NEOSHO, Mo. —
A box sealed by duct tape and left on the side of a rural Newton County road contained a litter of nine puppies abandoned by its owner.
It’s the kind of thing Leanne Williams will never understand.
Dumping longtime pets in a ditch “is one of the most cruel things (a person) can do,” said Williams, president of Faithful Friends Animal Advocates. “I just don’t understand the mentality behind doing something like that.”
Five of those nine puppies have been adopted, but four remain homeless.
Williams is spearheading a group of residents that wants to raise money to build a no-kill shelter outside Neosho to serve all of Newton County. The new shelter is to be constructed atop a 3.5-acre parcel west of Neosho on Missouri Highway 86.
“We’re about two-thirds of the way to our goal,” Williams said Thursday. “Our total goal is $350,000 to build the building and we’ve raised or (have been) pledged $265,000.”
The organization will be the host for a concert headlined by the five-man band Big Smitty on Saturday at The Civic, 203 E. Main St., in downtown Neosho.
The concert will be from 7 to 11 p.m. The cost is $10 at the door; six people at a table for $55 and eight people for $75. A cash bar and food/drinks will be available, and all proceeds go toward the FFAA, and its building fund, Williams said.
But until that building is constructed, abandoned pets picked up by residents can be dropped off at a number of foster homes scattered throughout the county.
“Over the course of time, there have been many foster families,” Williams said. “We’ve had 50 to 75 families foster pets over the course of time.
“There’s always a great need. We receive calls every day and we just never have enough foster homes. We take in what we can.”
An abandoned pet will be picked up by a FFAA member and taken immediately to a vet for a thorough checkup, which includes vaccination shots. Once a cat or dog is dropped off at a foster home, FFAA members will provide food, kennels and “give them as much support as we can,” Williams said. All the organization asks in return is for the foster parents to give the traumatized animals “plenty of tender loving care” until a permanent home can be secured.
“It’s really giving these animals a second chance at life,” Williams said.
Between 700 to 800 abandoned pets have found new homes since 2008, she said.
Comparing it with a match-making dating service — “E-harmony for animals,” Williams said with a chuckle — the screening is thorough, involving an application, a phone interview and a face-to-face talk, which sometimes includes a home visit “to make sure it will all work out for everyone” involved.
While the main purpose of the shelter is to avoid putting the animals to sleep, the only two exceptions, she said, would be if an animal is too sick to be cured or too dangerous to be kept.
She acknowledged the “no-kill” shelter was a new concept for Southwest Missouri, although she said a growing number of animal shelters have embraced a similar philosophy.
“It never gets easy,” Williams said, “but it’s very rewarding.”
Williams said Faithful Friends and the planned shelter also would provide education programs for the public, particularly for spaying and neutering, and offer low-cost spay and neuter programs. The group also would forge partnerships with animal rescue groups, both local and outside the area, and develop a strong animal foster care program.
Details
For more details or to make a donation, people may go online at www.ffaaneosho.org.
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