The Lac La Biche Regional Humane Society (LLBRHS) is trying to get more of their animals adopted.
Angel Bigelow, manager of the Lac La Biche Regional Humane Society, stated that there are many challenges to getting animals into local homes, including the cost of living (for both people and pet food) as well as rentals that are not pet-friendly.
“We also have people who will tell us that they do not have the time to commit to bringing home a dog,” Bigelow told Lakeland This Week.
On Feb. 10, the LLBRHS opened its doors to the public during an open house that was also used to promote animal adoption and fostering. Bigelow says while the event was slow, staff did get to meet with a few members of the community and were able to showcase and highlight the work that is being done at the local animal shelter.
Bigelow said length of stays at the shelter vary from animal to animal, adding that the longest length of stay for a dog since the shelter opened has been 496.9 days, and 1093.6 days for a cat.
Adoption fees, she says, are based on the age of the animal.
“The younger an animal is, the more their adoption fee will be,” she said, explaining that this is to cover the costs of vaccinating, spaying/neutering, deworming, and microchipping, as well as their general care such as feeding.
According to Bigelow, while some dogs are surrendered by their owners, most are rescued and brought to the Humane Society by community peace officers (CPOs). Cats, she said, are generally rescued by community people, although they are occasionally brought in by the CPOs when they are found injured.
“We do see the occasional drop-off at the shelter, but more often than not we have arranged a surrender appointment with the rescuer,” she stated.
Bigelow said rescuing an animal from a shelter is often a more affordable option than buying from a breeder.
Rescues who are adopted from the Humane Society, she explained, are up to date on their vaccines, and microchipped. Also, upon coming of age, they are spayed or neutered. This, she says, is a fraction of the cost to purchase a puppy from a breeder, then paying to have the animal microchipped and spayed or neutered at the owner’s expense.
“Rescues have a lot of love to give, and from my experience they are just looking for affection and approval,” she stated. “Adopting a rescue also gives them a way better quality of life being in a home environment as opposed to being stuck in a kennel.”
