There has been some confusion lately about what is happening with one of the shelters — and which is which.
Our organization, the Clinton County Humane Society (CCHS), will remain open as a physical shelter of homeless pets. As we have done since 2003, we will rely on private donations (we receive ZERO tax money or funds from any governmental agency) and the countless hours of more than 35 volunteers to continue our operation, which is a 365-day-a-year undertaking.
•CCHS is located at 1760 Fife Ave, near Davids Drive.
•The dog pound, run by the Clinton County dog warden, Rex Doak, is located down the street from us at 1330 Fife Ave. It is across the road from the new castle playground at J.W. Denver Williams Memorial Park.
•The organization that will no longer house animals, Wilmington Area Humane Society (WAHS), is located at 5361 N US Hwy 68, near Interstate 71.
On Monday, Dec. 2, WAHS announced that starting in January 2020 it will no longer take in pets or house animals.
For years, both CCHS and WAHS have worked closely with the Clinton County dog warden, to save as many dogs as possible from the local pound. This symbiotic relationship has worked to benefit the thousands of defenseless dogs who are dumped on country roads, tossed aside like trash, abused, neglected, or released directly by owners. Because of how the dog pound is structured, the dog warden is unable to take in cats. Clinton County, Ohio, has a major cat problem — both feral cats and household/barn cats that are not spayed or neutered by their owners and are allowed to have litter upon litter of kittens. Both CCHS and WAHS have dealt with as many cats as possible, but there is never enough space or resources to deal with every homeless/unwanted cat in Clinton County.
We volunteers at CCHS work very hard to take in as many adoptable animals as possible and find them homes both locally and across the United States. The website/app Petfinder.com has been extremely helpful in reaching potential adopters near and far. CCHS has adopted out more than 8,100 animals since we started. We spay/neuter the pets we adopt out, trying to end the cycle of homeless pets.
How can you help?
•Spay/neuter your pets — indoor pets, outdoor pets, dogs, and cats. As the dog warden said in the News Journal article about WAHS closing: “The bottom line is that if everybody would be responsible for their own dogs, we wouldn’t need shelters.”
•Share — share this information with everyone you can. Share postings of adoptable animals. Share your concerns about animal issues with your elected officials.
*Support CCHS’ Project Abigail. This project allows us to accept unwanted litters of puppies, spay/neuter them, and find them homes. We also spay/neuter the puppies’ parents at no charge and return them to their owners, preventing future litters.
•Donate financially. Along with adoption fees, the main reason we can exist to help animals in our area is because of private financial donations and the volunteer hours put in every day. Veterinary care is expensive — think how much we spend on vaccines, spay/neuter surgeries, heartworm pills and flea/tick treatments. We are thankful to have a low-cost contract with Hill’s Science Diet to provide us with dog/cat food, so although we no longer in need of food donations, we are always in need of cat litter, bleach, and other necessities such as paper towels and laundry soap. You can also donate via PayPal at our website clintoncohumanesociety.org; you can mail a check to CCHS, PO Box 1024, WILMINGTON OH 45177; and you can support fundraisers we occasionally post on Facebook. We are so grateful to those who give. Thank you — from the humans on behalf of the animals.
