Tuesday, May 6
Lawrence Business Magazine LLC
Lawrence Business Magazine LLC
2013 Summer - Real Estate Issue

2013Q2 Non-Profit: Lawrence Humane Society

By on 287 Comments
Non-Profit: Lawrence Humane Society
| 2013 Summer | story by DAISY WAKEFIELD | photos by STEVEN HERTZOG |

kids

Some might think a successful humane society would strive to receive as many animals as can possibly fit into the facility for as long of a time as possible, so that the shelter is bursting through the seams with saved animal lives.

Dori Villalon contends that this is a fallacy and has spent the last two years as Executive Director of the Lawrence Humane Society (LHS) working toward a more efficient and effective shelter that counteracts an overfull population.

“It seems counter intuitive,” Villalon says. “But space and time are not our friends. The more time an animal has in our shelter, the more likely they are to get sick, suffer from depression, or even get to the point where they have to be euthanized. We have a philosophy of adoption driven capacity, which is still a novel idea for a lot of shelters. We want to practice responsible sheltering, rather than having a lot of animals warehoused in the shelter.”

This responsible sheltering means that animals are received, go through behavioral and medical assessments, receive necessary veterinarian or rehabilitation care, and are then placed into the adoption center, go into foster care, or are reunited with their families. Moving animals through the shelter, rather than keeping them indefinitely, is how the organization has gone from a 49% live release rate in 2010 to 85% in 2012.
As an open admissions animal shelter, the organization receives animals no matter the reason, health, behavior or prognosis. They receive strays, lost animals, animals being relinquished by their owners and animals removed from homes because of cruelty. They also receive animals as capacity allows from other nearby shelters that are overpopulated.
LHS is funded in part by a contract with the city and county to house stray or dangerous animals, which amounts to $300k. The rest of the slightly over $1 million a year budget is filled in with adoption fees, reclaim fees, donations and fundraising events. There are a few retail items for purchase at the shelter, but Villalon envisions being able to create other income in the future through services such as dog training classes. She has also changed the structure for adoption fees, which used to be more of a flat rate. Now, adoption fees are tiered by the demand and “cuteness factor,” which means that some adoption fees may escalate to $500 and may even ignite a bidding war between potential adopters.

“kidsA lot of money was slipping through at the table,” Villalon says. “If there is the willingness to pay a higher adoption rate for the cutest little fluff ball of a dog you’ve ever seen, then why wouldn’t we charge it?”

A full-time veterinarian was hired in July of 2012 to help increase the efficiency of operations. Before Dr. Jennifer Stone’s arrival, animals were being transported to varying vets around town for care, or waiting for the twice-a-week visit that a vet was making to the shelter. Now spaying and neutering, as well as other veterinary care, are done daily on-site. Villalon hopes to raise funds to get a second anesthesia machine to expedite the operations even more.

A software tracking system for each animal has replaced the old paper system. Each animal’s intake, vaccinations, spaying or neutering and fostering history are tracked through the software. This has allowed a means of measuring trends and average lengths of stay, which is 20 days.

The Humane Society relies heavily on community engagement such as volunteers, supply donations and corporate sponsorships. Both Hy-Vee stores in Lawrence hosted events for the shelter, raising cash and supplies donations and ending with bringing adoptable animals to the stores. Hills Pet Nutrition donates all the food needed for the shelter and sponsored a 2007 remodel and expansion. The Oread hosts the annual fundraising auction, A Pawsible Dream, which brought in $80K last year and is hoped to bring in $100K this year. And an average of 100 monthly volunteers help to play with kittens, walk dogs and foster animals to health.

“Lawrence is a very animal-centric town,” Villalon says with a smile. “I’ve never been at a shelter where more kids dedicate their birthday parties to raising supplies or money for us. When people have an awareness of animals, it’s a good thing, the luxury to have compassion for other living beings.”
The Humane Society’s improvements have not gone unnoticed. Villalon and her staff of 40 are among 50 shelters invited to participate in the 2013 ASPCA Rachel Ray $100K Challenge. The Challenge will reward the shelter with the highest percentage increase of animals re-homed during the months of June, July, and August over last year. LHS has set a goal of re-homing 1500 animals during the summer months, an increase of 120% over last year. A key mechanism that LHS plans to employ to reach this goal is using volunteers to transport animals to three shelters in Colorado that have the community capacity to re-home animals.

relays3Villalon is not content to just improve the local humane society. She has helped establish Pet Animal Coalition of Kansas with other shelter directors. The group plans to become a legislative voice for animal advocates, to educate other shelters and elevate the level care that animals receive.

“We are committed to not euthanizing friendly, healthy and treatable animals,” Villalon says. “There is never a limit on how long an animal can stay here, but the longer they stay, the more likely they are to get depressed or sick. So we want to get them into a home as soon as we can.” ■

Share.

Related Posts

287 Comments

  4. gvui on

    I was suggested this web site by my cousin. I am not sure whether this post is written by him as nobody else know such detailed about my trouble. You’re amazing! Thanks!

  11. gvui on

    Today, while I was at work, my cousin stole my iphone and tested to see if it can survive a 40 foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My apple ipad is now destroyed and she has 83 views. I know this is completely off topic but I had to share it with someone!

  13. gvui on

    Very nice post. I just stumbled upon your weblog and wished to say that I have truly enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I will be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again very soon!

  16. gvui on

    I’m not sure exactly why but this blog is loading extremely slow for me. Is anyone else having this problem or is it a problem on my end? I’ll check back later on and see if the problem still exists.

  17. Y2Mate on

    Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon everyday. It will always be helpful to read through content from other authors and practice something from other sites.

  21. xhamster.com on

    As I site possessor I believe the content material here is rattling wonderful , appreciate it for your efforts. You should keep it up forever! Best of luck.

  23. xhamster.com on

    The subsequent time I read a weblog, I hope that it doesnt disappoint me as a lot as this one. I imply, I do know it was my choice to read, but I truly thought youd have one thing fascinating to say. All I hear is a bunch of whining about something that you can fix if you werent too busy searching for attention.

  42. hiếp dâm tập thể on

    sex nhật hiếp dâm trẻ em ấu dâm buôn bán vũ khí ma túy bán súng sextoy chơi đĩ sex bạo lực sex học đường tội phạm tình dục chơi les đĩ đực người mẫu bán dâm

  46. xvideos.com on

    I don?t even know the way I ended up here, but I believed this put up was once great. I do not realize who you are but certainly you are going to a well-known blogger should you aren’t already 😉 Cheers!

  48. pornhub.com on

    I have observed that over the course of building a relationship with real estate homeowners, you’ll be able to come to understand that, in every single real estate contract, a fee is paid. Finally, FSBO sellers never “save” the percentage. Rather, they fight to win the commission simply by doing a strong agent’s work. In the process, they invest their money and also time to complete, as best they can, the responsibilities of an representative. Those assignments include getting known the home through marketing, delivering the home to prospective buyers, creating a sense of buyer urgency in order to trigger an offer, preparing home inspections, handling qualification inspections with the mortgage lender, supervising repairs, and facilitating the closing.

  50. xhamster.com on

    Hi, i think that i saw you visited my site thus i came to ?return the favor?.I am attempting to find things to improve my web site!I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!

  54. xhamster.com on

    I have realized some considerations through your website post. One other point I would like to convey is that there are several games available on the market designed specially for preschool age children. They involve pattern acceptance, colors, family pets, and designs. These normally focus on familiarization as opposed to memorization. This keeps little ones engaged without having the experience like they are studying. Thanks

  61. pornhub.com on

    Thanks for the auspicious writeup. It in truth was once a leisure account it. Look advanced to more delivered agreeable from you! However, how can we keep up a correspondence?

  64. xvideos.com on

    I was just seeking this information for a while. After six hours of continuous Googleing, finally I got it in your website. I wonder what is the lack of Google strategy that do not rank this type of informative websites in top of the list. Normally the top websites are full of garbage.

  75. xvideos.com on

    It?s onerous to search out knowledgeable folks on this subject, however you sound like you know what you?re talking about! Thanks

  76. xvideos.com on

    I just couldn’t depart your site prior to suggesting that I extremely enjoyed the standard info a person provide for your visitors? Is gonna be back often in order to check up on new posts

  81. xhamster.com on

    Somebody necessarily help to make significantly posts I would state. That is the very first time I frequented your web page and to this point? I amazed with the research you made to make this particular post amazing. Magnificent job!

  96. xvideos.com on

    fantastic issues altogether, you simply received a new reader. What could you suggest about your submit that you just made a few days ago? Any positive?

  105. free language learning on

    I like what you guys are up too. Such smart work and reporting! Carry on the excellent works guys I have incorporated you guys to my blogroll. I think it’ll improve the value of my site 🙂

  106. learning on

    Hello! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog. Is it hard to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty fast. I’m thinking about creating my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you have any points or suggestions? With thanks

  107. learners on

    I have mastered some new things from your web site about computers. Another thing I have always considered is that computer systems have become an item that each residence must have for some reasons. They offer convenient ways in which to organize homes, pay bills, search for information, study, focus on music and in many cases watch shows. An innovative approach to complete these tasks is with a notebook. These pcs are mobile, small, powerful and easily transportable.

  110. discover this on

    Generally I do not learn article on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very compelled me
    to check out and do it! Your writing taste has been surprised me.

    Thanks, quite great post.

  114. bokep penpuan on

    Awesome blog you have here but I was wondering if you knew of
    any forums that cover the same topics talked about in this article?
    I’d really like to be a part of community where I can get advice from other knowledgeable people that share the same interest.
    If you have any recommendations, please let me know.
    Thanks!

  115. live adult webcams on

    Its like you read my mind! You seem to know a lot about this, like you wrote the book in it or something. I think that you could do with a few pics to drive the message home a bit, but other than that, this is magnificent blog. A fantastic read. I will certainly be back.

  118. learn here on

    Nice post. I used to be checking constantly this blog and I am impressed!

    Extremely useful info specifically the last section 🙂 I take care of such info a lot.

    I was looking for this certain information for a very long time.
    Thank you and good luck.

  119. free cam girls on

    With every little thing that appears to be building throughout this particular area, all your points of view are relatively exciting. Having said that, I appologize, because I can not give credence to your whole strategy, all be it stimulating none the less. It looks to everybody that your remarks are not totally rationalized and in reality you are yourself not really wholly certain of the assertion. In any case I did appreciate reading through it.

  120. new language on

    I can’t express how much I admire the effort the author has put into writing this outstanding piece of content. The clarity of the writing, the depth of analysis, and the wealth of information offered are simply astonishing. His enthusiasm for the subject is obvious, and it has undoubtedly resonated with me. Thank you, author, for offering your wisdom and enlightening our lives with this exceptional article!

  121. check it out on

    Hello! I know this is kind of off topic but I was wondering if you knew where I could locate a captcha plugin for my comment form?
    I’m using the same blog platform as yours and I’m having
    problems finding one? Thanks a lot!

  123. learn here on

    My family all the time say that I am killing my time here at
    net, but I know I am getting familiarity every day by reading
    thes pleasant content.

  124. my free cams on

    Thanks for the strategies you write about through this site. In addition, several young women who seem to become pregnant usually do not even try to get medical health insurance because they are concerned they might not qualify. Although a few states at this moment require that insurers supply coverage in spite of the pre-existing conditions. Charges on these types of guaranteed plans are usually bigger, but when thinking about the high cost of health care bills it may be your safer way to go to protect a person’s financial future.

  129. additional info on

    Great work! That is the kind of information that are meant to be shared around the net.
    Disgrace on Google for no longer positioning this put up upper!
    Come on over and discuss with my site . Thanks =)

  133. browse this site on

    I’m truly enjoying the design and layout of your blog.
    It’s a very easy on the eyes which makes it much
    more pleasant for me to come here and visit more often.
    Did you hire out a designer to create your theme?
    Superb work!

  134. browse this site on

    Heya this is kind of of off topic but I was wondering if blogs use WYSIWYG editors
    or if you have to manually code with HTML. I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding know-how so I wanted
    to get guidance from someone with experience. Any help would be enormously appreciated!

  135. look at this now on

    I’m extremely impressed with your writing skills as well as with the layout on your
    weblog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it
    yourself? Anyway keep up the nice quality writing, it is rare to see a great blog like this one today.

  140. click over here now on

    Spot on with this write-up, I absolutely think this web site needs a great deal more attention. I’ll probably be back again to read more, thanks for the advice!

  141. read here on

    Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon on a daily basis.
    It will always be interesting to read through content from other writers and use something from their websites.

  146. free nude chat on

    I haven?t checked in here for some time because I thought it was getting boring, but the last few posts are great quality so I guess I will add you back to my daily bloglist. You deserve it my friend 🙂

  147. Wireless Butt Plug on

    Good ? I should definitely pronounce, impressed with your website. I had no trouble navigating through all the tabs and related info ended up being truly easy to do to access. I recently found what I hoped for before you know it at all. Quite unusual. Is likely to appreciate it for those who add forums or anything, site theme . a tones way for your customer to communicate. Excellent task..

  148. penis ring on

    Thanks for the strategies presented. One thing I should also believe is the fact that credit cards providing a 0 rate of interest often appeal to consumers in with zero monthly interest, instant acceptance and easy online balance transfers, nonetheless beware of the main factor that will probably void your 0 easy streets annual percentage rate and also throw you out into the terrible house rapidly.

  149. Male masturbation toys on

    Wow! This could be one particular of the most beneficial blogs We’ve ever arrive across on this subject. Basically Fantastic. I am also an expert in this topic so I can understand your effort.

  150. Men masturbators on

    Hello! Someone in my Facebook group shared this website with us so I came to look it over. I’m definitely enjoying the information. I’m bookmarking and will be tweeting this to my followers! Exceptional blog and wonderful design.

  151. additional resources on

    whoah this blog is fantastic i like reading your posts.
    Stay up the good work! You recognize, a lot of persons are looking round for this info, you could aid them greatly.

  152. check this out on

    May I simply just say what a comfort to discover someone that genuinely understands what they are
    discussing online. You certainly understand how to bring an issue to light and
    make it important. More and more people should read this
    and understand this side of the story. I was surprised that you aren’t more popular
    given that you definitely possess the gift.

  153. learn the facts here now on

    Woah! I’m really enjoying the template/theme of this blog.
    It’s simple, yet effective. A lot of times it’s difficult to get that “perfect balance”
    between user friendliness and visual appeal. I must
    say you have done a amazing job with this. Additionally, the blog
    loads very fast for me on Internet explorer.
    Excellent Blog!

  161. learn more here on

    Fantastic website. A lot of helpful information here. I am sending it to some buddies ans also sharing in delicious.

    And obviously, thank you to your sweat!

  163. find out here on

    Hmm is anyone else experiencing problems with the
    pictures on this blog loading? I’m trying to find out if its a problem on my end or
    if it’s the blog. Any responses would be greatly appreciated.

  164. additional info on

    Link exchange is nothing else however it is simply placing the other person’s blog
    link on your page at suitable place and other person will also do similar in favor of you.

  166. jazz club on

    magnificent points altogether, you simply won a new reader. What would you recommend in regards to your post that you made some days ago? Any certain?

  168. learn here on

    Hello, i feel that i saw you visited my site thus i came to return the favor?.I’m trying to to find things to enhance
    my site!I guess its adequate to use some of your concepts!!

  170. 파라존카지노 on

    Hello there! I simply want to give you a huge thumbs up for your excellent info you’ve got here on this post. I’ll be returning to your web site for more soon.

  187. live sex shows on

    Spot on with this write-up, I seriously believe that this amazing site needs a lot more attention. I’ll probably be returning to read through more, thanks for the advice.

  191. on sale on

    This excellent website truly has all the information I wanted concerning this subject and didn’t know who to ask.

  196. kitchen items on

    I must thank you for the efforts you’ve put in writing this blog. I really hope to view the same high-grade content from you later on as well. In truth, your creative writing abilities has motivated me to get my own website now 😉

  207. live video chat on

    Have you ever thought about adding a little bit more than just your articles? I mean, what you say is important and everything. But just imagine if you added some great pictures or video clips to give your posts more, “pop”! Your content is excellent but with pics and videos, this blog could certainly be one of the greatest in its niche. Awesome blog!

  211. webcam sex on

    I think other website proprietors should take this website as an model, very clean and magnificent user genial style and design, let alone the content. You are an expert in this topic!

  213. to read more on

    I do accept as true with all the concepts you have offered in your post. They’re very convincing and will certainly work. Still, the posts are very brief for novices. May you please lengthen them a little from next time? Thank you for the post.

  215. bounce house rentals Minnesota on

    Heya! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any issues with hackers?My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing a few months ofhard work due to no backup. Do you have any solutionsto protect against hackers?

  238. free webcam sex on

    Thanks for discussing your ideas here. The other issue is that any time a problem comes up with a computer system motherboard, people should not consider the risk connected with repairing this themselves for if it is not done right it can lead to permanent damage to all the laptop. It is almost always safe just to approach the dealer of a laptop for that repair of that motherboard. They’ve got technicians who may have an skills in dealing with mobile computer motherboard challenges and can get the right analysis and conduct repairs.

  240. modus penipuan ml terbaru on

    It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d most certainly donate to
    this brilliant blog! I suppose for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed to
    my Google account. I look forward to fresh updates and will talk about
    this website with my Facebook group. Chat
    soon!

  244. home solar water heater on

    I do not even know how I ended up right here, however I thought this put up
    was once good. I don’t know who you might be however certainly you’re going to
    a famous blogger if you happen to aren’t already.
    Cheers!

  248. Phone on

    Whats up very cool blog!! Guy .. Beautiful .. Superb .. I’ll bookmark your blog and take the feeds additionally?I’m satisfied to seek out a lot of useful information here within the post, we need work out extra strategies in this regard, thank you for sharing. . . . . .

  250. Phone on

    Pretty great post. I simply stumbled upon your weblog and wished to mention that I have really loved surfing around your blog posts. In any case I?ll be subscribing in your rss feed and I’m hoping you write again very soon!

  251. Phone on

    I’ve observed that in the world the present moment, video games include the latest fad with kids of all ages. Many times it may be difficult to drag young kids away from the games. If you want the very best of both worlds, there are several educational video games for kids. Great post.

  252. Phone on

    What i do not realize is actually how you are now not actually a lot more well-appreciated than you may be right now. You’re so intelligent. You understand thus significantly in the case of this subject, produced me in my view imagine it from a lot of various angles. Its like women and men are not interested except it is something to do with Lady gaga! Your own stuffs nice. All the time handle it up!

  254. 58win on

    What’s up, its fastidious paragraph on the topic of mediaprint, we all understand media is a impressive source of data.

  256. Solana Volume Bot on

    Greetings from Florida! I’m bored to tears at work
    so I decided to browse your website on my
    iphone during lunch break. I enjoy the knowledge
    you provide here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home.
    I’m surprised at how quick your blog loaded on my phone ..
    I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyways, great blog!

  257. 58win on

    Wonderful post however , I was wondering if you could write a litte more on this topic?I’d be very thankful if you could elaborate a little bit more.Thanks!

  262. F168 on

    What a pleasant YouTube video it is! Awesome, I liked it, and I am sharing this YouTube record with all my mates.

  264. F168 on

    Remarkable! Its actually amazing post, I have got much clear idea on the topic of from this article.

  273. điều hòa ô tô Mercedes on

    I used to be suggested this blog by means of my cousin. I’m no longer sure whether or not this publish is written by him as no one else recognise such special about my trouble. You are incredible! Thank you!

  275. F168 on

    You can certainly see your enthusiasm within the article you write.The sector hopes for even more passionate writers such as you who are not afraid to mention how they believe.Always follow your heart.

  278. F168 on

    You could definitely see your expertise within the work you write. The world hopes for more passionate writers such as you who are not afraid to say how they believe. Always follow your heart.

  280. F168 on

    They stop or slow the growth of bacterial cells by preventing bacteria from forming the cell wall that surrounds each cell.

  282. F168 on

    I wanted to thank you for this great read!! I certainly loved every bit of it. I have got you bookmarked to look at new things you post…

  286. CakhiaTV on

    Xoilac Tv Trực Tiếp đá Bóng đăng ký học tluĐội tuyển nước ta chỉ muốn một kết quả hòa có bàn thắng nhằm lần loại hai góp mặt tại World Cup futsal. Nhưng, để làm được như vậy

Leave A Reply