The Santa Barbara Humane Society is handing over the reins of large animal rescue to Santa Barabara County Animal Services in order to focus on core community services.
“We asked ourselves how the Santa Barbara Humane Society can best serve the animals and people in our community, and decided to narrow our focus to the services that we know the community needs on a day-to-day basis,” CEO Kerri Burns said.
The society is going to narrow its focus to cat and dog adoptions, dog training and affordable veterinary services, which fit the primary needs of the community, according to Dori Villalon, vice president of campus operations for the organization.
There is a large demand for affordable veterinary control in the area, Villalon said, and the Humane Society offers vaccine and wellness appointments at a low cost.
“We want to focus on these services that we know people need daily,” she said.
To help transition County Animal Services’ new large-animal disaster response team, the Humane Society gifted to it thousands of dollars worth of equipment needed to fulfill its operations.
“It just feels like a more logical fit for Animal Services to take over this role,” Villalon said.
The Humane Society has collected specialized slings, ropes and even repelling equipment over the years that it will pass on to County Animal Services, according to Villalon.
“They were eager to come over and get the equipment,” she said. “It would be a real challenge for them to come up with the funding to get a headstart on the program themselves.”
The Humane Society will still be available to collaborate with the county and provide assistance if needed, but it will continue to support the community through disaster by providing no-cost pet boarding to evacuated residents and providing mutual aid to affected shelters.
— Noozhawk staff writer Jade Martinez-Pogue can be reached at jmartinez-pogue@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
