Humane Society Marks Resident's 16th Birthday

    Years ago, when Pug’s Pub was still open near downtown Eustis, the bar was home to ‘Mere’ cat, the business’s mascot and regular sight among patrons. When that establishment closed, Mere needed a home that didn’t involve dogs chasing her, which led to her moving in at the Humane Society of Lake County’s shelter in Dona Vista. Years later, Mere is still going strong, and on Saturday the shelter celebrated the cat that is believed to be 16 years old.
   “When the bar closed, Mere needed a place to be,” said shelter executive director Angie Klein during Saturday’s party, which also served as the society’s volunteer appreciation event. “Her owner asked if we could take her in for retirement.”
   That was around five years ago, and Mere has become a fixture at the shelter, where she spends her days with other cats in an indoor/outdoor enclosure.
   “She’s not available for adoption,” Klein said. “She’ll remain here.”
   Mere is quite the celebrity at the shelter, as former owner Patty Fox, who was on hand on Saturday, said the cat had met famed musician Bryan Adams, who came to Pug’s Pub once.
   Described as ‘an amazing little cat’ by Klein, Mere on Saturday was exhibiting as much patience as possible with her birthday clothing and other decorations, and really seemed to enjoy nibbling at a cupcake sprinkled with fish flakes.
   The birthday party was the idea of shelter staff member Ciji Swanton, who was on hand to help facilitate the festivities.
   While Mere is not available, Klein said many other cats and dogs can be adopted, and right now is an important time to support the shelter.
   “Adoptions are way down right now,” Klein said.
   A new program recently begun by the humane society makes dogs even more adoptable, as dogs at the shelter now are part of a training program that has left them house broken and trained in certain behaviors. In the program, dogs go off to jails in Orange and Hardee county to be trained by inmates to not jump among other important skills required to be good house pets.
   “They learn how to be dogs,” Klein said of the program. “We’re very excited with the results we’ve seen so far.”
   If you are interested in a pet or would otherwise like to support the shelter, visit www.humanelake.com or call the shelter, which is located on McKinley Road in Dona Vista, at 352-589-7400.