The Bonnyville and District SPCA is hoping local municipalities will step up to the plate to keep their organization up and running.
Feeling the pinch of “the depressed economy, increasing costs, and a growing need for SPCA services,” the local shelter is asking for $50,000 in annual funding from both the Town and MD of Bonnyville to offset their operating costs.
“This (service) is a need, it’s not a want,” said Mereline Griffith during her Sept. 12 presentation to MD council on behalf of the SPCA. “We’re hoping to partner with the MD and the town, and hopefully keep the SPCA operational well into the future.”
During the last fiscal year, from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018, the Bonnyville shelter cared for a total of 171 cats and 108 dogs. Of those animals, 67 were reunited with their owners and 139 got adopted out.
The town and MD currently pay a rate of $100 per dog that bylaw or peace officers bring to the SPCA. However, Griffith explained that after some calculations, they found that each animal intake costs $726 to process.
The average cost per year to run the shelter comes in at $195,000, between operating costs and wages for the six paid full-time and part-time positions. With their average monthly revenue sitting at just $7,000, the SPCA faces a shortfall of approximately $9,250 each month.
In addition to the fee paid by the municipalities, the shelter relies primarily on fundraising and donations for their cash flow. While they applied for a $60,000 CIP operating grant in the spring, they won’t find out until November if they’ve secured that funding.
“From our balance sheet on July 31, and we have had a few donations since then, our total cash is $87,943. This means the animal shelter can continue operations for approximately six months,” Griffith expressed.
She added, “The Bonnyville and District SPCA needs financial support to ensure continuity of this essential service to the community. If we are to continue to operate as the municipal pound keepers, we need fair compensation.”
Director of public safety for the MD, Chris Garner, said the shelter’s service is crucial to the municipality’s operation when it comes to dealing with stray animals. They deal solely with the Bonnyville and District SPCA, taking all stray dogs there that are picked up in the MD and Glendon. Currently, they don’t pick-up stray cats.
“If we don’t have an SPCA in Bonnyville, then we have to come up with something on our own or find somewhere else. It’s going to be a difficult situation for us, because the public’s expecting us to do animal control and take care of the dogs that are loose. The owners are expecting that if their dog is running loose and we get it, that it’s going to be returned to them once they’ve paid the appropriate fee.”
Garner continued, “Without the SPCA physically there, it’s going to be very difficult for us to do that. It’s going to cost a lot more than the $100 (fee per dog) to replicate that service we’re currently getting now.”
Both councils agreed to discuss funding for the Bonnyville and District SPCA during their budget deliberations.
