Killarney Guide

Pet photos with Santa at Red Apple on Saturday, December 17, will benefit Paws for Serendipity animal rescue

BY KIM LANGEN

Love your pet? And Santa too? 

Well, a chance to bring the two together and create a sweet little memory is coming up tomorrow afternoon, Saturday, December 17, at a downtown location.

It’s Santa Pictures with your Pet, and from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. a team of dedicated pet people will be setting up the Christmassy scene at the Red Apple store (across from the Co-op on Broadway Ave., Killarney) to snap some awesome photos. 

The cost is just $10, and all the proceeds will go to feed and support dogs and cats – and other pets! – who have no home.

“I really wanted to do something happy, something that would make people feel good, especially at Christmas,” said Shannon Costello, who runs the animal rescue, Paws for Serendipity, a few miles southeast of Killarney. “You can have a photo taken with your pet, or multiple pets, with Santa. Sandy Phillips, who operates Crumbling Memories Photographs in Killarney, will bring her backdrops and her camera, and send the great digital photos directly to the pet owners.”

Rhonda Kleebaum, director of Westman Rescue, along with her husband, Sean Kleebaum, are also joining in with the fundraising event. 

“Rhonda will help with the dogs,” said Costello. “We often work together with animal rescue, and in finding homes for these many dogs and pets. Everyone is volunteering for the Santa pictures, and every $10 we receive will help with pet food, vet bills, and more.”

And the homeless pets just keep increasing, she said.

“This year has been absolutely crucial,” said Costello. “There is an abundance of animals now that are needing help, and a home. A lot of people adopted for purchased pets during COVID, and many of them have gone back to work now, and are sending pets back to rescues. Every rescue needs help right now. We are being asked daily to help with dogs that we can’t help. We have no foster homes. I have actually been running off just one foster home at a time for three years now. We don’t have enough funds to vet and feed the dogs in our care, and we aren’t alone. Every rescue is full.”

Costello began her non-profit animal rescue around four years ago, and usually has a house full of dogs, with more outside, all in need of a new home. Birds, goats, ducks – and maybe even the odd gerbil – often join in with the mix of homeless pets and castaways.

Merchandise and crafts will also be on sale, including dog, cat, and horse treats, and even jewellery, all created by Costello herself. All the finances raised or donated will help Paws for Serendipity, she said. And if you have a home for a pet – even better! Even helping out can make a massive difference, she said.

“If you have time, find a rescue and volunteer,” said Costello. “If you can foster a pet, open your home. And if you can donate do so. It all helps. Their lives depend on it.”

For more information on the Paws for Serendipity animal rescue, you can email: pawsforserendipity@gmail.com. To contact Shannon Costello about helping out, or about adopting a new pet, call 204-215-0336.
Donations toward veterinarian costs for these rescue animals can be made at the Killarney, Glenboro, or Pilot Mound vet clinics, or by cheque to: Box 541, Killarney, MB, R0K 1G0. 
You can also look up Paws for Serendipity on Facebook, and Instagram.

SCRUFFY DUFF SEEKS HOME – Shannon Costello, who operates the non-profit animal rescue Paws for Serendipity, poses with her current mascot dog, Scruffy Duff. “He’s an Akita mix, from the north, and just one of a number of dogs I have that are desperately looking for a home,” she said.

JAY STRUTH/KILLARNEY GUIDE