Open house and adoption events scheduled for Nov. 18-19
Draka was the first dog to enjoy the new dog kennel and immediately felt right at home in La Plata County Humane Society's new and renovated kennel, Cassidy Crisp, member of the shelter, said in an email to The Durango Herald. (Courtesy of La Plata County Humane Society)
La Plata County Humane Society completed a $1.2 million renovation of its shelter in early September, bringing major upgrades and new equipment to the facility to better protect the health and safety of pets, staff members and adopters.
The shelter is hosting a ribbon-cutting with the Durango Chamber of Commerce on Nov. 17 to celebrate the successful renovation and an open house is planned with "special activities and adoption events" for Nov. 18-19, a news release distributed by LPCHS said.
The renovation, which started five months ago, was done to address aging elements of the 51-year-old shelter, and included a new roof and heating and cooling system, modern kennels, the replacement of concrete floors with epoxy, and more, Chris Nelson, director of animal services for LPCHS, said in an interview in June.
Nine contractors worked on the renovation:
- Commercial Flooring Systems (CFS)
- Midmark Mason Kennels
- Garrhs Inc. Heating & Air Conditioning
- Durango Electrical Services
- Magic Roofing
- Double Tap Construction
- Big Sky Welding
- Affordable Blind Pros
- SunGlo Window Films
La Plata County Humane Society's new state-of-the-art kennels are intended to improve the well-being of the animals in its care by providing a safer, more comfortable and less stressful environment than offered by the previous kennels. (Courtesy of La Plata County Humane Society)
The shelter continued to operate at reduced capacity over the course of the renovation, a news release from the shelter said.
LPCHS moved many of the animals under its care to other shelters across the state.
"It was a major undertaking that required lockstep coordination between the staff and all of our contractors to be sure work could proceed at a reasonable pace," Patrick Parker, LPCHS board vice president, said in the release. "Our staff cared for a small number of animals that stayed on site and completed some complementary projects that the shutdown allowed them to focus on. Our contractors did a fantastic job and got us back to normal operations on schedule and on budget."
Parker was the project manager for the renovation, the release said.
The shelter, which opened in 1971, celebrated its 50th anniversary last year and has had two renovation projects in the past. The facility was in great need of maintenance. Nelson said in June that the previous kennels were so old and worn that they were causing injury to dogs.
The shelter held a 50 pets for 50 years "Adopt-a-Thon," an adoption drive, early into the renovations process and pursued boosted efforts to find adopters so that it could undergo renovations more smoothly.
"Anyone who's done a construction project of their own knows an undertaking of this size is a bit overwhelming," Susan Riches, LPCHS board president, said in the release. "Our goal was to make improvements that will last twenty years."
Normal operations resumed at the shelter in September, the release said.
Nelson said in June the shelter has a no-kill status thanks to the efforts of its low-cost spay and neuter program. The shelter received 3,300 to 3,500 animals per year in the early 2000s, but today it receives about 2,500 animals per year.
LPCHS also offers low-cost vaccinations and has behavioral specialists who work with dogs after adoption, and volunteers who serve as cat specialists.
Dogs and cats up for adoption can be viewed at the humane society's website at lpchumanesociety.org/.
As of Saturday afternoon, the shelter had 43 dogs of various breeds and 32 cats listed online, waiting for their forever homes.
cburney@durangoherald.com
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