The Chenango SPCA Safe Haven Fund for Animals funds adoption costs and for spay/neuter surgeries. While the normal cost to adopt a dog from the Chenango SPCA is $155, or $100 for a cat, the Safe Haven Fund allows people to adopt for free. (Submitted photo)

NORWICH – The Chenango SPCA, on County Road 32 in Norwich, is pleased to announce that the anonymous donor who established the Safe Haven Fund for Animals has renewed the fund with a donation of $20,000.

This is in addition to the initial donation of $20,000 received toward the end of last year, which had already been nearly exhausted.

Following the wishes of the fund’s anonymous donor, the Chenango SPCA uses the Safe Haven Fund for Animals to subsidize adoption costs and to pay for spay/neuter surgeries at private veterinary hospitals. While the normal cost to adopt a dog from the Chenango SPCA is $155, or $100 for a cat, the Safe Haven Fund allows people to adopt for free, provided their adoption application is approved.

Further, the donor’s permission to use the Safe Haven Fund to spay or neuter shelter animals means that those surgeries can be performed as quickly as possible, ensuring that the shelter’s animals are available for adoption sooner. As a result, one of the Chenango SPCA’s most significant animal care costs is paid for, while the animals’ time waiting in the shelter can be minimized.

About the impact of these donations on the Chenango SPCA, executive director Patrick McLaughlin said, “The Safe Haven Fund really is transformational for us. When adoptions are faster and easier, we can help more animals more quickly, and avoid filling the shelter beyond capacity. Of course, the real test will come in a few months, when kitten season is in full swing.”

Every year, the shelter’s animal population roughly triples over the summer months, following an increase in kitten births. As a result, the shelter is often full beyond capacity for several months each year.

The Chenango SPCA is open to visitors from 12 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, as well as on Tuesdays from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. To take advantage of the free adoptions made possible by the Safe Haven Fund for Animals, potential adopters must complete an adoption application, which are available at the shelter or online at ChenangoSPCA.org/adoptions.

– Information from the CSPCA