The Wood County Humane Society has honored two of its long-time volunteers by dedicating a
recently-installed feline exercise wheel at its shelter to them.
A plaque affixed to the exercise wheel will acknowledge Joe Schroeder and Stephanie Squire Ringler, both
of Weston, for over seven years of service as the co-organizers of the WCHS’s annual garage sale, held
every May.
Schroeder and Ringler assumed leadership of the annual garage sale fundraiser in 2007. That first year,
the event raised just over $7,000. Under their joint leadership, the garage sale has become one of the
organization’s biggest fundraisers. This year the event brought in over $14,000 in total sales.
Both Schroeder and Ringler are quick to point out that their leadership is only a small part of the
event’s success. They attribute most of the success to the many volunteers who work the event every
year. Schroeder said that this year alone over 30 community members volunteered for the event, "all
working an average of eight hours per day from Sunday to Saturday, which equates to over 1,800 hours
volunteered." Schroeder goes on to note that "it is back-breaking, but oh-so-rewarding
work."
The new addition to the WCHS’s Minibelle Conley shelter on Van Camp Road resembles an oversized hamster
wheel. The cat wheel can accommodate up to two cats at a time and it meets two of the most important
needs that all indoor cats have: physical activity and mental stimulation.
The wheel allows shelter animals to play, interact, and exercise even when humans are not available to
provide that stimulation. The wheel also can help mitigate some of the adverse effects of a sedentary
life for older felines or felines who are housed in cramped shelter conditions.
The purchase of the feline wheel was made possible by this year’s garage sale, which far surpassed the
co-organizers’ fundraising goal, and corresponds to an effort by shelter staff to provide more
opportunities for behavioral enrichment.
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, behavioral enrichment outlets
are crucial for shelter animals, especially as the "face" of animal sheltering in American is
changing.