Volunteer for Corinne T. Smith Animal Center - DON’T JUST
COMPLAIN
The Corinne T. Smith Animal Center was created in Brown County
in 1974
and was originally called the Brown County
Humane Society. The first
shelter was built in 1975. The NON PROFIT
organization changed the name of the
shelter in
2006 to honor Corinne T. Smith. She was one of the original
organizers of
the Humane Society in Brown County and she
was the director for
almost thirty years. She dedicated her life to the animals
and the shelter. The
NON PROFIT organization felt that due to all her
hard work and dedication, it
would be an honor to name the shelter after
her memory. Another reason for the name change was that the original name
fostered many misconceptions in the community about
the shelter, mainly that
the shelter is a city/county office or supported by
Brown County.
This common
idea is not true. Corinne T. Smith Animal Center is a 501c3
non-profit organization, and not part of any city or county government.
The CTSAC has no affiliation to the Animal Control Office in Brownwood
or law enforcement or the
humane society. The final reason for the name
change was to reflect the changing
vision. The Corinne T. Smith Animal
Center is working hard to become an Animal
Center - a place that supports
the human/animal bond in a multitude of ways,
not just offering homeless
pets for adoption. Although pet adoption is still a
crucial part of the program
and currently the main part of the program, the
transition to an Animal
Center was in hopes of developing programs that provide
education, support
and recreation for animal lovers in the Brown County area.
However, this
change is taking a long time due to a lack of funding and
resources.
In 2006, along with the name change, Corinne T Smith Animal
Center
decided to expand the shelter. With funding from the city and generous
local donors, a 3,600 square foot building was erected to house more kennels
and pet facilities. The construction was
completed in 2009, and the intake and
adoption numbers continued to
grow as they expand their operations and causing
problems
implementing the vision. The CTSAC has outgrown the facility
due to
rising numbers of homeless animals. How can you help
Corinne T. Smith reach their mission?
There are
several ways to get involved!
Donate:
CTSAC is a NON PROFIT, 501 (c) (3) organization. They receive no
government funding or funding from any animal welfare groups.
They do not
receive funding from the Humane Society of the US or
the ASPCA. CTSAC is
entirely dependent on the kindness and
generosity of animal lovers in our
community. The donations
from community members help continue the life-saving
mission
for these homeless animals. Your support is desperately needed!
There
are links to donate at their
webpage http://www.ctsanimalcenter.org/donate.html
According to GuideStar In 2015 the CTSAC brought in
$281,400 through contributions,
grants and services.
However, the centers expenses totaled $291,728 leaving a
difference of $2908.00.
If you can’t donate money,
there are always items that are needed
at the animal center.
Wish list
· Cat food
· Dog food
· Laundry detergent
· Scoopable cat litter
· Bleach
· Dish detergent
· Adams or Frontline flea prevention products
· Copy paper
· Leashes and collars
· Toys/treats
· Kuranda dog beds
· Carriers and Crates
· Kiddie pools for Summer
· Dog bandanas
· Tarps or sheets to rig shade cover in the Summer
· Water misting toys
· Long garden hoses
· Blankets for Winter
· Portable heaters
· Dog sweaters
Foster
Pet foster parents treat our pets as their own until such time
as an adoption can be arranged.
There are many reasons why a pet might need a
foster home, but generally it is because
the pet has a medical or behavioral
issue that cannot be addressed in the shelter, or the
pet has been tagged for
rescue and needs a temporary place to stay until transportation
can be
arranged. As the Corinne T. Animal Center strives to become a no-kill
shelter,
(something they cannot do without more community support) one of the
things they
have learned is that no-kill shelters are able to do what they do
in large part because
space is not an issue; they have huge foster networks.
Corinne T. Animal Center has
very few foster homes right now, and if they want
these fuzzy little ones to survive to
adoptable age, we need some now.
If you are interested in fostering a pet, please contact the
Corinne T. Smith Animal Center
at (325) 646-0617 or send them an e-mail: info@ctsanimalcenter.org
Fosters must live within 30 miles of the Animal Center, and all
dogs or cats living on
the premises must be spayed or neutered. Fosters must be
allowed to have pets on the
premises, and if you are in the city limits of
Brownwood, you can only have up to four
animals over the age of 10 weeks on
your property. For cats, they can provide food
and a litter box if you don't
have any. Click here to fill out a foster
application
or go to the Corinne T. Smith Animal Center to complete the
application.
Volunteer
CTSAC always appreciates and welcomes your help at the Animal
Center! Volunteers
are the heart and soul of CTSAC. CTSAC has a wide variety of
volunteer opportunities
from working directly with the animals at the shelter,
to providing essential support for
the many new and upcoming programs . Volunteers who put in twenty hours or more
get a volunteer
t-shirt. For information about the volunteer program, call (325)
646-0617
or just show up
any Thursday afternoon at 2pm for a short orientation and get started!
Volunteers must be at least 18 years old, and CTSAC ask that volunteers work a
minimum
of five hours a month. That’s only 1 hour per week or you can do it in
one day or a couple
of days whatever you like! They just need help if the
mission programs are ever going to
get implemented!
Areas of volunteer opportunities:
Photography: the animals do not get adopted unless they have a picture on
our website that
really shows their personality. Many of the animals, when they
first arrive, are scared, and
their pictures often show this. If you are a good
photographer, you can take good pictures
of the animals for the website and
social media pages.
Animal Behavior: Animals are more adoptable when they are
housetrained and can follow
basic commands. Can you teach a dog to sit? Or
shake paws? These are things that make
dogs animals adoptable.
Public Relations: Interactions with the public are the gateway
to successful adoptions.
Can you answer questions about dogs and cats, or do
you have time to help us at an off-site
adoption event? Smiling, happy people
at our events means more cats and dogs get into loving homes!
Dog Walking: Exercise is the way to make a dog calm and happy. If you can
walk a dog
(or two, or more!), boy does the CTSAC need you! CTSAC will provide
the leashes, and
you provide your helping hands. There are dog treats and
picnic tables, plus plenty of outdoor
areas for dog walking volunteers.
Grooming: Dogs and cats need to be brushed and clean if they want to
make a good impression.
CTSAC has all the grooming stuff you'll need, including
shampoos and sometimes even hair ribbons!
Fixing Things: Goodness, seems like every day something
around the animal center stops
working right. If you are a handy person, you're
sure to find something to fix.
Cleaning Things: Cleaning is a constant exercise around here!
Web or Graphic Design: Help CTSAC educate our community about what
they do here by
creating flyers, helping in marketing campaigns, and/or helping
with the website and social media pages.
Something Else: There is definitely something for everybody!
Volunteer work of any kind looks great on applications and
resumes. If you are interested in
working with animals, it looks all the better
to volunteer with an animal shelter. CTSAC
challenges the young adults of
Brownwood to put in their hours working with CTSAC. The benefits
go way beyond
looking good on paper!
Benefits of Volunteering
· Solve Problems
· Strengthen Communities
· Improve Lives
· Connect to other like-minded people
· Transform Our Own Lives
