INDIANAPOLIS – A Milwaukee PBS affiliate, in cooperation with Beach House Films of Santa Monica, CA., is producing a show entitled “Animal Instinct” of which Indianapolis Animal Care & Control will take part thanks to “Operation Puppy Shuttle.”
On April 1, 2003, Indianapolis Animal Care & Control began a partnership with the Wisconsin Humane Society (WHS), through their ‘Shelter Connection’ program, in an effort to give the shelter’s dogs a second chance at life. The maiden voyage of “Operation Puppy Shuttle” set sail and 15 dogs were transported to Madison, WI. with the assistance of volunteers. Animals continue to be transported almost weekly to Wisconsin via “Operation Puppy Shuttle.”
WHS implemented ‘Shelter Connection’ which offers assistance to shelters, regionally and throughout the Midwest, by taking their surplus puppies and adult dogs and making them available for adoption to the residents of Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Humane Society has medical and training programs in place that will allow all adoptable animals to stay at the shelter until they find a new home.
“We are excited to be featured in this production,” said Administrator Jim Garrard. “We have taken many steps over the last year to improve the perception, image and appearance of the shelter and it’s exciting to see our efforts at increasing our adoption rate and decreasing our euthanasia rates being met with success. However, we’re not looking through rose-colored glasses. Indianapolis continues to have a severe pet overpopulation problem and the staggering number of animals this shelter will continue to see over the coming years cannot be curbed until we implement aggressive spay/neuter programs.“
Six crew members arrived at the shelter this morning, October 20th, and will continue with the production through the departure of the “Puppy Shuttle” on Tuesday morning. Beach House Films plans to film the entire process from start to finish, including the selection and temperament testing of the dogs, the transportation of the animals to Wisconsin, the spay/neuter surgery and finishing with the successful placement of the dogs into their new homes. The crew will also film various aspects of shelter operations including middle shift roll-call.
The finished product will air in the Wisconsin region with hopes that this production will be viewed, not only in Indianapolis, but nationwide.