By JENNIFER LANG THE THORNHILL Animal Shelter has taken a tough new stance on the animal overpopulation pro- --blem, , .., No dog or cat has been adopted '. from the shelter since late January » unless it's been spayed or neu- tered first, ~The new rule is an effort to pur _ teeth in a ‘long-standing policy and it’s. designed to bite down on “the number of unwanted animals ~ roaming the streets. -- s Under the old system, new pet “owners were given vouchers that “were valid at local veterinarian offices. .. But ‘too many people forgot — . or simply refused ~ to have their ‘animals fixed, even though they'd in effect already paid for the pro- cedure, ~~ ©" Animal. control officer Angela Vanderboon says she has heard all ; the eXcuses. ~ “~She says many people agreed “in principle, but had trouble fol- lowing through with spaying or “neutering when it came to their own pel: _ She says it wasn’t uncommon for people to adopt cats promising _. .to‘have them fixed, only to bring ~in’a litter of kittens needing to find hames a few months later. ~~ But: people fail to recognize that failing to fix their animals can amount to a death sentence for their offspring. By making spaying and neuter- ing mandatory, the shelter hopes to drive the point home. “People need to realize ani- mals are not disposable,” Vander- boon says. The Thornhill shelter adopted 53 dogs. and 63 cats in 2002. Thornhill, which is considerably smaller than the one in Terrace, euthanized 80 dogs last year and 178 cats last year — that's fewer cats than the Terrace shelter had to put down, according to a new .teport comparing animal control services in the region. Staff recently placed a while marker board on the wall to keep track of the number of unwanted animals brought into the Thornhill shelter that ended up being put down. [t’s hoped the ongoing tally will act as 2 poignant reminder. The tough stance on spaying and neutering coincides with a huge hike in adoption fees and animal control fines designed to encourage people to fix their pets. It now costs a flat rate of $100 to adopt a dog and $80 for a cat —- whether or not it’s been fixed. New owners take the animals home only after their pets have visited the veterinarian. -New owners must pay an addi- tional deposit for puppies or kit- The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, April 9, 2003 - A3 SHEEBA the cat is a permanent resident of the Thornhill Animal Shelter. Sne’s the mascot. JENNIFER LANG PHOTO tens. They’ll get that money back once they provide proof that the animal has been fixed. It now also costs mere to spring your dog from the pound if it’s not spayed or neutered. Fees for impoundments, board- ing and dog licenses hadn’t in- creased in more than 20 years. The Kitimat Stikine regional district spent $120,000 on dog control in 2001, but fees. and charges brought in just $9, 000 i in revenue. Wal-Mart deal means shelter move THE CITY is moving its animal shelter to its public works yard on Graham in order to make way for Wal-Mart. The land-on which the shelter now sits will be sold by the cily to a development company __ -Wal-Mart uses and then combined with an ad- jacent privately-held parcel. If the development gets the go ahead, city officials say the pound will have to find a new home soon, possibly by mid-June, and no later than August. The city would receive $397,100 from the developer to relocate the animal shelter if the Jand-deal goes through, city development ser- _ vices director David Trawin said. _The city can use that money to move the animal, shelter office inside offices currently eye ‘By the’city's roads ‘did! draifidgevdepart- ment “Dog kennels would be constructed al the ) think I’m going to kick my feet up and relax on my new La-Z-Boy Recliner! HA very big thank to everyone who participated m & donated during the Totem Furniture & “thé: planzbécaise “aniininial back of the building facing the city’ s equip- ment yard to the south. Most likely the city wilt also build an inci- nerator to dispose of animal carcasses thal currently end up at the dump. About 100 cats a year and a handful cf dogs are euthanized each year. It would also offer the service to are resi- dents who want to cremate their pets and keep - their ashes. The incinerator could be used by the RCMP to destroy seized marijuana and sensitive files. Banks might also want to destroy documents there. “We feel we can make about $20, 000 a year,” Trawin said. - There is no need to hold-a: public hearing-oa ted under the public works property’s current zoning. So, Terry Hawman — Now that you've just won ihe J La-Z-Boy Recline-A-Thon 2003 Challenge, what are_/ ,you going to do now? Terrace eS) ANDARD & ' pitsel rem Photo? Did you see a photo in the paper that you want a copy of? The Terrace : Standard along with a: > Northern Photo Ltd. now provides this service. Come. into our office located at 3210 Clinton Street and indicate the photo of your choice and size. : te pit art Other sizes available. : 4 x6 5 x7 Phone for pricing. Price includes printing fee fram Northern Photo andl purchasing fee from the Terrace Standard. © All photographs ore copyrighted Ie the Terrace Standard. "(Notes 90% of photos taken ara digital photos “ot high oily jpeg. Black ond white prints relia onal lable trom black ond white negatives.) northern photo. "Your Headquarters For Digital “Cameras And Digital maging Services" ! oat 4-47.36 Lokelsa Avenue era STANDARD Ph: 638-7283 ae Mes w 5 s vn ats ~ahélter. ig ‘permits... The animal shelter would have a separate entrance on the building's east side. Additional landscaping would provide a buffer to adjacent properties. “From our purposes, it makes sense,’ Tra- win said. The move will save the city $15,000 a 1 year, he said.. Right now, one employee works at the shel- ter during operating hours — which isn’t safe or practical. “Realistically, we should probably have two people there but we can't afford il,” said. . Meanwhile, discussions with the Kitimat- Stikine regional district over the future of the Thornhill Animal Shelter with the one in Ter- race continue, :$ Se Poe om If a mutually beneficial ‘plan cat’ be-de-" vised, the two shelters could be merged. “THE MOST SERIOUS MOUNTAIN DEEP SNOW SLED EVER” *Titanium Suspension & Drive Springs ©162” x 24” Deep Snow Track *Lightest ever in its class *Produces 150 Hp. ethepen catrars ue News In Brief More sign up at Skeena NEW SKEENA Forest Products has signed a la- bour deal with its office and technical employees at its Prince Rupert pulp mill. Local 1712 of the BCGEU ratified the six-year Fresh Start agreement, which is in line with the one signed by Pulp and Paperworkers of Canada- organized workers last summer. Like the deal with the pulp workers, this latest agreement cuts wages and benefits in exchange for a share of profits. [WA members al the company’s Terrace sawmill have so far been unable to reach a deal. 1-800 SARS number set up by health officials THE NORTHERN Health Authority has set up a 1- 800 number to give information on (Severe Acute Respiratory) SARS. It is toll free - at 1-888-990- SARS (7277) - and will be staffed from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday. Information on SARS continues to be available on the NHA webd- site, at www.northernhealth.ca, And the BC HealthGuide NurseLine is also available 24-hours-a-day for anyone in B.C. con- cerned they have symptoms of SARS or may have been exposed to someone with SARS, That num- ber is 1-866-215-4700. The BC HealthGuide Nurse- Line offers translation services in 130 languages. As of late last week, the Northern Health Au- thorily did not have any probable or confirmed cases of SARS, Emergency rooms have details on the infection control measures they. must imple- ment if a patient presents with SARS symptoms. The NHA has also provided information on the disease to physicians practising throughout the re- gion and has sent information notices te.the school district which has had them sent home by students. Locals clean out supply of face masks THE FEW respiratory face masks in Terrace stores quickly flew off the shelves as fear of a global SARS outbreak spread, merchants say. “We got cleaned out,” Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacist owner Steve Leong said April 4. Suppliers are promising new stocks, he said, but added it appears large shipments of the masks are being sent first to areas considered at greatest risk — such as the Toronto region. “They keep on saying we'll ship as soon as we can,” Leong said. Northern Health Care had also ran out of masks, - but received a fresh shipment of nearly 300 late last week. The masks are thought to provide some measure of protection against infection by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), a flu- like illness spread through droplets sneezed or coughed by an infected person, , a oeyery ie tudiodwcagsloua «i if Travel agents, here. teported: ‘some ‘LOrrace-pas~ i, sengers flying south took face masks with them. What Snowmobilings All About" Fax: 638- 8432 “Your Recreation Specialist” 4921 Keith Ave., Terrace, B.C. ' Phone 635-3478 ¢ Fax 635-5050