I apologize for not updating this little "blog spot" sooner. Going forward, I intend to update this section of the website once per month. To all of you frequent visitors - if you see that I become lax on this task, feel free to email me and bust my chops!

Alright, well - first thing's first. Monty's Place Chinchilla Rescue and Refuge has been working with a wonderful law firm in New York City in an effort to complete our filing requirements to meet the coveted 501(c)(3) status that we so desperately need. Well, I am happy to report that as of August 13th, 2009, Monty's Place Chinchilla Rescue and Refuge has become an officially incorporated business! Hence our new headline on our homesite, which reads: Monty's Place Chinchilla Rescue & Refuge, Inc. We are very proud of this accomplishment and look forward to becoming an official non-profit within the next six or seven months.

Regarding the website - I have made a few new modifications/additions/changes over the last day or so. Firstly, you will notice that there is a new face on our adoptions page. Buster is a very cute six-year-old white mosaic chinchilla who is looking for a forever home. Please have a gander at his picture and description on the "Available Chinchillas" page. I have also consolidated our "Successful Adoptions" page onto one page instead of two. Frequent visitors will notice that I have removed detailed descriptions regarding the situations surrounding the adoptions. I have made the decision to do this in an effort to respect the privacy of adoptive families. 

We are now proud to be offering a full boarding service for chinchillas! Boarding services are available at both our Nassau County and Suffolk County locations. If you are going away for business or pleasure, we will be happy to care for your chinchilla while you're away. Please visit our "Boarding Services" page for additional information.

As always, as we approach the holidays, we are looking for monetary donations as well as supplies and toys. If you can find it in our heart to contribute to our cause, we will be very grateful.

As new updates come in, I will make sure to post them right here on our homepage. Please check back often for news and happenings.

Best - Renee 

ATTENTION GOOD HEARTED PEOPLE OF THE CHINCHILLA WORLD! Monty's Place is looking for donations! Specifically we are looking for used flying saucers, chin spins, Ed wheels, or Leo Braun wheels. We are also looking for ceramic bowls, water bottles, Carefresh bedding, straw mats, Oxbow feed products and cages. If you are holding on to any of these items or if you would be interested in picking up one of these items the next time you're at the pet store and would be interested in donating, please contact us. Unfortunately, we are not non-for-profit, so you cannot write off these donations on your taxes. The best we can do is give you a huge THANK YOU and a shout out on the website.