Humane Society for SW Washington Announces 4 Major Initiatives

Portland, OR — At their annual Fall Luncheon at the Red Lion Jantzen Beach Hotel, the Humane Society for Southwest Washington (HSSW) heard from several key speakers and announced four major initiatives.

The event Emcee was HSSW Board Chair, Kim Capeloto, and the program featured Fritz Graham, of Senator Ron Wyden’s office; Jeff Brant, of Legacy Vet (and co-founder of Banfield Pet Hospital); HSSW President Stacey Graham; and Vancouver City Councilor, Alishia Topper. The fundraiser event featured an elegant lunch, a raffle, and a splendidly decorated theme  — A Walk in the Park.

Brant said the region is doing well at placing pets in homes, and that HSSW is Top 20 in the nation with pet placement.

Graham said that HSSW is receiving 1,200 calls per month, of which 60 percent were focused on local residents inquiring on how to best keep their animals in their homes. Graham also made news by announcing four new HSSW initiatives.

Those initiatives are:

• Partnering with neighboring humane societies for essential services
• Creating a new Call Center
• Creating a Behavior Resource Center
• Opening a veterinary clinic for low-income seniors and families

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Graham said working with neighboring humane societies will assist greatly with “veterinary care, community outreach, development, strategic planning, finance management, and volunteer training so that we all meet the same standard of care so that more animals in SW Washington will go home to families, and stay with families.”

The Call Center will help HSSW manage their high volume of calls more efficiently. The Behavior Resource Center will be a resource to help behaviorally challenged cats and dogs.

“The Behavior Resource Center for both dogs and cats will be for people who have behavioral problems with their dogs and cats,” said Graham. “They can come for training, they can come for coaching. We’ll have classes and have experts on staff that will work with shelter animals and with owned pets and animals.”

The veterinary clinic is to help pets that live with low-income seniors and families.

Topper shared a story about visiting a home of a senior whose cat had a major tumor. They found the resources to treat the cat and return her to her home. The new veterinary clinic will help those families.

The end of the program featured a fun raffle, and guests were encouraged to make donations to HSSW so the organization can focus on one goal: Keep people + dogs + cats together as families.

To learn more, visit www.southwesthumane.org

Event Photo Gallery