I know everyone has been waiting anxiously (I know I have), but the wait is finally over and the 2012 calendars are fresh from the printer (a big thank you to Tim Wilson and Melissa Noble from Wilson Printing and Graphics in London for putting this fabulous calendar together for us).

If one of your photos was selected to be in the calendar, you’ll be receiving a calendar in the mail to thank you for your support. If your photo wasn’t picked, don’t be upset. We had over 120 pictures to choose from and it was really, really hard to do! Everyone sent in professional looking pictures–even our printer said he couldn’t believe how super the photos were.

If you are ready to purchase calendars for the holiday gift giving season, you can do so in one of three ways. The calendars are $20 each.

1. Stop in Plain City Druggist, 480 South Jefferson Avenue (across from Der Dutchman Restaurant) any time during open hours and buy a calendar for $20 (no tax!). No shipping fees if you come in–just the cost of gas to drive to Plain City. The drugstore is open Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm (closed from 1:15 to 2:15 pm for Lunch) and Saturdays, 9 am to noon.

2. Order on our web site under the special PayPal button that is set up about halfway down the home page. Shipping costs will be included. Shipping is $5 for 1-5 calendars; $10 for 6-10 calendars; slightly more as you order larger quantities. Look for the photo of the calendar on the home page and follow the instructions to order. You can use a credit card or a PayPal account to order this way.

3. Download a handy order form on our web site or do it right HERE. Send that back in to us with the costs of calendars and shipping and we’ll mail the calendars back to you. This is for those people who don’t want to use a credit card, but would prefer a check or money order.

We will also have calendars with us for sale on Sunday, December 11, at our Photos with Santa at the PetSmart on Sawmill Road (next to Target). We will be there from 11 am to 4 pm, so bring your pet for a photo and pick up a calendar.

Thank you to everyone who sent photos for the calendar and to all of you who are supporting us by purchasing them!

We received over 120 photos for our first ever rescue calendar for 2012. And these were not run-of-the-mill photos. They were all gorgeous. We had a really hard time choosing our winners. We finally had to make it a rule that we would only pick one photo from a family, because some people sent in multiple beautiful pictures.

One example of this occurred with the Hamiltons. Dick and Linda sent in four photos and they were all stunning. It looked as if the cats had been posed–I do not know how they got the cats to sit so still for the camera. I am including two of their photos that did NOT win here. Just look how great they were. Their winner will be featured as the November kitty, so you can check that out when you buy your copy.

Another person with multiple great photos was Mary Dietz. Most of the photos that Mary sent were of strays who had been dumped on her. She mentioned that in one year, they had 22 cats dumped and we helped them get 12-13 of those fixed. The remainder either found other homes or ran off after the spaying and neutering efforts were under way. They now have a stable and fixed colony of 14 cats that they care for–proof that trap-neuter-return (TNR) and spaying and neutering are the solutions to feline overpopulation.

I am going to post a few of Mary’s “Loser” photos at the bottom of this. Her winner will be featured as “September” in the calendar with a picture of a sweet kitty named “Tres” who she says doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. Tres is currently an outside kitty, but Mary would love to find him an inside home if anyone sees him in the calendar and is interested.

I thought that over the next few weeks, as we are working on the calendar with our Printer, Wilson Printing and Graphics in London, that I would post some of the photos we received here and on Facebook.

Thank you to everyone who submitted their babies. It was so nice to see some of our former fosters and know they had found lovely homes!

Several months ago, before we knew about Kitten’s Kiss from Eldchrist Winery, we wrote to Benefit Wines to inquire about a wine for Black and Orange. We sent photos of our group’s namesakes, our black cat mascot, Butler, and our ornery orange guy, Oswald. Just recently, we received notice that they had created a label for us and the wines can be purchased from their web site.

Butler's wine label (notice his angel wings).

These wines are only available online, but they are available in several varieties featuring our label, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, and a Sparkling White Wine. For every bottle purchased at $19.99, Black and Orange receives $7. There are even sampler and collector’s packages which allow you to purchase several bottles of wine at a discounted price. And we get a portion of the proceeds from those, too. Plus, all of the wines are shipped directly to your home. 

Oswald's wine label (so handsome!).

If you would like to learn more or order wine that features Butler and Oswald, please visit the web site: BenefitWines

Benefit Wines works with many, many charity groups to provide them with wine specifically for their organization. Check out all the many charities they support.

As a child, I used to pour over the Sears Christmas Wish Book that would come to our rural mailbox each autumn just as the wind turned chilly. I hardly ever glance at catalogues much any more, preferring to scrutinize online web sites for the perfect gift, as opposed to paper and ink volumes of goodies.

But I received a really neat “catalogue” in my email today and I wanted to share this with everyone who might not know what to get a few people on their holiday gift list.

The Humane Society of Madison County, in London, Ohio, put together their own version of a “Wish Book” for their shelter animals. From tongue twisting named clinic items such as a hemocytometer or a refractometer to surgery packs and even gas for the shelter van, the catalogue offers many, many suggestions to help the humane society animals. You can even “Adopt-A-Cage” for a dog or cat and your donation will care for the animal during their stay at the shelter until they are adopted into a forever home. 

A really great idea for the dogs on your gift list is the “Festive Fido Gift Box” which features an assortment of “Beagle Buddies Bakery” treats. These canine goodies are all natural and made with human grade ingredients (no fair cheating and serving these at your Christmas office party to avoid holiday baking), plus a toy. The boxes can be mailed anywhere in the U.S. in time for Christmas, as long as your order gets to the shelter in time to send them by December 14.

Please peruse the catalogue. There is an order form on the final page with information that you fill in to allow the shelter staff to mail a card to the person you are honoring with your donation.

To view the catalogue, click on the link below. When you click on the link, it will take you to a page that just says: “HSMC Christmas Shopping” and shows the link again. Click on the link once more to bring up the catalogue.

HSMC Christmas Shopping

You can also view the catalogue by going to the Humane Society of Madison County’s web site: http://hsmcohio.com/

Spend lots of time looking at this very important catalogue and then order something!

Siamese lovers affectionately call their little chocolate and cream bundles of joy “Meezers.”  One of the things you can do as a volunteer for Siamese Rescue is transport cats to their new homes, sometimes in adjacent states, driving a leg of the trip and connecting up with the next transporter. The people who act as cat chauffeurs are part of the volunteer chain called The Meezer Express.

Siamese Rescue even has their own shop called “The Siamese Store: For Everything Siamese.” One of the cute things (of many) that you can buy online through their store is a magnet for the side of your car that tells everyone you are part of The Meezer Express.

The Siamese Store has tons of other cool things, too, and all of the proceeds benefit The Siamese Rescue Center. To see all the Siamese items they have for sale, visit: http://thesiamesestore.com/

You can also find out about volunteer opportunities with Siamese Rescue by visiting: http://va.siameserescue.org/

Or check out their adoptable kitties. There is always a Meezer looking for love.

Holiday Stocking featuring a Siamese kitty face for sale at The Siamese Store.

Santa Black Cat Earrings from PJ Publications

I came across this company in a newsletter I receive from Born Free USA, a charitable organization that works to help “end the suffering of wild animals in captivity, rescue individual animals in need, protect wildlife–including highly endangered species–in their natural habitats, and encourage compassionate conservation globally.” The group works for animals in the trapping and fur industry, for captive exotic animals, and those in entertainment and the international wildlife trade. 

When you purchase anything from the PJ Publications web site, enter “BFUSA” in the Promo Code Box with your order and 20% of your purchase (minus the shipping and taxes) will go to Born Free USA. 

To see cat themed gifts: http://www.pjpublications.com/Category-CatGifts.htm

To see the Holiday gift collection for animal lovers: http://www.pjpublications.com/Jewelry-HolidaysAnimals.htm

And to see the dog themed gifts: http://www.pjpublications.com/Category-DogGifts.htm

Dachshund Santa Earrings from PJ Publications.

Cat Wallet made of Polyurethane from PJ Publications.

The first thing I want to remind everyone about is to use GoodShop this holiday season if you are purchasing gifts online. GoodShop is powered by GoodSearch, the search engine that donates a penny to your chosen charity each time you use them to search for things. It is just like Google, only it gives back to charities when you use it.

The same is true for GoodShop. Each time you use it and select the charity you want to benefit, GoodShop retailers give a portion of the purchase amount to that charity. You can log into GoodShop by going to: http://www.goodsearch.com/goodshop.aspx

Please put in Black and Orange Cat Foundation when it asks, “Who Do You Support?”

GoodShop is great because all your favorite stores are there: PetSmart, Amazon.com, The Apple Store, Macy’s, Sears, and many, many more. There are even coupons on the site that allow you to save even more and each retailer lists how much of the purchase price comes to your charity. Some give 1-2 percent, others up to 7.5 percent or more. Those percentages really add up.

And if you want to buy books, you can choose from Borders, Barnes and Noble, or a ton of others. Just click on the “Books and Media” link on the side bar and you can choose which bookstore to use.

Since books are one of my favorite gifts to give and receive for any holiday, I wanted to tell you about a few new ones, as well as some award winners.

The first books are for children. The ASPCA always awards the Henry Bergh Children’s Book Award each year to authors who make “a contribution to humane children’s literature.” These are the best of the best for animal loving kids (and adults).

To find the list of the 2008 winners, go to: http://www2.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=edu_bookaward_2008_list

All of these books can be purchased on the ASPCA web site or through Amazon.com. By purchasing them on Amazon.com, you can also support us through GoodShop!

To see all the books in the ASPCA bookstore, including the yearly award winners, go to: http://www.aspcaonlinestore.com/index.php?categoryID=104

And finally, Nathan J. Winograd has a new book out as a follow up to his huge hit, Redemption, The Myth of Pet Overpopulation & The No Kill Revolution in America. Called Irreconcilable Differences, The Battle for the Heart and Soul of America’s Animal Shelters, the new book looks at how animal lovers everywhere are standing up to the excuses given by many high kill animal shelters to justify killing.

Winograd’s earlier book Redemption won numerous awards for its groundbreaking ideas, including debunking and challenging the myth that “killing animals in U. S. shelters is an act of kindness.”

To learn more about these books and to purchase them, please visit Winograd’s web site: http://www.nathanwinograd.com/

Both are available at Amazon.com. I just bought my copies through GoodShop and picked B and O as my charity! Hurrah!