Belchertown Animal Control

06/23/2026

A belated thank you to Loni at The Hen House at Austin Ridge Acres for the marrow bones in our freezer. Carrie the Anatolian Shepherd and the other dogs at the shelter are enjoying them.

06/23/2026

Today we got a visit from Jua. She stopped by with a donation to our gift fund for the animals in our care. Jua had done chores and extra jobs for quite a while to save up for this impressive donation! 🐾❤️🐈‍⬛🐾🐕

06/22/2026

UPDATE~ HE HAS BEEN FOUND SAFE

Missing from Allen RD friendly intact male. (Has appointment to be nuetered soon) please call with any sightings of this boy.

06/22/2026

"Wait, they smile when they're afraid?" 🤔
Fear doesn't always look scared.

Sometimes it looks drooly.
Wrinkly.
Even smiley.

And that's the tricky part.
Because the exact same signals can appear in completely different situations.

A dog can show teeth when they're happy.
They can drool because they're excited.
They can lick their lips because they're anticipating food.

So how do you know when you're looking at anxiety?

By not looking for just one thing.

Dogs rarely communicate with a single signal.
It's the combination that matters.

A hunched posture with whale eye and tongue flicks.
A wrinkled face full of tension with those pearly whites on display.
A curved body, lowered tail and drool running from the mouth.

One signal can mislead you.

Individually, the signals can "lie".

Together, they're often impossible to ignore.

06/22/2026

Please share and BOLO for Gracy, right in photo, an all brown/black tabby. Shes an indoor/outdoor kitty missing from Forest Rd since Thursday 6/18. She is microchipped. She can be timid. If spotted please call 413-519-1754
****no comments about indoor vs outdoor**

06/21/2026

The livestock guardian dog is now safe at Belchertown Animal Control! Animal Control Officer Jessica LaBonte was able to get close enough to put a slip lead on her. Now to get some care!!
❤️❤️ we couldn't have done this without the assistance of caring residents notifying us when they saw her. ❤️❤️

06/19/2026

Spay & neuter 😊

06/19/2026

06/19/2026

It both breaks my heart and angers me to an extent I can’t quite describe to announce that
yesterday, the Massachusetts House of Representatives did not adopt Amendment #10 to the Mass Ready Act - which is legislation that would have phased out the use of second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs) statewide. The House of Ways and Means did not include it.

There are supposed to be multiple municipalities responsible for protecting our wildlife here in Massachusetts and every one of them has heard from their wildlife rehabbers, wildlife clinics, veterinarians and many, many members of the public about the plethora of animals dying from secondary rat poisoning.

What have they done to protect our wildlife from this??? Absolutely nothing. The suffering and deaths of our predator species continue to mount and hearts of Massachusetts citizens continue to break due to the indifference of those in power to make a change.

Pest control companies continue to profit millions off of these poisons while the financial burden of helping the non target species affected falls on your local non profit animal rescues.

The state allots $0 to help treat all the wildlife affected by these poisons.

This is happening - every day, right under our noses.

Disappointing doesn’t even begin to describe it…

06/19/2026

**UPDATE~ 6/21 SAFE AT BELCHERTOWN ANIMAL CONTROL***

CALL IN SIGHTINGS. ● (413)519-1754 ● DO NOT CHASE ● terrified dog on the run for over a week. Traveling far and fast from Warren, Palmer, Monson, And now has made its way to Belchertown. CALL IN SIGHTINGS, DO NOT CALL OUT OR CHASE. THIS DOG WILL NOT STOP RUNNING. HE NEEDS TO SETTLE DOWN AND A TRAP WILL BE SET.