Humane Society shelter needs support
In preparation for last weekend’s annual The Best Things in Life Are Rescued Telethon, Fundraising and Promotions Coordinator Karla Pratt of the Moose Jaw Humane Society (MJHS) took me on a tour of the shelter to illustrate the importance of the donations they receive from locals. Every little bit really does count. Donations of food, blankets, towels, toys, treats and cleaning supplies, most certainly go a long way. However, in seeing an open closet jam-packet with linens and the back room piled high with boxes of supplies nearly toppling over made one thing painfully clear: the MJHS needs more space. As well as everything else, storage items have even been pouring into the staff room and piling up along the counters and on top of the board room table. Speaking of counters and cupboards, several rooms with drawer space are difficult to utilize due to the cupboards warping and falling apart. It’s all quite frustrating to say the least. “It’s not ideal. We should have cupboards that actually close and keep everything neat and tidy.” Space isn’t the only problem that they deal with on a daily basis. The building itself is literally falling apart bit by bit and the cost of keeping up damages far exceeds their ability to pay for repairs. In one of the care rooms a leaking air conditioner has caused a hole to form in the ceiling; in the laundry room more water damage has caused a portion of the lower wall next to the washing machine to crumble; the inside dog kennel doors are worn through from use while their hinges nearly hang from the brick wall and the cat cages are not only borderline uncomfortable for some of the felines but are also so worn and weak that they have had to throw many out over the years. “There are holes because of decay that the cat’s like to dig at. It’s a safety hazard and poses serious health concerns as those holes can actually trap disease,” said Pratt. For the time being, they have entered the Aviva Fund Competition which, should they win, would award them $10,000 to put towards a good 20 or new metal cat cages. “We’ll be able to get rid of all the wooden cages that are falling apart and the new ones will be a little bit larger, which is ideal.” The MJHS has currently made it all the way to the semi-finals with their proposal for the competition. You can lend them a helping hand by voting in the next round on December 3rd. The outside grounds at the shelter are also in a similar situation of disrepair. The asphalt ground of the dog run out back is chipped and uneven making cleaning a consistent problem for the staff. “It’s something we try to pressure wash as best we can but the animal feces does get stuck in the holes and it is difficult to clean. We’d really like a concrete top with gutters for drainage because right now it just kind of goes to the back end.” This can also pose a serious health risk to the animals out back. “Things like Parvovirus can pass from dog to dog through excrement so if we can’t disinfect the ground properly it can spread like wildfire.” Aside from the dog run, the pet cemetery nearby also faces difficulties as the graves were laid so close together that it is nearly impossible to get a lawnmower through them to keep the grass from overgrowing. In the past the shelter has had trouble with black mold and general air circulation, as well. Though they can attempt to fix up all the damages that have been done over the years, their current priority is to patch things up as best they can while they look at the possibility of a new facility. “We really don’t want to spend a lot on this building, we just want to limp it along so that it is safe for the animals and staff for the time being. In the meantime we would rather put any renovation money aside in savings for a new building,” said Pratt. “[We’re] just band-aiding things right now.” To learn about what you can do to help the Moose Jaw Humane Society visit www.mjhs.com or call (306) 692-1517.