An official in Pottawattamie County reports that on Wednesday (July 31st),  seven Southwest Iowa non-profit animal welfare organizations came together to create the Southwest Iowa Animal Coalition.  Pott. County Supervisor Loren Knauss, facilitator of the Coalition, says the regional collaboration is comprised of: Catnip & Tails Rescue (in Council Bluffs), The Harrison County Humane Society (in Logan), Lusco Farms Rescue (in Malvern), Montgomery County Animal Rescue (in Red Oak), People for Paws (in Shenandoah), The Pottawattamie County Animal Shelter (Pottawattamie County), and the Western Iowa Feral & Homeless Cat Program (in Walnut). Each organization has committed to working together to improve the health, safety and quality of life of our communities through the humane treatment and management of animals in Southwest Iowa.

Knauss said “The Southwest Iowa Animal Coalition is the first regional collaboration of animal welfare organizations of its kind in Southwest Iowa.  We have made the decision to design a new way for animal welfare and government organizations to work together in an effort to increase the number of animal adoptions, to better promote spay/neuter and microchip programs, to increase education and outreach, and to help create a more consistent and effective approach to animal control in Southwest Iowa.”

Sheila McKern with the Pott. County Animal Shelter, says the problem of neglected and unwanted animals in Southwest Iowa has no borders.  McKern says “Owners that do not spay and neuter their animals have helped to increase the number of unwanted animals that are abandoned throughout Southwest Iowa.  To solve the problem in one community, you must also attempt to solve the problem in all the surrounding communities.  And this can only happen when everyone is working as a team.  The animal coalition is our team effort.”

Linda Hoefing, with People for Paws says “The Southwest Iowa Animal Coalition has become the foundation for what we see as a regional team effort to reduce the number of neglected, unwanted, and abandoned animals in Southwest Iowa.  Through shared adoption efforts, education programs, spay and neuter programs, microchipping, and a discussion on the best practices for addressing animal control, we feel we can take a realistic approach to reducing the number of unwanted and abandoned animals in our region.”

Knauss said the coalition has partnered with Petco in Council Bluffs, and Orschelin Farm & Home in Red Oak, Iowa to hold two regional adoption and microchip events in an effort to increase the number of animal adoptions and use of identification microchips in Southwest Iowa.  The use of microchips has helped to increase the likelihood that lost, stolen, and injured pets are successfully returned to owners.

The first regional adoption and microchip event will be held on Saturday, September 14, 2013 at 10:00 A.M. at Petco, at 3271 Marketplace Drive, in Council Bluffs.  The second regional adoption and microchip event will be held on Saturday, October 5, 2013 at 10:00 A.M. at Orschelin Farm & Home in Red Oak. 

Iowa’s annual Sales Tax Holiday will be held over the next few days, as most purchases of clothing and footwear will be sales tax-free. Victoria Daniels, spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Revenue, says there is a specific purpose to the two-day tax holiday, which runs tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday. “A lot of people like to take advantage of it and get a head start on their back-to-school shopping,” Daniels says. This is the 14th year for the Sales Tax Holiday in Iowa. Daniels says the two days are favored by both shoppers and merchants.

“It’s pretty popular,” Daniels says. “There are limits to what you can buy so it’s not necessarily a free-for-all. One good thing is that you don’t have to be a student to take advantage of it. Anybody who purchases the qualifying items during the sales period is able to purchase them exempt from the sales tax.” Daniels says the items that are eligible for the sales tax-free weekend need to fall under the category of clothing and footwear, but they must also meet certain definitions.

“It doesn’t include things you would think of as accessories, like a watch, jewelry or umbrellas,” she says. “Anything you would not normally wear every day, something designed for athletic activity or protective use, those things are not going to qualify either.” Some examples include tennis shoes — which could be worn for gym class or for everyday — those would qualify for the exemption but football cleats would not qualify.

Learn more about the Iowa Sales Tax Holiday at: www.iowa.gov/tax/educate/holiday1.html

(Radio Iowa)