Awful News

I got this email today. It breaks my heart. I'm sure all of you Dallas people have probably heard about it :(

Our local humane society, DFW Humane Society in Irving, Texas is facing
possible closure due to lack of donations, decreased adoptions and increased
capacity of animal population.

It's happened before - the financial crisis - in the 34 years of the
shelter's history. Thankfully, it hasn't been a close call but a few times.
I served on the Board of the shelter from 1984 - 1990. Back then it cost
$107,000 to run the shelter on bare bones, ignoring needed repairs due to
lack of money (like the rotting floor in the entry way), and operating with
only 3 full-time employees and most of the food being donated. It now costs
$10,000 - $15,000 per month to operate the shelter ($120,000 - $180,000
annually). The shelter generally receives $4,000 - $5,000 a month in
donations and obtains the remaining needed funds through fundraisers.

This summer, the shelter has seen a drop in adoptions, an increase in pet
population at the shelter, and a drop in donations to a mere $1,000 - $1,500
per month. If August is a repeat of July, the shelter will likely be forced
to close. A roofer is donating labor and materials for $1,800 of roofing
repairs to stop roofing leaks. The shelter owns it's own 40-year old
building which was paid off around 1989 after completing payments on a
no-interest mortgage loan set-up by the shelter's founder and prior owner of
the building. Funds are needed to meet monthly expenses such as utility
bills, med costs, etc.

An article about this situation ran today (Sun, July 22) in the Dallas
Morning News, Metropolitan Section and Irving city section. The writer (if
you'd like to check the legitimacy of this information) is Barrie Page Hill
(972-594-7198 ext 2001 or e-mail [email protected]). The Dallas area NBC
affiliate, Channel 5, will be airing the story on the 10 p.m. news tonight.

For more info on the DFW (stands for Dallas/Ft. Worth) Humane Society, you
can visit their web site at www.dfwhumane.com or contact them at
972-253-3333. The shelter address for mailing donations is: 1611 W. Irving
Boulevard, Irving, TX 75061.

Please pass this notice to rescue groups that might be able to help increase
adoptions. And please cross-post to all the animal lovers you know. I'm
embarrassed to say that in this home town of mine, there are 187,000
residents and not even enough donations to keep the humane society in good
financial standing. We also have a city-funded animal control shelter. But
the Humane Society is a separate organization with Section 501(C) non-profit
status. Your donations are tax deductible.

Thanks for spreading the word!

Oh, Aly. I'm so sorry to read that story. Maybe the article will wake some folks up. I sure do hope so.
Logan

Although things may have changed in the past twenty years, I am familiar with this organization. And my experience with them was not good. It's been about twelve years since I've lived in Irving, but during the eight years I lived there this place never had a good reputation. I first became familiar when my roommate wanted a cat (I had already adopted Zebo from the city pound). The place was filthy and obviously ill cats were in with the seemingly healthy ones. Furthermore, the ill cats were up for adoption. Also, the woman in charge that day insisted on a letter from our landlord before Sherry could adopt. No problem, we could get one, besides alot of rescue groups require that. Only thing is, they require it to prevent the animal from being resurrendered when the adopter is told by the landlord after the adoption has taken place that either the animal goes or the adopter will be evicted. This lady told Sherry that the reason they required it was because "landlords go in all the time and shoot these animals when they find out they have them". What in the world possessed that woman to say such a thing? If there were people routinely barging into their tenants homes discharging firearms, Irving would have had a bigger problem than stray animals! And, of course, it would have been mentioned in the paper!

Not always, of course, but sometimes there's a good reason why a worthy cause must cease operations due to lack of funding. Sometimes it's because they're not all that worthy.

I repeat, though, things may have changed in the last 12 years.