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SPCA struggles to keep doors open

The Flin Flon Creighton and Area SPCA is in dire straits, and if the organization doesn’t get more volunteer and financial support, it won’t survive much longer.

The Flin Flon Creighton and Area SPCA is in dire straits, and if the organization doesn’t get more volunteer and financial support, it won’t survive much longer. That is the warning issued this week by shelter manager Carmen Ward and board president Erica Husberg. 

Last year, the animal shelter operated at a loss close to $30,000, Husberg said – an amount close to the organization’s veterinary costs for the year. 

Ward said about 80 per cent of those vet costs go towards spaying and neutering pets that arrive in the shelter’s care; the rest go toward medications, medical emergencies and checkups for the animals. 

The SPCA currently has 17 cats and 11 dogs in its care. Three of the 11 dogs are being fostered by families while they wait to be adopted.

“Those numbers aren’t changing,” said Ward, who estimates that the shelter has adopted out 600 animals since opening at its current location in September 2012.

Ward said the shelter’s annual operating costs are close to $100,000 and its sources of funding – donations, fundraising events and adoption fees – are not adequate to cover basic expenses.

“We aren’t making money on adoptions,” said Ward. “Our cost to vaccinate, spay and deworm is more than an actual adoption fee.”

As an example, Ward said the adoption fee for a female dog is $285. Medical costs for that dog are usually close to $350, and the SPCA also covers the costs of food and care during the time the animal is waiting for a forever home.

Staff and volunteers fundraise through events including weekly meat draws and bingo events at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 73, the annual SPCA Furball concert, an annual raffle and, new this year, an online auction. 

The organization has also set up a crowdfunding account at Youcaring.com to help mitigate its current vet bill, which came to more than $6,500 last month. 

Still, funds raised are not enough to balance the books, and the animals in need keep coming. 

“We are here for the abandoned, neglected, abused pets,” said Ward. She added that she finds it heartbreaking to see litters of dogs advertised, knowing that the puppies will likely not be spayed or neutered, contributing to the animal control problem in the area. 

The shelter offers a subsidized spay and neuter program for low-income families, but Ward said it is underused.

“It scares me when people are on Facebook giving away their animals for free, because I know either we’re going to get them, or they’ll be dead in a year,” she said.  “There are some not-so-good pet owners out there, who consider [pets] ‘its,’ and things.” 

After vet bills, staff wages are a major cost for the shelter, which employs one full-time employee, Ward, and two part-time staff. Utility bills stack up as well. 

“We were averaging almost $800 for our heating bill each month this winter,” Ward said. “That almost killed us.”

While grants can help, Husberg said most grant funding available to animal shelters is earmarked for special projects rather than operating costs, and the SPCA was turned down for the last three project grants it applied for. 

Another blow came this year when the SPCA did not receive federal funding to hire a summer student. The organization has hired a summer student for the past six years, and past students have taken on key roles in animal care and maintenance of the shelter, Ward explained. 

“So any projects we have had in the queue are gone for now,” said Husberg. “We need to concentrate on maintaining what we’ve got, and right now we are struggling with just maintaining.” 

A shortage of volunteers is also stretching the shelter’s resources to a breaking point, said Husberg. “Community support on the whole is down,” she said.

“It’s been slowly dwindling down over the last two years. We have our core volunteers that have been here since the beginning, and the rest are coming and going. The volunteers who are core are burning out.” 

Ward said the ideal number of volunteers for the shelter would be around 12, and right now there are only two to three regulars. 

Ward said the SPCA would welcome support in a number of areas, including building maintenance and yardwork, fundraising, dog walking and one-on-one time with cats.

“We are full right now, and between keeping this place with the animals going, and the fundraising, I don’t have time for any extras,” she said. 

“We just want the community to remember that we are here,” said Husberg.

The SPCA crowdfunding page can be found by searching “Flin Flon SPCA” at www.youcaring.com

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