Editorial

Compassion, goodwill lead to shelter improvements

Animal lovers will be glad to know that more of our furry friends will have an improved place to call home while they await their permanent homes. The Humane Society of Southeast Missouri will build another shelter to house cats and dogs. Memorial gifts and donations, along with an anonymous pledge to match each gift up to $50,000, are helping to make this long-awaited dream a reality.

Wise planning is going into the new facility, which will be built on the same Boutin Drive property as the current facility.

The shelter will be better all around for animals. Everyone who has ever had to take a pet to a vet or a kennel knows that the close proximity to other animals is stressful for cats and dogs. The new shelter will have more kennels, which will cut down on that. The kennels also will be larger. Having the kennels in their own environment will also be healthier, eliminating easy access to germs. The old building will remain open to house animals feared ill.

And whoever thought of including adoption rooms should be applauded. These rooms will be set up to replicate a home environment so that potential pets and potential pet owners may spend time together in a relaxed environment and see how they interact.

We are especially excited that the shelter will be a low-kill one. According to the Humane Society's Holly Godwin, "This is our first step in becoming a low-kill facility." She added, "It means that we won't have to euthanize for space." This is good news to shelter workers, who are in the business because they care about animals and want them taken care of, who work hard to place each animal in a loving home. And when we consider that the local shelter is funded by donors -- some of whom choose to remain anonymous, rather than receive accolades -- we are reminded of the compassion and goodwill that exist in our society.

We look forward to the new shelter, slated for construction some time next year.

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