Annual Report 2022 May 2023 - Flipbook - Page 7
Chance loaded
up and on his
way to his
new home.
Care for Rescued Animals
A Chance at a New Life
With historic overpopulation at animal shelters in North Texas and
across the nation, animal rescue organizations like the SPCA of
Texas are finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with animals
entering our shelters. In 2022, we took in 41% more animals than
in 2021. While we were able to increase our adoptions by 19% over
our 2021 animal outcomes, our shelter facilities were consistently
operating at or above capacity throughout the year.
As costs for housing, food and care for pets rise, we know that
not all families in North Texas are able to adopt. North Texas has
hundreds of great pets being overlooked because we simply have
more pets than we have adopters locally. However, in some parts of
the country, successful spay/neuter and education programs have
resulted in a shortage of adoptable pets. The SPCA of Texas partners
with other animal welfare organizations to send transfer animals
who aren’t being adopted here to rescue organizations where they
will quickly find new homes.
The SPCA of Texas has been particularly effective in transferring
cats. Cats are an underserved animal population in shelters,being
euthanized at a rate 36% higher than dogs throughout the country
(source: ASPCA). By partnering with the ASPCA Relocation Program,
the SPCA of Texas aimed to increase lifesaving among cats
throughout North Texas by serving as a transport hub. In this role,
the SPCA of Texas collaborates with animal control agencies and
private cat rescues to select adoptable cats right here in North Texas
that are being overlooked. The SPCA of Texas then coordinates with
the ASPCA to identify receiving animal welfare organizations, and
ultimately provides all of the veterinary care needed for the selected
cats to make sure they are healthy for travel.
By shortening the length of stay for animals in North Texas shelters,
we maintain space in our shelter facilities and foster homes for
animals needing more extensive behavioral and medical support.
One lucky kitty who was selected for this program is Chance,
and he was our 1,000th cat to participate. Chance came to the
SPCA of Texas through a community cat volunteer. While many
community cats are feral, this volunteer noticed that Chance
was highly social and seeking out affection from the human
volunteers. Over the course of a few weeks, this compassionate
volunteer noticed that Chance was not thriving in the shelter
and thought he deserved a new “chance” at a happily ever
after. This outgoing fella was flown to MSPCA-Angell in Boston
in early October.
And Chance? He’s living his happily ever after in a loving home.
When he arrived at the Worcester Airport, he was immediately
taken to the MSPCA at Nevins Farm where he was adopted by
a lucky family just days after becoming available. That’s a love
story thousands of miles in the making!
