Q. How was Spokane chosen to be an ASPCA® partner community?
A. In Spokane, the successful ability of the local animal welfare groups to collaborate and work respectfully together was the number one factor in their selection. Additionally, Spokane struggles with many of the same issues surrounding homeless pets as other communities and their community demographics are representative of most mid-sized cities around the country. Both these factors make the solutions, struggles and accomplishments Spokane achieves a directly relatable model that many other communities can utilize.
Q. Who are the participating animal welfare agencies in Spokane?
A. Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Services (SCRAPS)
2521 N Flora 2521, Spokane, WA 99216; (509) 477-2532
http://www.spokanecounty.org/animal
SpokAnimal C.A.R.E.
710 N Napa St , Spokane, WA 99202; (509) 534-8133
http://www.spokanimal.org/
Spokane Humane Society
6607 North Havana Street, Spokane, WA 99217; (509) 467-5235
http://www.spokanehumanesociety.org/
Pet Savers Low-Cost Spay and Neuter Clinic
7525 E. Trent Ave., Spokane, WA 99212; (509) 924-7826
petsavers-spokane.org
Q. How many animals are relinquished to Spokane shelters each year?
A. The three local shelters took in a combined total of more than 20,000 animals in 2006. Despite the tremendous work on the part of all the local agencies, more than 8,500 animals entering Spokane’s shelters in 2006 were euthanized.
Q. What are some of the other challenges, besides overcrowded shelters, that Spokane faces?
A. Besides unwanted pets, Spokane has high numbers of feral cats, as well as anti-cruelty issues and limited resources for expansion of spay/neuter programs. It also struggles with how to engage the community at large to become part of the solution to issues of pet-overpopulation and pet responsibility.
Q. How will the ASPCA Partnership effort address these issues and drive the effort of decreasing homelessness for pets in Spokane?
A. Funds will be used to improve adoption programs, reduce intake and increase the availability of low-cost spay/neuter, among other things. The ASPCA will conduct a community assessment to evaluate current resources as well as the capacity, strengths and challenges of the three sheltering agencies. Following this assessment, the ASPCA team and the local shelter partners will strategically plan how to prioritize and target efforts to maximize the number of lives saved, while paying special attention to making sure these efforts are collaborative, measurable and sustainable.
Q. Is there a specific goal for Spokane to achieve as an ASPCA Partner?
A. The ASPCA understands that each community is different and will achieve its goals in a different time frame from the others. As such, we will be assisting each community identify its measurable goals and the time frame to achieve them. Overall, based on shelter statistics, the common goal will be to:
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Increase the community shelter adoption rate by at least 10 percent by August 2008; and
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Move towards a 75 percent ‘live release rate’ for the community shelter partners by mid-2010.
Q. How is the ASPCA contributing financially to Spokane?
A. In addition to providing the resources mentioned above, the ASPCA will invest up to $600,000 in each of the target communities over a three-year period towards capacity-building and related animal welfare efforts as deemed necessary by the ASPCA team and the local shelter partners, to assist these communities in making significant inroads towards not just becoming, but maintaining, “humane community” status. Part of this commitment is a $100,000 check to launch this effort in Spokane.