EARS Saves Over 1,000 Homeless Animals, Despite Pandemic

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Jan 14

EARS Saves Over 1,000 Homeless
Animals, Despite Pandemic

January 24th is “Change a Pet’s Life Day” … consider adopting an animal looking for its “furever” home, or donate to help Empire Animal Rescue Volunteers. care for them.

Guess who never gets to determine their fate, regardless of whether they are surviving a worldwide pandemic or not? Animals. Hit just as hard by the impacts of Covid-19, the Empire Animal Rescue Society (EARS) out of Salamanca, New York never stopped saving lives. In fact, they saved and adopted out over 1,000 homeless animals during what will likely go down as one of the most chaotic years in our lifetime.

“We are very proud of our rescue numbers, especially since all of the weight is carried on the backs of our volunteers,” said Courtney Valent, Co-Founder and President of EARS. Due to Covid-19, Courtney spent March through July rescuing alone, in addition to what she and the fosters were already doing. “It was a very lonely year in rescue, tough mentally and physically. The days were never ending.”

EARS is well-known locally and in surrounding areas for rescuing dogs and cats, but will rescue any animal in need, from horses to birds to lizards. “There really are few places for people to turn to when it comes to stray animals or rehoming pets,” Courtney said, “Even the Cattaraugus County SPCA in Olean asks people to call EARS to help, as they do not have the resources to help the number of animals in need in our area.”

When foster space is available, EARS also rescues animals from poor rural areas in dire need of assistance. Often times these are high-volume, open-intake kill shelters. “These animals are only given 3-5 days to live. Owner surrenders are killed first because they know nobody is coming to look for them. Strays have a five-day hold,” said Courtney. According to data collected in 2019, 625,000 pets were euthanized in American shelters, making the mission at EARS even that much more critical.

HOW DO THEY DO IT?

EARS operates solely through local volunteers who have full-time jobs and help with the animals when they can; they do not receive government funding. Volunteers foster, clean, wash bedding, clean carriers and crates, transport, and do office work such as applications and medical records. With that said, community support is vital.

Medical bills are exclusively paid for through adoption fees and fundraisers, with roughly $3,000 spent on average per week on veterinary care. Since there are so many homeless and unwanted pets, spaying and neutering is always a priority, and any animal that comes through the door is fully vetted.

EARS was hit hard due to Covid-19 and is seeking immediate donations. Courtney suggests ideas like hosting a dress-down day at your workplace or setting up a matching fund through your work in support of EARS. General donations can be made in a variety of ways, through PayPal (please select Friends and Family) at empirerescue@gmail.com, through Venmo @empirerescue, via USPS to EARS, P.O. Box 445, Salamanca, NY 14779, or by checking out their Amazon wish list for supplies under: Empire Animal Rescue Inc.

“We are also actively seeking a transport van, as ours does not have much life left. If anyone has any leads or connections to help us find something reliable and safe, we would greatly appreciate it,” said Courtney. The group also hopes to wrap the new EARS van with sponsors and logo information, and encourages any businesses interested in advertising to reach out to them.

Aside from private donations, EARS hosts various fundraisers to help with their medical bills. “Last year we had a yard sale where we collected items from the public to sell in order make much needed funds. We fundraise on social media, and individuals request memoriam donations to go to our cause for animal lovers they have lost,” said Courtney. Bags of cans can also be donated to their open account at Allegany Beverage in Allegany (across from Saint Bonaventure). Their mascot Louie is an EARS rescue pup who will likely greet you when you go in.

HOW TO ADOPT | HOW TO DONATE

EARS animals are housed in foster care and can be applied for online through their website at www.empirerescue.org. To see a list of available pets, go to empire.petfinder.com, and be sure to follow them on Facebook at facebook.com/empireanimalrescue. As the organization’s lifeblood, general donations are always needed and appreciated. Every dollar counts.

STORIES OF LOCAL RESCUES/SITUATIONS

“There is a case going on right now in Salamanca where the dog was so completely emaciated and starved he could barely walk. He was left tied up to a back porch in the summer sun with no food or water and left for weeks on end. These are the cases that haunt us. I am not sure how a human being could ever walk by an animal that looks like a skeleton day in and day out and do absolutely nothing. That poor dog had never been to a vet, yet they paid thousands of dollars to purchase him. It makes very little sense,” Courtney said.

She continued, “We just recently had another case just like this on the other side of town. This time a female dog who was SKIN and BONES. The collar that once fit her was hanging off her.

“Both dogs are safe now and are actively recovering, but a lot of damage has been done and they will never quite be the same. Humans can be very selfish and evil – we must speak for those who have no voice.”

Another rescue that happened in Salamanca was an extreme multiple cat rescue that The City of Salamanca Code Enforcers reached out to EARS for assistance on. They estimated there were 40 cats on premises. Only three were able to be caught without a trap.

“We started trapping on Tuesday and by Saturday we caught a total of 99 cats and kittens,” said Courtney. “They were coming out of the ceiling tiles and cupboards … we even found newborn baby kittens in the pullout bed in the couch. It cost us over $10,000 to vet those cats, which was a difficult task at the time. The sad part is someone was living in this house. People often think we only help pets in need but many times we save the people, too. We are all about prevention and preventing things like this from happening.”

PETS UP FOR ADOPTION