PAWS thanks supporters

PAWS and Beautify CNMI would like to thank all those that attended the dog show this Saturday. It was a great event, which was made possible due to the generous donations and contributions made by the following persons and/or businesses (in alphabetical order):

Angelo Villagomez
Brad Ruszala
Cinta Kaipat
Department of Environmental Quality
Eric and Tania David
Expressions
Fiesta Resort & Spa
George Hasselbeck
Gus Kaipat
Hyatt Regency Saipan
IT & E
Jason Sablan of Price Costco
Jason Tarkong
Jeff Schorr
KikBak
Mike Tripp
Moby Dick's Restaurant
Pacific Islands Club Saipan
Pacific Trading Inc.
Palms Resort
Patricia Garshak
Price Costco
Representative Edward Salas
Retta Sue Hamilton
Ron Smith
Seafix
The Kaipat Kids
Taco Bell & KFC
Trench Tech

And of course, we thank all of our volunteers-you know who you are!

PAWS would also like to thank HANMI for the $2,000 donation made for public outreach purposes. The money will be used to create and run weekly “Pet of the Week” advertisements on KSPN so we can place homeless animals in permanent and foster homes quickly. Thank you HANMI for helping PAWS make Saipan a better place to live and visit!

Katie Busenkell
PAWS President

PAWS WARS

About 40 dogs and 100 humans took part in yesterday's Beautify CNMI/Paws sponsored third annual Best of the Worst Boonie Dog Show, PAWS WARS Episode 3: Revenge of the Boonie.

We had a late start due to an equipment malfunction, but once we got started it was smooth sailing.

We started off by awarding the annual Beautify CNMI Champion and Beautify CNMI Steward awards. Laurie Peterka, Ken Kramer and Tan Holdings were recognized as Champions (our annual advocate award) and the Friends of the Monument were recognized as Stewards (our annual volunteer award).

With that done, I stepped off the stage and let veteran dog show host George Hasselback take over. We had six categories this year: fattest, most misbehaved, most talented, booniest, best star wars costume, and best in show.

At the beginning of each category, all of the competitors were paraded in front of the judges and then brought out one by one for judging. Dogs were scored on a 1-5 scale, with 15 being the highest possible score.

After all the competitors had been judged and scored, the winners for the round were announced and prizes given out. Before starting the next round we gave away a few raffle prizes.

I think the Star Wars category was the most popular. Brad Ruszala, as usual, kicked it up a notch and used his personal Princess Leia costume to dress his dog, Meatball. It was good enough for first place, with Snow White's rendition of Princess Leia actually tying her, but losing to Meatball in the tie-breaker.

This year we had help from some of the fighters from Trench Tech thanks to the involvement of Jason Tarkong and Cuki Alvarez. They upped the cool quotient of the hippie, tree hugger dog show at least 15 percentage points.

We also had tremendous support from the community. I put out a call for $20 donations to pay for prizes and over a dozen people donated, including Jerry Tan, Lydia Tan, Marianne Teregeyo, Marianne and Richard Pierce, Kathy Yuknavage, Susan Macario, Kyle Calabrese, Mike Tripp, Aya Matsumoto, Tyler Yoshimoto, Catie Hiney, Ed Manibusan, Joey San Nicholas, and Lina Dimaano. Pacific Trading, Seafix, Hyatt Regency Saipan, Fiesta Resort & Spa, Palms Resort, Moby Dick Restaurant, Expressions, Mike Tripp Productions, Price Costco, and Pacific Islands Club Saipan also donated support and prizes. Representative Ed Salas donated tents. I donated tables and chairs.

The Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands also used the dog show as an opportunity to donate $2000. The money will be used to help find stray animals permanent homes.

When it comes down to it, the Boonie Dog Show is a perfect example of how the Beautify CNMI spirit works. People pitch in what they can and we come together to do great things.

PAWS WARS a Success

PAWS WARS Episode 3: Revenge of the Boonie was an overwhelming success. We had three animals up for adoption and they were adopted. Dogs won prizes. Spectators were entertained. A good time was had by all.

Barbie wins dog show
MONDAY, 15 JUNE 2009 00:00 BY RAQUEL BAGNOL - VARIETY NEWS STAFF

A FIVE-YEAR old Pomeranian named Barbie is this year’s winner of the Best of the Worst Dog Show at the CPA airport grounds on Saturday.

Barbie’s owner, MC Torregoza, said she also entered her dog in last year’s event.

Second place went to two-month-old Pepa, a Maltese Poodle owned by Alverick Alvarez.

Named the third place winner was Kui, owned by Ken Baer.

The three judges — Brad Ruszala, Cinta Kaipat and PO2 Jason Tarkong chose the winners in each of the six different categories.

This year’s contest drew 26 dog contestants.

PAWS president Kathleen Busenkell said the contest was a success, and they will be organizing another dog show next year.

“We would like to thank our sponsors and supporters who had been helping us come up with this show, but the main thing is we would like to emphasize the importance of taking care of our dogs and other pets,” Busenkell said.

She said they may have to hold the show a little earlier next year as most of the dog owners are off-island.

“We have few repeaters this year, but we have several newcomers, too,” she said.

Some of the dogs in the show were up for adoption, stray dogs that PAWS found and is taking care of.

At the end of the show, two of the dogs found new owners.

The other winners in the dog show:

Fattest

First place: Lucky — Amanda Lorenz

Second place: Missy — Bruce McMillan

Third place: Pepper — Wendy Lorenz

Booniest

First place: Yoda — Andres Buitrago

Second place: Rossi — Kathleen Herman

Third place: Jake — Adam Hardwicke

Most Disobedient

First place: Chloe — Jillian Ferrer

Second place: Jake — Adam Hardwicke

Third place: Charlotte — John Blanco

Most Talented

First place: Dima — Scott Hayden

Second place: Meatball — Kathy Pagapular

Third place: Dirk — Liza Eller

Star Wars Award

First place: Meatball — Brad Ruszala

Second place: Snowhite — Edz Blanco

Third place: Yodu — Andres Buitrago

Sponsors for the show were Seafix, Hyatt Regency Saipan, HANMI, Pacific Trading, Price Costco, Palms Resort Saipan, Fiesta Resort Hotel &Spa, Pacific Islands Club, the Kikbak Band, Gus Kaipat, Trench Tech and Expressions.

Request for Donations

I rarely ask for cash donations. For three years Beautify CNMI has been very successful getting by with good coordination, sharing resources as in-kind contributions, and stretching every dollar we get. For example, the recent island wide cleanup was made possible with a $1500 donation for supplies by MVA and donations for prizes by Marianas Tourism Educational Council and the Kramis family of $1000 and $300 respectively. With that little amount of money and a lot of volunteer hours from the Division of Environmental Quality and other volunteers, we were able to recruit 4,140 volunteers to remove over 27,070 lbs of trash from Saipan's beaches and roads.

Today, however, we are in need of about $300 to pull off our 3rd annual Boonie Dog Show. We're calling it PAWS WARS Episode III: Revenge of the Boonie. This is the annual event where PAWS and Beautify CNMI team up to educate people about the benefits of responsible pet ownership, all while having a good time laughing at the animals we love. And yes, this year we have a Star Wars theme.

I am humbly asking that you donate $20 to PAWS to help us put on the Boonie Dog Show. If you can help, please contact me or Katie Busenkell at busenkell@gmail.com.

The Phantom Boonie

It is that time of year again – when Beautify CNMI! and PAWS team up to celebrate Saipan’s boonie dogs. This year, the dog show, PAWS WARS, Episode III, Revenge of the Boonie, will be held on June 13, 2009 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at CPA Airport Field. Categories include:

Star Wars Character
Booniest
Fattest
Most Disobedient
Most Talented; and
Best in Show.

Come down and bring your dog in their best storm trooper or Darth Vader mask. There will be great prizes and loads of fun for the entire family. Registration forms are available here. As we have done in the past, we hope to use the dog show as a method of educating people about the benefits of responsible pet ownership and promote the human-animal bond.

2nd Annual PAWS-Beautify CNMI Boonie Dog Show!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

The much anticipated, twice postponed, PAWS and Beautify CNMI! annual dog show is scheduled for June 7, 2008 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the CPA Airport Field. The exact location of the show will be at the southern end of the field underneath the Flame Trees.

The dog show was originally scheduled for May 17, 2008, but was postponed when PAWS President Katie Busenkell was invited to attend the United States Humane Society’s Animal Care Expo, a convention on animal care and welfare. “It was an opportunity for networking that we could not pass up,” said Busenkell.

Everyone is invited to attend and participate in the dog show, which is a free event. It is a fun activity for the entire family, including boonie dogs. All dogs entered in the show, or present at the show, must wear a collar and have a leash.

“If your dog has mange, a condition that causes the dog to loose hair, we ask that you not enroll your pet in the show,” said PAWS Vice President Melissa Simms. “Instead, we urge you to take your pet to a veterinarian for treatment.”

For those dogs that are able to attend the show, owners may enter their dog(s) to win prizes in the following categories: (1) The Fattest; (2) The Most Disobedient; (3) The Best Belly Dragger (for smaller breeds); (4) The Best Geriatric (for those older dogs); (5) The Most Like a Movie Star; and (6) The Booniest. A prize will also be awarded to the dog that wins the title, “The Best of the Worst,” otherwise known as the best of show.

Prizes include Frontline for fleas and ticks, flea and tick shampoo and dip, dog toys, dog food, and a dog bed, just to name a few of the items that have been generously donated by Costco and/or purchased with funds donated by Beautify CNMI!, Angil Designs, Inc., and the PEW Charitable Trust. “And, if you have a cat, or many, you are invited to enter our $1.00 raffle for cat-care items,” said Simms.

Registration is free and pre-registration is strongly encouraged due to an expected high turnout. When asked if she was excited about the dog show, Bernie Dela Cruz said, “Yes! Because I love dogs. I love animals.”

Forms can be downloaded at www.paws-saipan.org and emailed to Katie at busenkell@gmail.com. If you have questions about the dog show, call the PAWS PTI hotline for more information at 285-PAWS.

Boonie Dog Pet Show!

This is kind of old, but I hadn't seen it until today: