Clear skies. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable..
Clear skies. Low around 55F. Winds light and variable.
The Susquehanna Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Best Friends Animal Society, an animal welfare organization, are promoting an adoption campaign to encourage people to “choose to adopt, not buy, their next pet,” according to a SQSPCA media release.
“We were so grateful to have this opportunity presented to us right now,” SQSPCA Executive Director Stacie Haynes said in the release. “Here in this region, we do not always mirror state and national trends when it comes to overcrowding and the number of folks needing to surrender their pets, but this time we are.
Because of support from Best Friends, adoption fees on Friday, Sept. 16 and Saturday, Sept. 17 will be discounted, with $50 off the fee for dogs and $20 off the fee for cats. “The goal of this partnership is to move animals out of the shelter and into new homes, to make room for animals waiting to come in,” Haynes said.
The SQSPCA is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with evening hours on Thursdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Adoptable pets can be viewed at www.sqspca.org. Adoption fees include spay/neuter, core vaccines, flea/tick treatment, microchip, deworming and more, the release said.
Recent data released by Best Friends showed that U.S. shelters were seeing an increase in animal intakes and a decrease in pet adoptions from shelters. “This has steadily turned into a crisis in the animal welfare community, where many shelters are over capacity,” the release said. SQSPCA staff have seen a 29 percent increase in stray animals and pets surrendered by owners since June 1 of this year.
“There is a growing shelter crisis across the country and the animal welfare community won’t just sit by and let innocent pets die,” said Julie Castle, CEO of Best Friends Animal Society. “In fact, it’s quite the opposite. We’re joining forces with our vast network of shelters and rescues across the country to host our third National Adoption Weekend since May to incentivize people to get out and adopt.
“We have proof that national promotions like the first two adoption weekends we did in May and July work,” Castle said. “Our July National Adoption Weekend saw close to 10,000 animals adopted in a three-day period.”
“Our challenge with overcrowding is that, when it happens, we are limited as to how we can help people who have to surrender their pets, or people in need of emergency boarding,” Haynes said. “Right now, we have a waiting list for both cats and dogs. This means when folks call for assistance, we may not be able to help them immediately. We do what we can in the meantime to offer aid beyond the walls of our shelter but what we need more than anything right now is free kennel space.”
The SQSPCA is at 5082-5088 state Route 28 in Index, south of Cooperstown. Appointments to meet animals are advised to avoid wait times by calling 607-547-8111, but walk-ins are also welcome, the release said. For more information or to donate, visit www.sqspca.org or follow @SQSPCA on Facebook.
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