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About Us

About the St. John's SPCA

(Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)

The SPCA in St. John’s is one of seven branches in Newfoundland and Labrador.  It costs over $300,000 annually to operate our Shelter. We receive an annual grant of $12,000 from the City of St. John's and rely heavily on the kind support of people who make donations and support our fund raising events. We are not government funded, but exist through the kind support of many people who make donations and support our ongoing fund raising events. We have over sixty volunteers who work at the shelter to care for the animals and provide them with much needed T.L.C. Our shelter director is a volunteer who has faithfully maintained the operation of the SPCA for over thirty years. We have 5 full-time and 3 part-time staff.

Facility

The SPCA Lady Dunfield Memorial Shelter houses cats and dogs that are lost, stray, unwanted, or abandoned. We do not have proper facilities to house other types of pets. We have two dog areas, and four cat units. We can comfortably hold approximately 20 cats and 12 dogs at one time. We try very hard to provide a positive and healthy environment for our animals to stay in.

We get dozens of requests daily from owners who are unable to keep animals and would like to bring them to our shelter. Adult animals familiar with a home become very upset in a shelter environment. We attempt to place as many animals as possible in loving homes without actually bringing them through the shelter doors.

Our aim is to promote responsible pet ownership. We encourage animal owners to register their pets with tags at their City or Town council office or animal control facility. Appropriate means of identification enable lost animals to be returned home much more quickly.

Proper Pet Care

There are many aspects of proper pet care. Spaying or neutering your pet decreases the chance that they will become lost, helps control the production of unwanted litters, and can have physical and behavioral benefits to your animal. By having your pet “fixed”, so they can not produce young, you can decrease their risk of developing some types of cancer. Many behavioral problems, such as a male cat spraying in the house, can be eliminated by neutering him at the appropriate age.

Another important aspect of proper pet care is yearly vaccinations. Vaccinations are very important to the longevity of your pet’s life. In Newfoundland, we have had a particularly high rate of Canine Parvo virus. There are many benefits in vaccinating your animal, as a kitten or puppy, and throughout life.

Animals require a great deal of time and attention to become well balanced members of your family. There is more to owning a pet than feeding them on a daily basis. They require a family commitment to be cleaned up after, exercised, brushed, and loved.

 

Mandate

The mission of the SPCA is to relieve the suffering of animals by educating people to treat animals with the love and respect they deserve. Through education we promote responsible pet ownership and encourage spaying and neutering.

History

There has been a Newfoundland Society since 1888. The first work in those days was mostly amongst horses, and the hardship they endured from pulling heavy loads up steep hills from the harbor.

For many years, the St. John’s SPCA operated without a physical building. Hundreds of animals found shelter and were cared for by a very compassionate lady, Mrs. Hilda Smith (a university professor) until a home could be found.

It was in 1972, that the SPCA acquired an old converted dentists’ office on RCAF Road to accommodate the animals in its care. This building initially lacked running water and electricity. For more than twenty years, the dedicated volunteers did their very best and helped many animals.

In 1993, our new Shelter, The Lady Dunfield Memorial Animal Shelter on RCAF Road became a reality as a result of the efforts of the Late Lady Sybil Dunfield, the wife of a former Justice of the Newfoundland Supreme Court. She organized a group called the Animal Shelter League and through fund-raising teas, card parties, etc., she and her friends collected enough money which was then invested for the specific purpose (and no other) of building a new shelter when needed and the money had been in trust all that time.

 

 

Board of Directors
2006 – 2007

David Buffett – President
Olga McWilliam-Benson – Vice President
Debbie Powers – Shelter Director & Special Constable
Cyril Elliott – Treasurer
Terry Pike – President SPCA Foundation
Lynn Cadigan – Recording Secretary
Carolyn Hickey – Correspondence Secretary
Elizabeth Crosbie – Membership Coordinator
Dr. Monique Brison - Director
Dr. Dan Quinlan - Director
Jacky Petrie - Director
Erika Pittman - Director
Kelly Johnson - Director

 


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