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Wednesday, 1/23/2008 8:30 pm
Chilliwack Progress > News > SPCA reopens in Chilliwack
SPCA reopens in Chilliwack
By Katie Robinson - Chilliwack Progress - January 22, 2008
Chilliwack's SPCA is back in business, but it is not your typical SPCA.
It will not be a regular drop-in centre, like most other SPCAs, but rather it will be an animal protection centre for animals seized in cruelty investigations.
Public viewing will be limited.
"We decided to reopen the facility as a holding facility for animals that are seized due to owner neglect, abuse, all of the forms of cruelty," said new branch manager Ivanna Ferris. "This is a unique facility for this province - Vernon is the only other animal protection centre."
The Hopedale Road branch was forced to close last February due to flooding issues in and around the building, and an overloaded septic system. An outbreak of parvo and ringworm in the facility also played a factor in its closing.
"It was really hard to create a sanitary environment with septic and flooding issues," said Ferris. "The overall health of the animals was put in jeopardy, but [the outbreak] was not our primary reason for closing."
The septic system was replaced, new flooring was installed and the walls repainted.
The SPCA changed Chilliwack's operations due to its long history of financial strife. Over the years, the branch has taken in large numbers of animals from Chilliwack, Agassiz, Cultus Lake and all other outlying areas, but it lacked financial support from the community.
"We were losing money ... barely able to survive," said Ferris. "We are a non-profit organization. We don't get funding from the government. We rely on the public's support. In the past, we just haven't gotten it in Chilliwack the way we need it."
As part of its new operation, the facility will not be open to the public on a daily basis. It will, however, continue to respond to animal cruelty complaints, emergencies, and or behavioural issues. Staff will also be on site caring for the animals.
"There's a lot of sensitivity associated with having animals that are part of a cruelty investigation because of the privacy legislation and because they don't belong to us," said Ferris. "The reason we can't have the public walking through on a day-to-day basis is because these animals are not available for the public to see."
The Chilliwack branch will also act as a holding facility for overflow animals coming in from remote shelters throughout the province that don't have great adoption rates. The animals will be examined by local veterinarians, vaccinated and spayed or neutered before being transferred to larger shelters with more successful adoption rates.
"A lot of those remote shelters are servicing such large areas and they get tons of animals coming through - in the past, they've had to euthanize those animals when they had no space," said Ferris. "This way, we're lowering our euthanasia rates and increasing our spaying and neutering numbers."
The branch hopes to organize a volunteer Pet Squad program which will take animals into malls, grocery stores, and other heavily populated community locations for adoptions.
To contact Chilliwack SPCA, call 604-823-6612.