Latest news with #HillsideSPCA
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Schuylkill Gives fundraiser to benefit local nonprofits
Schuylkill Gives, which is an annual 24-hour fundraiser that benefits local nonprofits, begins Wednesday at noon. The online giving initiative is designed to strengthen the Schuylkill County nonprofit community, and is run by the Schuylkill Area Community Foundation. The fundraiser from noon Wednesday until noon Thursday, and anyone can donate online using their credit or debit cards. Donations must be at least $10 and are made through the Schuylkill Gives online portal. The proceeds will be disbursed to nonprofits within a week and will make a tremendous impact on those groups and to the people and causes they support, the foundation said. The website gives information on each of the participating organizations, and allows visitors to search for nonprofits by category. For example, searching under the keyword 'animals' leads to a list of three charities – Hillside SPCA, Red Creek Wildlife Rescue and Delaware Riverkeepers Network. Searching for 'arts and culture' brings a list of 19 organizations ranging from public libraries to community events to high school band booster groups. For more information, go to the Schuylkill Gives website or call at 570-624-7223.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Council to consider amending stray cat ordinance
POTTSVILLE — Pottsville City Council could amend its ordinance regarding the feeding of stray cats, which currently carries the potential to be fined up to $600. The current ordinance — adopted in June 2024 — prohibits the feeding of or interaction with wildlife, unless permitted to do so. Licensed animal rescues and similar organizations are granted permission. If the new ordinance is adopted, people would be able to feed stray cats if they are participating in a Trap, Neuter and Release program. Feeding must be done with the intention of trapping the cat, then taking it to be spayed or neutered before releasing it. These programs are designed to limit the number of stray animals by taking away the ability to reproduce. Penalties will be assessed to those who are found to be feeding stray cats without participating in the TNR program. Warnings will be given first, followed by a maximum $250 fine for each offense. Council had the first reading of the change in April, with adoption possible at the May meeting. 'This is not a whether we should feed them or not debate,' council member Andy Wollyung said. He said there is no 'right answer,' besides getting the cats the medical care they need. Former Mayor Dave Clews said the changes are for health and safety reasons. Denise Gehrman, a volunteer with Strays No More, spoke at the council meeting. She talked about kittens they recently helped in Pottsville, and urged people to volunteer. The organization has five volunteers who contribute money and time to addressing the stray cat problem. 'You may say they are not my cats, and maybe not, but by feeding them and not fixing them, you contributed to the population growing,' Gehrman said. Wollyung also commented on a letter from Hillside SPCA Director Sherrie Schafer, and the Hillside SPCA Board of Directors. The letter urges the council to continue the Trap, Neuter and Release approach. However, the letter also opposes the potential penalties the proposed ordinance would allow for. 'While we understand the City's desire to address concerns related to community cats, we believe that punitive measures and restrictive ordinances targeting stray cats or those who care for them may be both ineffective and counterproductive,' the letter read. 'Experience and evidence from municipalities across the country have shown that programs focusing on removal or penalization of community cat caregivers do not result in sustainable population control and may inadvertently lead to increased inhumane death rates through poisoning and starvation as well as wrongful prosecution.' Helping local cats Andy VanArsdale, health and animal control officer, said about three cats have been trapped since the city started its TNR Program. Trapped cats are taken to Hillside SPCA to be spayed or neutered. VanArsdale is committed to helping other felines in need, not just those surrendered for TNR He was contacted by the city codes department on April 28, after police notified them about a city woman who was no longer able to care for herself. She had four young cats and numerous older cats, which she rescued from outside, VanArsdale said. The younger cats were taken to Ruth Steinert Memorial SPCA in Pine Grove. Once spayed or neutered, the older cats will go to a farm in Tamaqua.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Yahoo
31 pets taken from Ashland home
Animal welfare workers had their hands full recently when they removed 31 pets from a feces-filled home in Ashland. Judith Weihl, 62, of Ashland, surrendered three overweight cats and 28 mixed breed dogs, authorities said. Acting on a complaint, a state dog warden went to to the home to investigate dog law violations and found numerous animals. 'There were just dogs everywhere,' said Sherrie Schafer, Hillside SPCA director. On Feb. 20, Weihl was charged with three summary violations: not having a dog license, failure to have rabies vaccination and unlawful operation of a dog kennel without a license, according to Rich Hine, dog warden for Schuylkill County. Hine was unavailable for comment Monday. Weihl was allowed to keep five of the dogs, Schafer said, because, while serious, the matter was a dog law issue, not a cruelty case. Ashland's borough ordinance permits residents to own up to six animals. However, feces and urine were visible in the home on Feb. 18 and the odor was so intense that workers had to step outside to get fresh air. 'It was deplorable,' Becky Worth, shelter manager for Ruth Steinert Memorial SPCA, said about the conditions. Hillside SPCA took in 10 of the dogs; Ruth Steinert Memorial SPCA accepted 12 dogs and three cats; and Logan's Heroes Animal Rescue, East Greenville, Lehigh County, took six of the dogs removed from the Ashland home, Schafer said Monday. People in the home helped them capture the under-socialized dogs to place them in crates for transport. Haley Weist holds a dog surrendered from a home filled with 31 pets to Hillside SPCA in Pottsville, Monday, Feb. 24, 2025. (MATTHEW PERSCHALL/MULTIMEDIA EDITOR) The dogs, some puppies as young as 8 weeks old and others 1 or 2 years old, appear underweight as evidenced by their ribs showing, Worth and Schafer said. She said the dogs are not leash trained, are very timid and in need of socialization with people. These young mixed breeds, shown Feb. 24, 2025, are some of the dogs surrendered from a home in Ashland filled with 28 dogs and three cats. (MATTHEW PERSCHALL/MULTIMEDIA EDITOR) 'They need to learn how to 'dog,' ' said Haley Weist, dog manager at Hillside, of the socialization the pups need, which she gets started by just sitting with them. Once all of the dogs are spayed and neutered, they may be available for adoption, shelter managers said. The faces of the rescued, now safe at Hillside SPCA in Pottsville, Monday, Feb. 24, 2025. (MATTHEW PERSCHALL/MULTIMEDIA EDITOR) Donations are accepted for the dogs' care. To donate, contact Hillside SPCA at 570-622-7769 or visit the shelter's Facebook page the website: Contributions for Ruth Steinert SPCA can be made through the shelter's website at Ruth Steinert Memorial SPCA, or by calling 570-345-3540.
