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Community must rally to save animals

By Morgan Dunbar

During the past week, I have traveled to Olean, New York, interviewed many individuals, including current and former volunteers, staff and Board Members of the Cattaraugus County SPCA (CCSPCA), toured the facility itself and had direct contact with many of the animals housed there.

There are stories of suffering that simply could not fit into a single story.

The despair and suffering I witnessed at the facility are unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Each and every animal inside that facility is in desperate need of help. The community must not allow this situation to become another Wyoming County SPCA tragedy, where state police and Erie County SPCA entered that facility during a clandestine, midnight raid and removed animals for offsite disposition.

Many of those animals were “rescued” only to be killed.

There are several things the community can do to ensure this grave tragedy will not be repeated in Cattaraugus County. Current CCPSCA Board Chair Kristen McDonald claims she has working relationships with about 250 rescue groups. If each one of these 250 groups agreed to take one animal from that shelter today, it would alleviate the immediate crisis at the CCSPCA.
When asked directly if she would be willing to allow responsible rescue groups to “pull animals from the facility now,” McDonald responded affirmatively.

Even more importantly, each and every member of the community and reader of The Reporter must look inwardly and ask, “What can I do to help? Can I foster today? Can I adopt today?” Are you able to offer a home to just one animal in need?
Care is needed today. It’s up to us as a community of compassion to offer these animals a chance at a better life.

Some of the animals, now elderly, were brought into the Olean facility as puppies and, because of living in barren kennels for so long without socialization and proper enrichment, are not appropriate for traditional placement.

Yet, these animals deserve our support and compassion as much as the others. Regardless of whether or not certain animals will make “good pets,” all the animals at the Olean facility deserve our help.

We must rally together to locate places (across the country, if necessary) where special needs animals can find sanctuary and live out their lives in comfort, able to enjoy wide open spaces denied to them for so long.

For the many animals at the facility who can be adopted into traditional homes, we implore the CCSPCA to make their adoption process flexible, to expedite the application process and welcome members of the public who arrive at the facility to help.

Tina Wedge, former Board Member and current CCSPCA volunteer, said, “As soon as it becomes very clear that all those responsible for the ongoing crisis are removed from having control over these animals and these animals are going to get the care they’ve deserved for all these years, this community is going to rally beyond belief.”

This crisis is testing the strength and solidarity of the Cattaraugus community. Those of us hungry for change are willing to make personal sacrifices to protect these animals. We are prepared to unite in order to resist interference from outside agencies who may view this situation as an opportunity to grandstand and carry out agendas. As well as a challenge, this is an opportunity to prove to each other and everyone else that we can make a difference in the lives of these suffering animals.

 

 

Niagara Falls Reporter www.niagarafallsreporter.com Sep 04 , 2012