The Santa Maria Valley Humane Society cut seven of its programs this month due to financial shortcomings, resulting in staff layoffs and the temporary shutdown of many of the shelter’s community services.
The Humane Society offers services for low-income pet owners in Santa Maria, including low-cost or free spay and neuter services, a Pet Food Pantry and an adoption program.
It also conducts animal rescues from overcrowded shelters and a Pet Safe Program to provide a haven for pets involved in domestic violence situations.
The shelter’s annual operating budget is $2.3 million; however, the shelter has come up short in fundraising revenue for the past two years. The organization is hoping to raise $1.5 million over the next three years to keep up with the cost of services, as well as to hire a professional fundraising staff and a full-time veterinary and behavior/dog training staff.
Sean Hawkins, executive director of the Santa Maria Valley Humane Society, said the shelter’s financial woes this year have stemmed from a higher demand for services.
“It’s not that we’re receiving less donations,” he said. “The community knows all this good stuff we’re doing and now more people are asking for services.”
A year ago, Hawkins said, the shelter spent about $50,000 a year on free veterinary care for pets of low-income families. This year, the shelter spent $50,000 on those services in just nine months.
The September cutbacks include the elimination of transfers from overcrowded shelters in the Central Valley and Los Angeles, and the elimination of all off-site adoption and community involvement events.
The Humane Society also cut key programs like the “Beat the Heat” free spay and neuter event for cats and Chrissie’s Fund, which provides medical care for large dogs of low-income owners.
The cutbacks also resulted in six animal care staff layoffs and two vacated management positions that are remaining unfilled for now.
The nonprofit Santa Maria Valley Humane Society relies largely on community donations for revenue. According to the shelter’s 2018-2019 budget, donations accounted for 36 percent of all revenue, bringing in $828,755 of the $2,314,803 income.
Scaling back operations has directly affected the number of animals staying at the Santa Maria Valley Humane Society. The shelter normally has 100 furry tenants in its care, but Hawkins said it was forced to scale back to 50 animals.
Many animals at the Humane Society come from the Santa Barbara County Department of Animal Services or other regional animal services that are at capacity. The department transferred 10 dogs to the Humane Society last month.
The county’s three facilities — in Lompoc, Santa Barbara and Santa Maria — are all at near capacity this time of year, said Stacy Silva, the department’s community outreach coordinator.
She attributes this to the second wave of kitten season this year, as well as the result of children going back to school and pet owners feeling they don’t have time to care for their animals.
Silva said the county has not yet experienced any impact from the Humane Society’s cutbacks this month.
The Department of Animal Services has about 200 partner agencies across the West, she noted. “Highly adoptable” animals will be transferred to one of these agencies or transferred to another facility in the county if the Santa Maria Valley Humane Society cannot accept more dogs and cats.
The county’s shelter in Santa Maria has the highest annual animal intake of the county’s three shelters, according to Silva, but the Humane Society has helped to curb that number with its discounted and free medical services. Pet owners may give their four-legged companions up for adoption if they cannot afford their medical care.
“There tends to be a greater need for subsidized veterinary care within (Santa Maria),” Silva said. “The Humane Society has filled that role in preventing hundreds of animals from coming into the (county) animal shelters.”
Santa Maria’s need for animal services is great but donor dollars are “scarce,” Hawkins said. Currently, 18.6 percent of Santa Maria’s population lives below the poverty line.
Hawkins is hopeful that the Humane Society will see an uptick in charitable donations during the months of October, November and December and be able to rebuild the seven cut programs.
The Humane Society will partner with Presqu’ile Winery in October for its Presqu’ile Summer Concert series featuring the local band The Politics of Dancing. All proceeds from ticket sales will go to the Humane Society.
“(Santa Maria) is a community where people love their animals deeply but also need help in providing proper care,” Hawkins said.
Click here for more information about the Santa Maria Valley Humane Society. Click here to make an online donation, or click here to purchase items from the organization’s wish list. Click here to sign up to volunteer.
— Noozhawk contributing writer Maura Fox can be reached at news@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, and connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.