The Wisconsin Humane Society could use your help. Like nearly every organization in the country, the humane society is feeling the weight of the COVID-19 pandemic as it deals with canceled events, staffing shortages and economic uncertainty – all of which are difficult enough to navigate, even without the responsibility of caring for more than two hundred animals.
As of this morning, the humane society has 234 animals that it's trying to adopt or foster. It hopes to make a dent in that population today, when its Milwaukee campus is open from 12-8 p.m.
“It's really important that we lower that animal population, because like many companies and businesses we're working with a skeleton staff,” says Angela Speed, vice president of communications for the Humane Society.
As always, the coronavirus makes things a little more complicated. In compliance with federal recommendations to avoid gatherings of more than 10 people, the humane society will stagger entry into the building using text alerts. “We're asking for any people who are sick to please stay away, and that people don't stop by just to look at animals or visit," Speed says. "But if you are serious about adoption, we seriously need you.”
That's especially true for cats: The Milwaukee campus has more than 50 of them, many of which were recently rescued from a recent hoarding case in Racine. That means they're labeled as “hidden treasures,” and that they take a little while to come out of their shells (“They're experts at social distancing,” Speed says), but with love and patience these kinds of cats can become adoring companions.
And with social isolation measures in place for the foreseeable future, time isn't exactly in short supply these days.
“We hope those animals provide some comfort and solace to people who are housebound,” Speed says. “This is a great time to provide dog training, and it's safe to go outside and take dogs for a walk. It's also such a huge silver lining that our animal companions cannot contract COVID-19.”
For more information about how you can support Wisconsin Humane Society, visit wihumane.org/coronavirus. You can scout the human society's available animals at wihumane.org/adopt.