APRIL 2014
SHELTER OF THE MONTH
wyandot COUNTY humane society
In the mid-eighties, the Wyandot County Dog Pound located in the Upper Sandusky region of Ohio had been selling animals to Class B animal dealers (those who take animals from shelters and sell them to laboratories) and instituting poor euthanasia practices. To provide a much needed alternative in their community, Dave and Lynda Balz established the Wyandot County Humane Society (WCHS) in 1985 and have since welcomed over 135,000 animals to their facility! The organization currently takes in 8,000 to 10,000 animals a year from various parts of the state and region. At any given time, 200 animals are sheltered on-site and no animal is ever turned away.
In addition to providing pick-up, rescue, adoption, lost and found, and cruelty investigation consultation, Wyandot Humane is also a wildlife rehabilitation facility. Additionally, the organization operates alongside HOPE (Helping Our Pets Everywhere), a low-cost spay/neuter program that serves 6,000+ pets a year, and the Wyandot County Equine Rescue (WCER), which houses horses, ponies, donkeys and mules at their farm annex. Lynda and Dave have been volunteer directors of all three organizations for almost 29 years!
In addition to providing pick-up, rescue, adoption, lost and found, and cruelty investigation consultation, Wyandot Humane is also a wildlife rehabilitation facility. Additionally, the organization operates alongside HOPE (Helping Our Pets Everywhere), a low-cost spay/neuter program that serves 6,000+ pets a year, and the Wyandot County Equine Rescue (WCER), which houses horses, ponies, donkeys and mules at their farm annex. Lynda and Dave have been volunteer directors of all three organizations for almost 29 years!
Receiving no local, state or federal funding, their considerable expenses are paid for almost exclusively by the fund-raising efforts of dedicated volunteers, and generous donations from caring friends of animals who believe, as they do, that "innocent, helpless animals, who are at our mercy and cannot speak for themselves, need and deserve our protection and compassion." One of their biggest fundraisers is an ongoing charitable bingo held every Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening where attendees can enjoy hearty veggie chili. Wyandot Co. Humane also holds a variety of casino nights, open houses, an annual dog walk in the park – Pawzfest - and other events where the nonprofit provides all meat-free products for these events, such as veggie ribs, burgers, chicken patties, hot dogs, and more. Wyandot County Humane maintains a veg menu policy for all their events.
Longtime vegetarians themselves, Lynda and Dave have seen many changes in public attitudes towards plant-based eating.
Longtime vegetarians themselves, Lynda and Dave have seen many changes in public attitudes towards plant-based eating.
In the early years of the organization, this was a matter of public interest in this rural county in central Ohio, where raising animals for human consumption is the primary source of wealth in the community. Fortunately, since that time, a meat-free diet and even a vegan diet have become more mainstream and not such a topic of discussion, even though our lifestyle is still practiced by only a small minority here...Community reaction is generally positive these days. People today frequently do not eat meat for a variety of reasons, and are pleased to find they can eat what we serve. Even die-hard meat eaters are pleasantly surprised to learn that something they find quite tasty contains no meat.
They also recognize how easy it is to now be animal-friendly.
- Getting meat-free products these days is much easier than it once was. Our local small grocery store will order whatever we want by the case for us, and many items are easily available at most large grocery store chains. When we need large quantities of something like Riblets, we have even been able to get them in commercial quantities from wholesale outlets. We make a couple of trips each year to Mt Vernon, Ohio to the Seventh-Day Adventist store to stock up on less well-known meat substitutes.
In addition to companion animals, Wyandot Humane also rescues livestock, chickens, wildlife, equines, and exotics. On a regular basis, the shelter staff and volunteers have assisted other organizations, including the Humane Society of the United States and surrounding county humane societies, in rescue and recovery operations (hoarding, seizure) that have sometimes involved hundreds of animals.
Animal Place is delighted to recognize Wyandot County Humane Society for their animal-friendly menu policy as well as for their steadfast commitment to farmed animal protection with a Food for Thought "Shelter of the Month" award for April 2014.
As a token of our deep appreciation, we are featuring their newborn little lamb, "Bambam," who was just born to one of the half-starved and neglected sheep, "Betty," that the organization recently rescued in eastern Ohio. "Bambam" is a quite social and in need of a good forever home. Is that with you?
Animal Place is delighted to recognize Wyandot County Humane Society for their animal-friendly menu policy as well as for their steadfast commitment to farmed animal protection with a Food for Thought "Shelter of the Month" award for April 2014.
As a token of our deep appreciation, we are featuring their newborn little lamb, "Bambam," who was just born to one of the half-starved and neglected sheep, "Betty," that the organization recently rescued in eastern Ohio. "Bambam" is a quite social and in need of a good forever home. Is that with you?
