Humane Society to provide free hay for pets this Sunday

The Humane Society of Warren County will be holding a straw giveaway in the parking lot of Tractor Supply this Sunday, Feb. 11, beginning at 1 p.m. The event is designed to provide free bedding for local residents with pets that are kept outdoors.

?The straw will be absolutely free,? said Humane Society president Andy Anderson. ?It won?t cost the people anything. All they have to do is come by and pick it up.?

Anderson says the cold weather can be health-threatening to animals who don?t have adequate shelter and bedding.

?We?ve been having a lot of really cold nights,? Anderson said, ?and we hope people will use this straw in their dog houses to help keep their animals warm.?

Anderson said the bedding can make a real difference in a pet?s comfort level.

?The straw will help keep them really warm,? Anderson said. ?It?s amazing how warm the animals can get when they huddle down in straw.?

The only thing Humane Society members ask is that the material be used to provide bedding for pets, and not for any other purpose.

?The animals need it and we want them to have it,? Anderson said. ?We know this kind of weather is hard on them. And it doesn?t have to be used in dog houses,? Anderson added. ?It can be used wherever they?ve got their dog sheltered. We?ll be glad to give them straw for their bedding.?

Anderson said the cold can be potentially devastating to pets, just as it is to humans.

?They could die,? Anderson said. ?They could freeze to death, just like people. People seem to think that dogs can stay warm anywhere they are, but that?s not true. To have animals out when the weather drops down into the teens is really hard on them. Especially dogs that are chained up. They can?t look for a place to get out of the wind and stay warm. So they need this bedding. They really need it.?

Anderson says the event will last as long as people come by to pick the bedding up.

?We?ll keep it coming as long as the people keep coming,? Anderson said.