Thank you so much for the donations you give to help the animals. Without your help it would be difficult to continue our animal welfare work and to care for the many animals that are brought into our centre every year. So far, this year, we have had 2,160 through our doors. Every dollar you donate does make a difference.
On average we the Whangarei SPCA investigate 1100 complaints of cruelty and attend 271 Accident and Emergencies each year. Each year about 2845 cats, kittens, dogs and puppies are handed into the centre. Many of these unwanted.
As long as there is an SPCA the animals will always have someone to care about what happens to them, to investigate cruelty complaints, to attend animal emergencies and house the unwanted and abandoned. However, the SPCA is a charity with no govt or local council funding, and we need your help to CARE FOR THEIR FUTURE. Give us a call to find out more or you can download a CARE form from our website - http://whangareispca.co.nz/whg/uploads/pdf/care_form2015.pdf
Thank you so much for your donations via our Givealittle page! Together we can make a difference!
Whangarei SPCA chief inspector and manager Francine Shields says the centre may have to shut in two years if it cannot raise funds.
Whangarei SPCA is in dire financial straits and will have to close in two years if something doesn't change. The centre is losing $30,000 a month, and if it continues at this rate the money it is surviving on - capital from an investment made 12 years ago - will run out, meaning it will have to close its doors, Whangarei SPCA chief inspector and manager Francine Shields said. "If we don't start getting funds, we will be in serious trouble."
She is urging people to get behind the centre - which covers animal welfare in both Whangarei and Dargaville districts and costs $1.4 million a year to run - and donate. She has released a breakdown of some of the centre's monthly costs to the Northern Advocate, to show where the money has been going.
Vet care costs the centre between $27,000 and $53,000 a month, and includes the costs of operations such as desexing. Full time Whangarei SPCA vet Kristy Macdonald is on much lower pay than vets around the country and does it because she wants to help animals, Ms Shields said.
Running the rescue vehicles costs between $1700 and $3700 a month, telephone bills are between $1500 and $2400, the after hours call centre costs between $250 and $380, and power is between $990 and $1200 a month. Each month rates cost $360, animals' food is over $400, rubbish is $790 and insurance is $750. There are also 26 staff who are predominantly on minimum wage, Ms Shields said.
The centre has applied to the Whangarei District Council's community funding rounds, as well as requested a reduction in rates and rubbish costs, but to no avail. The SPCA is also a non-government funded organisation, despite having a law-enforcement role in animal welfare.
Twelve years ago the centre first started running at a loss, but then received a $1 million bequest, which was then "wisely" invested in shares and other investments, Ms Shields said. Since then, returns on the investment have kept the centre afloat. But in recent years, the centre's deficit has eaten into the capital and Ms Shields said in two years it will be gone. One Whangarei SPCA inspector did not want to even replace her worn and torn uniform, Ms Shields said.
A big problem was also people just using the SPCA as a way to avoid paying private vet costs. "But our job is welfare, so we will not turn away an animal who needs our care."
Article by Hannah Norton. Northern Advocate 30.1.15, photo/Tania Whyte
An SPCA boss disgusted by how many dogs are starving in her patch has begun a three-day hunger strike. Francine Shields, manager and chief inspector of Whangarei SPCA, decided to go without food after her office was called to seven dog starvation cases last month. One dog died, another had to be put down and four were being rehabilitated. They frequently saw thin dogs, but starvation cases usually averaged one or two a month, Shields said. ""Last month was horrendous. I've got to the point where I don't know what else we do to raise awareness and stop it happening."" She has been with the SPCA for 23 years. Dogs were vulnerable to starvation as they could be abandoned when tied up, she said. The 46-year-old will consume only water for three days and continue to work. ""It won't be easy but I'm doing this by choice and I know I can eat at the end of it. These dogs don't have a choice. It's so disheartening to see such unnecessary suffering."" She hopes her efforts will encourage people to report cases of abuse or neglect, or to seek help if they are struggling to care for their animals properly. ""I want to do something that will draw attention to any other dogs that are tied up somewhere, slowly starving to death. I want to put my hand up and ask the people in our community to help us stop it from happening again. ""[The SPCA] can't be everywhere at once so we need neighbours, friends and family to report cases of neglect and abuse to us. We know it takes courage because people who abuse pets are likely to abuse people too - but the alternative could be letting an animal die."" SPCA chief executive Ric Odom said animal starvation was not uncommon but many more cases would occur than those reported to the organisation. Article from Cherie Howard, NZ Herald 16.11.14
Thank you so much to all of the people who are donating towards Rufus's surgery. Your kindness, generosity and support is wonderful. Now that he has grown and gained strength we are hoping his initial surgery will be next week.
We have a busy season coming up fundraising to help the animals. If you can offer a few hours as a volunteer please get in touch with us at the centre on 09 4389161, we are always looking for more helpers. If not we hope you come along and enjoy. The more people who attend the money raised for the animals. Our first event is in the beautiful garden of Colin and Jean Sanders, Nymet. We are having an Open Garden Weekend on the 12th and 13th of October. For more details of this event please check out our website at www.whangareispca.co.nz.
Exciting news with Give-a-Little removing its admin fees for charity. This means that 100% of the donations you make come to the SPCA to help the animals and, the money you donate does make a difference! We are constantly working on finding ways to raise money to keep the SPCA operating in the community and couldnft do it without the help and support of the local business, people in the community, volunteers who help with fundraising events, and mostly you, the people who make donations. Thank you so much!
We're coming up to the busy season with kittens again although for us it hasn't really ever quietened down this year. Though the number of kittens coming in dropped our dog pens have remained filled with dogs and pups looking for new forever homes. The Saving Lives Campaign has continued and, with time, will make a difference to the number of unwanted and abandoned animals coming in. Thank you so much to the people who continue to support us and help us continue our animal welfare work. Always remember that your donation does make a difference to the animals.
Thank you so much again for your generous donations to our SPCA. We are a small centre striving to do our best for the animals in our community. In May 2010 a national campaign was launched called gSaving Livesh. This campaign is made up of 10 steps. In Whangarei we are focusing on - ? Adoption ? Desexing and Identification in the community ? Foster homes Every year we receive significant numbers of animals into the centre that we just do not have the room for. From May 2010 until December 2010 we have desexed 286 female cats, 219 male cats, 276 female dogs and 204 male dogs. Total 985 animals. From January 2011 to December 2011 we have desexed a further 357 female cats, 212 male cats, 184 female dogs and 136 male dogs. Total 889 animals. We opened our own vet clinic in October 2011 which specialises in desexing the community animals and our centre animals. We have one amazing vet Dr Kristy MacDonald. Since February this year we have desexed 116 female cats, 70 male cats, 87 female dogs and 38 male dogs which is fantastic. Your donation will help us continue to spey and neuter the animals from our community in a hope to stem the numbers received here at the Centre.
Thank you so much for your kind donations. They really do make a difference, they help us care for the animals. From the animals and staff at Whangarei SPCA
On 31st March between 9am and 1pm at the Mangawhai Markets, Main Street Mangawhai our Whangarei SPCA Off Site Adoption Team will be there. Rachael will have cute kittens ready to go, $90 each. They've had first vaccination, are desexed, microchipped, wormed and deflea'd. She will also have pics of all the dogs and pups we have available and you can fill out an application form if you are interested. Eft pos available, normal adoption criteria applies. NB:If you are renting if you could bring a letter from your landlord stating it is ok for you to get a new animal.
Head on down to the SPCA this weekend for our Valentine Adopt-a-thon. We're open 10am -6pm Sat 11th and Sunday 12th February, you can find us at Kioreroa Road, Whangarei. It would be so wonderful to get some of the many animals we have waiting into their new forever homes. If you have any queries please don't hesitate to give us a call on (09)4389161. Thank you so much for supporting the animals.
Thank you so much to the people who have donated. Your kindness helps us continue with our animal welfare work and the Saving Lives Campaign.
Every year SPCAs throughout the country get thousands of animals brought into them, many are abandoned, unwanted, can't find homes. Some of these animals get rehomed, sadly many of them don't. We get a lot of adult animals who keep breeding, litters of pups and kittens in very poor condition, animals left on the side of the road, baby animals too young to be away from their mothers, and sometimes there just isn't anywhere to put them as we've had so many come in. In May 2010 the SPCA Saving Lives Campaign began, the goal - to save these animals lives. At Whangarei SPCA we thought this was such an incredible idea, we work here because we love animals, we don't want to kill them, so our journey began. So far we've desexed 900 animals, that's a lot of unwanted kittens and pups that are not going to be born to be left in a bag at the park, or given away at school or dropped off in a box at the SPCA. We've got a long way to go, but we've made a start. We are saving lives and we need your help to continue with this vital work. This campaign is not funded or subsidized by government, local council or the vet clinics, it's funded purely by donations, hopes and dreams. Your donation will help us achieve the dream of every animal having a home, being wanted, loved and cherished.
