So far, the year of 2009 has been the busiest the shelter has seen in recent years, with a never ending number of animals needing assistance and medical care. We have been able to keep pace and our thanks go out to all of our many supporters and volunteers.

Keeping up with the daily demands of shelter activity is a challenge but we must also plan for the unforeseen emergencies that may affect the communities we service. With that in mind, the Welland & District SPCA has partnered with the Niagara Region- Community Services Department, the Red Cross and other shelters in the Niagara Region to form a Community Services Emergency Response Plan for Animal Care.

This program will ensure that if there was some form of disaster in our community, be it an apartment fire or a large scale storm, the plan would be in place to care for our animals. Our efforts will be coordinated through the Red Cross and involve our shelter and our employees to provide care for animals requiring assistance. A regional depot will be set up with all the necessary supplies and will be available to any shelter responding to the need for animal care. Care centers have been designated around the region and in this way we are pooling our resources to maximize the efficiency of service to those families and their pets in need. Plans are almost complete and we should be operational this Fall.

The Welland & District SPCA is also in the process of upgrading our fire safety plan to work in conjunction with the regional emergency response plan. This will allow our shelter to take advantage of the available resources to ensure the safety of our animals, in case of an emergency.

I am very pleased that we have been able to implement this plan. The hope is that we will never need the full resources available to us, but if required we will be prepared to meet the challenge.

Ted Bettle
Shelter Manager