In an unexpected twist of events, an animal shelter in Pennsylvania ended the year with empty kennels. This is quite unusual for the workers and managers of the facility. Also, this will be the first time in almost half a century that the said animal shelter will have empty kennels.
The 18 kennels maintained by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Adams County have been busy for many years. It has been the trend for Americans to abandon their domestic animals and pets to the elements. In some cases, the animals stray from their owners and are taken to such shelters by well-wishers.
According to the American Pet Products Association estimates, there are 85.8 million pet cats and 78 million dogs in the US. So, this brings the figure of American households with a dog to 43%. Likewise, some 35% of US households have cats. These data were collated between 2015 and 2016.
December was a long month for the Adams County SPCA. The shelter received four dogs from owners who willingly gave them up. Another three were found abandoned at Sachs Bridge in Gettysburg. All seven dogs needed medical procedures, so SPCA staff were on their toes, giving them the required care.
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Though staff members had long shifts while caring for those seven dogs, the trouble did pay off. Before the end of December, all seven dogs had fully recovered from their procedure and got adopted.
Lori Wetzel, a veterinary technician of 15 years with the SPCA shelter, shares that it takes an individual who loves animals to work at a shelter like theirs. Wetzel shared that it is uncommon for new shelter staff to lose mojo and resign. According to her, the average new employee throws in the towel by the sixth month of work. This trend is due to the long houses, stress, and burnout involved in caring for embattled animals.
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An animal shelter worker is like an ER staff. While the average person seldom encounters emergency cases, the average ER employee sees many daily. Minus the PTSD, the experience is about similar for SPCA employees. Of course, not all animals that come to the shelter need medical attention. However, they are all often in need of compassionate care.
The job of an animal shelter employee can be a delightful experience; so far, you are a lover of animals.
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So, it was good news for the workers at the Adams County SPCA that they emptied the kennels early. In 2023 alone, the shelter took in 125 stray animals and almost 600 abandoned. Constantly having animals to fend for can be a lot of work for shelter workers. However, this December, none of them gets to miss out on holiday outings. Why? No excessive workloads to keep them working overtime.
However, the Adams County facility will reach out to other animal shelters to take on some of their animals. This move will lighten the workload of neighboring shelters in the area.
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