News
Breaking News: The Storm of Petting Zoo 2012
On 16, Dec 2012 | In News | By The S.A.R.F.
Transcript of The Intern’s official statement made at 6:22 am, December 16, 2012
As you all know by now, we experienced an unexpected weather event in the early morning hours of Sunday, December 16. The situation began with light drizzle but quickly became more serious, though the severity never reached ‘downpour’ status as many reports have falsely stated. Thankfully, there were no SA losses. I repeat: all SAs were successfully rescued and no losses were incurred. Several are being treated with heat therapy, but these measures are precautionary rather than imperative. However, paper assets will require moderate sun exposure, and on-hand business card resources have been depleted but not decimated.
There have been rumors that some polyester snow has melted, but I can assure you that this is not the case. I am sure you will agree that I am a particularly credible source on this matter.
Monkeys were mostly unaffected due to their naturally-protective arboreal habitat. They are braving the storm with aid of protective gear.
The situation has been downgraded from code red to code orange-red and is expected to be further downgraded as the storm continues its swift path out of the area. Evaluation of the situation will resume at daybreak, and any necessary rebuilding will begin forthwith. Normal petting zoo operations will resume tomorrow evening provided moisture threats continue to dissipate as expected.
Neither SEMA (Stuffed Animal Emergency Management Agency) nor the Stuffed Cross has been contacted, as the severity of the situation falls well below each organization’s required damage threshold. In short, we are taking care of our own repairs internally (though we would be willing to accept any help if offered by Bruce Springsteen, as a private concert would surely boost SA morale).
Regarding rumors of criminal negligence, the petting zookeeper claims she intended to bring the SAs inside for the night but had simply fallen asleep on the couch. She states she had planned only to rest briefly before continuing her taxing duties as SA caretaker. We do know that the lights were still on at the onset of the rescue mission and that she did in fact arise from the couch when awakened by the code red alarm. These facts support her claim that she had yet to perform her nightly closing protocol.
I cannot comment further, as the investigation is ongoing. I will not be fielding questions at this time. Thank you.
2011 Petting Zoo
On 20, Jan 2012 | In News | By The S.A.R.F.
Our 2011 Petting Zoo Success!
This year’s SARF Petting Zoo was a great success! We received so many adoption applications that we’re still going through them. Of course the volume of applications unfortunately means that we’re also having to decline more applications than ever before 🙁 .
If you were not awarded the SA you wanted, know that you are in good company. All of our applicants were excellent candidates… We simply can only choose one person per stuffed animal. And if you weren’t selected to adopt your requested SA, never fear: We promise to have new animals up for adoption within the next few weeks. Please keep checking back.
And if you’re still waiting to find out the status of your application, we will be sending out notifications very soon…
Thank you all so much for supporting the cause!
To see the status of your requested SA, check our Successful Placements section.
Resident Platypus Featured on The View
Guelah, a platypus and longtime permanent resident of The Stuffed Animal Rescue Foundation, was contacted by ABC’s morning television show, The View, to give an official comment regarding the controversial photos of Rielle Hunter which appeared in GQ magazine in early 2010. Elizabeth Hasselbeck, one of the show’s hosts, read a snippet from Guelah’s rather lengthy statement on the air:
The matter is complicated. On one hand, we would all be honored to be featured in GQ. However, we’re concerned about the fact that the stuffed animals featured might not actually belong to Ms. Hunter. At a time when there are so many needy stuffed animals out there, we wish more people would consider adopting abandoned animals from local stuffed animal shelters rather than buying them new… I’m available for interviews via e-mail or chat as I don’t actually speak out loud.
Credit- AP Photo/GQ, Mark Selinger
Though we are extremely grateful for Ms. Hasselbeck’s interest in the opinions of our organization, we do feel that many of Guelah’s more important points were excluded from the segment. Also, it appears that some viewers did not believe the response was actually written by our dear stuffed friend. Some even implied that statement was in fact written by The View’s team of writers. However, we can assure you that Guelah spent several hours formulating his thoughtful response.
The S.A.R.F. on KEYE TV!
Check out The SARF on TV
KEYE TV featured The S.A.R.F. on their news show We Are Austin Live! Click the image below to watch the feature.
The SARF on Austin Monthly
Austin Monthly magazine featured The SARF in their summer 2011 issue. Robyn Ross interviewed us about our origins and our rehabilitation processes. It features a fun photo by infamous Austin photographer Annie Ray. Click the photo to read the full article.
Minor Surgery
On 12, Apr 2011 | In News | By The S.A.R.F.
S.A.R.F. permanent resident Marcel Lumpovitz, aka Lumpy, underwent surgery today to remove a stuffed flower growth from his hand/abdomen(ish). The procedure was quick and virtually painless, and he is recovering nicely. Lumpy says he’s excited about regaining use of his right hand and that he’s looking forward to feeling pertinent in seasons other than spring.
The stuffed flower is also doing fine.
SARF Petting Zoo – Sunday, April 25, 2010
On 17, Apr 2010 | In News | By The S.A.R.F.
We’ll be having our first non-37th St. petting zoo on Sunday! Tongue & Groove Theatre is having a fundraiser party for their upcoming production of The Red Balloon, and we’ll be there with SA’s in tow. Come support a good cause (really great play… if you didn’t see it last year, you’re lucky it’s happening again!), and meet some new Rescued Stuffed Animals. There will be music, and, well… people juggling fire (but not too close to the SAs!). Doors open at 5:30. The petting zoo will be open all night. Purchase tickets here: HERE
Last day of this year’s petting zoo
On 20, Dec 2009 | In News | By The S.A.R.F.
Well, it’s time for this year’s Stuffed Animals to head home for the holidays. Sure, most of them don’t have real homes yet, but they do have friends to visit. So, tonight is the last night of this year’s petting zoo. It’s been a fun though rather rainy few weeks. We hope everyone enjoyed meeting the new SA’s, and we look forward to reading all of your adoption applications. If you applied, you will be receiving an email from us in the next few days!
Happy holidays!
The 2009 SARF Petting Zoo is Up and Running
On 13, Dec 2009 | In News | By The S.A.R.F.
Visit the petting zoo and meet the new SA’s! We’ve already received several adoption applications, so The SARF headquarters is buzzing with hopefulness. Oh, and this year you also have the option of filling out an application on paper at the petting zoo!
Follow Us
