The Lakes Animal Friendship Society (LAFS) has once again requested funding from the Village of Burns Lake for its spay/neuter programs.
Last year’s request of $7500 was denied by village council. Although this year’s request of $2500 is included in the 2017 provisional budget, it has yet to be approved by council.
The village has provided in-kind support to LAFS in the past, but has never provided any funding to the organization.
Lakes Animal Friendship Society director Alistair Schroff said LAFS has been saving the village thousands of dollars each year with its programs.
“Average animal control costs for the village were about $10,600 per year from 2006 to 2010,” he said. “Since our programs started in 2011, the animal control costs have dropped to about $2500 per year.”
“So we are talking about over $8000 in annual savings,” he continued. “The accumulated savings to date are about $48,000, which is not a small amount.”
“This money has been made available for other valuable village projects,” he added.
Schroff said that if council chooses not to invest in LAFS, the organization won’t be able to continue providing its programs for much longer, and the $8000 per year savings will be lost within the next three years.
“A reliable program of spaying and neutering helps deliver a number of benefits to the village and the taxpayers,” said Schroff. “It reduces the number of roaming dogs, which ultimately cost a great deal to catch, care for and transport to an animal shelter after they have not been claimed.”
In fact, Schroff said the cost of transporting animals has significantly increased since Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue, located in Topley, stopped accepting new intakes in June 2015.
“The nearest available dog shelter is no longer in Topley, it is in Prince George,” said Schroff. “So if we don’t do the maintenance work, the costs to the taxpayer will be much higher than in the past.”
“And the safety of our residents and visitors, especially the children, will be back at risk,” he continued. “In the past, packs of roaming hungry dogs have threatened children on the playgrounds and at the schools.”
“Children are the most common dog bite victims and are more likely to be seriously injured or killed in an attack,” he added.
The Lakes Animal Friendship Society was created in 2011 to help control the local dog population. Schroff said that thanks to LAFS’ large-scale program for spaying and neutering, the village has “regained control.”
“But in order to lock-in this change, we still need ongoing programs at a smaller scale,” he said.
Schroff said the $2500 requested would support the spaying and neutering of dogs from lower-income families.
“This program will help keep the community healthy, safe and a nice place for all.”
LAFS awarded charitable registration
The Lakes Animal Friendship Society (LAFS) is now officially a registered charity. The organization received notice from the Charities Directorate informing them of the registration on Jan. 26, 2017.
“This means that the organization is now able to issue charitable receipts for donations,” explained LAFS director Alistair Schroff. “We hope that folks will continue to support us now that it is less taxing to do so.”
Donations can be made via cheque to Lakes Animal Friendship Society, Box 49, Southbank, B.C., V0J2P0. The organization is also registered with CanadaHelps.org, where donors are able to make credit card donations and receive receipts via email.
The Lakes Animal Friendship Society is run by volunteers with no paid staff. All donations are used to help animals in the community.
