“An animal that arrives is injured or sick, we will go find the money to save it”: a shelter never refuses to treat animals

An animal shelter in Bas-Saint-Laurent has decided to never refuse to treat an animal in need because of the costs of care since its creation 10 years ago.

“It’s not because it costs more, or because access to care is less easy than before, that our mission will change! An animal that arrives is injured or sick, we will go and find the money to save it,” says Andrée Boisselle, volunteer and responsible for animal care at the Littoral Animal Protection Society (SPAL), located in Saint-Anaclet-de -Lessard, near Rimouski.

The organization founded in 2013, which currently helps 80 cats, only practices euthanasia if a case is “irrecoverable”, assures M^me Boisselle. The goal is obviously to save as many as possible, to give them a second life, but above all to reduce the animals’ pain as much as possible.

“We have a lot of animals who arrive in very poor condition with trauma, injuries due to accidents or illnesses, so that increases costs, especially since veterinary costs have also doubled,” continues the one. who has been a volunteer at SPAL for 10 years.

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Exploding costs

In most cases, abandoned or stray animals are found on weekends, as this is the time when there are more people walking around.

“The problem is that the consultation costs on these days are incredible. Generally, it costs $300-400 and there’s not much done with it,” explains M.^me Boisselle.

And when the animal is in poor condition, the bill can rise very quickly, she explains, taking the example of a cat who recently arrived whose bill rose to more than $1,400.

Cans that save

If SPAL succeeds in continuing its mission, it is because it can count on the help of numerous volunteers and, above all, donations from the public.

“We do a lot of fundraising for certain animals and that helps us enormously.”

She considers herself lucky to be able to count on the support of many donors. But it is above all thanks to donations of returnable cans that the shelter of the Littoral Animal Protection Society survives, says M^me Boisselle.

“It covers a certain part of the veterinary costs and if we didn’t have that, it would be very difficult. This allows us to have continuous funding,” she explains.