“I still enjoy it as much as I did on the first week I started.” – Kathy Beaumont
by Doug Hickerson
At the Sweden-Clarkson Dog Shelter, Kathy Beaumont stands with the senior beagle she named Toby. Early last week she located his owners who will take him back home.“They are all my kids,” Kathy Beaumont says about the dogs she rescues and temporarily places in the Sweden-Clarkson Dog Shelter on White Road. It is an affectionate and protective attitude she has had for 26 years on the job. Kathy is the Sweden-Clarkson Dog Control Officer on call 24/7 for the two towns, including the Village of Brockport.
The most typical call for Kathy is the sighting of a stray dog. Placing the stray in the shelter, she waits for a possible phone call from the owner and she posts flyers in the community. She also scans for an ID chip in the dog’s neck, but not many people register their pet’s chip, she says. After about 10 days, the dog is put up for adoption. Meanwhile, Kathy goes to the shelter twice every day to feed the dog.
“Tango” is one example of rescue and adoption to a happy home. Last March, Mr. and Mrs. Vandertang phoned about a stray in Northampton Park. Kathy picked up the dog in very sickly condition with no hair on the back half of his body and nails overgrown. “He was skin and bones and you could see every rib.” She took him to Clarkson Veterinary Hospital “who are always on call for us and provide a generous discount.” The dog could not be admitted because mange was suspected and could infect the premises.
Pleading “What can I do?” Kathy was advised to feed him chicken or hamburger with rice every two hours until he improves. “I went to the shelter to feed him every two hours throughout the night,” Kathy says. By morning, he was up and bouncing back. She named him “Tango” in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Vandertang who initiated the rescue. It turned out Tang had fleas, not mange. With the needed vet treatments, Tang was adopted out, still underweight and needing care. Kathy stops by Tang’s new home once in a while. “He weighs over 100 pounds, now. He is a gorgeous dog with a shiny coat,” she says. “When Tang sees me, he goes crazy and runs to me,” remembering he was first one of her kids.
Happy ending – “Lucy” enjoys her parents, Brockport residents Jack and Chris Mazzarella. Now seven years old, they adopted Lucy in 2006. Lucy had been found abandoned and pregnant, then was rescued, and delivered six puppies at the Sweden-Clarkson Dog Shelter. “She is just the sweetest thing,” Chris says. “Did we ever win out with this one.”Kathy also receives complaint calls, typically a neighbor’s dog continuously barking. Her approach with the complainant and the dog owner is to negotiate a resolution. “I go out to educate, not beat up,” Kathy says. “We are friends and we are going to talk this out,” she adds about her approach. She discusses options for the dog owner to relocate the dog on his property or some other kind of behavior control. In almost every case, the dog owner takes reasonable measures. Where there is resistance, the dog owner is also made aware of possible citations under the municipal dog ordinance, a court appearance, and fines up to $300 in the extreme case.
Kathy feels the community’s support for her work. Asked how she thinks the community would rate her over 26 years, from 0 to 100, she says “90.” Some have put themselves on her “want list” to be called if a dog is up for adoption. Kathy receives community contributions to supplement dog supplies. On Thanksgiving 2006, “Lucy” the Beagle had six puppies at the shelter, after being found pregnant and abandoned. Many contributed supplies and local Scout troops helped care for the puppies.
“Twenty-six years and I am still going strong,” Kathy mused. “I still enjoy it as much as I did on the first week I started. I have run into a lot of nice people, and I have learned how to handle people.” As for her “kids,” she says, “I see them as tiny, then grown up and I usually hear when they pass away.” She sometimes checks the town dog license records that show current and deceased, asking, “Does so and so still have that dog?” “I don’t remember the people’s names, but I remember their dog, where he came from, and the home where he lives.”
Note: Contributions such as sheets, towels, biscuits, leashes, and bowls can be left at the Sweden Maintenance Garage office on White Road or at the Town of Sweden office on 18 State Street. Any questions or concerns, call Kathy’s home phone 637-4260. For emergencies phone her cell phone 748-4478. Reports of animal cruelty, abuse, no food or shelter, should go directly to the Humane Society at Lollypop Farm which has powers of police enforcement: 223-6500.
