Lock in for Love the 2022 Prince Rupert SPCA event will see well-known citizens coming together for the significant animal assistance fundraiser on June 23.
City Councillor Barry Cunningham told The Northern View he’d dress up in a dog costume to be locked in (if he can find one) and challenges citizens to meet his $100 donation.
The Prince Rupert branch is the only BC SPCA shelter west of Prince George, assisting with the care and rescue of animals over a vast territory. While the fundraising event has run in many municipalities throughout the province and for the past couple of years was held virtually, it is the first time a live in-person event will be held in the city.
The local branch is a small shelter compared to others throughout the province, and money raised will help immensely with shelter costs. Any funds raised in Prince Rupert will remain in Prince Rupert. The goal is to raise $7,500 and hopefully surpass that to ensure the health and well-being of vulnerable animals, Joe Griffith, manager of P.R. shelter, said on June 10.
“Ninety per cent of the animals that come through our doors are emotionally, socially or physically broken. We are here to rehabilitate them.”
Griffith said just two weeks ago, he and a staff member pulled a litter of kittens out of a garbage can. They required individualized attention and hand feeding to survive. With the knowledge and caring of dedicated staff, the kittens all made it through and are now thriving.
In 2021, he said more than 345 animals were nursed and came through the Northcoast facilities with each of those furry friends requiring medical assistance, vet checking and many required some type of surgery or medical procedure.
“Every single animal goes through a nose-to-tail exam,” Griffith said, including deworming, flea treatments, bordetella (kennel cough) immunizations, vaccines, spay and neutering and surgery when needed, plus any other treatment they require.
So far in 2022, more than 150 animals have been through the P.R. location’s doors with 45 spay and neuters being completed on area SPCA animals.
The Lock-in for Love donations will assist with ongoing medical and care costs for the recently expanded shelter that needed $80,000 in renovations to increase housing capacity and care facilities. This will allow for a goal of more than 600 animals to receive care the Prince Rupert facility, the manager said.
The provincial campaign started June 1, Griffith said. The Prince Rupert campaign is off to a late start, but he wanted to make sure it would be feasible due to community concerns and COVID caution. The local campaign will run until June 30 instead of the provincial date of June 23.
Participants can assist and donate in several ways.
On June 23, volunteers will be “locked-in” at the Prince Rupert shelter to spend time with one of the SPCA animals, or their own pet, for one hour. At which time, they canThey can then reach out to family and friends for assistance in being bailed out. During the time the volunteers are locked in, photos will be posted to social media so the community can assist with real-time donations to the Prince Rupert team.
Anytime donations to the campaign can be made at the Prince Rupert Lock-in for Love BC SPCA page or https://lockin.spca.bc.ca/participant/2439813/2680
People can also opt to join the Prince Rupert team to raise donated funds and pledges, or they can register to create a personal or corporate team, perhaps challenging another team at https://lockin.spca.bc.ca/register.
K-J Millar | Editor and Multimedia Journalist
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