Animal Shelters Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Fayette Animal Shelter At Odds With County Commission Over Policy, Budget

Earlier this year, the New River Humane Society/Fayette County Animal Control Center requested $210,000 from the Fayette County Commission. In March the Commission allocated $181,000, which members of the NRHS say isn’t enough. Student reporters at the Fayette Institute of Technology, Evan Robinson and Matthew Light, looked into the situation and have this report.

Earlier this year, the New River Humane Society/Fayette County Animal Control Center (NRHS) requested $210,000 from the Fayette County Commission. In March the Commission allocated $181,000, which members of the NRHS say isn’t enough.

“We believe there is money in the [Fayette County] budget, absolutely,” said Kathleen Gerencer, who’s been the President of the NRHS since 2018.

“I don’t think that they realized what a significant impact we are on the community,” said Aleah Denny, a member of the NRHS board of directors. “And I don’t think that they realize how important animal control is for the growth of Fayette County.”

Thomas Luisos is one of three commissioners in Fayette County. He said the main reason the commission didn’t fund the full budget that the NRHS requested, was to save money for local taxpayers.

“One of the issues I’ve had is that they send animals out to rescues [outside Fayette County]. Luisos said. “As a Fayette County resident, do you think the residents, the ones paying the taxes, do you think that resident should have the first choice of adopting an animal at the animal shelter before it goes out to a rescue? I think they should have the first right to adopt an animal. If you don’t want to put Fayette County residents first, I have a problem with that.”

Sherry McDaniel is the treasurer at the NRHS. She said there hasn’t been a large demand for local adoptions from Fayette County residents.

“The New River Humane Society said we love to adopt pets out locally. It’s common that in a month for us to only adopt out nine or 10 animals locally. One hundred or even 200 animals will get selected to go to one of our rescue partners. Once a dog or cat is selected to go to rescue, we do have to honor that selection in order to maintain a good working relationship with those rescues. And the rescues yes, they may be out of county and state, but ultimately, they keep our animals alive.”

McDaniel said the NRHS plans to ask the Fayette County Commission to revisit their budget next year, and allocate more than the $181,000 they were given for fiscal year 2023.

In an email to West Virginia Public Broadcasting, Fayette County Commissioner Allison Taylor said the budget for FY 2023 is the same they were allotted last year, and was a $10,000 increase from the previous year. Taylor said the commission has asked the humane society to make policy changes to the shelter, including waiting five days to vaccinate stray cats, and accepting all stray cats the county brings to the shelter. She said the commission has also asked NRHS to disclose all of the funding it receives from other sources.

“Until the commission is able to resolve these and other matters with the NRHS, it would be hard-pressed to allocate it more funds,” Taylor said.

Evan Robinson and Matthew Light are high school juniors at the Fayette Institute of Technology. They reported this story as part of a project with Inside Appalachia to learn how to make radio stories.

Concept of ‘Cat Cafes’ May Be Helping More Felines Find Forever Homes

Every year for Christmas, cats are often given as gifts. But many end up in animal shelters. In fact, 3.2 million cats enter animal shelters every year in the United States, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

And every year, about 860,000 are euthanized in shelters. But places like “cat cafes” may be helping more cats find forever homes.

Give Purrs A Chance

At a two-story, Victorian-style housein downtown Berkeley Springs, Morgan County, about 50 cats and kittens are roaming freely. All have been spayed or neutered, defleaed, dewormed, socialized and are up to date on their shots.

Give Purrs A Chance opened in May 2017. For an $8 admission fee, visitors have access to Purrs and its feline residents for an entire day. They can come cuddle kitties for an hour or two, walk down the street for a bite to eat or a cup of coffee, and then return for more cuddles.

If you want to take one home, it’s a $100 adoption fee.

Purrs is a nonprofit cat adoption agency that was created by local resident George Farnham. He got the idea from cat cafes that have been popping up in the U.S. since 2014.

“I’ve just been an animal lover all my life,” Farnham said. “When I first heard about the concept of cat cafes in the United States, it just seemed to be the way of the future — how adoptions are handled — and so, I just wanted to be a part of that.”

Farnham calls Purrs a cat cafe, but it doesn’t serve food or drink. Farnham said to do that, the West Virginia Health Department required a closed off area for food prep and a separate entrance, so he opted not to serve food. But the nonprofit does offer free-ranging cuddle buddies, which is a staple of cat cafes, so he hung onto the term.

“Give Purrs A Chance” has found homes for more than 700 cats since opening in 2017, according to founder George Farnham.

The house has hardwood floors, colorful walls, cat-themed artwork, bean bag chairs, and plenty of toys.There are places for cats to lounge, hide or climb. There’s a room just for kittens, and there’s a space just for cats on the shy side.

There’s also a little shop inside the house called the Catique Boutique that features local artists’ work for sale and accounts for about 10 percent of the overall income of the nonprofit.

The cats mainly come from four nearby rescues and shelters in the Eastern Panhandle and from across the border in Hagerstown, Maryland.

Farnham is a volunteer at Purrs, but there are eight part-time employees who keep the place running, including Brianne VanScoy. VanScoy said what she loves about the concept of a cat café is it can help someone better connect with a potential pet.

A photo of every cat that’s ever been adopted from “Purrs” is posted on the walls in the house.

“I think it’s easier for people to adopt a cat here because there’s less pressure, and they can spend more time getting to know an animal,” VanScoy said. “And that gives them a lot of opportunities to get to know an older cat as opposed to a kitten.”

According to the ASPCA, more than 1.6 million cats are adopted every year from shelters. Since 2014, cat cafes have popped up around the country, and most are adoption focused. But some animal welfare organizations are concerned cat cafes may not be the best environments for the felines – that they create stressful environments that are constantly changing as people come and go.

But for Farnham, Purrs has been successful. Since they opened two-and-half-years ago, they’ve had more than 15,000 visitors, some international, from places like Ireland and France, and more than 700 adoptions.

Two kitties hanging out on a table by a window in “Give Purrs A Chance.”

“We think we have a tremendously positive image for West Virginia, that we’ve attracted so many people from so many states that come specifically just to play with some of the cats here,” Farnham said.

In an emailed statement from the ASPCA, the organization said places like cat cafes and kitten pop-ups “increase the visibility of cats in need” and “generally help to reduce the time it takes for an animal to find a loving home.”

And for the cats themselves, Farnham said he believes having a free range environment gives cats the ability to live freely and happily until they find their forever home.

Pets of Flood Victims Find Temporary Homes at Animal Shelters

The devastating flood last week displaced not only people, but also many pets. Lots of folks are having a hard time finding a place for their furry friends to stay as they look for a new home. Some Humane Associations in the state are stepping up to do what they can to help – like the Kanawha County Humane Association.

Dozens of volunteers stood outside the Kanawha County Humane Association on Tuesday in the hot sun, loading up heavy bags of dog and cat food onto trucks.

“Today we’re accepting dog food or actually any donations animal related,” said Joshua Felty, Director of Operations at the Kanawha County Humane Association, “We’re using some of it at the shelter here, and we’re also loading up trucks and sending food up to Clendenin, Elkview, all over the place, just wherever they need help up there.”

Literally thousands of pounds of pet food were donated on Tuesday alone, but Felty says that’s not the only way his organization is trying to help.

“We’re offering free boarding as well, so it’s not just impoundment,” he said, “Once those animals come in, we vaccinate, and we’re doing all that for free. We’ve had several animals come in that have already went home. They’re still coming in though.”

At the time of this interview, Felty said his facility was holding about twenty dogs for flood victims.

“Some people are going to shelters, and they can’t take their animals with them, so we will hold them as long as we need to, and again that’s going to be free of charge. You know, it’s the least we could do.”

The West Virginia Division of Agriculture reports several shelters are open for pets in the wake of flooding events:

Kanawha County — Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association 1248 Greenbrier Street Charleston, WV 25311. Phone Number (304) 342-1576. Opened on Saturday June 25.
Greenbrier County — Greenbrier County Humane Association 151 Holliday Drive Lewisburg, WV. Phone Number (304) 645-4775. Opened on Tuesday, June 28.
Fayette County — Fayette County Volunteers 26719 Midland Trail (Midland Trail High School) Lookout, WV. Opened on Tuesday, June 28. Point of Contact Is: Kevin Walker (304) 574-1610.