Helping hands needed

Jami Harrer, the outreach coordinator, right, gives Sully, a puppy, a treat as he is held by shelter staff member Mandy Matos, left, at the Humane Society of Marion County in Ocala, Fla. on Wednesday, August 7, 2024. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2024.

There currently are more than 200 animals awaiting adoption through the Humane Society of Marion County. That means there is a great need for humans to help care for the animals as they await a forever home. At this nonprofit, which was founded in 1964, volunteers are critical to meeting the mission of being a no-kill shelter.

“Over 200 volunteers a year make it possible to not only keep running, but to thrive in serving the animals in Marion County,” said HSMC Outreach Coordinator Jami Harrer.

“We are close to capacity,” in terms of the numbers of animals that can be accommodated, Harrer added.

“We have only 65 paid employees between the shelter, the new clinic and the thrift store,” Harrer explained, “but it takes many more people to maintain all these services. Our volunteers have donated more than 10,000 hours a year, which helps to keep the doors open. A partial list of daily shelter needs includes cage cleaning, animal feeding, dog walking and facility cleaning. There are tasks for everyone who will volunteer, including office chores, fostering, fundraising, donation collections, and outreach programs.

As a no-kill shelter, no animal will ever be euthanized there, no matter how long it is a “resident” or whether or not it is “adoptable.”

“We are dedicated to caring for and protecting animals in Marion County,” Harrer said.

Some animals are in the shelter as a result of hoarding situations, some because of abuse and/or neglect, some because of illness or the age of their owner. Some have endured trauma such as tornadoes, hurricanes, or floods. One kitten, only about 6-8 weeks old, is at the shelter daily in the care of Shelter Administrative Coordinator Kirstin Tanner, who fosters her and takes her home with her every day. The kitten is very frightened, and has some “road rash,” possibly from being thrown from a moving vehicle, as she was found on a busy interstate highway.

“After some TLC (tender, loving care), she will be okay,” Tanner said.

The goal of the shelter is that all animals that are adoptable will find forever homes.

“They all have stories, or else they wouldn’t be here,” Harrer continued. “Some are here for the rest of their lives. The longest time an animal has spent at the facility is 3,699 days, or 10 years and one month. That animal was a homeless golden retriever/German shepherd mix dog named Lanie that had survived a tornado and was traumatized and not adoptable. He passed away at the shelter.

The care of all the animals at the shelter requires many volunteer hands.

There are some animals who have special needs and will require a special person to adopt them. An example is Cyclone, who is a sweet looking, timid, 3-year-old, 85-pound, mixed breed male dog. He has been in the shelter for 10 months, the product of a hoarding situation. He gets along well with other dogs and cats, but it would not be advisable for him to be in a home with young children as he is very fearful.

A male cat named Dexter, who has been at the shelter for nine months, which is most of his life, is an orange tabby who is immune compromised, meaning he has continuing medical issues that only a special adopter would be able and willing to take on.

“He is really sweet and playful,” Harrer said.

There are several other adoptable animals considered “long-term” for various reasons. These animals, as well as all the others, are well cared for and given as much attention as is possible but, by necessity, still live their lives in a cage. There are 150 kittens in foster care right now, who will soon be adoptable.

What does it look like to be a volunteer?

There is a commitment for volunteers, Harrer explained. First, there is a volunteer test online. The organization’s website, thehsmc.org, talks about safety regarding being around animals and the shelter itself. Volunteers are asked for a minimum of 10 hours of other volunteer work before interacting with the animals. That might look like activities such as cleaning the shelter, helping with adoption events in the community, and other activities.

Tanner screens all volunteers and gives them name badges. All sign in each time they volunteer in order to count their hours and purpose for volunteering. Some high school students volunteer to earn community service hours toward scholarship programs such as Bright Futures. Also, to apply for grant funding, there is a need to keep track of how many hours volunteers work at the facilities. In the case of minors, parents need to give permission for the student to participate in volunteer activities at the facility.

One little girl, Harrer said, set up a lemonade stand at her home and gave the proceeds to the HSMC.

There are several long-term volunteers at HSMC, and Richard Schrieber is the longest. He began volunteering in 2012 and still is a regular at the shelter.

“I was a lifetime member (of the Humane Society), and had always been around animals” he said, “so I decided to volunteer.”

Schrieber, who hails from the Boston, Massachusetts, area, added, “I love cats in particular, but dogs, too. I love the people here, and all the animals.”  He has four cats of his own at home, and “one or two outdoor feral cats that I feed,” he said.

The HSMC’s new animal clinic, open for only about a year, is next door to the shelter. The clinic is open to the public and offers affordable veterinary care.

“The low-cost clinic was opened to help support keeping pets with the families who love them,” Harrer said.

Clinic services include essential veterinary care, routine vaccines, heartworm, feline combination tests, X-rays, preventative medication such as flea control, deworming, and microchipping.

Three veterinarians are at the clinic on a rotating schedule, and by appointment. While there are a minimum of 10 employees at the clinic on a daily basis, only two or three volunteers are used there because of necessary restrictions with various substances used in the care of animals.

Every animal brought into the shelter is spayed or neutered, microchipped, and vaccinated according to their age.

“The adoption fee for animals doesn’t even come near to covering the cost of these services,” Harrer explained.

The Humane Society maintains a thrift store at110 NW 10^th St. that is operated by 10 staff members and three to five volunteers. Volunteers accomplish tasks such as sorting donations, stocking shelves, cleaning and dusting. Donations of new or gently used items, and especially clothing, are welcomed. All proceeds go to HSMC for operating costs. Any unsold items are donated to homeless relief endeavors in the area.

“Nothing ever goes to waste … everything is put to good use,” Tanner said.

HSMC has several outreach events to educate the community as to the needs of the shelter, but also to advocate for humane treatment of all animals.

“The HSMC Humane Education program currently educates over 22,000 students in the Marion County Public Schools and is projected to exceed 45,000 students in the 2025 school year,” Harrer noted.

Harrer said the Bark Bus visits each school with furry visitors and instructs students about equality for all living things. Children at the shelter read to dogs in the Doggone Reading Program or socialize with cats during a Meeting New Fur-ends program at the shelter.”

60 years of service

Founded in 1964 in the living room of a private home, HSMC began helping a handful of animals and over 60 years has grown to adopt out more than 2,000 animals every year.

The agency also helps other nonprofits in the area, such as Interfaith Emergency Services, which is one of the largest providers of assistance to needy families.

“HSMC provides over 12,000 pounds of food a year to Interfaith to feed pets of struggling families in Marion County, also providing opportunities for local shelters and rescues in our county for the spay and neuter of animals in their care,” Harrer offered.

Basic continuing needs at the shelter include animal food and supplies, general facility and office supplies, paper products and cleaning supplies. For a more complete list, visit the website.

On the HSMC “wish list” are funding and labor for new fencing to replace what has broken down over the years, some much needed landscaping, and a new lobby with a storage area. Corporate entities are encouraged to undertake or participate in any of the shelter needs.

Day to day, however, it is the caring human beings who help make an important difference in the success of the organization.

“We are only as strong as our volunteers,” Harrer emphasized.

“You can judge the heart of a human by their treatment of animals and our volunteers have some mighty big hearts,” said HSMC Executive Director Eddie Leedy.

The shelter is located at 701 NW 14^th Road, Ocala. To learn more about volunteer opportunities and more, go to thehsmc.org