Stafford SPCA

12/24/2024

!!! Please Stop Dumping Animals !!!

This afternoon, Monday 12/23/24, around Noon - 1PM, a lady dumped a beautiful Parakeet, in a cage, without any cover, in sub freezing temperatures, in front of our building. No calls, no voicemail, no email, no appointment, no note, no surrender form, nothing.

Parakeets like temps between 65 - 80 degrees. You can kill a small bird by leaving it outside in freezing temperatures. Staff quickly brought the bird in, set it up in the supply room, wrapped blankets around the cage and made sure the beautiful little bird warmed up quickly.

-- Update --

She is doing well. Eating and drinking. She has a beautiful song. When we played Parakeet songs from YouTube she got very animated and began singing back and looking for a playmate. Hope we can find an adopter with another Parakeet or similar size bird to play with. Fresh food and water. All nice and warm and tucked in for the night. @ 9:09PM.

-- Update --

We were able to do some Detective work, established the identity of the lady who dumped the bird, and the pet store that she worked at (I'm not even kidding). Store Mgmt has been contacted, and will deal with her directly. Information on the dump will be passed to Stafford County Animal Shelter and the Office of Stafford County Sheriff - David "DP" Decatur, Sheriff for any criminal referral.

If anyone is looking to add a beautiful Parakeet to their family, "Noelle" is now looking for a home. Applications can be found on our website www.staffordspca.org/adopt - we would love to see her in a loving home @ Christmas. We will be at the shelter tomorrow (Xmas Eve) from 9AM - 9PM. The adoption fee will be $1.00. Noelle will come with her cage, her supplies and her food. We're looking for an experienced bird owner to give Noelle a wonderful forever home, free from the fear of abandonment and neglect.

Merry Christmas to all. Especially to our furry and feathered friends. - B

12/13/2024

Special "Shout Out" and Big Holiday "Thank You" to Kasper Mechanical for their VERY generous donation of TONS of treats and toys for the Pups at the Stafford SPCA this morning. The guys got to meet and love on the pups, and even take Mr. Maize for a walk around the property. The Frisbees and Tug-bees are a big hit too. These guys are all Rockstars and animal lovers.

12/13/2024

# URGENT FOUND DOG REPORT #

UPDATE: REUNITED!! this pet is home safe & sound after 2 days, 7 hours :)

Please spread the word so we can reunite this found dog with its family! FOUND on December 12, 2024 in Stafford County, VA 22405 near Rappahannock Landing

Description: White pit w/black spots. Currently chilling in my car, but growling when I get close. Would love to find his tonight but if not guess he's sleeping in my car.

Do you have information? Contact finder here: https://www.pawboost.com/p/71072018

Lost or found a pet? Report it to PawBoost here: https://www.pawboost.com/l/rpf

12/08/2024

Another Animal Dump !!!!

At some point this afternoon, prior to 3PM, Sunday, 12/08/24 - It would appear that another unknown person left their kitty in our shopping cart, in front of the SPCA building. It seemed calm until staff began to handle it, and then it got pretty hissy with us. Our $$$ univeral microchip scanner just died (unsure why) so Stafford County Animal Shelter / Animal Control is going to swing by, scan for a chip, and likely take custody. Is anyone missing a cat like the one in the photo? If so, please call Bill @ (571) 946-0931 - Please share to the Brooke Area / Meadowbrooke and Andrew Chapel Road area. If you know the person that "may" have dumped the kitty please pass that info along to Bill as well. Vet records and a surrender form shorten the hold period, and absolutely speed the adoption process. Dumping an animal is NEVER the answer.

Update - We have determined who the cat belonged to. Adopted from the Fredericksburg SPCA of Fredericksburg in May of 2024. Adopter #1 claims that the cat was very sweet, loving and "chill". Roommate of adopter #1 ended up being allergic. Adopter #1 gave the cat to a former friend from High-school (Brooke Point) a couple months ago. Adopter #2 says the cat is "bad", attacks people (his GF's feet) and killed his lizard (yesterday). His solution was to dump the cat (loose - no crate, no carrier) and place the cat in an open shopping cart, by our front door. No call, no appointment, no surrender paperwork, no Vet records, no food / bedding, etc. Just dump the "bad" cat and drive off. Adopter #2 has been given until 7PM this evening to fill out the surrender form, and bring it up, with a fee to cover the SPCA payroll that he wasted, or we go to the magistrate to file charges. I'm done with this BS.

11:28 PM Update. No show. No forms. No payment. No surprise. Off to the Magistrate I go in the morning. Virginia code section applying to the dumping of companion animals attached for reference. "Dumbledore" deserved better than to be thrown away like trash. To quote Kevin Hart.... Adopter #2

11/22/2024

Eagle Scout Project!!

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-staffords-spca-through-this-eagle-scout-project?attribution_id=sl:cbe8ff7b-6afd-4db4-b224-a5fbeb830fae&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link

The Stafford SPCA has had the pleasure of working with this outstanding young man. He is working towards his Eagle Scout rank. He has undertaken the project of converting the old, under-used closet spaces in most of the cat rooms, and a couple of dog rooms, into much needed dry storage space for animal supplies.

Please support this young man on his Scout journey, and the animals at our SPCA at the same time.

Semper Filine & Semper Fido. - Bill

10/26/2024

Do we have any kitty nail clipping cat whisperers among us? We have 2, young (1 year old) foster kitties staying with a very special foster, who is on substantial blood thinners. The foster lives in South Stafford, and is home most of the time. We would appreciate it, of a kitty whisperer could pay our foster a visit and trim the nails of the 2 kitties. Please respond by commenting on the post, or text / call Bill @ (571) 946-0931.

10/24/2024

# # # Found Dog Report # # #

Young Maltese pup, found near McLaughlin Street in North West Stafford County this afternoon @ 2PM. Currently enroute to Stafford County Animal Shelter (540) 658-7387.

10/11/2024

Do I have any friends or Stafford SPCA supporters currently living in Alabama (Huntsville area idealy).

09/30/2024

This has to stop!!!

This 8 year old, poor, starved, terrified female pittie was dumped on the Stafford SPCA hill. She was tied to a tree without food and water. A note was left on the ground, in the rain. The little girl shredded the note. No phone call, no email, no appointment, no surrender form, no health history, nothing about shots & vaccinations, absolutely nothing to work with, etc. Strictly a dump job.

If people think, that by dumping their pet at an SPCA, that they automatically get brought into our shelter, and into our program, they're wrong.

Abandoned animals (its a crime) are within the purview of Stafford County Animal Shelter (Stafford County Animal Control). We are generally required to turn all lost / stray / abandoned animals over to Animal Control for initial intake and custody.

While the Stafford SPCA is a no-kill shelter, we are a closed access facility. When our shelter and foster homes are maxed out, we don't take in anymore animals, until we have room.

Many people think, that if they dump their pets at an SPCA, that their pets now get the "No Kill, get whatever they need, the SPCA pays for all Vet care, food, housing, provides for all their needs, etc." NOPE.

We don't get a dime from the County, the State or the Federal Government. We don't receive a penny of Government support at all. We bring in the # of animals that we can afford to take care of based on donations, adoption fees, and other revenue sources. People don't get to dictate how many animals we care for, and we're usually at capacity.

We have policies in place regarding animal intakes to keep our custodial animals, staff, volunteers, guests, and everyone's personal animals safe. That includes not bringing stray, potentially sick, contagious, aggressive, unknown animals into our facility.

This is the 2nd dump job in the past week. Vehicle descriptions and tags are being provided to Law Enforcement. Deputy Brooks from Stafford County Animal Control (540) 658-7387 did a nice job coming to our facility and was able to get the scared (and starved) pup loaded up without incident or injury. I encourage the owner of this dog to contact Animal Control directly, surrendwr the dog legally and properly, share her health & vaccination history, and help shorten the amount of time that the pup has to spend in doggy jail.

Abandoning animals is a crime, and should be treated as such.

Bill

09/08/2024

Injured dog found near Brooke & Maplewood in Eastern Stafford County. Picked up by Stafford County Animal Shelter. Please share in the hopes that the family can be contacted.

08/17/2024

# # # FOUND DOG REPORT - WIDEWATER - North Stafford # # # Saturday 08/17/2024

08/17/2024

# # # Stray / Found Cane Corso - Celebrate VA Parkway !!! # # # Saturday morning 08/17/2024

08/16/2024

$$$ Employment - Quickbooks $$$

The Stafford SPCA is currently looking to hire someone with extensive QuickBooks (Online) experience, both to clean up previous years (former staff slop), as well as to do routine and ongoing bookkeeping going forward. Candidate will work with SPCA accountant for reporting purposes. Experience with Non-Profit organizations is preferred (not a huge difference at this level, but increasingly important as we grow again).

Please contact [email protected] or call (571) 946-0931.

08/15/2024

# # # EMERGENCY FOSTER HELP NEEDED # # #

Tonight we received an emergency foster request from our friend and sister shelter Nicole, at Petty Pawz rescue. She has an adopter that wants to return a dog IMMEDIATELY, after almost a year. The chief complaints are: too much energy, chewing, shedding (?) and basically being a puppy. She is about a year old, roughly 50 , and described as being good with children and other dogs.

She is spayed, chipped, and vaccinated. The ideal foster will have a fenced yard with LOTS of room to run, and other dogs to match her play energy.

Please contact Nicole directly at (540) 287-7662 or [email protected]

08/13/2024

♡♡♡ Bam Bam is home SAFE ♡♡♡

WET, MUDDY, STINKY, BUT SAFE!!!

# # MISSING DOG REPORT # # #

Black dog - Named Bam-Bam, went missing from his yard at 58 Drummers Cove (Marlborough Point / Aquia Landing area) around 8AM, today, Tuesday Aug 13. He is chipped. He is wearing a blue collar with "Diesel" on it (a sibling) but the # is correct. If you see the pup, please contact me directly at (571) 946-0931. Bam-Bam was adopted from the Stafford SPCA and we want to do everything we can to help get him home.

08/07/2024

Loki is giving us the stink-eye because his curtains don't match. He says all the cool-kids have curtains that fit their windows properly.

☆☆☆ Sewing help needed ☆☆☆

We received as donations, and purchased, a wide variety of curtains for all 20+ animal rooms at the shelter. Most of the curtains are too long, and end up on the floor, get messy, the dogs pull them down, the cats climb them, or they are too long for the window perches in the kitty rooms.

We are putting in stronger 3 bracket rods, but we really need someone with a strong sewing machine, and the skills, to help hem up all of the curtains. It will keep the rooms looking neat, and help with extreme temps in our 100 year old building.

Please email [email protected], or call (571) 946-0931 if you are able to assist. We can absolutely, pawzatively, guarantee lots of Loki kisses 💋 as a reward.

07/28/2024

Lost dog - Brooke Area of N/E Stafford. Please post any info, and contact the OP directly.

06/20/2024

☆☆☆ Urgent Plea from Stafford County Animal Shelter ☆☆☆

Please adopt, foster, volunteer, donate, cross post, share, and help move some of these pups to safety !!!

🚨 URGENT PLEA FOR HELP 🚨

We at Stafford County Animal Shelter are reaching a breaking point. Our resources and staff are exhausted, and we desperately need your help.

💔This month alone, we’ve had a record 32 dogs surrendered to our shelter in just 20 days.💔

In addition, this month we’ve housed 23 stray dogs, with only 18 being reunited with their owners so far. In total, this leaves us with 57 dogs currently in our care - 41 of them are available for adoption.

This situation is unprecedented and simply not maintainable. Despite reaching out to our community countless times in the past few months, we find ourselves in an even worse situation each time we catch a glimpse of relief and the fact is, we are now at a breaking point.

We are NOT a no-kill facility. The harsh reality is that without immediate assistance, we are running out of options for these loving animals who deserve a second chance.

If you or someone you know is looking to adopt a dog or if your organization can help, we implore you to please step forward. Your help can make all the difference. Come rescue one of our many dogs and give them the loving home they so desperately need. 🐾❤️

Until further notice, we will be taking surrenders on an emergency only basis. Additionally, adoption fees will be waived for the remainder of the month.

Please share this post and help us spread the word.