TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW FOR HUMANE SOCIETY’S ANNUAL LOTTERY
By Gordon Edgar - Moose Jaw Express/MooseJawToday.com
Ticket sales for the Moose Jaw Humane Society’s annual 4 Paws lottery began on Monday, April 11. Four $500 draws will be held in July leading up to a grand prize draw of $10,000 on July 15 – all profits from the event will help with medical care for shelter animals.
Tickets for the lottery can be bought directly from the shelter by visiting them at 1755 Stadacona Street West, calling (306) 692-1517, e-transferring to giving@mjhs.ca, or on their website at www.mjhs.ca. Ticket prices are: 1 for $20 3 for $50 5 for $75
Draws will begin in July with four days of $500 prizes (July 11, 12, 13, 14) sponsored by local businesses Leipert Financial, Ashdown’s Furniture & Interiors, Great Canadian Oil Change, and Devo’s Car Wash.
On July 15, the grand prize of $10,000 will be drawn. Cypress Paving has donated $2500 towards the grand prize.
The Moose Jaw Humane Society (MJHS) has been holding the lottery for at least 25 years, according to executive director Dana Haukaas. It is an important fundraiser for the shelter, whose veterinary costs are their biggest monthly expense.
“We spay and neuter every adult, which is any animal over six months, before they go to their forever home,” Haukaas said. “Our biggest expense every month is our vet expense, which includes everything from spaying and neutering every adult animal to any kind of emergency care that any animal might need while they’re under our roof.”
There are 2,271 lottery tickets available. If the MJHS sells every ticket between now and July, they will raise nearly $20,000 – a huge help in caring for the community’s pets.
Donna Fritzke, the MJHS fundraising coordinator, expressed gratitude for the businesses sponsoring this year’s lottery.
“That was our goal, to get our community involved as well,” Fritzke said. “Because we are all responsible for our homeless pets.”
Continuing fundraisers
Fritzke hopes community members who want to help out the Humane Society will also remember the recycling program and the MJHS Bookstore.
“We have a blue bin at the front door, so people can drop off their recycling at any time,” she said. “You don’t have to stand in line at Sarcan, you can just drop off your bottles, and all of that money goes towards the care of shelter animals as well.”
Fritzke added that she is always surprised how many people don’t know about the bookstore, which is a huge help in raising money for the shelter. Popular bookstore items lately include snuffle mats made for the shelter by community volunteers. .
SSNP program
New for the shelter this year is the subsidized spay/neuter program (SSNP) for cats, operated as a partnership with the City of Moose Jaw.
“Spaying and neutering is a really important part of being a pet owner,” Haukaas said. “This program is hoping to help out those people who have pets but can’t afford the surgery.”
Haukaas said that the MJHS sees many more cats than dogs, and about 70 per cent of the dogs that are brought in are eventually returned to their owners – less than 20 per cent of cats brought to the shelter are claimed by an owner.
Anyone who has lived in Moose Jaw for at least a year and whose total household income is less than Statistic’s Canada’s Low-Income Cut Off (LICO) is eligible to apply. A single payment of $25 is enough for necessary vaccines, spay/neuter surgery, and follow-up booster vaccines for up to two cats per household per year.