June 30, 2004 – The Animal Care Center of St. John has $30,000 in its coffers thanks to the June 13 Wagapalooza.
"We are ecstatic with what the overall event accomplished for the ACC this year, both monetarily and as an organizational feat," Betty Gerhard, ACC board president, said.
She said that expenses ran around $8,000. This means the Animal Care Center has about $22,000 to spend on caring for its homeless cats and dogs.
The Animal Care Center spends about $25,000 a year on medical expenses, which includes funding a weekly spay and neutering clinic for feral animals.
"We've got to get down the overpopulation of the poor cats," Gerhardt said.
She said that people now know that the shelter, located near the Elaine I. Sprauve Library in Cruz Bay, provides this free service for homeless animals. This means that more people are bringing in ones they find near their homes for spaying and neutering.
"There was a pocket of 30 cats in Coral Bay. The place was overrun," she said.
The Animal Care Center recently became home to a 15-year-old cat that's blind in one eye and facing the end of her days. She was left locked in apartment when the owners moved away. Gerhardt said that the Animal Care Center needs someone to adopt the cat.
"All she wants to do is sit on your lap," she said.
She suggested that when owners can't care for pets any longer, they bring them to the shelter rather than leave them to their own devices.
Gerhardt said it costs about $10,000 a year to feed shelter residents, about $3,000 to pay the electric bill, about $2,600 for cleaning supplies, and another $1,000 a year for kitty litter.
Gerhardt said that half of the $30,000 was raised through the sale of t-shirts and pre-event sponsorships. The rest came from a photo contest and raffle tickets.
The event saw 60 dogs strut their stuff in an area behind Skinny Legs Bar and Restaurant in Coral Bay.
Additionally, a dozen kittens found new homes.
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