(File photo/northeastNOW)

By Cam Lee

NESCPA update

North East SPCA issues update on ‘Save our Shelter’ campaign

Jan 31, 2025 | 11:00 AM

The North East SPCA’s Save our Shelter campaign has had a solid start.

The campaign to keep the Harry and Eve Vickar Shelter operational has raised $80,000 so far. The organization issued a warning late last summer that they were looking to raise $300,000 to help pay the mortgage and operational costs to keep the shelter open.

Spokesperson Bill Wood told northeastNOW that most of the donations received so far have been from individuals and local small businesses.

“No large corporate donations as of yet but the shelter remains open as long as funds are coming in,” said Wood.

The ‘Tails for Tires’ promotion at Ripley Ford raised $1,250 for the campaign, and the North East SPCA Gala before Christmas brought in $12,500.

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Wood said the cash raised so far should carry them until the summer, at which time a lot of their major fundraisers like barbecues and other events will help bring in some much-needed cash.

“Our Melfort fundraising group are working very, very hard with a number of things coming up to get us through the winter months,” explained Wood. He said January through March are generally the toughest times for the SPCA financially.

The North East SPCA’s ‘jail-and-bail’ fundraiser called “Caged for Critters” is coming up in March to add to their bottom line.

Meanwhile, the Harry and Eve Vickar Shelter remains a busy place as far as the intake of cats and dogs.

They took in 159 animals from across the northeast in 2024. Of those, 119 found homes, 27 were returned to their owner, 10 had to be euthanized due to advanced illness, and one was euthanized due to “level 2 aggression.” Wood thanked PetSmart for their working relationship, as they helped adopt out 27 cats; that’s 23 per cent of their adoption rate for the entire year.

There are currently 31 animals in the shelter, while another 31 are with foster families. Sixty-two animals are available for adoption.

Wood also thanked Gateway Vet in Melfort for significantly reducing their cost to spay and neuter the SPCA’s animals.

The SPCA is also looking for board members, as are many local non-profit organizations. Wood said anyone interested can contact him or Marianthe Strydom.

Donations are still being accepted by mail, e-transfer or their crowdsourcing page, and all details are on their website.

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Cam.lee@pattisonmedia.com