By Holly Weber/Staff
ALBION — PAWS Animal Shelter is running out of room.Everywhere you turn it seems like there is an animal right under your feet. They are outside, sleeping five to a chair and playing on the counters. With every step, you run the risk of treading on one of the cats or dogs who call the shelter their temporary home. Manager Kathy Delamarter estimates there are at least 100 adult cats and 30 kittens living there now, not to mention the many dogs.
“We need more room,” she said. “Especially with the amount of cats being dropped off now.”
Space is not the only issue plaguing the shelter. With each additional animal dropped off, costs keep rising.
“Cat food is like gold, and kitty litter gets expensive,” Delamarter said.
While there are a good number of dogs running around PAWS, the felines are getting to be the most overwhelming. Delamarter attributes the problem to the fact that licensing laws do not exist for cats like they do for dogs.
“Everyone gets them when they’re cute and cuddly as a kitten, but when they get to be a bother they can just open the door and let them out,” she said.
In order to alleviate some of the costs associated with running the shelter, PAWS is holding a fund raiser from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday at The Jukebox in Spencerport. The event will include music by the band “Flint Creek.”
“We’re selling tickets for a raffle, and we’ve got quite a few nice people who have donated to us,” Doris Bruski, director of PAWS, said.
Some of the raffle donors Bruski mentioned include Monroe Muffler, Arby’s, Applebees, Tillman’s Village Inn and Seabreeze. All attendees have an opportunity to win any of the prizes.
“They’re going to be drawing continuously, so if you buy a ticket for $5, that ticket is good for all of the drawings,” Bruski said.
The money raised will go toward fixing up the shelter, caring for the animals, and the ultimate objective of constructing an addition.
“Our main goal is we are trying to get enough money so we can get a room built on,” Delamarter said. “We just need a little help.”
Delamarter said she loves her job and enjoys caring for the animals, but admits the numbers are getting to be “a little overwhelming.” She said with additional money and room, they could provide for more animals.
“We can only take so many, and we can only feed so many,” she said. “Hopefully this (fund raiser) will help us out.”
Contact Holly Weber at (585) 798-1400, Ext. 2225.
