"The Pilots N Paws 5000 has been officially launched!"

A general discussion forum for all members interested in transporting needy animals.
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"The Pilots N Paws 5000 has been officially launched!"

Post by admin » Sun Jun 28, 2009 9:16 pm

Hi everyone,

"The Pilots N Paws 5000" is now ready for sign up! A very special thanks to pilots Steve Foley and Brent Frey for their computer knowledge and working tirelessly to get this section of our website up and functioning. We never could have done this without them so thank you Brent and Steve!!

During the next few days, most of you will receive a private email with specific information about how to participate in this event. I will also post a copy below for reference use until you receive your specific copy. We need each of every one of you to put your best efforts forward and call on all your networking skills. We can do this folks, are you ready??

Let's rock n roll.........
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**Information for Posting Requests for Pilots N Paws 5000**

Hello everyone! You have likely heard or read on the forum board about the "Pilots N Paws 5000" being dicussed and now is the time to make it a reality! WE CAN DO THIS! It is quite clear that in just over a year now, pilots teaming up with rescues and shelters have made a difference in the lives of these innocent animals. Now we need everyone's cooperation and participation to make the public aware of the need these animals have and how general aviation pilots effect our everyday lives through their generosity. Please go to the website, www.pilotsnpaws.org, click on the link for "The Pilots N Paws 5000" and please follow the guidelines--I cannot stress that enough. It is not difficult, just fill in the form and hit submit. You will NOT be able to change the field information boxes, i.e. zip codes, etc., once you enter it so please read everything carefully before hitting submit. If you need to make a change in those boxes you will have to delete your first post and make a second one with the corrections. You will be able to edit the subject line and the body of the message. I have shared below a synopsis of what we would like to see rescues, shelters and pilots do to help get this event to fly! Pilots, as you will read below, when a request has been posted under the PNP 5000 topic and you can assist with this transport, please contact the rescue making the request. If both parties agree to work together, then rescues, please open your original request post and edit the subject line with the word "Done" and list your pilot in the message. This is VERY IMPORTANT because it will show us that a pilot is no longer needed for your request. If you have any questions please feel to contact us at [email protected] This will be the event of the year and a huge thanks to everyone who volunteers to help Pilots N Paws make a difference.

PILOTS N PAWS 5000
The Pilots N Paws 5000 will take place during the week of September 12th through the 20th. This event was conceived as a means to draw public attention to three issues. The first and most important message that needs to be conveyed is that we have a serious problem in this country and as a result about 4,000,000 animals or more are euthanized annually. This would not be the case if there were more and better spay and neuter programs and laws regarding owners’ responsibility for their animals. The second issue is that because the problem is primarily regional a lot of these innocent animals could find permanent “forever” homes if they could be transported from high kill regions to areas with homes available. To accomplish this we desperately need more pilots to help with transports.
The final issue is that while aviation has proven to be a successful way to transport animals to safety, general aviation in this country is threatened. The threats range from onerous Homeland Security directives to crippling and expensive fees imposed on general aviation. We want to see general aviation perceived by the public accurately as a driving force in our economy, and one that contributes far more than its $150 economic impact would suggest. We want to see general aviation free of these threats.
To transport 5000 animals to safety in one week is a large undertaking, and it involves shelters, rescues, foster homes for animals and pilots. Each will play a role in the success of the Pilots N Paws 5000 and each must commit to its success.
There are at least three parties that will make up each “team” participating in the rescue week. The starting point is the sending shelter or rescue. These folks will dedicate themselves to making one or more animals available to be transported to safety. They will pair up with the receiving rescue or shelter. These two parts of the team will be central to the event. The final part of the three part team will be the pilot(s). Once the sending and receiving rescues have joined, pilots will be able to identify that transport as one they will volunteer to do.
The individual roles and suggested responsibilities are listed below.

SENDING SHELTERS OR RESCUES.
You are in the forefront of this effort. It is likely you are in an area known as a “high kill” area. By committing to send one or more animals you are the starting point for the rescue. We know you cannot identify which animal will be selected in September, but we also know you have no lack of animals available at any given time so all you need to do is find a shelter or rescue (or foster) to receive the animal(s) you select. That shelter, rescue or foster will be who you will list in your post seeking pilots.
Nobody is in a position to tell you how many animals to select, who to send them to, or how far they should travel, but we can offer some advice.
The first step is to contact anyone you have sent animals to in the past to see if they will pair up with you for the PNP 5000. Ideally the receiving party should be a reasonable distance from you. We have recommended 300 miles in a straight line from your location. The reason for this is simple. The majority of the planes that will be used will be able to do a transport of that distance. Anything beyond that distance is likely to eliminate some types of planes making it more difficult to find a pilot willing to do the transport. However, if the distance has to be greater all is not lost , it just narrows down the number of pilots that will be willing to consider the transport.
If the distance gets much greater than 300 miles then consider locating an intermediate shelter, or rescue, or foster, and treat the transport as a relay with additional start and end points. Those intermediate temporary shelters will be listed as the end of the first leg of the relay, and the start of the next leg of the relay. They may not have to even be involved, but if the first pilot can only do the first leg on a Saturday, and the next pilot can only do the second leg on a Sunday the intermediate shelter, rescue or foster will be a safe haven for the animals on their journey to safety.
Once the sending and receiving team (with intermediate members if necessary) has been established it is time to post the need for a pilot. Please set up the team off line or off the forum if possible. The forum and this site are going to get a lot of activity and there are going to be a lot of communications and they will get lost if they are all on the site. But once the team is established post the transport need immediately. See below.

RECEIVING RESCUES, SHELTERS, OR FOSTERS.
While the transport starts with the sending parties, any shelters, rescues or fosters willing to receive the animals from high kill areas are vital to the success of the PNP 5000, and all efforts to get animals to safety. If you are willing to participate in any way, contact shelters, rescues or fosters in high kill areas and offer to receive the animals that are pulled for the PNP 5000. Make those sending animals aware you want to do what you can. Let the sending parties know the extent of your willingness to receive animals. If you only want dogs or even specific breeds of dogs let them know, but don’t remain silent. Having people available to receive the animals rescued is critical.
This is the time to not only make your willingness known, but to be specific as to any details relating to your participation. If you are a breed specific rescue, please do not limit your contact with one sending party, but let as many as practical know until you have paired up with the one that can meet your criteria. If you are totally flexible let them know. Just remember it is important that the receiving and sending parties pair up as quickly as possible. It is also the time to go to: http://tiny.cc/7WtmS and search for the USDA state requirements for the transportation of domestic animals that cover your specific sending and receiving areas.
Again, please focus on sending shelters, rescues or fosters within a 300 mile distance. Indicate if you are willing to be the end party or a temporary intermediate party along a long transport route. As soon as you have joined as a pair posting for a transport is critical and time sensitive.

POSTING FOR A TRANSPORT
This is the key to the success of the Pilots N Paws 5000. Transport needs must be posted as soon as possible and the sending, receiving, and pilot(s) must team up to handle and coordinate their own transports and media coverage.
To transport 5000 animals via general aviation is going to be a large undertaking. During the week from September 12th through the 20th at least several thousand transports will be posted and coordinated. For volunteer pilots to learn what transports are available and need pilots the posted request needs to be in a specific format to facilitate all of the search efforts.
We know the number, size, type, breed, or age will not be determined right away, and in fact the pilot(s) doing the transport may play a role in determining all of those things making an early posting important.
The posting must be in a specific format. It must contain the starting city or town, the state and zip code. It must contain the destination city, state and zip code. A typical post subject line must read as follows:
KNOXVILLE, TN 37914 TO JAMESTOWN, NY 14701
By posting in the above manner pilots seeking a transport that fits within their abilities will be able to use the system to sort those posts.
To insure the system functions as intended it may be necessary to delete those that do not meet the format or do not contain all the necessary information.
For those sending and receiving parties who are a greater distance than the 300 mile suggested distance, (see the example above) it is recommended if possible to locate the intermediate rescue or foster so the total trip can be done, but with a two leg relay.
After posting the entire trip as shown above, it is recommended that the two leg trip also gets posted as two individual transports as follows:
KNOXVILLE, TN 37914 TO HUNTINGTON, WV 25702
HUNTINGTON, WV 25702 TO JAMESTOWN, NY 14701
If all three transports are posted, the sending and receiving shelters can end up with a 2 leg relay, or if a pilot decides to do the entire 500 mile transport it will be a single leg. The unused listed transport can be then deleted.
PILOTS
Pilots willing to do an animal rescue transport can use the postings to find a transport that suits their abilities. The Pilots N Paws 5000 has been set up to extend over two weekends and 8 days. This was intentional. It was set up so two full weekends plus the five weekdays are available to ease scheduling. The time span was selected to allow any rescheduling that might come about as a result of weather if necessary.
As the pilot, once you select a transport that is within your range, or in proximity to you home base, communicate that selection by posting to alert other pilots the transport team has been formed. Now is the time for the pilot to communicate to the sending and receiving parties any limitations or needs. For example, if the plane to be used is a small plane with limited space the sending and receiving parties need to know that the size and number of animals being transported will be limited. If as a pilot you have other needs or limitations, such as VFR only, or you need a carrier, or you want a specific airport, or if only certain days are available this should be communicated. Then the three of you can finalize the details.
This is also an opportunity for a pilot who wants to help, but can only fly for a short distance to make that known so the team can revise the post to reflect the remaining portion of the transport in the hopes of finding other pilot(s) to complete the transport.
Remember, as a pilot you take certain things for granted., but a lot of the sending and receiving rescues involved in the PNP 5000 have limited or even no knowledge of general aviation. As pilot you will take a leadership position when joining the team to help the sending and receiving parties understand about such various issues as your limitations including your range, weight and balance, VFR or IFR, and even what an FBO is, and how to find the FBO you have selected.
--
Debi Boies and Jon Wehrenberg
Co-Founders, Pilots N Paws
www.pilotsnpaws.org

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