CENTERVILLE – Kittens left in a box; a dog tied to a tree. The stereotype of someone giving up animals they can no longer care for still occasionally holds true at the MSPCA—Cape Cod Animal Care and Adoption Center, according to Mary Sarah Fairweather, director of the center.
But the more typical scenario involves a family that must surrender a pet because of a job loss, divorce, move, death or other life-changing event. They bring it in to the shelter and explain their plight, often through tears. The agency then works to find a new home for the pet.
Contrast that sad occasion with the joyous day when a family decides to adopt a dog or cat to give it a new forever home. That is also a frequent happenstance at the center.
Both situations can get very emotional, according to Fairweather. And providing respectful space for people in those sometimes stressful situations is among the goals of a $4 million new animal shelter facility with double the current space— a project that is in the planning stages at the MSPCA’s Centerville property.
Plans are in the works to demolish the MSPCA–Cape Cod facility and build a new space to board dogs, cats and other animals waiting for adoption and provide other community services.
“That’s one reason the current space is not ideal,” Fairweather said, “The top reason is everything happens in a small space. People surrendering and people adopting are at totally opposite ends of the spectrum of emotions.”
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