The Saskatoon Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has officially moved into its new home.
On Saturday the SPCA celebrated with an open house at the new facility, where they showed off the new features and designs throughout.
SPCA moved into the facility back in November, with construction beginning almost immediately to get it ready.
“We started ripping up the floor in the back of the warehouse and there wasn’t any drainage,” Saskatoon SPCA executive director Fred Dyck said. “It was just a big, empty warehouse.”
Dyck said the facility was built with an emphasis on animal safety and well-being.
“Disease control, humane treatment of animals, and making sure the animals’ stay in our facility is as low-anxiety as possible,” Dyck said. “It’s as positive of an experience as we could make for them and us.”
Amber Matthews, the Saskatoon SPCA animal care director, said the design helps streamline operations and will act as a resource centre for Saskatoon and the surrounding area now that the society is within city limits.
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“We really put our time and effort into creating an environment that was beneficial for the wellness of the animals,” she said. “A place that would reduce stress for the animals, but is also very efficient for staff and staff time as far as care of the animals go.”
The move does, however, bring a new set of challenges to the table.
The previous facility was located just outside city limits, owned by the City of Saskatoon. It also acted as a city pound for animals.
But with the move into the city, the contract between the SPCA and the city has expired, meaning the SPCA is now responsible for 100 per cent of their own funding.
“We’ve always relied on support from the community through donations, never more so than we are right now,” Dyck said.
He went on to say with the community’s continued support, the new building will be a cornerstone in helping find forever homes for every animal that comes through its doors.
“We’re always trying to make sure that every animal we end up with, we help someone adopt them and make sure they have got the best start to life they can,” Dyck said.
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