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Tales of the Last Post — Part III
By Jeanne Toomey, Falls Village
 | | Photo/Robin Gourd |
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This is the final installment of short stories about the Last Post Animal Sanctuary in Falls Village and animals that have been helped. The public is invited to visit the Last Post between the hours of 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.; the phone number is 860-824-0831. Donations to support the Last Post may be made to the Vivisection Investigation League, PO Box 259, Falls Village, CT 06031.
Bird Man of Connecticut
The Northwest Corner appeals to birds as well as mammals. Yowls, cackles, coos, screeches, songs and screams greet us each morning, especially in spring and summer. Herons, geese and an occasional loon stop over to rest and fish in the Housatonic River, which borders the Last Post. A dead tree is the home of a goshawk, an extremely large hawk, on the Last Post property. This may have been the kind a young woman called us about one fall evening at twilight: "A big bird with a huge wingspan just crashed through a window and landed on my desk," she reported from her office in Waterbury.
Without much hope that his hospital would still be open, I placed a call to Dr. Bob Giddings, Connecticut's famed bird expert. He operates the Kensington Bird Hospital in Berlin.
Luck was with the bird and me. Dr. Bob himself answered the phone and immediately sped off to Waterbury and his patient. He took the injured bird back to his hospital and after a few weeks reported a complete recovery. He released the bird in the Northwest Corner, the last wild section of Connecticut.
To the Rescue
We are often the only resource that concerned people find when an emergency occurs. We are notified by the public and the state troopers when animals are in trouble, run over, neglected, starved, beaten or otherwise abused. This may be because we are the only agency listed under animal welfare in the local phone book.
Helping a poor dog, the pet of Jose DeJesus of Bridgeport, is an example of a typical appeal. The dog had an excruciatingly painful torn leg ligament. We paid more than $1,000 to have the operation performed by Dr. Hopkinson of Connecticut Veterinary Center in West Hartford. The operation was a total success and was met with tearful gratitude by Mr. DeJesus, who could not afford the care.
During a spell of frigid temperatures I spent hours on the phone trying to get animal control people to help a Rottweiler in Sterling, Connecticut. The dog was kept in below-zero weather in an open wire cage with no blanket, heating element, or other source of comfort.
After almost a full day of phone calls, complaints and appeals, I finally solved the problem. I merely ordered and paid for a Rottweiler-size doghouse that was promptly delivered to the dog's address. And the initial complainant, a next door neighbor, is making sure it is occupied and insulated with hay. I also called Audrey, a public relations counselor for the casino where the dog’s owner works, to make sure the dog gets good treatment from now on. Casinos are very sensitive to bad publicity. I know, because I once did such work for Harvey's Casino in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
The local police dispatcher threatened to swear out a harassment warrant for "that woman in Falls Village who called us seventeen times!" This is mere rhetoric, as I only called them five times, I think.
Not long ago a woman in Lexington, South Carolina wrote to say she had a number of cats and no food for them. Rather than send her a check, which might, after all, go to a local bar, I found a feed store in her town and had 60 pounds of dry cat food delivered. The delivery man called me back collect and verified that there was indeed a large number of cats in the garage on the property.
We send modest checks and supply animal food to a lady who lives on disability in Winsted, who has taken in a number of cats and dogs, including a Last Post dog that we could not keep here.
In the same town, a family receives free veterinary care for Prince, a shaggy mixed breed, who was rescued by an elderly man in Brooklyn, now deceased. He wrote us a letter in pencil, shortly before his death, informing us that his last wish was for a home for the dog. His letter related that he had found the dog, whom he described as "an orphan," living in the streets. We sent a worker immediately to his address, took in the dog, had him curried and given all shots. We then found a loving family, who have cared for him ever since. We pay the vet bills and keep Prince trimmed and in good health. The couple has given "the orphan" a loving, caring home. I know his owner would be happy and I am sure that our rescue operation gave him peace of mind before his death.
A puppy that was found drenched and freezing in a torrential rainstorm now has a home with our CPA, Paul Ramunni. A cat covered with diesel oil was cleaned up, treated by our veterinarian and has been adopted to a loving home.
We have paid to have thousands of animals altered and given shots. We have paid for medical care for creatures found in the roads—run over, beaten, abandoned—whether wild or domestic.
In Williamstown, New York, near Lake Ontario, we maintain a 125-acre wildlife preserve in an area that has been savagely logged and hunted. The late jazz singer, Mabel Mercer, donated the property. We provide sanctuary to bear, deer, beavers, coyotes and other creatures. Richard Schwab, Jr., son of master forester Richard Schwab, who teaches at the College of Forestry at Syracuse University, is our patrol officer. Lawyer Earl Ledden of Pulaski helps with legal backing and helped us get tax-exempt status. We recently announced our decision to name the refuge after Mabel Mercer.
In the field of education, we take in students of the Alternative School operated by Housatonic Regional High School.
Our resident animals lead a happy life with plenty of excellent food—IAMS at the moment. There is heat in winter, fans in summer, water changed twice daily, and excellent staff attention and care. We also have a superb sprinkler system.
Oxford University graduate and zoologist Jeremy Angel called Last Post "the best in the world" after visiting shelters, sanctuaries, kennels and other animal care institutions in Europe, North and South America and Asia. We are honored and we believe it's true!
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