BROOKINGS – Not so long ago, the Brookings Regional Humane Society was facing a major financial crisis.
“A lot of the community did not realize that the Humane Society was not a part of the city (budget); they just assumed it was,” said Bill Davidson, treasurer for the local Humane Society and a member of the shelter’s board.
“A lot of people had never really thought about how we did it and had no idea that we were continually trying to raise funds to keep doing what we do,” said Maia Moore, executive director of the shelter.
After a Register article in early November detailed their struggles and how they might not be able to stay open through the month, help poured in: businesses sponsoring fundraisers, a local individual matching the Paws for Wine fundraiser, penny wars, lemonade stands, hot cocoa stands, kids donating their allowances.
“It was overwhelming. Sometimes there would be so many kind people coming in, you would just have to go stand in the office and cry for a minute,” Moore said.
The generosity has helped.
“Financially, we’re in pretty good shape for 2018,” Davidson said, but it’s the future that worries him and Moore.
What they do
The shelter handles around 500 animals annually, but some times of the year are busier than others, Moore said.
“Right now, we’re dealing with kitten season in full force,” Moore said. There are kittens everywhere, including her office. “And there is a litter of feral kittens in our bathroom.”
Don’t expect to see all those cute kitties; they’re not available for adoption yet. The shelter has a policy that any animals up for adoption must be spayed or neutered and “you can’t spay or neuter them when they’re (newborns),” Moore said.
The shelter ranges from 20 cats up to 90 cats.
“Right now, we’re sitting at about 70,” Moore said. “It’s just enough that we’re uncomfortable and working really hard in the mornings.”
And that’s just the cats. Of course, the more animals, the more there is to do.
Five or six part-time animal care personnel come in the mornings to make sure the animals are all fed and given their medications, enclosures are disinfected, and all the animals are properly cared for – and that’s just what happens before the shelter opens for the day, Moore said.
The animals need care throughout the day, including assessments, surgical procedures like spaying and neutering, walks and socialization – not just on weekdays, but weekends and holidays, as well.
Workforce
A total of 472 people have volunteered so far in 2018, Moore said, but only 21 have volunteered 10 or more hours. She would like to have more experienced, long-term volunteers.
One reason they like long-term volunteers is the time invested in orientation for beginners, Davidson said.
It’s not just cleaning litter boxes. There’s all kinds of work to do, especially office work, Moore said. She really needs someone to coordinate the volunteers.
Moore is the only full-time employee. There is a part-time desk receptionist and three afternoon shelter coordinators, but one is leaving for vet school. With a lot of college students working at the shelter, staff turnover is pretty common, the two said.
They also need veterinarians. Davidson’s late wife, Dr. Rose Davidson, worked tirelessly for the shelter, and they are still trying to fill the void left by her death two years ago.
“We’ve got some really good volunteer vets, but we could always use more,” Davidson said.
What it costs
“The budget for 2018 is $208,000 to $210,000. Of that, about half is staffing,” Davidson said, adding they spent about $200,000 in 2017.
Not all their expenses are included in those numbers. For instance, Dr. Bev Shelbourn donates her time and expertise. Davidson estimates “Dr. Bev” works about four to six hours a week, or 20 hours a month. Pricing her time at $200 or so an hour, he figures that tallies $2,500 a month.
“It’s not insignificant,” Davidson said.
A veterinarian could cost an estimated $100,000 a year, split amongst two or three other shelters, Davidson figured.
“With that, we’d also be able to provide the low-income spay/neuter program, which would bring in a little bit of revenue … plus give us access to some grants that we had to give up,” Davidson said.
To help cover the cost, they do request a $20 surrender fee.
“Some people pay more, and some people aren’t able to pay anything,” Moore said, adding that the city animal control also charges a surrender fee.
“It helps us defray the cost of the medical care that is very significant,” she said.
The future
As an entity that is 100 percent privately funded, the shelter’s fortunes can change quickly.
“You’ll do well for a while; some setbacks and struggles and you’re back kind of fighting, operating from fundraiser to fundraiser,” Davidson said.
“Our goal is to get to a point where our fundraising is more than our expenses so we can start doing more capital planning and have the opportunity to consider improvements from equipment to operations and so forth,” Davidson said.
Being in charge of their own future is important because they do not own the facility where the shelter operates. That means they can’t make changes at will.
“Our lease runs out in six to seven years,” Davidson said. He’s an engineer with a background in heating, ventilation and air conditioning, so he realizes the shelter needs to know soon if they will be able to buy the building or if building a new facility is the best option to continue their work.
Davidson and Moore presented five options to the Brookings City Council earlier this month as part of the Brookings Regional Humane Society’s Task Force Final Report. Option 1 covers some minor changes like hallway modifications and moving Moore’s office to create a public meet-and-greet space for animals and potential adopters, and fencing for an outdoor space. It will cost an estimated $12,000 to $20,000.
It’s a manageable budget but won’t give them storage or a medical isolation area.
The other options feature enclosing an empty space at the back of the building; constructing an addition of 2,400 square feet; incorporating city animal control to the site for better coordination between the two organizations; and finally, pricing a new shelter.
“If we did a brand-new 7,500-square-foot building, which would incorporate animal control, from the ground up, we’re talking about a $1.5 to $1.8 million, all in for everything,” Davidson said.
Asking the city for help
“The city has been pretty supportive of us,” Davidson said.
Since most of the animals they take in come from Brookings, Davidson and Moore asked the Brookings City Council for funding earlier this month, based on that figure.
“We’ve gone from 25 percent to 60 percent of animals coming from the city,” Davidson said.
The animals’ care includes feed and medical supplies, such as deworming, flea, tick, ear mite treatments, rabies and other vaccinations; spaying, neutering, and microchipping.
Instead of asking the city to foot the whole bill for all those animals, which is about $126,700, they asked the city to pay around $50,000, less than half.
One reason is the shelter brings in about $30,000 in adoption fees, “so we’re actually giving them credit,” Davidson said.
“We’re not asking for a Cadillac or something special; we’re just saying help us keep our doors open, get a permanent home that speaks highly of the Brookings community,” Davidson said.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the Brookings City Council looked at the proposed 2019 budget during its first budget session of the year, held for informational purposes. City Manager Paul Briseno suggested including $40,000 for the Humane Society. The full budget will not be approved until later in the year.
How you can help
In addition to needing more volunteers, there’s plenty the public can do to support the BRHS shelter.
Rose Park was dedicated to the memory of Davidson’s wife. It is located at the corner of South Eighth Street and Western Avenue.
“People can buy a brick that’ll be engraved, typically to a lost pet or could be a gentle message, as well,” Davidson said. Prices range from $125 to $525.
“Our No. 1 donation request is always bleach,” Moore said.
They bleach everything, from the floors to the laundry, litter boxes and dishes.
“We can go through up to six gallons a day. People are always surprised by that number. We’re probably going through about four gallons a day right now,” she said. “Bleach is always, always our No. 1 need.”
There are ongoing fundraisers.
A golf outing at EdgeBrook Golf Course is set for Aug. 4. Registration is at 8 a.m., the scramble starts at 9 a.m. It’s $75 per person.
A kickball tournament is set for Aug. 11 at the Swiftel Center as part of the Wing and Brew Fest.
The Soggy Doggy event is Aug. 19 at the Hillcrest Aquatic Center. Dogs get to swim before the pool is drained for the summer.
Members of the Humane Society will also be available at Downtown at Sundown and the Farmer’s Market.
Contact the Humane Society at 120 Second St. S. in Brookings, call 697-7387 or e-mail BrookingsRegionalHumane-Society@hotmail.org or visit on the web at http://brookingshumane.org/ for more information.
Contact Jodelle Greiner at jgreiner@brookingsregister.com.
Register photo: Jordan Marotz, shelter coordinator, pets Savannah under her chin while she’s held by Maia Moore, executive director of the Brookings Regional Humane Society. Right now, the shelter has dogs, cats and rabbits, but you never know what will come in by the end of the day, Moore said. They’ve recently cared for a canary, bearded dragon, tortoise and a ferret. Moore advises if you are looking for a pet, to come by often. The shelter is in need of permanent funding so they can plan for the future, Moore said.
