On Wednesday, the Protectors of Animal Life Society (PALS) No-Kill Cat Shelter in Winthrop declared that it would no longer be accepting new cats and would no longer be setting up appointments for new cat intakes.
According to Theresa Silsby, executive director of the cat sanctuary, all previously scheduled intake appointments will be kept.
According to Silsby, the refuge is having severe financial difficulties.
“Everything costs more: food, litter, veterinary care. Even though we have low-cost veterinary care, medicines are expensive, surgeries are expensive. The prices don’t go down. They just go up,” Silsby stated.
All of PALS’s running expenses are paid for by grants and donations.
According to Silsby, managing the shelter and providing food and care for the cats until they find permanent homes costs a little over half a million dollars annually. Adoption can take years for some cats.
Donations are significantly lower and fall short of expenses in the current unstable economy.
The shelter may have to close temporarily or permanently due to financial difficulties, which would mean finding new homes for the 100 cats that are now housed there.
Rehoming cats is challenging because most animal shelters are already full, according to Kaylee Oakland, manager of the cat sanctuary.
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“Unfortunately, it just kind of puts the burden on other shelters that are there,” Oakland stated. “Shutting these doors down would absolutely crush not only my heart, but I know almost every person that works here. Our main concern is the cats.”
They’re hoping others can help, but Silsby said she’s not sure if and when they’ll have to close, either permanently or temporarily.
Click here to donate to the shelter if you would like to.
