Gionna is only 10 months old, but has likely lived with mange for her entire life.  After being passed around to several homes, Gionna's case of mange was far too advanced for her most recent owner to manage or pay for.  To provide the expensive treatments and on-going medical care she's going to need, Gionna was surrendered to our friends at the  City of Bloomington Animal Care and Control and we're working together to get the resources to fund her treatments and on-going care. Mange is a skin disease that is caused by tiny external parasites causing bald spots, itching, and in some cases blisters or lesions.

Read more about Gionna here.

It is with personal regret but warm wishes that we announce that our long-time Education Director, Sarah DeLone, will have her last day at MCHA on Monday, July 6.  Sarah has given over 14 years of her passion and dedication to MCHA, and the work she's done for animals, children and our community is irreplaceable. Sarah's work with MCHA has changed the lives of many children in our community, propelled animal welfare to the forefront of our community and has shared her love and passion for animals with all of us. While we at MCHA will feel this loss, we wish a well-deserved respite for her and her beloved pups Gage, Scout and Phoebe. Sarah will always be considered part of the MCHA family and wish her the best.

Please welcome Kimberly Goy to the MCHA team! Kimberly and her family have lived in Bloomington for the past 10 years, having been born and raised in Terre Haute. Kimberly's family includes two wonderful pets adopted from the Bloomington Animal Shelter - a house cat, and a Pomeranian, adopted after a puppy mill was shut down in Owen County. Kimberly was previously on the Board of Directors for MCHA overseeing events, and actively providing day-day operational support to the team.  Kimberly has also been an active volunteer with the Bloomington Animal shelter for the past 7 years - fostering numerous animals and participating in the annual MCHA pet food drive to benefit the shelter. She has also volunteered as a mentor at Bloomington South. Kimberly's family includes her husband Eric and two children, Jason and Sarah.

It is with great sadness that we report that our beloved Great Horned Owl, Boris, has passed away. On Sunday, July 5, we found Boris in his barn with an injury to his wing. We believe he may have gotten spooked by the fireworks and smacked his (already busted) wing against his enclosure when he tried to fly (he hasn't been able to fly since he was very, very young). Boris stayed a few days at the vet where they were hoping to see if they could fix his wing enough to amputate it as it wasn't salvageable. He was then moved to a Raptor Rehab facility for on-going care and cleaning to see if they could get him ready for surgery. He had settled in, was eating, and doing well. However, while he was healthy and in good spirits, apparently it was his time. Boris passed away in his sleep. There were no signs he was in distress or was in pain, he had been eating well and was in excellent health. We believe he was well over 30 years old. Boris spent 15 years as an MCHA Ambassador Animal and was an excellent companion to the Education Program. We hope he's finally flying high somewhere over the Rainbow Bridge!

Registration is open for the Run for the Animals! Join us this year on Sunday, October 4 for the 20th Annual Run for the Animals and Barktoberfest, sponsored in part by Megan Morseth, an Edward Jones Financial Advisor.

• We're also looking for volunteers to help on the day of the event!
  Sign up, today!