The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has announced the WaterShed Animal Fund Rescue Ride, launched in January 2017, surpassed its first-year annual goal by more than 2,000 animals.
This holds special significance for us at Flagler Humane Society because former operations manager Melissa Rock, and former thrift store manager Tom Rock, both moved on last year to become part of the ASPCA’s animal relocation efforts. The Rocks have traveled thousands of miles since then from their Hastings home to locations all over the country.
The ASPCA transported 5,715 cats and dogs from shelters throughout the Midwest to areas where adoptable animals are in higher demand. Among the thousands of animals relocated by WAFRR in 2017, more than 700 were moved out of areas impacted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma as part of the ASPCA’s disaster response efforts.
Dudley, the 5,000th animal transported in the program’s first operational year, is a 10-week-old male Lab/hound mix. He was moved from Southern Pines Animal Shelter in Hattiesburg, Mississippi to Toledo Area Humane Society in Maumee, Ohio, and was adopted by a loving family within six days.
“The WaterShed Animal Fund Rescue Ride is a shining example of the life-saving impact relocation can have on at-risk animals and is a strong complement to our relocation routes along the East and West coasts,” said Matt Bershadker, president and CEO of the ASPCA. “With the help of our transportation partners, we are proud to mentor and support these shelters in moving more animals to safe and loving homes.”
The ASPCA Animal Relocation Program partners with overcrowded source shelters that need assistance moving animals out, as well as destination shelters where animals have a greater chance to be adopted. Through the WAFRR, animals are transported from shelters in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas, to shelters in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Texas, and Wisconsin.
“Relocation continues to be a major component to life-saving for companion animals in the United States,” said Christy Counts, President, WaterShed Animal Fund. “The WaterShed Animal Fund is proud to support the ASPCA in its continued work in this area and look forward to the day when relocation is no longer necessary."
The ASPCA exceeded its first-year animal transport goal on the Midwest route: WAFRR made 190 trips in 2017, working with 17 source shelters, 17 destination shelters, and 1 waystation agency to move over 1,100 cats and over 4,500 dogs. Cumulatively, the ASPCA’s Animal Relocation Program moved 28,444 animals across the country in 2017.
Jeffery Ritter is development coordinator at Flagler Humane Society and can be reached at jritter@flaglerhumanesociety.org. Flagler Humane Society is a 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit organization founded in 1980. For more information go to flaglerhumanesociety.org.