Chihuahuas in San Jose

Guest Post by Melissa Lisbon:

For many months, our local shelter, the San Jose Animal Care Center (http://sanjoseanimals.com) has been inundated with dogs, especially small dogs.  Almost 50% of these small dogs are Chihuahuas or Chihuahua mixes.  As a result of the July 4th holiday, the single worst day of the year for pets going missing, the shelter took in an extraordinary number of frightened animals, including a high number of chis.  

Why do we have so many Chihuahuas in San Jose?  Many people believe it is due to the trend set by Hollywood where Chihuahuas act as an "accessory" - thank you Paris Hilton!  The reality is that many people are still not spaying and neutering their chihuahuas and are trying to make a profit from breeding these dogs.

San Jose Animal Advocates (http://sjanimaladvocates.org), a community group dedicated to raising awareness of the homeless pet situation in San Jose, is trying to help bring attention to this issue and engage the community with this ongoing problem.  On Saturday, July 23rd, San Jose Animal Advocates will be hosting a fundraiser, "Buy a book, Save a Dog".  Community donated books, magazines, cds, and movies will be sold to raise money for two local groups who are making a positive impact on the chihuahua dilemma in San Jose.  Proceeds will be split between PAWS for SJACS (http://paws4sjacs.org) and The Perfect Dog (http://theperfectdog.org).  PAWs for SJACS is a non profit organization which supports the San Jose Animal Care Center and funds out-of-state animal transports.  With the money from the fundraiser on the 23rd, we hope to be able to fund another transport of chihuahua mixes to a humane society in Oregon or Washington state.  The Perfect Dog is a local dog rescue group that saves dogs from the San Jose Animal Care Center and the South County Animal Shelter in San Martin (south of San Jose).  Proceeds from this fundraiser will help this local dog rescue to afford to save more shelter dogs.

San Jose Animal Advocates, PAWs for SJACS and The Perfect Dog have also teamed up to develop a website that is specifically geared toward the Chihuahua breed and the Chihuahua crisis in California.  The name of the website is ChiFriends (http://chifriends.org) and the goal is to raise awareness about this great breed of dog and to act as a resource for other area dog rescue groups and shelters.

What else can you do to help with the Chihuahua crisis in San Jose?

 - Adopt a chi from the San Jose Animal Care Center (there is a July adoption special for chis, only requiring licensing fees) 

 - Spread the word about the importance of spaying/neutering your pets

 - Consider becoming a dog foster parent which allows rescue organizations to save more dogs