Help those helping the shelter pets

Jennifer Vanderau
Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter

(4/2020) Strange times we live in, huh?

I’ve always enjoyed sci-fi shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural, but I have to say over the last few weeks, I’ve felt more and more like I’ve actually been living them rather than just watching them. Not necessarily a comfortable feeling.

I think it’s safe to say we’ve all been a little freaked out. If you have, please know that you are not alone. It might feel that way, but we’re all going through this, whether we’re physically together or not.

At the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter we are taking steps to protect everyone – both two-legged and four-legged.

We’re doing adoptions by appointment only. When people come into the shelter, we’re asking them to use the hand sanitizers along the walls. We’re taking every precaution that we can.

We’re still accepting stray animals and we’re still on call for overnight emergencies with animals. Because we can’t close our doors to the animals coming in, we knew we couldn’t limit our adoptions.

Thankfully, people seem to understand.

We’ve tweaked or postponed recent fundraisers. Fundraisers that we really enjoy and we know the public does, too. They’re also fundraisers that help us continue to help the animals in our care and we don’t know what will happen without those funds.

We’ve closed our thrift store in accordance with state guidelines and that is a loss of daily income. The staff, volunteers and customers at our store helped bring in a lot of money every day to help our animals. That’s gone, too.

Things are pretty uncertain at the moment and we’re doing the best we can in this new environment in which we all find ourselves.

But the one thing I can tell you for certain? The promise I can make? The homeless animals at the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter are being cared for. They’re fed and warm and have water. They get snuggled and loved by staff and because of our amazing adoption counselor and the staff supporting her, we are finding them forever homes.

We have people coming in to adopt and they’re excited to bring an animal into their homes. The adoptions haven’t stopped.

That will never stop. Regardless of what happens in the human world, nothing really changes at CVAS with our animals. We keep going because we have to. For them.

Still, sometimes, in the middle of the night, I worry.

I look around and see the businesses cutting back. Banks with drive-up services only, schools closed for the foreseeable future, some restaurants completely shut down and I know, without being an economist, that this will have an effect on people. Incomes will be down. Cash flow will dip.

And doing the math, I would think it would have to trickle down to us. As of this writing, the federal government has introduced a stimulus bill to keep the economy going and hopefully that will help.

But, I still worry. It’s likely in my DNA. Working at CVAS, it’s hard not to. I have cats as I’m typing this hopping up onto my desk for a smooch. I see dogs in the front office, tails wagging, ready for some play time.

And I wonder, what will happen to them if our donations drop?

So I have to ask if you are able and can help us out at the moment with monetary or supply donations, we would be so grateful. We have wonderful supporters we’ve found through the Emmitsburg News Journal and I don’t have words to express what that means to all of us.

Even as I wrestle with the anxiety that this situation brings to a lot of us and I wander the aisles of the grocery stores, boggling at the empty shelves and equally gobsmacked by what hasn’t been touched, I have to make note of something.

For the most part, people are kind. That has been my experience. I know there are folks out there who have stories that I’m sure are shocking of what humans have done over the last few weeks, but I need to hold onto the good.

And there is good. I’ve seen it. I’ve read about it. I’ve talked with cashiers and tried to give them a smile. I’ve read stories of people helping out older folks just looking for some toilet paper.

Because in the face of a crisis, I do believe humanity shines through. Yes, there are difficult people. There have to be to maintain the cosmic balance. But there are also incredibly good people who will look out for each other.

So despite not knowing with the future will bring, (but really, when do we ever?) I want to end this with an appeal for calmness, rationality and kindness. Watch out for each other. Be nice to one another. We’re all in the same boat here.

Take care of your family – both two-legged and four-legged – and if you’re able, help your neighbors and friends. If you can donate to the shelter so we can help the babies, that would be beyond wonderful.

Most importantly, hang in there. It’s scary and odd and uncomfortable right now and I, for one, have never been through anything like this before.

I strongly believe in the mantra, "The only way out is through" and I think it’s appropriate now.

As a society, we’ve weathered tough storms before and we’ll do so again. We’re definitely living in some strange times, but together — and keeping an eye out for one another — I know we can make it through.

*****

Jennifer Vanderau is the Director of Communications for the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter in Chambersburg, Pa., and can be reached at cvasoc@innernet.net. The shelter accepts both monetary and pet supply donations. For more information, call the shelter at (717) 263-5791 or visit the website www.cvas-pets.org.