Two Dakin sites offer different services

By Cris Carl
Staff Writer

Published on September 07, 2007

Beginning this week, the Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society is reshaping its operations.

Since a merger last year, the organization has operated full-service animal shelters in Greenfield and Leverett. Now it will divide operations, using the Greenfield site for rescue and rehabilitation and the Leverett program for pet adoptions.

Pat Ford Yurkunas, the agency's director of development, said Tuesday that since the two shelters merged last fall, the goal has been to operate one facility.

"The merger was to strengthen the organization," said Yurkunas. "It made no sense to have separate plans and separate campaigns but essentially serve the same people."

<h4>Better service</h4>

Both Yurkunas and Leslie Harris, the executive director, said separating functions will better serve the cause of caring for over 2,000 pets a year.

"For example, having an animal-care manager going back and forth between facilities was sometimes impossible," said Harris.

Harris said that for reasons she doesn't understand, more adoptions take place in Leverett than Greenfield, so the Leverett site - original home of the Dakin animal shelter, became the logical choice for that service.

"We want to make sure everyone understands we're not closing anything down," said Harris.

In fact, the Leverett site will now be open seven days a week and be the primary providers of customer service and will function as a clearinghouse for all calls.

The Greenfield site, at 155 French King Highway, will now be exclusively a rescue and rehabilitation center and will be open by appointment only. It is state-certified as a quarantine site.

The site will serve rescued animals by giving vaccinations, performing surgeries, doing spaying/neutering, offering behavior assessment and allowing the animal time to adjust to the shelter environment.

All animals needing treatment for illness or injury will be treated there. The rehabilitation staff will also work with animals that have behavior problems, to help prepare them for a successful adoption.

Once an animal is prepared, it will make the transition to the Leverett adoption center at 163 Montague Road.

"This also helps the animals adjust without having the commotion of people visiting," said Harris. She said the new system will make things less confusing for customers as well.

"Sometimes people had to travel back and forth (between sites) if the animal needed additional care before adoption," said Harris. "Now every pet will be a healthy, neutered pet ready for adoption."

The Leverett staff will offer assistance with the cost of neutering/spaying, advice on common pet behavior problems and helping to make good adoption matches.

The agency, even before fully merging, began to search for a site to build a larger facility to house not only shelter animals, but its educational programs.

A site in Deerfield fell through over zoning issues in 2005. Recently, the organization has been looking at a site in Sunderland, at the rear of Bub's Bar B-Q on Old Amherst Road.

The site is approximately 11 to 12 acres and is owned by the Cowl's Companies lumber business. "We're still in negotiations. We're constantly moving forward with building plans," said Harris. "But that doesn't mean everything else we do stops."

Yurkunas said it is still being determined how much of the property can be built upon.

The adoption center in Leverett will be open Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from noon to 5:30 p.m.; Thursdays from noon to 7:30 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

For more information, call 548-9898, the number of the Leverett site.