Charlestown Pet Group Meeting Minutes 2/28/2023

The meeting was opened at 11:05 am by David Elder, Chair. Twenty-four members were in attendance. There were no minutes from the October meeting.

David introduced our guest – Jason Spivey, Director of General Services.  Jason was given a copy of our Pet Directory.  It will be available to his staff in the event of emergencies in apartments.

Jason told the group that suggestions have been made regarding the dog parks on campus.  They are looking at any renovations to the park by the garden in conjunction with the renovations in the Historic Area.  A question was raised about culling deer.  There are no plans to do that due to the danger of certain culling methods and the easy accessibility for the deer to Charlestown from outside the community.

Old Business:

*There are foxes on our grounds. They may be leaving piles of poo that are misidentified as dog mess.  NOTE to all owners – foxes can be a danger to cats and small dogs.
*David and Otto maintain the list of Pet owners and pets. The list is sorted by building. It shows the building representative. They rely on us to keep the list current. If you have a change in your home, or know of a change for anyone else, please let Otto know.
*Items are collected for donation to shelters. If you have any items for donation. Bring them to the next meeting or Contact Elsie Kemp or Otto Greul.

NOTE: All resident contact information can be found in the Resident Directory available online in MyErickson.

New Business:

*This month’s item was cut from the Sunburst due to space. David will share it with us.
*Cat Clinic information: Next dates:

  • March 10
  • May 19
  • July 14
  • September 8
  • November 17

Clinics are held In the Cross Creek Arts Room from 8 – 11 am. Please call Dr Nesbitt (410-869-0800) for an appointment.
 
*Members discussed issues with feeding birds and wild animals. Please follow the guidelines in the Resident handbook. It is not allowed to throw food onto the grounds to feed animals.  It is unsafe for the residents and for the animals.
*Any violations of any of the pet rules, e.g. animals not on leashes, food being left out for animals, should be reported to the Resident Life Staff.
*If you are unable to care for your animal, the Pet Group may be able to help you find a new home. Contact David if you are in that situation. There is an organization – Senior Dog Sanctuary of Maryland – that may be able to help with senior dogs.
*Janet MacNab has put the pet info for your refrigerator into an online form. The advantage is that it is easy to change if any of the information changes.  If you are interested in getting this form, send an email to Janet.
*The group has 174 humans, 127 cats, 71 dogs, 3 birds, a rabbit and a lizard.

The meeting closed at 12:06 PM.

The NEXT MEETING is March 28, 2023, always on 4th Tuesday at 11AM in Brookside Classroom 2.