Back in July, I got a phone call from Live Nation Concerts at Ruoff Music Center. They wanted to know if the Animal Protection League would be interested in bringing some of our adoptable kittens and puppies to the concerts so the band members, staff and crew could relax and get some puppy and kitten love before their shows.
I couldn’t believe they called us; I was practically giddy. This would give us great exposure, and of course I said yes. I asked how they found us; they had Googled us. Thank you, Google.
A small group of dedicated volunteers committed to make this happen for our animals. It has been a lot of work, but so worth the effort. So far, they have gone to 18 concerts with our animals. They leave with our animals before the concerts start and head home.
Our first concert was the Red Hot Chili Peppers; we have pictures of them holding our puppies that have gone viral. How cool is that? So far because of this exposure we have had 14 puppies and one kitten adopted. There are four more concerts left and we are excited for more wonderful adoptions.
Cali — now Noodle — has started her incredible journey. Noodle was in a litter of our first puppies we used for “Puppy Time at Ruoff.” She’s been in the company of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alanis Morissette, Joan Jett, Morgan Wade, Creed, 3 Doors Down, Finger Eleven and 30 Seconds to Mars.
Noodle found her forever home when we took her sisters and her to the Creed concert. The crew and band loved her! The manager, Jamie, took her backstage for the entire show, and was heartbroken at the end when she had to go back home. Jamie got the foster’s contact information and immediately started getting the logistics worked out to bring her on the road with her and the band.
Jamie flew in from Colorado from a show to get Noodle and take her to Arkansas to catch up to her new people. One of our puppies is on tour with Creed and another, Colt, will be going on tour with Luke Bryan.
Who would have thought that some of our shelter babies would be living the life with rock stars? As a side note, all of these adopters have gone through our normal adoption process.
I would like to thank Noodle’s foster mom Natalie (who committed to going to all the concerts) and to all of our other amazing fosters who do such an overwhelming job taking our animals into their homes time and time again. We have wonderful, dedicated staff and volunteers at the Animal Protection League.
We at the Animal Protection League would like to thank all the people at Live Nation for this incredible opportunity, and we’re excited to continue working together. These are the kind of opportunities that fill us with hope for our small shelter and the animals we care for from the community.
Maleah Stringer is executive director of the Animal Protection League, 613 Dewey St., Anderson. She can be reached at 765-356-0900 or at maleahstringer@aol.com.
