New Improved Shelters Coming to the Lowcountry!

WRITTEN BY: FERN WOODEN, STAFF WRITER

Imagine if we could all donate our spare change to better shelter animals’ lives, providing them a loving space while awaiting adoption. The Lowcountry emcompasses eleven counties, including Charleston County, Dorchester County and Berkeley County. Although 2020 has been a challenging year for all of us, two shelters in Berkeley County and Dorchester County found a glimmer of hope. Both Dorchester Paws and Berkeley Animal Center are upgrading to newer shelters within the next coming year.

Saving animals is not an easy task, but the resources required can appear overwhelming to outsiders looking in. Dorchester Paws, built in 1972, is the only shelter in the county and is allotted a mere 15% of the county’s annual budget to cover the necessary costs to run the facility. The 48-year-old building often deals with flooding, which happens frequently in the Lowcountry. Each time the shelter floods or faces a threat of imminent rain, they are forced to relocate scared homeless animals to near-by middle school gyms. Imagine the stress that puts on both the staff and the cats and dogs involved! During inclement weather, staff members begrudgingly resort to emergency mode, focusing on crisis needs and restoring the shelter to placing primary animal care first. The shelter closes which causes animals to lack essential medication, an overwhelmed staff, and homeless animals turned away because they do not have the room. With an annual shelter repair budget of $3000, they often wonder how they can provide the best care for each animal in a dilapidated building. Over 10 days, Dorchester Paws spent $1,400 on emergent repairs for the shelter this past May.

Dorchester Paws faces flooding issues regularly at their current shelter.

Currently, the facility has 400 animals in their care with many in foster homes as the current building can only hold 181 animals. Executive Director Maddie Moore says the shelter’s state is a bigger problem than the Dorchester Paws itself. “The building’s condition causes a devastating ripple effect. Loving families looking to adopt see a depressing shelter and stray away or turn at the door,” said Moore. The animals are the ones paying the price, experiencing longer stay durations in the shelter. Moore notes it is not uncommon to see an animal in their shelter waiting for their forever homes three months at a time. Dorchester Paws confirmed themselves as a no-kill shelter in 2017 and does not euthanize to save space or money. They strive to provide each animal life-saving remedies such as heartworm treatments and prevention so every animal has a fighting chance to find happiness in their forever home. With two vets, Dr. Sally Price and Dr. Angela Price, two vet technicians and one volunteer working tirelessly in a windowless 15x15 square foot space, it is almost a miracle they can accomplish as much as they do. Is there a solution to these problems?

Dorchester Paws is working on a campaign to build a new shelter because Dorchester’s animals deserve better. With the help of the county, the shelter is looking for a tract to provide a larger facility for current and incoming pets and a more visible spot for potential adopters. Their new space will incorporate larger individual kennels to meet national care standards, larger play yards to exercise and dedicated walking trails. The new building also provides heartworm and behavioral assessments not offered at other county shelters and a state of the art spay and neuter clinic. Currently, the shelter can only handle 60 spay and neuter appointments a week and those are only available to homeless dogs and is done off campus.

The new spay and neuter clinic will double the weekly neuter and spay appointments available to the shelter as well as offer the public an affordable option otherwise not offered in the area. Their campaign is currently raising $3 million for the new shelter, including the $1 million the county gave them to start their journey. April Howard, Director of Shelter operations at Dorchester Paws, reminds people why their volunteers and staff work tirelessly to provide these animals a second chance at life. “You have the highest of highs when you watch your favorite animal walk out the front door with a family after months of being in a kennel. You have the lowest of lows when you hold the paw of an animal you barely know and tell them they are loved as they cross the rainbow bridge,” said Howard. It makes people wonder how they conquer each opposition they face day after day. “You walk by a kennel on your way to another task and you see a face that makes you stop. And in that split second, the perspective is returned, and the silly frustrations disappear.”

Berkeley County shares a similar experience to Dorchester Paws with their shelter, Berkeley Animal Center, aka BAC. Formerly Doc Williams SPCA shelter, the county took the space in 2017. Current manager for the facility Debbie Allen shares a common goal with her staff: a commitment to maintaining a fiscally responsible, healthy, safe and loving environment for rescued, abandoned, abused and neglected animals of Berkeley County. When the county took possession of the shelter in 2017, it was apparent the facility was outdated and rundown, too small to function as adequate space for the massive influx of animals they take in. This year the shelter has housed more than 6,000 animals compared to 2,500 in 2017. With resources spread thin, animals are in different buildings in the facility. The current structure also lacks an onsite spay and neuter clinic, forcing BAC to send these animals to Columbia and other clinics in the Lowcountry. Not having an onsite spay and neuter clinic requires more volunteers to transport these animals to multiple locations, putting more stress on the already limited shelter.

Sketch of the new Berkeley Animal Center being built in 2021.

By June 2021, Berkeley Animal Center will open its doors to the public with a brand new shelter with 36 intake kennels, 30 adoption kennels, a one of a kind pig and goat pen, two horse stalls, three outdoor play and exercise yards, cat and kitten rooms and a sick room for cats to heal. The best part for Allen and her team is the new onsite spay and neuter clinic to promote a TNR program for the county. TNR stands for Trap Neuter and Release, a program that helps stop feral cats’ overpopulation and allows them to live safely outdoors. The program also helps combat the past high rates of euthanasia in Berkeley County due to lack of space in the shelter. Each new feature signifies a sign of hope for Allen and her team, despite a trying year.

If you are looking to give back this holiday season, both Berkeley Animal Center and Dorchester Paws accept donations to make their dreams for a better-equipped facility. Berkeley Animal Center is always accepting volunteers, fosters, and monetary donations through their website, Berkeleyanimalcenter.org. BAC also has a running Amazon wish list for cat litter, food and toys. Dorchester Paws accepts donations through their social media pages and you can learn more at their website, Dorchesterpaws.org. Many of these dogs and cats come into the shelter with past trauma, often never knowing a loving touch. November is Adopt a Senior Dog Month because no animal should have to live out the rest of their lives in a shelter. This holiday season, forget buying a puppy and consider giving a shelter dog a chance. Who knows, they might be the family member you were missing! ■

Berkeley Animal Center has to house many dogs outdoors as does Dorchester. New facilties will bring much better living environments for homeless dogs