HSSC’s 90th Anniversary

HSSC’s th Anniversary!

When Ruth Finley and a group of prominent Santa Rosans joined together to incorporate the Humane Society of Sonoma County in 1931, could they have imagined how long-lasting and far-reaching their legacy of love for the animals would be? This year, as we celebrate our 90th anniversary, we are inspired to reflect on our beginnings — and draw parallels between then and now.

EARLY

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A new decade saw HSSC starting to formalize partnerships and strengthen our networks to save more animals. By 2013, we signed a landmark adoption agreement with Sonoma County Animal Services which doubled the number of animals we took in from their facility and resulted in a dramatic decrease in communitywide euthanasia rates. With the support of our volunteers and donors, we were able take in homeless animals from Lake County Animal Control (LCAC) when they needed to make room for animals displaced by the Valley Fire in 2015. The event also forged a strong partnership between HSSC and LCAC, establishing a pipeline for transfer of animals from their care to ours whenever they become too crowded.

Our large-scale rescue of 64 Finnish Lapphunds from a hoarding situation in January 2014 gave us a glimpse of what happens when our community rallies together on behalf of animals. In addition to extensive dental procedures, medical care and intensive grooming to remove severe matting, this group of dogs required lengthy behavioral rehabilitation. Thanks to incredible support from our volunteers and donors, we were able to provide the treatment and care needed to help these dogs heal their physical and emotional trauma. And, best of all, we were able to adopt every one of them into loving homes! This same year, we were awarded the animal care contract for the City of Healdsburg, partnered with North Bay Animal Services. We operated out of modular offices at Bacchus Landing Way while we completed construction on our permanent facility. Thanks to compassionate support from Healdsburg’s tight-knit community of animal lovers, we were able to celebrate the grand opening of our Healdsburg shelter in 2016! We adopted nearly 300 animals out of our new facility in its first year. This year we also achieved a 96% lives saved rate for animals coming through our shelters.

The 2017 Tubbs Fire was another pivotal event further proving our community’s ability to come together as a force for good. Our relationships with other local animal care agencies and rescues were strengthened as we worked together to reunite lost animals with their families and to get veritable mountains of donated pet food and supplies to impacted pet owners and evacuation sites. In addition to triaging medical care for animals injured in the fires, we held free clinics to serve the urgent needs of pet owners displaced by the fires. By 2017, we had achieved a 98% lives saved rate — a marker that we have been able to meet every year since! By 2018, investments we’d made in our infrastructure and improvements we’d made in our processes were starting to pay off. Coinciding with increased intake initiatives to help more animals from our community and beyond, we focused on improving pathways to adoption and decreasing length of stay to get animals into loving homes faster! By mid-2018, we saw a 23% increase in the number of animals we were taking in – many of whom were at-risk of euthanasia at overcrowded shelters.

By 1931, Sonoma County was in the throes of the Great Depression. Home and farm foreclosures created extreme hardships for our county’s residents and resulted in a surge of homeless animals. Concerned about the welfare of these animals and lack of facilities to house them, Ruth Finley, Elizabeth Burbank, Frank A. Roth, Colleen Aslin and Mary Leddy pooled their resources to bring about positive change. They rallied members of the community to join the Humane Society — with annual dues of one dollar — to help them take over the role of the “pound” for the City of Santa Rosa. Similar to our founders, we find ourselves striving to care for animals through unprecedented times. Their legacy, along with the lessons we’ve learned in the past decade, have enabled us to adapt to meet the current moment and expand our role as a vital resource to the community.

The overwhelming demand we saw for advanced vet care from our community’s low-income pet guardians at our fire relief clinics was the impetus for establishing our Community Veterinary Clinic in 2019. This effort, coupled with our role as a leading provider of low-cost spay/neuter services, our donor-supported pet food pantry, behavior and training support and The COVID-19 crisis presented yet another opportunity for HSSC — side by side with our community — to demonstrate our resilience, creativity, innovation and determination to serve the animals who need us no matter what. Our CVC saw the demand for services skyrocket due to the economic hardships the pandemic created. The CVC team partnered with local care providers to conduct free clinics in areas of the county experiencing greatest need. From the early days of shelterin-place orders, we developed protocols to conduct adoptions online by appointment to keep our community safe and, happily,

other resources, was a key part of the safety net we created to keep animals with the families who love them. The emergency protocols we put into place during the Tubbs Fire helped us respond quickly and efficiently to keep animals safe during the fires (and a flood!) that impacted both our shelters in subsequent years. The partnerships we forged with other North Bay animal welfare agencies have also been critical to our emergency response capabilities. We know we can rely on them to take our animals into their care should we be under threat of evacuation, and they know we’ll be there to reciprocate in their times of need. placed over 1,500 pets into homes during this time! In spite of great collective hardships, we have seen many silver linings. You’ll see examples of these happy tales of undaunted resilience, love and compassion in this issue. Were our founders, like we are today, empowered to persevere thanks to their shared love of animals and an unwavering commitment to protect them? It’s inspiring to think that, even while living through tumultuous times, a circle of compassionate individuals drew upon inner reserves of courage and hope in order to establish this safe haven and set the standard for the humane treatment of our animals. Today, the lifesaving work we do is inextricably linked to the work of our organization’s founding mothers and fathers. Their gumption, vision and commitment surround each and every animal we provide with protection, compassion, love and care. So does your love and support. Thank you for being part of this amazing history — and thank you for helping us carry this legacy of love into the future.

Holly

Woven into HSSC’s celebrating our 80th anniversary! This special dog came to story of resilience and us from our partners at Sonoma County Animal Services, transformation are the who took her in after she’d been found wandering the stories of thousands streets alone one cold December night, dragging her back upon thousands of legs behind her. Our Director of Shelter Medicine at the animals for whom we’ve time, Dr. Christi Camblor, diagnosed Holly’s paralysis as the cared along the way. result of trauma, rather than genetics. She worked with a They touch our hearts neurological consultant (who graciously donated her time) in such profound ways. to create a rehabilitation plan for Holly. Staff and volunteers We’re humbled to be were trained to administer daily physical therapy and Holly their port in the storm received pro bono holistic treatments as well. Gradually, she until we can place them was able to run again, aided by a wheeled cart, and soon Holly featured on our 80th Anniversary cover. into loving homes. she was able to stand and take a few steps on her own! Holly is just such an animal. If you’ve been a friend of Flash forward to 2021. HSSC Board President Kati Aho’s HSSC for many years, you may remember her — she was niece spots an adorable white dog walking her person at a the cover girl of our North Bay Pets Spring 2011 issue, local regional park. Completely enchanted CONT P.18