The weather is turning cooler. Wouldn’t having a snuggle bunny be welcome? The Animal Shelter has the perfect pet for that. She is a brown and white rabbit with helicopter ears and fur that defines the word soft. She loves cuddling and petting. Her little nose twitches in delight when she is removed from her cage and placed on a human lap. This very tame bunny would like to have a gentle person to warm up with for the winter.

Speaking of very tame and gentle, we still have the sweet guinea pig mother, Sophia, and her talented son, Gizmo. He will sing at the top of his tiny lungs when reposing on someone’s lap. Either of them would be a good “starter pet” for a child. The minimal maintenance a guinea pig requires pays off in the fun they provide, not to mention the laughter you enjoy watching and listening to them.

The shelter staff and volunteers bid farewell to two of our beautiful black cats, Athena and Prada, as they happily departed with their new owners. We are hoping that Viola will soon be taken to new digs. Ruby, the mother cat who lovingly cared for the kittens she delivered on a stranger’s porch, has been spayed and now resides in the “cat room” with T.C., Michael and Tux. All of them are healthy and would be happier with homes of their own.

The Animal Shelter thanks the enterprising seventh graders from the Oak Bluffs School who held a bake sale for the shelter last Saturday. Kayla Eddy, Lilly Combra, Cassie Casey, Skylar Eddy, Lollie Bezahler and Chloe Combra toiled over the ovens for two days straight. Then they brought the goodies to Main street in Vineyard Haven, sold them and donated the proceeds. They raised $166.06 for the care of the animals.

A reminder to all animal lovers on the Island this Columbus Day holiday weekend: the Walk for Animals takes place at Trade Winds, otherwise known as the Dog Park, this Saturday, Oct. 12. Registration will be held from 9 to 11:45 a.m. at the Oak Bluffs School parking lot, or at the Animal Shelter any time before the event. It is also possible to enter you and your pet(s) online. Walking will begin at 10 a.m. and end at noon. If the weather remains as glorious as it has been the past week, the pets and people will have a very good time for a very worthy cause. If Mother Nature decides to rain on the parade, the festivities will be postponed until Monday, Oct. 14.