Husky News

Her latest community effort has secured "emergency bags" for the Columbia/Montour Animal Response Team (CART). These will be given to pet owners to fill with necessities in the event that they need to evacuate with their pets.

Maxine Vandermark says her life is "cool". Her job title is Human Resources Supervisor for the Bloomsburg plant of Del Monte Petfood — and Vandermark manages to balance this with the care of five rescue Alaskan Malamutes, being an active volunteer in CHAAMP, and a member of the Columbia/Montour County Animal Response Team (CART). As part of her day job she spearheads an effort to take pet food to the Columbia County food bank so that pets have good nutritional food.

Her latest community effort has secured "emergency bags" for the Columbia/Montour Animal Response Team (CART). These will be given to pet owners to fill with necessities in the event that they need to evacuate with their pets.

Thanks to Del Monte, the local CART will be the first in Pennsylvania — perhaps the country — to offer emergency bags to pet owners. And, of course, near and dear to her heart is CHAAMP, a Malamute breed rescue group — as well as her own animal family, which includes two rescue cats.

Ms. Vandermark says "we (Del Monte) supply pet food when it is available to several pet rescue organizations as well as the food bank. It depends on who might need what, when and what we have available at the time." Both Ms. Vandermark and Del Monte are quiet about the good they have done and are doing for pets in need.

At home she calls herself the "pack leader" of the five Alaskan Malamutes that range in age from 2 to 10 years old — two are rescues. She speaks with pride of both the Malamute Rescue Organization and in particular her dog, Kaiyuh. Kaiyuh (her name means Little Sister) was a potentially aggressive dog that Ms. Vandermark was able to get through the Rescue and who now has passed her Canine Good Citizen test and Therapy Dog certification.

Ms. Vandermark says Kaiyuh was an exuberant 10-month-old puppy who was suffering from confusion and fear and thought to be aggressive by the first owners.

The owners did not understand the Malamute temperament, she says, and the Malamute Rescue was able to help her guide Kaiyuh into being a shining example of what a good rescue dog (CHAAMP, Chesapeake Area Alaskan Malamute Protection) and a good owner can accomplish together.

CHAAMP is an affiliate of the national rescue organization dedicated to helping Malamutes. In 2005 CHAAMP saved 33 Mals from shelters, dogs that had been abandoned and were found roaming. In addition, the Rescue offers advice, training suggestions and support to owners. Their motto is "Making the world a better place, one malamute at a time."

The emergency bags will make many family pets — dogs, cats, birds, etc. — a little safer and easier to evacuate, one pet at a time.

Source: The Daily Item