WATAUGA COUNTY, N.C. — Watauga Humane Society has requested an extra $150,000 from the county to help cover operational costs for the new shelter that opened last fall.
The expansive shelter opened in October 2011 and began accepting all stray animals, even those formerly housed by Watauga County Animal Care and Control.
Humane Society staff members said the expenses associated with the larger structure and the influx of animals have overwhelmed them financially.
"We need money to pay our bills," said Jan Watson, president of the Watauga Humane Society. "It's just that simple."
Commissioners will discuss the proposal at their next meeting at 8 a.m. Tuesday at the Watauga County Administrative Building, located at 814 W. King St.
Watson, shelter manager Lynn Northup and capital campaign director Jenny Miller presented the request to the Board of Commissioners in closed session at its March 20 meeting.
While the discussion of possible financial outlays by the county is not permitted in closed session, County Attorney "Four" Eggers said that he allowed the closed session to provide legal advice about the county's rights and remedies if the Humane Society breached its contract.
The contract, which has an initial 25-year term, states that the county agrees to pay $75,000 per year to the Humane Society with a Consumer Price Index escalator each year.
The county also provided a $400,000 loan to the Watauga Humane Society that the organization does not have to repay unless it sells the property, defaults on its loan or terminates the agreement.
Miller, the capital campaign director, said the problems do not lie with the repayment of the loan. She said the organization has about $1.2 million remaining on the loan and plans to pay it off in the next two years.
She said the true issue is operating expenses, including staffing, electricity, food, medicine, programs and upkeep.
The shelter has six full-time employees and 11 part-time employees in addition to its numerous volunteers, said Northup, who has been shelter manager at both the old and new location.
Northup said that many of the options the Humane Society offers are not necessarily money-makers.It offers an "Animeals" program to provide pet food to Meals on Wheels recipients with pets as well as a pet food pantry to provide donated food to families going through financial difficulties.
The shelter offers a low-cost spay and neuter clinic through an Asheville provider but charges only what the provider charges.
The microchipping clinic brings in some income, as well as dog training classes in which the trainers often donate some of their profit, she said.
"We think we've got a lot of great things going on," Northup said. "We just hope that we can continue to do it. We want the community to feel this is their shelter."
Watson said the cost of pet food, medicines, supplies and equipment has risen, and many people can no longer afford to donate as generously.
While donations are difficult now, the Watauga Humane Society is offering several fundraisers this spring.
The Watauga Humane Society has been selected as one of 108 shelters to compete in the nationwide ASPCA-Rachael Ray $100,000 Challenge.
The contest asks agencies throughout the nation to compete for number of animals it can save in a three-month span this fall.
To make it to the final phase of the contest, individuals must vote for the Watauga Humane Society online. To vote, visit http://votetosavelives.org between April 5 and April 16. Because the local shelter is competing against much larger cities, they are asking the entire community to vote and pass along the information to others. Each person can vote once a day.
The Watauga Humane Society also is hosting a golf tournament at 1:30 p.m. May 18 at the Blowing Rock Country Club. Anyone interested in participating can call Jenny Miller at (828) 295-0128.
The shelter also offers donation opportunities throughout the year, including various membership levels. For more information about the shelter and ways to give, visit http://wataugahumanesociety.org .