A fantastic year for a fantastic organization

Posted
By Jackson Padgett, Shelter Director for A Second Chance Animal Shelter What a good year 2018 was at A Second Chance Animal Shelter! Take a look at these facts and statistics, and we think you will agree. ASCAS is a self-supporting 501(c)3 non-profit. This means that while all Clarendon County residents benefit from its work, there is no tax-payer funding. During the 2018 calendar year, ASCAS took in 422 new "residents”: 347 dogs and 75 cats (2017's totals were 115 dogs and 33 cats for an increase of almost 300%), found local "forever" homes for 65 dogs and 35 cats and found rescue groups who took an additional 191 dogs and 54 cats from us. These volunteer organizations then work diligently to find permanent homes. The greatest approximate distance a shelter dog (Bubba Red) traveled to find a new home was to Ontario, Canada, and the greatest distance for a cat (Petey) was to Silicon Valley, CA. ASCAS performed 502 spay or neuter surgeries for both the shelter's own cats and dogs as well as for the public at nominal cost. To put this in perspective, one female dog and all her offspring can breed 67,000 puppies in only 6 years. Cats are even more prolific: 420,000 in 6 years! Do you need more reason to spay/neuter your pets? (Source: https://www.wideopenpets.com/how-many-babies-can-these-pets-have-in-a-lifetime/) Like any successful organization, ASCAS started 2018 with some specific goals. The shelter’s primary concerns were, and still are, providing food and safe, sanitary, comfortable shelter to the resident dogs and cats. ASCAS upkeeps of all the facilities while maintaining the staff and volunteer forces needed to do so. In addition, the shelter completely re-roofed its main indoor kennel/medical facility, started on the long-term project to provide permanent covering for all the outdoor kennels and successfully held its two major fundraising events. The spring dinner and silent auction featured Chef Ted Brownell's famous lasagna and the volunteers’ endless dessert table, with about 140 folks enjoying a fun night out. The fall golf tournament hosted 32 teams and garnered 51 company sponsors. The year-ending Angel-tree campaign brought in much-needed food, bedding, playthings, leashes and bowls. Of course, the shelter director, board members and staff have plans in place to make 2019 even more successful. The current goals are to complete the installation of permanent covering for all the outdoor shelters and to conduct more community events like our Adopt-a-Thon with Santa and Giving Tuesday. All in all, a successful year. And it couldn't have happened without local resident and corporate support, so Thank You! If you'd like to help in 2019, visit the ASCAS website at www.asecondchanceanimalshelter.com or our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ascas.manning. There, you can make a donation, sponsor a special dog or cat or have your company or organization underwrite a specific project at the shelter. And stop by and see for yourself what ASCAS is doing for Clarendon County. Help, too, by donating items and shopping at The Second Chance Animal Shelter Thrift Store, located at 537 S. Mill Street in downtown Manning.