Our CEO shares how services are changing due to new directives.
With this week’s stay-at-home order, I recognize that many of you are settling into a temporary “new” normal. The animals at Larimer Humane Society are as well. Though we launched a number of service and process changes last week, Wednesday’s news signaled that it was time to suspend adoption services, too, providing an extra layer of protection both for our clients and staff. We expect this service limitation to run through April 17, but will continue monitoring the situation to be both responsive and responsible in these ever-evolving times.
This may leave you wondering, “Are animals still being cared for at the shelter?” Well, if there was a silver lining to this challenging situation, it is that the animals are actually receiving extra special care and attention right now resulting from our temporary public limitations. As an essential service, our dedicated team members are still working each day at the shelter to provide nutritious meals; safe, cozy housing; and medical attention to the animals. Our animals are also getting extra enrichment and socialization from our skilled, compassionate staff members during their “shelter-in-place.”
Additionally, many animals will be “staying-at-home” with one of our dedicated foster families for a while! We are so grateful to our existing corps of foster volunteers for standing by for this call, allowing us to place as many animals as possible at a moment’s notice. We do not anticipate needing additional foster support at this time, but have received an overwhelming outpouring from our community members who are ready to assist if necessary – THANK YOU!
I am happy to share that over the past week, despite working on an appointment-basis only, 83 animals found loving new homes! This was a big support to try and get as many animals into loving families as possible before needing to temporary halt adoptions. We continue to serve owners who are looking for lost pets and individuals who have found stray animals, and our Animal Protection & Control officers continue offering emergency response to keep our pets and communities safe. I invite you to visit our full listing of service changes here, where the most up-to-date implementations will appear in response to this fluctuating situation.
You may be interested to know that our team is also working to support the needs of our healthcare workers at this time. All personal protective equipment (PPE) is being conserved for only essential procedures right now. And in an effort to conserve masks, we have reached out to our volunteer team to assist by making fabric masks for our staff members, which provide an appropriate level of protection for the majority of our work. If you are interested in helping us in this way, please contact volunteer@nocohumane.org for details and instructions!
I have been most overwhelmed by your generous offers to help during this difficult time. Recognizing that everyone is impacted by this situation – including many of you – makes these gestures shine especially bright. We are not yet certain how the pandemic will fully impact our mission. For this reason, monetary contributions provide us with the greatest flexibility, allowing us to immediately meet the specific needs of any animal in our care. If you are interested in helping with a monetary contribution please click here, and thank you for your generosity. We are also seeing an outpouring of other offers to help, and have created an online form for you to share those offers with us. Because our teams are working to care for animals and clients, we may be unable to respond to each offer, but this certainly does not reflect our gratitude for your thoughtfulness.
Your support is also needed as part of the 30th Annual Fire Hydrant 5K & Paws on the Promenade Expo! Presented by Poudre Pet & Feed Supply, the event is scheduled for Saturday, May 30 at the Promenade Shops at Centerra in Loveland. We are uncertain at this time if the event may become fully virtual or take on a hybrid in-person/virtual format, but are committed to the health and safety of every participant. Registration is now open, and I invite you to join us in the spirit of community (whether together or apart) to ensure every animal who comes to our doors continues to receive the highest quality of care.
At all times, but especially times like these, I am tremendously proud and grateful for each of you and your advocacy for our homeless pets. I hope your families remain safe and healthy while we all do our part to slow the spread of this virus. You can take solace that Larimer Humane Society will remain at the ready, ensuring the animals in our care continue to receive the highest levels of compassion and support.
Standing with you,
Judy Calhoun, CFRE, CAWA
CEO
