Saskatoon SPCA Asks City for New Funding Structure to Stay Open Next Year – Saskatoon | The Canadian News

If no new funding is secured, the Saskatoon SPCA says it will have to close its doors in about a year.

During budget deliberations on Monday, SPCA CEO Graham Dickson placed a request from the council for $ 50,000 in one month as its current funding structure for Pound Services and Animal Protection Services with the City of Saskatoon was reevaluate and finally increase.

The animal shelter said inflation and the COVID-19 pandemic have negatively affected it and the financial forecast indicates that without intervention, the reserves will only last another calendar year.

From January 1 through October 31, 2021, total revenues for the SPCA were $ 1,613,725 and expenses were $ 1,893,480, resulting in $ 279,755 in the red.

A grant from the city is provided as long as the SPCA continues to make efforts to seek funding from the alternative government for the provision to conduct animal protection and cruelty investigations in Saskatoon. Currently, the grant covers about 50 percent of the SPCA’s animal care and protection services program.

According to a document, the SPCA made a request for funding to the Ministry of Agriculture in 2021 to fully fund animal care and protection services. The funding request was denied.

Dixon said work is underway to build a new spay / neuter clinic that will allow the SPCA to perform surgeries and medical events in-house, resulting in cost savings for Saskatoon residents and better controlling the pet population.

Since 1968, the shelter has found homes for pets in Saskatoon. Statistics from pound services show an average intake of 4,172 animals per year.

The council is expected to discuss city budgets for 2022 and 2023 also on Tuesday and Wednesday.

– with files from Nathaniel Dove

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