4 SARL Drive, Salem, NH 03079 (603) 890-2166, fax (603) 890-8717

Salem Animal Rescue League’s Annual Report - 2002

The Salem Animal Rescue Leagues eleventh year was highly successful on many levels including adoption statistics, growth, fundraising, plus increased community involvement and exposure. We experienced an 11% increase in overall adoptions as compared to prior year.

On the dog side, we recognized an 18% decrease in adoptions. Causes for the lower numbers include the statewide lack of dogs being surrendered to shelters as experienced by many New Hampshire groups who have discussed this phenomenon at the quarterly meetings of the New Hampshire Federation of Humane Societies. The positive aspect of this condition is that the State of New Hampshire has one of the highest spay/neuter rates in the country. The other contributing factor for the decrease in dog adoptions was our participation in assisting the Town of Newton by boarding four dogs involved in a cruelty/abuse case. For the
eighteen weeks we cared for these dogs at our shelter, it was necessary to severely limit any intakes of owner surrenders due to the potential dog-to-dog aggression of these four animals. SARA did receive restitution for the boarding and care of these dogs in the amount of $5,133.00.

The physical structures of the kennel did realize improvements this year. The Town of Salem made several repairs to the building and SARL was able to install two covered exercise pens in order to better care for dogs who were able to jump the fences of uncovered gated areas.

On the cat side, we saw an increase of 15% in feline adoptions reflecting the hard work and dedication of our volunteer base to assist in the placement of stray and unwanted cats. We are developing a strong foster care support system for the many kittens accepted to our adoptive program from a variety of sources. We are proud to report we are currently spaying and neutering 98% of our cats and kittens prior to adoption to help address the cause of feline overpopulation.

Kitty City also saw improvements to the building by the purchase of additional cages to better handle the influx of adult cats to the shelter. We were able to create more space in the cat shelter by having a storage shed constructed to store nonperishable and non freezable items such as kitty litter, crates, logo clothing and other bulky items previously stored in Kitty City.

Although the numbers of unclaimed strays remain flat as compared to the previous year, we are receiving many more requests for assistance from neighboring ACOs and citizens who value the reputation of SARLs dedication to placement of strays. Of the 31 dogs accepted from ACOs this year, 65% came from local southern New Hampshire towns surrounding Salem as opposed to the 35% directly from the Salem ACO. Owner surrendered dogs represent 48% of the total dogs accepted to the shelter. 10% of our total incoming cats and kittens were unclaimed stray cats from ACOs. 42% were Citizen Strays, 41% were surrendered by owners, and 5% were born in.

Statistics

Our adoption rate climbed dramatically to 98%, with only a 4% return rate from those adoptions. Our euthanasia rate decreased to 3%. This is partially due to the Barn Cat policy implemented in 2001, which allows the placement of less adoptable cats into an appropriate environment, and to collaboration with other feline rescue groups who offer alternatives to euthanasia for cats which cannot be safely placed in a typical home environment.

It was necessary for SARL to restructure our Officer base due to the resignation of our long-standing President of 10 years early in 2002 for personal reasons. Duties and assignments of the core group of Officers were restructured to reflect the potential for future growth and allowed for the coordination of cat volunteers orientation, training, and supervision to fall specifically under the direction of one person rather than a dual title. Our volunteer base has expanded to approximately 70 people. Though the majority of those are part of our animal care system, we have also added a network of individuals who participate primarily in fundraising, education, and community events/relations. We have attracted many new volunteers through the Eagle Tribune Volunteer Opportunities and also solicit new volunteers through other medium as well.

We continue to publish our Newsletter, SARL Tails, twice a year as a means of educating and informing the public of our shelters work. Our monthly Open House is another on-going event which draws many people to our shelter allowing us to educate and inform the public about the responsibilities of pet ownership. The Open House has been expanded to include raffles of gift certificates donated from various local businesses as well as the sale of pet and craft items donated to our shelter.

In April of this year, we began a relationship with the local Salem Walmart store and the American Humane Association by agreeing to participate in their Very Best Pet Network program. This relationship has provided both a forum for pet education to the public as well as a source of substantial fundraising for our group which we continue to nurture and expand.

In September of this year, a brochure was developed and made available through various public venues to increase awareness of our groups history, purpose, and support to the local communities. We also held our annual DogFest and Dog Walk-a-thon at the end of this month.

In November, we began videotaping a monthly educational Cable Television program in conjunction with Windham Cable TV (Time for Animals). This program provides information for pet owners and other animal lovers covering variety of topics in each program. The program is made available to all local access Cable TV stations in southern New Hampshire and bordering Massachusetts towns.

In December, SARL presented a gift of Trauma Kits to the Town of Salem's Police K9 units, sharing some of the funds we received in restitution for boarding and care of the dogs in the Newton cruelty case to support our local dogs in law enforcement. These packs provide items necessary for medical emergencies in the event of injury in the field.

• To continue expansion of our current volunteer base to support animal care and adoptions, and further specialized committees for fundraising, grant applications and special events to increase revenues and community exposure.
• To pursue remedies with Town of Salem and Granite State Electric to correct electrical voltage loss due to incorrect wire running from the transformer servicing the Town Pound, Kitty City, and the Town Water Treatment facility
• To explore the potential for expansion of our physical structures for animal housing and care, storage, and public interactions either in our present location or some future new location.
• To expand our foster home system to better provide for those animals who cannot be housed at the shelter for reasons of age or medical issues, and to facilitate the pre-adoption spay/neuter of dogs in the adoptive program.
• To explore the feasibility of micro-chipping dogs and cats in our adoptive program prior to adoption.
• To update forms used for surrender and adoption in order to incorporate all data required for acceptance and placement both from a legal and informational basis.
• To continue development of relationships with other local animal rescue organizations for the mutual benefit of the humane organizations and the dogs and cats needing safe and responsible re-homing.