Southside SPCA Hosts Open House

Community members gathered at the location of the Southside SPCA in Meherrin this past Sunday, Oct. 20 for its annual Open House from 1 to 5 p.m. This seventh annual Open House was full of vendors, free food, raffles and prizes and the chance to meet the animal residents of the SPCA.

According to the Southside SPCA website, “The Southside SPCA is a donor-supported, tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organization that has provided shelter, medical treatment, spay/neuter and adoption services to over 36,000 puppies, kittens, cats and dogs since the organization’s inception in 1975.”

At present, the SPCA is housing about 135 animals, including cats, kittens and dogs. A new building was recently opened called the Field of Dreams where 20 long-term resident dogs stay and have more space to run around.

Director of the SPCA, Sandy Wyatt, explained that most of the animals they house are taken from Animal Control. However, she also said, “We have some owner surrenders. People will make a mistake and don’t spay/neuter, and the dog has an unwanted litter. We do offer free spay and neutering … so we can stop all these unwanted litters from being born.”

Most of the people working for the SPCA are volunteers. Currently, they have around 35 or 40 volunteers, according to Wyatt. They even have some volunteers in Richmond, Va. who handle the adoptions at the PetSmart in Midlothian.

Wyatt explained there is an application for potential adopters to fill out. She said, “We like for the dogs to be inside, part of the family …We don’t want the dog to go back into a worse situation than they came from.”

The SPCA does treat its animals in preparation for adoption. “We spay/neuter, treat them for heartworms … We see a lot of heartworm-positive dogs, a lot of tick-related diseases … and they’re treated for that,” said Wyatt.

She added, “So we want to make sure the new owner will keep up with that and give the dog the loving home they all deserve.”

At the Open House, community members were free to walk around and meet the animals who are residents there. Some people even brought their own dogs with them to enjoy the atmosphere of the event.

Wyatt said, “The people that come today, they’re on our mailing list, and they get a chance to see how the animals are cared for, what we do … And it’s wonderful to see the people that support our animals. This is the only time we see them. These are the people that send us checks every month to support this shelter.”

People who attended the Open House also had the chance to enter raffles to win prizes such as restaurant gift cards, baked goods, bottles of wine, nuts and even gift baskets full of things for the pets. These gift baskets included pet luxuries such as toys, pet beds, leashes and more.

There were several opportunities for people to make donations to the shelter. Wyatt further shared that, while the Southside SPCA does apply for grants, most of the money that supports the shelter comes from donations. She said, “We send out a newsletter; we send out cards; we send out invitations for this event. But mostly individuals are what keep this shelter going.”