Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.
Cats and kittens are living in comfortable new surroundings at Montclair Animal Shelter, formerly known as PAWS. The feline interns are all out of their cages (except sick ones) enjoying freedom to play, run, climb, crawl and socialize in two open rooms. "They're happy," says Lindsay, the attendant on duty yesterday.
Shelter Director Melissa Neiss says the town asked MSU students in the Industrial Design program under Prof. Denis Feigler, PhD, to submit ideas for cat-friendly habitats. One of the winning plans is the basis for a '"streets of Montclair" decorated room - where adult cats hang out. A second design - a colorful kitty playground with its own playhouse - was chosen for the larger room housing rambunctious kittens. The student designs were provided free of charge...And on the doggy side of the building, there are two "hotel rooms" with blanket, mini couch, and lamp for dogs with special needs.
It's been a while since I nosed around the shelter; yesterday was my first visit since the township took over management of the facility. I was pleasantly surprised that at 3 p.m. the floors were immaculate, and there was a noticeable absence of any odors - of urine or worse.
The shelter would like to find foster homes for all of its occupants over the holidays. On Nov. 11, they are holding a free dog training seminar - more details, here.
"The shelter operating costs are being off-set by revenues from Nutley, Verona, and Glen Ridge, who receive animal control services from Montclair," says town manager Joe Hartnett. "The estimated operating budget for the year was $239,000, and we expected to bring in about $200,000 in income," Hartnett told Baristanet today.
"The demand for animal control services is huge, and next year we will be able to expand our animal control services. We expect to be turning a profit."
Hartnett added "we have a dedicated staff who truly care for the animals, and are very pleased with how things are running."
-- photos, Annette Batson
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Comments (14)
Smile. The animals look happy and well cared for and it doesn't cost the town and will even turn a profit (for you, ROC).
Time for my official over-the-top baristanet "commies are bad" post of the day.
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They should slap a harness on those cats and use them to pull the fire engines, saving the town big money.
*quietly trailing off*
Bike paths recycling trees and my tax bill grumble grumble grumble.
I had heard they were putting a lot of animals down, but hopefully, that was just rumor-based. These rooms look great! I can picture the big downstairs room with cats crammed into cages. A big improvement!
WOW! I could just cry...with joy for the animals housed in Montclair and frustration for those housed in Bloomfield. We give our animals much love and attention and work hard to get them the best homes possible, but so far nothing like this though we've dreamt about it for years. It's nice to see that Montclair at least considers its shelter an asset to the town. I can't say the same for Bloomfield officials, though it IS the most important thing to those of us who volunteer there. Maybe someday someone will get a clue and see the light. Until then...
Congratulations Montclair!
Congratulations Montclair fo having a newly decorated KILL SHELTER. I guess keeping the animals alive doesn't matter. What matters is the way the shelter LOOKS.
Better than the previous practice of allowing sick animals to roam free, infecting the healthy ones.
I look at these pictures and see happy, clean, well-adjusted, well-fed kitties in a beautiful, creatively-designed environment. Am I supposed to feel sad? What would be the alternative, Avoice? Having them roam the streets, starving, exposed to disease, the elements and predators?
Why don't we ask the Verona resident who could not get Animal Control to come for a stray cat who has a broken leg and is hiding in a window well what she thinks of the new shelter
Glad Verona is paying for ACO services and not getting them. PAWS is still helping the towns at large- incuding taking in a mom and 4 babies from this very same house where this new stray is injured.
It is very sad- and YES cats have been put to sleep-
PAWS did not allow sick cats to run free with well cats- any sick cats were admitted to the PAWS sick room-
But as long as the shelter looks spotless and does not smell, that is what matters-
cuddles, looking good and smelling good is not all that matters of course. I don't know what the Montclair ACO's do and can't comment on whatever happened with the Verona resident. Placing sick cats with well cats is a violation of state regs I believe. Animals being put down is a sad fact of daily life and will continue until the collective mindset changes re responsible pet ownership. It sucks and I hate it.
That being said, for the cats and dogs that are housed at the shelter this is a far sight better than having them cooped up in tiny stainless steel cages all day, just inches away from their food, water and litter pans. It looks as if Montclair took a rather creative, can-do approach to at least that area of shelter management. On that, congratulations are in order. All it takes is the will to make a difference, the commitment to that decision and some creativity.
What the Hartnett did to PAWS with the compliance of our green moron mayor and Wellerstein is an absolute disgrace. I wonder when we'll see the numbers of what the new if it looks good it is good shuck and jive phantom play that is now in existence compared to the 55k per year that the town stopped paying to PAWS. You won't see any dead cats in the fake montclair map room. PAWS was & still is no kill. Did you know that they are only open 1-3 3 days a week for adoption? Now we have a fully paid, pensioned, insured civil service Director, assistant blah blah blah that we will be paying for without any transparancy. Creative, can do? Yeah let kill all the sick ones as soon as it becomes a financial waste. This is from their own statement. Read it and reap you guillible dope.
Why so few doggy photos?
BTW, what the heck is the "rating" on comments? Does it really have any use?
PAWS always had two, count them two loose cat rooms.
So now if all are loose some cats are allowed to bully others.
Great!
Read it and reap you guillible dope.
Well, that's sweet. Thanks. But I'm no "guillible dope" (whatever that is). I was commenting on the rooms for cats and dogs. Period. I admitted I knew nothing about animal control or other shelter management issues. I specifically mentioned that compared to the Bloomfield animal shelter where I volunteer our cats and dogs aren't as lucky as those "housed" at the Montclair shelter.
I realize there is plenty of BS that goes on when dealing with animal shelters, especially municipal animal shelters. There's also a ton of BS that goes on with the volunteer groups (sometimes) that manage such shelters.
I assume you meant to call me gullible. That, whoever you are, I assure you I am not. Love the name calling though. I'm very used to that also.
I realize there is plenty of BS that goes on when dealing with animal shelters, especially municipal animal shelters. There's also a ton of BS that goes on with the volunteer groups (sometimes) that manage such shelters.
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Amen to that, Karen Banda!