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Who We Are
& What We Do
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SpokAnimal C.A.R.E. was incorporated in 1983 and has operated an adoption center and contracted for Animal Control for the City of Spokane since that time. We currently handle over 700 animals per month. The animals in our Adoption Center are a combination of strays and owner turn-ins. Animals may be turned in for a variety of reasons, but national statistics show that the #1 reason for owner release or euthanasia is behavior, usually caused by lack of training, supervision and socialization. Our officers investigate reports of cruelty and neglect.
Our
shelter staff are dedicated to helping people better understand their pets
and encourage all families to attend obedience classes following the adoption
of their new dog. Spokane Dog Training Club and Diamonds
in the Ruff have generously contributed certificates for reduce cost training
classes. Lilac City Dog Training helps us spread the word each year at their
annual Have-A-Heart Adoption Day at the shelter. Through training, our adopted
dogs will become better behaved, safer pets in their homes and in the community
and reduce the chance of being returned to the shelter.
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SpokAnimal strongly advocates the spay and neuter of pets to prevent overpopulation. We have a spay/neuter clinic which performs around 300 sterilizations per month. In addition, we contract with 12 other veterinary clinics to fulfill a sterilization contract with the City for free sterilization with $110,000 raised annually through the sale of licenses. Why Spay/Neuter? |
SpokAnimal serves as the
Regional Disaster Team Leader
with executive director Gail Mackie serving as the regional
coordinator. We have handled fires, ice storms, flooding and hazardous waste
contamination. We received the Lifesavers Award from the Red Cross for our
work in the
West Plains fire.
SpokAnimal works closely
with the Domestic Violence Consortium
to provide foster
care for animals belonging to people seeking refuge from an intimate partner
violence situation. In 2000, Spokanimal C.A.R.E.and the SCDVC launched a pet
foster care program for victims of intimate partner violence. The Spokane
County Intimate Partner Violence Foster Pet Program is available to victims
of IPV and their children leaving an abusive situation. The program allows
for clients to place one or more pets into a foster program for a period of
24 hours and up to two months while they are in a shelter or other temporary
housing that will not allow them to keep their pets. The foster family for
the animal and the client needing placement remain anonymous and aren't given
one another's names.
| Our Education Outreach Program reaches over 4,000 children each year in area classrooms, libraries, preschools, scout groups, etc. including special programs for Spokane County Juvenile Detention Center, teaching kindness and empathy for our animal friends, and safety with animals. We also provide in-service bite safety training sessions for various postal, meter reader, and other delivery persons. In August of 1999 we took part in the Injury Prevention Workshop at the Annual Emergency Medical Services and Trauma System Conference. We have provided training for other animal sheltering and control agencies looking to start their own programs and have received awards for the work we have done in this area. |  |
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SpokAnimal
C.A.R.E.'s education mascot, Rio the whippet, was Spokane's first
Pet-Assisted Therapy dog
to set foot in a Spokane hospital. It took two years of writing proposals
and presenting to hospital boards and infection control panels to make
it happen. To date, a number of specially qualified, carefully screened
Delta certified dog/handler teams, called Pet
Partners, visit Deaconess, Sacred Heart, St. Luke's Rehabilitation
Institute and Shriner's Childrens Hospital. Our visiting dogs include
Golden Retrievers, Labrador Retrievers, Whippets, a Schipperke, a Doberman
Pinscher and a Standard Poodle! These dogs and handlers ride the elevators
and stroll the hospital halls to get to their assigned destinations where
they work with therapists and nurses in private and group sessions. Anyone interested in learning more about the Pet Partners Program should visit The Delta Society's website to learn more about the screening and certification process or call the Delta Society at 1-800-869-6898. |
We
have provided Wildlife Rescue, Rehabilitation and
Release since
1984. We have permits from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Washington
State Wildlife Dept. and certification from the National Society for the Preservation
of Birds of Prey.
We are also an active
participant in the
Bee Kind Garden Project.
The Garden is a collaboration of the Junior League of Spokane and Juvenile
Court CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates for Abused and Neglected Children)
to give children the opportunity for appropriate behavior with animals and
plants. We are also partnering with the Spokane Domestic Violence Consortium
on a campaign for awareness on the Cycle of Violence - children who abuse
animals are more likely to grow up to be adults who abuse their partner.
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Our quarterly newsletter
Companion Animal News, keeps
our members up to date on what's going on in
the shelter and in the community and includes many interesting and educational
articles as well. Our mailing list reaches around 3,000 animal lovers and
members in the Spokane area.
JOIN
US!
Become a member, or if you already are one,
give a membership
as a gift to a friend or fellow animal lover.
Click here to see How You Can Help! SpokAnimal C.A.R.E. is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization supported by the generosity of our members. Donations of time, supplies, great ideas and money shared with us by our members, volunteers and friends make it possible for us to continue our daily work to help the animals in our shelter and in the community.
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SpokAnimal is a member of the
...........................................................Network
