Doggone fun

The Kauai Humane Society’s major fundraiser, “Paws for Celebration,” is set for 5 p.m. Saturday at the Kauai Marriott Resort &Beach Club.

Mirah Horowitz, KHS executive director, promises it will be a great time, with a pet fashion show, auctions and food.

“But, more importantly, all the funds raised will go towards saving the lives of Kauai’s dogs and cats,” she wrote in an email to TGI.

KHS is the only open-admission shelter on the island. It is the single resource for people who cannot keep their pets — or who find strays and don’t know what to do with them. It provides low-cost spay and neuter, microchip, and vaccine clinics.

“We are also the only place on the island where pet owners can get their beloved pets cremated, getting that end-of-life closure that so many desperately need,” Horowitz said. “KHS is an essential part of our community, and this gala makes our work possible.”

KHS hopes to raise $50,000 Saturday, “to ensure that we have the resources needed to give every animal their best chance at a forever home.”

“KHS is a truly amazing organization, but there is so much work to do on this island. We have so many things we can accomplish. We just need to come up with the resources to make this happen,” Horowitz said.

The fashion show is a first for Paws for Celebration and will feature dressed-up dogs.

“We wanted to add something to the annual gala beyond the traditional dinner. We’re super-exited for it,” said Horowitz, who will be at the event.

Three people will be honored Saturday: Bev Harter, the Humaneatarian of the Year; Loretta Swit (Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan from “M.A.S.H.”), the winner of the new Aloha for Animals award; and Faye Reese, the inaugural recipient of the Carol Ann Davis Volunteer Impact Award.

“We have such amazing supporters,” Horowitz said.

Since accepting the job in October 2018, she said they have made “incredible progress in our lifesaving work. We are saving many more dogs and cats than ever before.”

KHS has had 910 adoptions at the shelter since Horowitz started in October, and has transferred 602 dogs and cats to its rescue partners on the mainland.

One of the most important metrics of a shelter’s ability to save lives is its live-release rate, she said, because this number quantifies how many animals leave the shelter alive.

KHS increased its live-release rate for dogs from 85% in FY18 to 89% in FY19; it increased its live-release rate for cats from 39% in FY18 to 51% in FY19; and it increased its overall live-release rate from 59% to 68%.

“These numbers tell an amazing story, a story about how our staff and volunteers have made it a priority to save as many animals as we possibly can,” she said.

Horowitz, the chief executive officer and founder of Washington, D.C.-based “Lucky Dog Animal Rescue,” travels back and forth from the mainland for her job on Kauai. She has always loved animals.

“Growing up, my parents set an example of giving back to our community, being a voice for the voiceless,” she said in a previous interview with TGI. “So it became a natural fit for me to want to be a voice for the animals, to be their advocate when no one else would be.”

Her legal background — she attended Duke University School of Law in North Carolina — has helped in her animal-welfare work.

“It wasn’t quite as big of a leap as you might expect since I started volunteering in animal welfare when I was still doing law and policy work at the Department of Justice,” she said.

The best part of her day is when they get adoption updates from people who adopted an animal at KHS or from one of their rescue partners on the mainland.

“It is tremendously rewarding to know that you have not only saved the life of a dog or cat but that you have helped a person or family find unconditional love,” she said. “I got into animal welfare because I love animals, but I have learned over the years that the impact on people is just as important.”

Tickets for the Paws for Celebration are $125 and can be purchased at kauaihumane.org.