SPCA Uses Crowd Funding to Build Dog Shelter

The Bonnyville SPCA is utilizing the power of new media and has started a Go Fund Me account to crowd fund a new dog shelter. The current building is not only outdated, but has design flaws that the shelter has outgrown, explains shelter manager Heather Mutch.

“A few years ago, we replaced all the dog kennel doors, at the shelter, with really good aluminum doors,” Mutch explains the fix didn’t last too long, “now it’s all rusting away in every dog kennel. The actual frame in the building of each doggy door.” Mutch says the shelter had a welder come in to see if there was an inexpensive quick fix, “he said it’s so rotted, you’re going to have to replace every single one of them.” The welder urged the shelter not to use aluminum again, because it would just rot away again. “So, we’re looking at replacing all of those.”

There’s more dog-related fixes needed, says Mutch, “we’re looking at replacing all the fencing for the dog area, over the years it’s come apart and coming down. It’s an ongoing expense.” Mutch explains the SPCA is not government-funded and relies solely on donations,”with the economy the way it is, we just aren’t seeing the donations coming in.”  Which is where she got the idea to take it to the public. “We just don’t have the money to do it.

“I read up on Go Fund Me all the time, it’s not going to hurt to put it out there. See if we can raise money that way,” at the time of this article the shelter has raised $250 through their Go Fund Me account.

“When they built the dog shelter, way back when, no one really knew how to build a shelter or what was needed. It was trial and error.” There will be some renovations coming to the dog kennels, explains Mutch, “we got a grant to put roofs on the kennel area, to protect the dogs from rain and snow. The grant is specifically for that, so we can’t spend it on anything else.”

To help the SPCA and the dog kennel, find them at https://www.gofundme.com/bonnyvillespca.